MSNBC Interactive

I came across this while fumbling for material on the ever so faithful MSNBC health page. It's a very cool interactive page where you can learn about how women's bodies change over time.

Check out what changes your bones, skin, heart, hair, mind and other areas. Doesn't hurt to do a little damage control now so you don't end up like this later!

You are beautiful

A photo on You-are-beautiful.com by Andrew Sears

In my ever going obsession with Leslie's writing at The Weighting Games, I further surfed to the You Are Beautiful sticker site.

This anonymous group has been producing these stickers which are mostly found in Europe, promoting the positive message of confidence and beauty. The deal is, you send in a self addressed stamped envelope, and they'll send you free stickers.

You stick freely and if interested, send them photos of your best sticking and they'll post them online.

Upon receiving her free stickers, Leslie quickly went to work on placing them all over Chicago (specifically in a locker at her gym). I'm definitely getting involved on this one.

If nothing else, one will for sure be posted promptly next to my bathroom mirror as a daily reminder to love myself beyond the skin that's staring back at me. I'll spread the love too and get creative with my sticking as well.

Are you up for it? Let me know if you're sending away for stickers. I'm considering getting another contest going for photo or story of best stick, are you in? Here's the address:

You Are Beautiful
PO Box # 220175
Chicago, IL 60622
USA

Weight weighing on your mind

Be it New Years, an upcoming reunion, a wake up call or a change in outlook, health alerts come at different times and different times for everyone. No matter when your alarm goes off, don’t break off more than you can chew. A recent article in the New York Times showed that as the percentage of desired weight loss increases, men and women alike showed an increase in days feeling physically or mentally unhealthy. The article concludes that the boost in unhappiness may be a result of the constant stress of worrying. Especially for those who attempt to slim down with an event in mind, self pressure may foil weight loss plans.

With additional social and media pressures, too many weight loss goals are created around unhealthy or unrealistic goals. Attempting to mimic celebrity bodies or focusing on dress sizes may cause more harm than good. Understanding your body type and exercising and eating accordingly will produce the best results for you over time. More so, media perceptions of beautiful women as stick thin can produce stressful frustrating thoughts for dieters. Additional stressers and illness make sticking to healthy habits more difficult, which can hinder your overall goals.

Altering aspects of your lifestyle to become healthier takes time and patients. Taking your mind off a desired end result and focusing on small daily steps are good ways to relieve the worry.

Strenghthening Self Image

At the core of everyone's self apple, is the value of self worth and self appreciation. Maintaining a solid healthy core is important to your happiness, and overall fitness and nutrition goals.

In the midst of busy lifestyles and constant advertisements plastering pictures of the not so normal woman, keeping up with a healthy self image is a challenge. Women's Fitness.net had a great feature on the top 10 tips to enjoying a healthy self image.

Some of my favorite of their tips are great pieces of advice that can be instilled at any age. Recognizing your uniqueness, from experiences, hobbies to your individual physical and emotional attributes, your individuality makes you beyond valuable and unduplicatable.

Another favorite from the WF.net site is to be accepting with change. Understand that qualities you deem negatives are not concrete, and be patient with yourself as you work towards personal changes. More so, reward yourself for your accomplishments and find a sense of pride in meeting your goals.

Strengthening self image is a possible task for women of all ages. Be it in the moments before bed, or while traveling to and from work, set aside a particular time of day to work on your self image.

Sometimes some positive talk, spending time with loved ones, or being constant with rewarding positive behavior, keeping up with your core will benefit you in all life aspects.

Motivation

After a busy day of classes, I called my workout buddy and left what I believe is a pretty regular message from most women. I wasn't going to make it to the gym on my own, and secretly hoped that although I was calling her to set up a workout time, that she was swamped with work or some how unable to make it.

Motivation is a difficult front to keep up, with or without a workout friend. Some are driven by constant routine, others find it harder to get on track and keep going. Runner's World has a great section on their website about motivation. I think it's great that a health site takes the time to realize we're not all determined to run a marathon every morning. Sometimes it starts with smaller steps.

The Runner's World link has a couple great stories that are sure to keep you moving on. Sometimes the moving words from others is all it takes. The site also has some great links to ways you can keep motivated, be it running, biking or swimming.

I challenge all my readers, no matter what stage you are at physically, to sit down and determine your real motivation. Figure out what inspires you, and what kind of goals you have.

Top 10 ways to beat the blues

Snowy weather and mid-winter woes are a major fault to failing New Year's diet and exercise plans. Keeping motivated in the cold is difficult to overcome.

Lack of sun light keeps us from getting vital amounts of vitamin D that keep you happy and healthy in less than exciting weather.

Women's Fitness.net posted a great top 10 list of ways to beat the blues. Among their advice is to cut back on carbohydrates, exercise 30 minutes a day and cut back on refined sugars. Advice like this comes often, and often packaged in different ways to get the same idea across.

