I ran across a website that has a test for people to take in 15 – 20 minutes and it gives you immediate results on your main role and supporting role. It asks what you would do in certain circumstances – how you relate to people, etc. The author of the website was on Dave Ramsey recently. The site is http://www.stronglifetest.com/. Check it out.
Archive for the ‘Wellness’ Category
What is your role in life?
Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009Teaching Your Kids about Alcohol and Drugs
Friday, August 28th, 2009We all know that kids are influenced by what they see. The old “do what I say, not what I do” doesn’t work. A study came out recently that looked at the influence of a parent’s drug and/or alcohol use and their children’s drug and/or alcohol use.
Compared to teens who have not seen their parent(s) drunk, those who have are more than twice as likely to get drunk in a typical month, and three times likelier to use marijuana and smoke cigarettes, according to the National Survey of American Attitudes on Substance Abuse XIV: Teens and Parents, the 14th annual back-to-school survey conducted by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University.
“Some Moms’ and Dads’ behavior and attitudes make them parent enablers—parents who send their 12- to 17-year olds a message that it’s okay to smoke, drink, get drunk and use illegal drugs like marijuana,” said Joseph A. Califano, Jr., CASA’s chairman and founder and former U.S. Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare. “Teens’ behavior is strongly associated with their parents’ behavior and expectations, so parents who expect their children to drink and use drugs will have children who drink and use drugs.”
For more on the study check out this link or download a free copy of the study with this link.
Besides influencing our kids, remember that a regular 12 oz beer is at least 140 calories and an 8 oz glass of wine is at least 160 calories. And who needs the extra calories??
Are You Getting Enough Vitamin D?
Friday, June 5th, 2009A recent report in the Archives of Internal Medicine reports that as many as 75% of Americans may not be getting enough vitamin D. Your body produces vitamin D when it is exposed to the sun. But Americans are getting less vitamin D, in part because we have been told to cover up to avoid skin cancer.
Vitamin D may help ward off a whole host of illnesses including cancer and heart disease. Studies have found that increasing vitamin D intake reduces the risk of colorectal cancer, hip fractures, tooth loss and significantly increases muscle strength.
As you get older your skin’s ability to produce the vitamin declines as does your kidney’s ability to convert vitamin D into its active form.
Some doctors are recommending 10 to 15 minutes of sun exposure a few times a week. If you don’t go out much, consider a 1,000IU vitamin D daily supplement. Milk is often fortified with vitamin D but if you aren’t a milk drinker you aren’t getting it that way. To get the vitamin D value of 10 minutes exposure to sunlight you would have to eat the following:
150 egg yolks
30 servings of fortified cereal
30 cups of fortified orange juice
3 3/4 pounds of salmon
A little bit of sun sounds better to me!
April Is IBS Awareness Month
Wednesday, April 1st, 2009Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is also called spastic colitis, spastic colon and irritable colon. It is one of the more common gastrointestinal disorders and affects 10 – 15% of the general population in the US. While it is not a “disease”, it is a functional disorder with a collection of symptoms: abdominal cramping, bloating, gas, diarrhea, and/or constipation. The severity of the symptoms may differ on a daily basis. No one knows what causes IBS.
Some relief can come from avoiding situations, which trigger the condition, such as managing your stress level, eliminating foods in your diet that may provoke symptoms, such as dairy products, caffeinated drinks and fatty foods. Being aware of how some medications affect you may also prove helpful. Medication can be prescribed for the abdominal discomforts of constipation, diarrhea and pain.
If you experience any of these symptoms, it is important to visit your physician. There are many health problems which can occur with problematic intestinal symptoms. Presently, there is no cure for IBS, but if you take care of yourself and follow your doctor’s guidelines, you can minimize the symptoms.
For more info go to http://www.aboutibs.org or a support group at www.ibsgroup.org.
The Heart Matters
Friday, March 6th, 2009You hear the stories of young athletes suffering heart attacks and runners dropping dead. But don’t use those stories as an excuse not to exercise. The benefits of exercise far outweigh the risks. Most of the people in those stories had an undiagnosed congenital heart defect.
Your heart is a muscle and muscles need exercise. Regular aerobic workouts will keep your heart strong and efficient. Exercise expands the blood vessels around the heart which can save your life if a blood clot forms.
A sedentary lifestyle is a much greater risk than exercise is. When fat infiltrates your heart muscle it can interfere with electrical impulses which can cause arrhythmias or sudden death.
Your heart will not "wear out" from exercise. Regular workouts lower your resting pulse so at the end of the day a well-exercised heart will have beaten fewer times overall.
If you have heart disease, regular exercise is especially important. Follow your doctor’s recommendation for target heart rate based on your blood pressure, recovery time and electocardio response
Don’t be afraid to get your heart rate up a little. Exercise at a pace that allows you to maintain a conversation and as always follow your doctor’s advice.
Here’s to a happy and healthy heart.
For more on personal finance and wellness visit http://www.debtandmoneyinfo.com.
What It Takes To Lose A Pound
Thursday, January 15th, 2009You need to burn 3,500 more calories than you take in to lose a pound of fat. If you set a goal to burn 500 calories more than you consume each day you should lose a pound a week. If you burn 250 extra calories by exercising and eat 250 calories a day less you can also accomplish the one pound or 3,500 calories a week.
