Look and Feel Better – Instantly!

Want to be more attractive? You can instantly look and feel better by one simple trick. It’s all about posture!

Stand, Walk,  and Sit up Straight

Walking with great posture shows confidence, while walking or standing with a slouch just looks frumpy and simply unflattering. You aren’t a caveman, so don’t walk like one!

You shouldn’t toss good posture out the door once you sit down. When you are sitting down, it’s important that you keep your feet flat on the ground and sit up straight instead of slouching. Not only will this not scrunch up your stomach to make you look like you have extra belly fat, but it will prevent you from feeling pain in your lower back.

Tips for better Posture

•Imagine there is a string on the top of your head, and someone is pulling on it and pulling you up. This is a visual that is commonly used to help with encouraging good posture. I remember taking a Dance class and this was a common technique used to prevent us from slouching.

• Strengthen your core, which helps support the spine for better posture. The muscles in your abdominals help support your back, so try doing the plank or other exercises that strengthen your abdominals.

• Avoid toting a heavy purse or bag. Heavy purses cause too much weight to be on one side of the body. It would be helpful to switch what side you hold your purse, so you don’t cause to much stress on one side of your body. If you use a backpack, make sure that you are wearing it properly, and it isn’t hurting your back, neck, or shoulders.

• If you are sitting for long periods of time, use a chair that is ergonomically designed for better support.

• Have someone remind you if you are slouching. This way, you can correct your posture immediately.

This means that not only will you look better, but you will feel better too!

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Image Source: iptmiami.com

Tags: Beauty, Health, lower back, pain, posture, sitting, standing, walking

Kendra Wilkinson-Baskett Loses 40 Pounds

Pregnancy Weight Gain

During Kendra’s pregnancy, her diet became a “free for all”.

” I had no boundaries. I just ate, ate, ate. I just said, ‘This is my time, these are my nine months, I can just have fun, how big can I really get?’ Sixty pounds! I gained 60 pounds!”  -Kendra Wilkinson-Baskett

After giving birth to her son in December 2009, Kendra soon tried to lose the extra weight.

Kendra, at only 5’4″, went from weighing only 105 pounds to reaching her maximum weight of 165 pounds after pregnancy. For someone with such a petite frame, it was no wonder that Kendra was shocked that she had gained so much extra weight in just 9 months.

Kendra’s “After” Photo:

How Kendra lost 40 Pounds

Kendra credits her weight loss to the following:

Eating Healthy – Kendra has cut out almost all junk food from her regular diet! She eats healthier foods, including healthy smoothies and she sometimes nibbles on her baby’s food.  Of course, you can make your own pureed foods for you and your baby!

Abdominal Cuts – Of course Kendra is crediting Abdominal Cuts for her weight loss! Why? Kendra promotes the company (also known as “Abcuts”)and gets paid for it. Actually, Kendra gets paid a lot for saying she credits this for her weight loss. Did Kendra actually use this to help her lose weight? Maybe. We will never know. What I do know is this: This fat burning pill is not the answer to your weight loss. If you really want to lose weight, do it the healthy way and you will keep it off!

Exercise - Kendra gets her exercise by taking regular walks and hitting the gym.

Kendra’s real weight loss “secret”?

Kendra said she stopped obsessing about her weight and the number on the scale.

Kendra said “The second I stopped obsessing  was the second I started to see results. I started to look good and feel good.”

It’s all about making the decision and focusing on what you really want, which is being healthy. Kendra credits a lot of her motivation for getting back into shape to her husband, Hank Baskett.

Congratulations to Kendra Wilkinson-Baskett for losing 40 pounds and making her health a priority again!

Image Credit: Kendra Wilkinson

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Tags: Baby, exercise, Fitness, gym, Health, Healthy, Healthy Eating, Kendra Wilkinson, Kendra Wilkinson-Baskett, Lose Weight, New Mom, no junk food, Nutrition, postnatal weight loss, pregnancy weight gain, walking, Weight Loss, working out

Never forget this Important Habit!

Working out on a regular basis is more than a way to lose or maintain weight. It’s a way of life.

Regular Exercise

Working out on a regular basis helps with many things. I will briefly discuss some of the many health benefits of working out on a regular basis:

•Drops  Insulin levels -High Insulin levels are dangerous since it is the root cause of Diabetes, High Blood Pressure, High Cholesterol, etc. Cardiovascular Exercise is a natural way to lower your Insulin levels.

•Treats Type 2 Diabetes - A couple of the possible side-effects of Diabetes is Heart Disease and Kidney Disease. Both are very serious conditions, and exercising on a regular basis (including a healthy diet) can greatly reduce the chances of having Diabetes.

•Lowers Blood Pressure – If you have High Blood Pressure, you are at risk for Heart Attacks, Strokes and even Kidney failure. High Blood Pressure can be caused by poor eating habits, lack of exercise, and abundant amounts of stress. To help lower your Blood Pressure, it is important to eat healthy (every day, not temporary!) and Exercise on a regular basis. I have personally found that when I am stressed, I need to have a good work out or else it will negatively effect my health.

•Lowers Cholesterol – High Cholesterol is dangerous because it is something that is seen after many years of poor eating and the effects can be quite serious. High Cholesterol causes a plaque buildup in your arteries which can lead to Heart Disease, Heart Attack, and Stroke. It was once believed that only those who were overweight suffered from High Cholesterol levels, but you can be “skinny” and still have high cholesterol. Like I have said many times before…the whole point of eating healthy and exercising is to be Healthy, not necessarily “Skinny”, because “Skinny” doesn’t always mean “Healthy”. Focus on what’s important here!