Some of the more unusual tips WF.net adds to the list are trying turnips. This root vegetable is one of the few that stay available throughout the winter and can provide vital nutrients.

The site also recommends getting a minimum of 30 minutes of sunlight per day. Try scheduling a morning walk, or mid-afternoon lunch break into your day to boost your mood. Also considering upping your vitamin D intake with more dairy products, fish, oysters and fortified cereals.

How do you beat the seasonal blues? How do you keep yourself motivated to look good for warmer weather while bundling up in the cold weather?

Keeping Motivated

Women's Health Magazine had a great sideshow on steps to stay motivated. Here are some of my favorite from that article, which can be found in its entirety here.

1. Make a promise-
Signing up to run for a good cause is a great step to staying motivated. Besides having the donations of family and friends riding on your performance, it will allow you to set goals for a great cause, enjoy working for that cause with others, and give you something to train for.

2. Get your pets moving-
If you're thinking about investing in a pet, or have a slightly physically neglected one, take him out! No better excuse to get out and moving than for the want of your fuzzy friend!

3. Yellow polka-dot bikini-
Get your favorite skinny outfit out and hang it in a well visible location. Keeping your skinny jeans out is just the visible cue you need to get to the gym again.

4. Buy into a workout plan-
Splurging a bit to get into that yoga or spinning class may not be exactly how you want to spend you're pay check, but investing a little into your workout routine has been proven to keep you showing up. For my college readers on a real budget, try splurging in smaller amounts, a medicine ball kept by the TV to remind you while you're watching you could be multi-tasking!

5. Face your body-
The more you accept yourself, the most likely you are to keep your figure up. Take small steps daily to enjoy your skin, be it lounging around for the night naked, getting a massage, or feeling the accepting hands of a significant other or friend cuddling. Begin to appreciate yourself more and you'll find you're more invested in keeping things up.

Video: Coping with stress

I came across the wide world of videojug through my blog hunting recently. The site is great for hosting how to type videos on almost every topic you could imagine.
Here are a few of my favorites relating to dealing with stress. You can also check out my blog post on dealing with emotions, relieving stress through creativity and dealing with procrastination.

Below is a videojug clip on how to change your life and reduce stress.

VideoJug: How To Change Your Life & Reduce Stress
Tips from the video include-
1. Exercise
2. Sleep and rest
3. Diet
4. Managing alcohol intake
5. managing caffeine intake
6. Managing smoking habits
7. Social life

Here is another few links to related videojug clips, how to recognize the signs of stress, how to reduce stress at work, and for more information on managing stress, check out the videojug stress library.

Diet Sabotage

As much as you are looking to succeed with your weight loss goals, friends, family and co-workers may not be so interested. Although most diet sabotage is unintentional, your loved ones may be uneasy as you alter your lifestyle, or may be jealous of the time you spend at the gym instead of with them.

Diet sabotage may stem from fear that your new habits will change your current relationship with your loved ones. Your husband may fear that your healthy habits will change your appearance making him somewhat uncomfortable with the visual balance in the relationship.

While these comments and acts may be occasional and unintentional, they can be detrimental to your goals. Comments like, "I don't want my wife to be wasting away on me," or "one piece one hurt," are all verbally slanted to push you off track. Co-workers may attempt to save the last donut after lunch for you or place candy bowls near your desk tempting you. Friends may ask why you don't eat their meatloaf anymore, or be upset when you stop attending taco night.

Committing to healthy changes is a very admirable decision. While at first it may be difficult for friends to understand why you can't stay for dessert, a little explaining and time will help. Explain to your family that you need help with your goals to make it to a healthy weight. Tell your significant other that you're not going anywhere and encourage them to join you on your quest to a better lifestyle.

Like when anything new is introduced to routine, its important to be open and explain your decisions, and also be aware if the actions of others stem from misunderstanding or true sabotage.

Exercise Boosts Mental Health

Keeping up with routine workouts has been linked to help strengthen mental health. One recent article I found did a great job of breaking down how your brain is really effected by biking at the gym.

Mood
Regular workouts has have been proven to lessen anxiety and lead to generally all around happiness. The increase in flexibility and physical implications make every day tasks easier and generally more enjoyable for adults which adds to the increased level of happiness when constantly working out.

Memory
The same study found that those with an increase in daily activity scored better in cognitive testing than adults who skimp out on regular exercise. Keeping physically active has a positive effect on memory and has been proven to lengthen the time in which older adults may start to loose memory function.

Stroke & Alzheimer's
Studies show brain flow begins to slow at an older age, leaving adults more prone to stroke and Alzheimer's disease. Constant exercise keeps blood flow throughout the body and brain regular, lessening the risk for these two common health issues later in life.

