Sleeping

As you have probably heard many times before, getting enough sleep is essential to living with good health. I have heard that people should be getting at least eight hours of sleep every night, but I know that can be tricky to do with the mishmash of things going on these days. Since we are in cold and flu season, I have looked into some prevention for it, and found that an increase of sleep can actually help prevent cold and flu related sicknesses. A recent CNN article released that people who get less than seven hours of sleep were more likely to get a cold than a peson who gets 8 hours or more sleep regularly. So remember around this time of year especially, to get your sleep. I reccomend limiting noise, keeping it dark in the room, and turning off any distractions such as laptops, cellphones, etc. Have a good night!

Exercising 101

Everybody already knows that it is important to take your vitamins and exercise daily in order to stay fit and healthy, but come on, who really does that? Sports and games make it easy for teens and kids to stay fit, but what should adults be doing to keep their bodies in shape? Those cheesy exercise videos that guarantee they will put you in shape may work, but who is really willing to turn on their VHS or DVD player, bring out their exercise mats and big blow-up ball every day and actually exercise...for FUN?! I know I definitely wouldn't do that. So what else is there? You could try running/jogging to stores or restaurants near your house, get a quick snack break there, and then go back, (I like to do this sometimes). If you can't seem to find time daily to do this, start weekly, and build from it. Or try doing it when you would otherwise be sitting like a lump on the couch watching television. There are so many ways to give your body the exercise it needs, some more ideas are; swimming, going to the gym and playing around on the complicated machines, stretching/yoga and weight lifting. Remember, you will be keeping your body busy, while building muscle and energizing yourself so you don't have those nothing-but-coffee days.

However, there is such a thing as over exercising. It is never good to over work your body, especially when it is already tired. If your muscles are sore, try to wait until they feel better, so you can make your exercise count. Click here to view a current article on over exercising your body.

No Peanut Butter!!

As you may know, Salmonella has been found in our peanut butter nationwide. Its not just in peanut butter itself, but also in related foods such as; candy, cookie dough, ice cream, cereal, and even dog treats. Almost 500 people have been affected so far, causing at least six deaths.



I don't know about you, but I love peanut butter, and it saddens me to hear that I wont be able to eat anything with peanut butter in it. I especially like the peanut butter crackers, (but I heard those were the most infected). I just hope the FDA can get to the bottom of this so we can have it again.


For more information, click here to view a recent news story about the recall.

Unhealthy v. Healthy Eats

Hello, and welcome to my healthy lifestyles blog.


As you may know, good overall health is becoming an issue in the United States for many Americans. With so many fast food choices, many people are finding it hard to eat healthy. They are also unwillingly gaining weight and increasing their own risk of heart failure and other disease. People today are not putting up much of an effort to stick to the professionally designed food pyramid (above), and instead are just going with what they think they need. I am finding that fruits and vegetables are becoming less and less popular, while sweets, salts and grease seem to be becoming more popular than ever before. Dieting plans and goals for the new year are seeming to get tougher and tougher everyday when the average American is out and about, and cannot seem to find anything but fatty and unhealthy foods, like the tasty looking burger shown below, to eat in a hurry.




Fitness doctors in a recent article that i found on diets, say that people tend to eat with their their eyes, rather than their stomach; that they eat until their plate is empty, rather than when they are full. I agree with that article 100 percent. If people want to be healthy, then they should avoid buying unhealthy foods and storing them in their homes, (if they do not have it, then they cannot eat it). However, for those uneducated or just plain old lazy, I suggest that you start being more aware of what you choose to put into your body, because can possibly find yourself in difficult and unwanted long-term situations out that you will regret.