•Prevents Obesity – Being overweight and obese causes some serious health concerns. Many people suffer from Impaired Immune Systems, Liver Disease, Arthritis, Heart Disease, Back or Shoulder Pain, Stroke, Sleep Apnea, High Cholesterol, Cancer, Type 2 Diabetes, and the list goes on. These are all very serious issues that are all very preventable. Eat well and Exercise on a Regular basis!

•Treats Depression – You would be amazed how much exercising can help prevent and treat Depression! When you exercise, your body releases endorphins, which are a natural feel-good hormone. Ever heard of a “Runner’s High”? Go out for a run (or walk!) and notice how much better you feel! Bottom line: If you want to be Happy, go Exercise!

“I don’t necessarily believe that you need to take expensive medications to solve many health issues.  The root of the problems are usually because your body is lacking proper nutrition and exercise. Your body needs regular exercise, and most people don’t make the time to exercise as often as their body needs it. ”

~Twinkie

Where to Start?

You may not be able to run, but what about walking? If you can’t walk,  what about clapping your hands or moving your feet? You have got to start somewhere.  Stay consistent, and you will notice the results!

The best way to maximize your exercise regime is to have healthy, well-balanced meals. Your body doesn’t want or need processed sugars, fattening or fried foods- no matter how much you are craving them!

Now it’s time to go out and exercise!

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Tags: Anti-Depressant, arthritis, cancer, cholesterol, Depression, exercise, Fitness, Healthy, heart attack, high blood pressure, kidney disease, liver disease, Medication, natural, obesity, running, Skinny, Stroke, Type 2 Diabetes, walking, Weight Loss

3 Easy Tips on how to be Healthier today

You can be skinny in a number of different ways. To narrow it down, you can become Skinny by doing unhealthy things to your body (diet pills, drugs, anorexic, etc), or you can become Skinny by being Healthy (excercise, eating healthy, etc).  I try to focus my efforts on being healthy, which in the end is what is going to help my body resist deseases, illness, fatigue, depression- and be “Skinny”.

From my own observations, here are a couple of things you can get in the habit of, to help you become more healthy.

1) Replace your Soda with Water

The average 12 oz can of regular Soda has about 150 calories in it. Multiply that by how many cans of soda you drink aday, and it adds up. Even if you are drinking “diet” soda with 0 calories, that doesn’t make it healthy for you. Swap the Soda and other sugary drinks like juice for water. Your body will thank you.

2) Park your car far away from the store

Get some more walking in your day! Europeans are known for walking a lot, and Americans need to get in this habit as well. Walking is easy on the knees and body, so if you are physically able to, try to make excuses to walk more. Make sure with your added walking, you are wearing comfortable shoes that support your feet. This will not only be better for your body and it’s posture, it will help prevent aches and pains with your added walking and will help encourage more walking.  Every extra step counts!

3) Eat out less or not at all

Practically all fast food and restraunts are breeding ground to loads of saturated fats, oils, excessive sugars, and unhealthy sized portions. When you prepare food at home, you get to have more control on what you are putting into your body. Try to use Coconut oil rather than Vegetable Oil, use Honey or Agave to sweeten your foods rather than using  Sugar or Aspartame, and try to eat plenty of vegetables and smaller portions of meat on your plate.

You can start small. Start with these 3 simple steps that can help you in a big way.

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Tags: agave, coconut oil, drink water, Healthy, honey, Lose Weight, Skinny, soda, vegetables, veggies, walking, Weight Loss

Walk, Jog, or Run?

Is walking better for you, or is jogging? What about running?

Walk

Walking is a lot easier on your body than jogging or running, and if you have been out of the gym for awhile, walking is an excellent place to start. Walking is also a great cardiovascular exercise, and should not be looked at as an inferior workout to either jogging or running. Try to keep a steady brisk walk, and this is a great way for you to burn calories and lose weight.

Focus on walking correctly, get good comfortable shoes, breathe correctly, and work your way up to speed walking. If you have ever had a knee injury, you might want to stick to walking until you have fully recovered from your injury. Never feel like you have to go faster than what your body is ready for, or capable of.

With any other workout that you do, walking is also a great cool down.

Jog

If you like a short and intense workout, jogging might just be for you. Jogging takes less time for the same calorie burn and cardiovascular benefits compared to walking. Be sure that you have great shoes, and that you are jogging correctly. Jogging can be really hard on the knees and shins if you jog “wrong”, jog for a prolonged amount of time, or even if you didn’t properly stretch before or after your workout. Something important to also keep in mind, is to breathe correctly. It is important that you breathe in through your nose, and out through your mouth. If you need help practicing this, try walking until you can get the hang of things.

Run

Most people who say then went “running” actually went “jogging” instead.  Running is faster than jogging, and if you are on pace to finish a mile in less than 9 minutes, you are “running”. Just like walking and jogging, running is a great cardiovascular exercise, but takes much faster to burn the same amount of calories as it does for walking or jogging. Just know that this is an intense workout, and not for those just trying to get back to the gym. This is something you should work up to, but you don’t have to reach this point.

Which one is for me?

Do what is best for your body. Because I have had a knee injury in the past, I am not pushing myself to run, and I even limit the amount of jogging that I do. Am I depriving myself of anything? No. Whether you walk, jog, or run,  you are having a cardiovascular workout, burning calories, and getting a great exercise in. As long as you are properly warmed up and prepared, whether you walk for an hour, jog for 15 minutes, or run for 3 minutes, your body will thank you.

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Tags: breathe, burn calories, burn fat, cardio, cardio workout, cardiovascular, cool down, exercise, Fitness, Healthy, heart, injury, jog, jogging, knee, Lose Weight, quality shoes, run, running, running shoes, shin, Skinny, walk, walking