Scientists have shown that exercise can increase the number of brain cells as well as increase levels of protective molecules in the brain. This means that exercise has the potential to slow neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's disease, or repair damaged or aged brains.

Your Quick Guide to Dealing with Emotions-

Summer is just about over, and the season for falling prey to your sensitivities is among us. Studies show that the season most prone to depression is winter. With that in mind, fall is a great time to arm yourself with the best emotion easing techniques. Life is always going to have a couple lemons for you now and then, better to have a few lemon square recipes already handy.

Let go- The longer you keep your emotions bottled up, the more prone you are to have to deal with them longer, or worse- explode later. Share your feelings when they first come up. It’s much easier for a friend to consult you when you come forward early instead of spending hours digging through what the real issue may be. More so, USE YOUR FRIENDS! They love you for a reason; they want to see you happy and healthy. You’re never too old, too far away, or too busy to call up a girlfriend for a chat. If you don’t feel comfortable sharing your feelings with others, write them down, get them out in a journal, in a drawing, however it feels right. You can always burn the paper afterwards.

Count to calm- It sounds silly, stopping yourself to count to 10 to calm down. It’s a commonly used suggestion, but how often do we use it? The truth is, emotions can resurface anywhere. Ever been in a professional situation and had an emotional memory triggered and almost lost it? Count to 10. Do not feel ashamed to take some relaxing breaths and compose yourself. More so, it will prevent you from actions you may regret later.

Help- This little word may be one of the hardest for many women to say. Admitting that we can’t take it all on and could use someone to lessen the load isn’t a thought in the front of our minds. Most women take on much more than they can or should chew because they think they can or don’t want others to be involved (or mess things up). Sadly, most of the time women don’t realize they are overloaded until they are knee deep in commitments. Remember that you CAN ask for help at any time. A helping hand doesn’t mean giving up either. Getting someone to step in to cover carpooling while you run out and get snacks for Timmy’s soccer game can keep you involved without putting too much on your plate. Try to recognize what may be too much before you sign up, and break up your tasks into smaller portions to accomplish them easier.

Self-talk therapy- One of the best methods to controlling emotions. Step out of what’s worrying you, and coach yourself through it. It’s ok, there’s next time, you’ll be alright. As simple as it sounds, taking a minute to reassure yourself and your emotions can be very beneficial. Try to steer away from being self condescending. Recognize that it’s ok to feel how do feel, and focus on being accepting of the situation and think about phrases you can mentally repeat to look forward to the future.

Taking Care- Often when emotional situations attack, so does stress. However, keeping up with your usual routine, eating well, sleeping enough and getting to the gym will help you bounce back from any mental setback much faster than the couch potato technique. Of course we all have our moments when ice cream and sweatpants call to us. Try to meet these cravings in moderation. It’s much easier to get back to your normal self if you surround yourself with normal activities.

Motivation

Here's a quick but good article on self-motivation. Maybe reading it will inspire some of you enough? :)

Pressure on Women

I couldn’t help but post on this article I read in one of my favorite blogs. The article takes a great look at the recent studies that show a happiness gap between men and women.

Even more interesting is the decrease in women’s happiness rates since the 1960’s. The author of this blog does a great job of discussing some reasoning behind the drop in cheer.

The 1960’s women’s rights movement have opened thousands of doors and opportunities. However, as females continue to climb up the business ladder, women are often left to take care of the housework, tend to children, keep up with appearance, and a slew of other expectation.

Hours in the day don’t quite expand to take care of everything that is necessary to accomplish. These socially set expectations often make women feel stressed and can lead to a lowering of self esteem when it becomes impossible to get everything done.

The article is very well written and definitely worth checking out.

Crash Dieting

Dieting is a huge issue for thousands of women across the world. The most popular of all the odd tricks and techniques, is the crash diet.

For anyone who has ever been in the situation of "needing" to drop pounds fast before that special event, crash dieting has probably crossed your mind. However, doctors and nutritionists continue to find just how dangerous crash dieting can be.

Crash dieting causes a slew of problems for those who turn to it as a last resort. That type of dieting encourages women to cut extreme corners and often fails to include all the necessary nutrients.

Typical results of crash dieting include a weeks worth of a distinct loss, followed by yo-yoing. This is often because the weight lost was not real weight, but water weight, which fluctuates normally. However, most dangerous are the nutritional and mental health aspects to crash dieting.

Loosing your love handles for next week's high school reunion is just not possible. Turning to dangerous methods of weight loss only put your body at danger for future complications, as well as challenge the stability of your mental heath as well.

If you're interested in dieting, you should be interested in it as a health benefit, not particularly to renew yourself for an event to show off to others. Learn to be proud of who you are, which includes making smart lifestyle changes and taking care of your body responsibly.

Dealing with Procrastination

You’ve got a big project is due in a week, and then you find, days have past, and no work has been done on it. It’s the night before, and you’re up at a ridiculous time putting the project together.

