It’s that time of year again when we create lofty goals for ourselves that are virtually impossible to meet. Avoid the self-recrimination that you’ll undoubtedly feel in a few months, and resolve just to do the best you can. Whether your goal is health-oriented, altruistic or family-oriented, you’ll feel better…
There are those dieters who believe that skipping meals will actually kick start the weight loss process. But experts know better — bypassing breakfast, lunch or dinner is actually the quickest way to derail your diet efforts. While it may help you lose weight in the short term, it’s actually…
When most people think of boosting their physical activity, hitting the gym is usually the first thing that comes to mind. For some, the mere thought of working out can be extremely daunting. What they probably don’t realize is that it’s possible to kick your fitness level up another notch…
Emotional eating can wreak havoc on even the most determined dieter. It’s a way to suppress or soothe negative feelings like boredom, grief, fear and anger. Triggers may include unemployment, financial stressors, relationship strain, health problems or simply fatigue. Our first reaction when anxiety rears its ugly head is to…
Use pumpkins for more than decorations this year. That bright orange color should be a dead giveaway that pumpkins contain plenty of antioxidants, particularly beta carotene. This health booster contributes to increased immunity, eye health and can prevent diseases like cancer. It high fiber content promotes colon health as well….
Beware of full-fat dairy. High in fat and calories, milk, sour cream and other dairy products can be a danger to your diet. Thankfully, there are a slew of low-fat and non-fat alternatives that won’t seriously affect your bottom line. Most of the time you won’t be able to taste…
Try adding a little yoga into your schedule. The physical benefits include becoming more aware of your body’s posture and alignment, improved flexibility, an increase in endurance, an increase in strength and resiliency, and improvement in balance, just to name a few. Yoga can have an impact on your mental…
While most of us have a certain body part we would like to work on more than others, there is no such thing as spot reducing. When you do a specific exercise for a specific part of your body, the muscles of that particular body part will develop and get…
If you think you’re pulling out all the stops in order to lose weight, yet the scale still doesn’t move as quickly as you’d like, then it’s time to take stock. Simple, subtle mistakes can derail any honest diet effort, so take the opportunity to examine your habits and banish…
Variety is important to weight training because muscles are forced to adapt to changes. Simple tweaks are all it takes to keep your muscles guessing. There are many easy ways to mix things up in the weight room. One way is to add more weight and decrease the number of…