What are some ways to burn those 250 calories? What are some ways to cut back 250 calories?
Walk at a 3 mph pace for 60 minutes
Walk up stairs for 27 minutes
Play tennis for 27 minutes
Cut out 1/2 cup ice cream
Cut out 1 donut
Cut out 1 small order of french fries
For more information on calories visit http://www.calorieking.com/
For more information on activity visit america on the move
Top 10 New Years Resolutions
Monday, January 5th, 2009The following are the Top 10 New Year’s Resolution categories… those items most likely to show up on ‘the list’. Have you ever thought about the idea behind setting resolutions… a new year thus a time for new direction in your personal life? Do you make resolutions… do you keep them… do you get a bit depressed when you don’t?
- Be Healthy: Welcome this never experienced New Year with a resolution of getting in shape and being healthy and fit. A dieting plan, teamed with regular exercise, is the key to shed those extra calories and get to be in perfect health throughout the year. Make a resolution to be healthy and then feel the difference of glowing health.
- Spend More Time with Family: Make that little difference with your presence amidst your family and dear ones. Make a resolution to spend more time with your family and bring back the joy of bonding to your life.
- Quit Smoking: Shake off the bad habit of smoking and say goodbye to the costs and negative impact on your health. Make a resolution to quit smoking and feel the pleasure of a smoke-free world.
- Quit Drinking: Why not greet the New Year with a resolution to quit drinking and lead a healthy life. Leading a sober life can be very fulfilling
- Enjoy Life More: Get out of the stress of daily chores and enjoy the spirit of living an easy life. Make a resolution to enjoy life more to get the maximum pleasure out of the New Year.
- Get Out of Debt: Make this year the start to a debt-free year. Repay all your debts and start saving beginning this year. Take the pledge of getting out of debt to mark this New Year with financial security.
- Learn Something New: Have you vowed to learn something new this year? It will help you in every way, be it to improve your career or your personal life. Make a pledge to learn something new this year and enjoy the difference new knowledge makes.
- Go on a Vacation: Get out of the drab chores of routine life. Make a resolution to plan a vacation that makes this year significantly diverse from past years.
- Help Others: Lets’ make a popular and non-selfish resolution of helping others. There are lots of others who can use your help.
- Get Organized: Let’s take this New Year seriously and make a vow of getting more organized… it simplifies your life.
Anything above stimulate something specific that you’d like to act on? In the potentially tough year to come, some of them have added economic value. In business, we’d consider these as annual objectives, so I challenge you to think of resolutions more like goals… something to move towards, with a plan, knowing that plans do not always become accomplished 100%. This removes the stigma of “failing” to keep a resolution, but showing progress towards the objective. And remember what gets measured gets inproved – track you progress.
What’s In Your Cart?
Friday, November 28th, 2008We have all heard the Capital One commercials on "what’s in your wallet", right? I like to ask the question, what is in your cart? Do you like to people-watch? I do. Especially in the grocery store. I like to look at what is in people\’s shopping carts. It can tell you a lot about the person and family.
Yesterday I went grocery shopping and the family after me at the checkout stand had a cart full of 24 pack sodas and frozen food – pizzas, burritos, dinner trays, etc. There were no fresh meats, fresh fruits and vegetables, milk or juices or bread. There wasn’t even any canned or frozen fruits and vegetables. It was enough food for a family for a week. It didn’t look like it was for a party that day or anything like that.
I know sometimes it is hard to cook after working or taking care of kids all day and there are times I use prepared foods for ease of convenience but it shouldn’t be the daily staple. According to www.mypyramid.gov published by the USDA, you should have the following each day if you are on a 2,000 calorie diet:
6 ounces of grains (half of them whole grains)
2 1/2 cups of vegetables\r\n2 cups of fruit
3 cups of low-fat or fat-free milk products or lactose -free products
5 1/2 ounces of meat, poultry, fish, beans, peas, nuts or seeds
Next time you go to the grocery store remember to think about "what’s in your cart?
Create a Plan For Your Life
Friday, November 7th, 2008In order to reach what you want in life (whether it is in terms of personal development, business, wellness, self-help, spirituality, financial management, etc) you have to develop a plan and set goals. Here are some valuable rules for setting life goals:
Until its written down, it is not a goal – it is a slogan. Write your goals down. Make a list. I love lists. Make sure your goals are specific, measurable and provable. List the details. What will you do. By when will you accomplish it? How will you know you made it?
Take immediate action on your goals so that you start movings towards them. Get started within 48 hours.
Once you have written down your goals, put them someplace where you can see them everyday. Put them on your bathroom mirror, your refrigerator, your automobile steering wheel.
Share your goals with someone that you love and trust. Verbalizing your goals to another person makes them more entrenched in your mind and the other person can may be able to help keep you on track. Develop goals that fit in with your values. What is important to you? Is it security, independence, freedom, helping others, helping family, happiness….. Review your goals at least every twelve months. Are you on track? Do you need to adjust, redefine?
Remember, if you always do what you always did, you will always get what you always got! Reach for the stars.