It happens to all of us more often than we’d like to admit. Procrastination is a daily problem that ranges from putting off taking the garbage out to pulling an all-nighter. A little putting off is no problem, but falling into a constant pattern of procrastination can be overwhelming. By recognizing your procrastination early, the odds of completing it earlier grow.

Think about breaking up your project. If you work on small bits at a time, you’re less likely to put off the whole thing until the last minute. Consider writing yourself a to-do list for the day and sneaking in bits of work. If you’re close to crossing off all your errands and chores for the day and have one tiny task left to accomplish, it may drive you to working for a bit.

Or, engage in the good kind of procrastination. This article brought light to the new term. If you are accomplishing more important work while procrastinating, it’s considered to be positive procrastination. (However, how many of us actually do that?)

Procrastination boils down to a simple idea though. The main reason for not starting something is because it doesn’t interest you. Why is your project uninteresting? Are you afraid of starting something large? Afraid of failing? Is your project daunting or boring? What can you do to solve these problems?

What tasks do you procrastinate the most with? What do you often do with your time while procrastinating?

Messy House Effects Mood

A new study has shown that mold in your home may affect more than your health. A clip on CNN.com explained a recent study from Brown University found mold in homes can produce depression like symptoms for those living inside.

I find this study to be pretty believable. Not all of us are neat-freaks, but living in a clean environment is much easier to live in and enjoy. Living with a mess becomes a self-conscious matter when unexpected guests drop by, and makes daily tasks much more difficult. A dirty home can make you feel stressed out- making you feel like you have a large daunting cleaning project to tackle, or prevent you from finding things you need quickly.

However, due to the increasing number of manufactured products being brought into the home, mold can form more easily than ever. Most of us may be harboring some without knowing it. This article discussing the CNN clip says that our daily exposure to environmental toxins continues to grow with the use of personal care products, household cleaners, pharmaceuticals, food, and water.

The study explained that mold tends to grow in darker areas, and lack of light on its own can produce depression like signs. Also, those who are depressed may tend to clean their home less, creating the connection found. The study also hypothesized that the physical effects of having mold in your home may cause the depression like symptoms, or even that mold has a direct relation to the frontal area of the brain which controls mood, and judgment.

In any case, this study proves the importance of keeping up with physical and mental hygiene. Keeping up a clean environment makes your home warm and welcoming for visitors and those living inside. Cleaning regularly promotes a good routine activity and is beneficial for your health as well.

Improving Your Self-Esteem

After about age 12, few are reminded regularly about their self esteem. Instilling positive self worth is a major part of adolescence, but often ignored as we get older and become too busy.

Because of this, a growing number of older women find themselves feeling lost and fall into a pattern of low self esteem. Between feelings of self consciousness and being bogged down by mundane routine, it’s not uncommon to feel depressed and more so, feel too busy to pick yourself back up.

However, harboring negative feelings about yourself can be detrimental to your daily relationships with others. Keeping up a positive attitude about yourself is just as important (if not more so) than maintaining a healthy physically.

Learning to value yourself and “roll with the punches” is a key start to maintaining a healthy self-worth. Those with low self esteem tend to rely on how they feel to determine what they think of themselves. Try to stay level headed no matter what negative or positive aspects come through your life.

A lack of self-esteem may come from feeling ignored or disrespected. When around others, make sure to communicate respectfully and efficiently. Speaking confidently will command the attention of those around you and will build self-esteem as you feel others around are listening and respecting you in return.

Sometimes family life can be stressful and create feelings of being under appreciated and ignored. Recognize where you stand in the family structure. If you are constantly in a negative position, re-create your roll. Discuss the situation with family members, and work to assist others with reinforcing language and actions of how you would like to be treated in daily life.

More so, practice the little aspects daily that we often teach children. Praise yourself for working hard even if your project was poorly received. Practice self constructive criticism by analyzing what aspects you are weak in, strong in, and recognize ways you can grow. Taking care of yourself can pay off in many ways. Don’t ignore feeling weak; learn to recognize that mental and emotional health is just as important as physical!

Limiting Time in Front of the Screen

How often do you find yourself sitting in front of a computer or television? It's nothing new to hear that the amount of time you spend on your laptop and watching TV could effect your health.

Generally, more aggressive behavior results, for those glued to their email or TV. In addition, research shows that poor social skills and lack of thinking and language are all results as well.

So what are the options for an adult with a hectic life who relies on these devices? Try to break your computer time up. Instead of running back to your computer every 5 minutes, check your email, then turn it off while you eat lunch and do some chores around the house.

Steer away from using the computer or television as means to relax, it's shown that this activity only results in adding extra stress. More so, try to give your brain some old fashion exercise with puzzles or crosswords. Many have forgotten about these brain stretchers as a sharpening tool, which may be more than necessary in a technology buzzed world.