Zen

Have you ever put yourself in a good mood for no apparent reason at all? Experts from various disciplines now believe that certain foods we eat play a hand in our happiness. Avoid the diet doldrums with these healthy, happy foods:

1. Oily fish – Medical research teams believe that sardines, salmon, and other oily ocean foods can bring you up when you’re feeling down

In every sport there is a crucial ingredient that very few people neither see nor recognize. Yet it is that one “magic” ingredient that really differentiates the truly great athletes from the good or very good.

It is the ability to “dance”; in every sport there is what is termed, “ the dance within the game”. If a player cannot dance without the ball, how is he supposed to be able to “dance” around his opponent or opponents?

All great players and teams in whatever sport, have the ability to dictate the rhythm of the game. By controlling the rhythm of first the individual, then the team, you control the flow of the game, imposing your rhythm on the opposition (individually and collectively). Rhythm is of fundamental importance for success.

If your training is always of the same rhythm, then each player, and the team, becomes very linear and therefore predictable, and this predictability is the "curse" of unsuccessful players and teams.

Introducing a variety of rhythmic drills, movements, and more importantly, adding a varied rhythmic theme, to everyday training causes each player to become much more difficult to play against. This is because his opponent (through traditional training forms) will be very uncomfortable working at these "strange, disjointed, non linear" rhythms.

From our youth, we are trained to do things we are strong at and then work on developing those strengths to their maximum potential. When we reach adulthood, we attempt to find a job centered around our strengths, whether it’s becoming a golf pro or a good accountant. With that said, it only makes sense why the same practice is often used in the gym.

I can’t help but think of “Joe Musclehead”. You probably know Joe. He’s been going to the gym for a long time. He’s like the gym mascot, actually. Everyone seems to know this guy. He likes to grunt a little extra when he works out to impress all the girls with his manly upper body strength. He seems to really love to bench press. As a matter of fact, if you really think about it, you may realize you’ve never seen him on a leg machine.

The reason I bring up Joe, whose character I exaggerated, is to point out our natural desire to work in our strengths – even in the gym.

As you know from that time you waited a half hour for the elliptical, or got into a staring contest over a machine, the gym is a public space with limited resources. Even members of the biggest and most comprehensive gyms have issues. Do your part by following the athletic code of conduct – written and unwritten – and ignoring the jerks who don’t.

Sprinters, want to shave time off your best events? The Stanford Sleep Clinic recently helped swimmers cut half a second from their best times simply by sleeping longer for about six weeks. After a baseline of five to seven hours of sleep per night was established over a two week period, the researchers had the swimmers adjust their sleep schedule to include ten hours per night.

By: Rick Schaff

-- an excerpt from my book, MISLED

www.HEALTHandINSPIRATION.com

Health and fitness magazines and radio and television commercial producers often find themselves in precarious situations due to the nature of how they generate revenues; most of their profits are produced by selling advertising space. Unfortunately, that means that they often have little choice but to work with companies that distort the truth. Simply put, even publications and programs that have stated goals to provide beneficial information on health and fitness to their audiences are often forced to sell ad space or time to disingenuous companies to stay in business. In many cases, the articles and programming must frequently support the “fabulous results” their clients’ products claim to provide. My magazine DIVAS was in print for two years; this provided me with firsthand experience about the compromising decisions every magazine owner and/or publisher must face. Jeff Everson, former editor for Muscle & Fitness Magazine and current publisher of Planet Muscle Magazine stated the following about this situation:

“One of the biggest problems that magazines endure is their dependence on supplement ads to pay their bills. If you just tried to publish a magazine about real training, you would never make it. While one naturally tries to improve the industry, it would be suicide to bite the hands that feed you.

You’ve heard of the health benefits of green tea, but the new energy-boosting natural beverage of favor is white tea. Since it’s the least processed of all teas, it has the highest levels of the stimulating L-theanine amino acid. It also contains a fraction of the caffeine of other teas and coffee – one cup of coffee packs eight times as much caffeine as white tea.

Spring can be kind of a bummer for some people, especially for those who live in beautiful beach communities like Vero. Truthfully, it's not the season that bums us out; it's realizing that it's time to dress for the season that can be the real downer.

Every year the bathing suit season sneaks up on us. Suddenly the rude awakening hits when we are facing a mirror, attempting to find a flattering bathing suit for the sunny weather. In the reflection we see all our mistakes: the holiday treats, the broken New Year's Resolutions and our procrastination faces us head on.

Positive Thinking

Once you have set your goals and created a clear picture of the physique you wish to attain, it is inevitable that you will run into obstacles. However, you can’t let this defeat you in reaching your goals. Everyone has come across roadblocks at some point in their quest for success. You can’t let that stop you. Figure out how to go through them, climb them or go around them. Stay on track and committed to your goals. Having a positive attitude and how you deal with obstacles is 99% of the battle. So keep pushing forward and don’t lose sight of your goals.

Your attitude is what is going to carry you through to achieving what you want to accomplish. A common characteristic of bodybuilding champions is having a positive attitude. They can focus completely on achieving their goals and shut out any negative thoughts. They have total confidence in their ability to become champions, no matter how many times they fail or how long it takes. They don’t let other people’s opinions and negativity dissuade them from their dream.

Believe in yourself and don’t ever give up. If you feel like you are worthy enough to be where you want to be and do what you want to do in life, then go for it. Don’t let anything hold you back. Anything. You only have one life to live and it should be spent doing the things that make you happy. If you feel like you are worthy of the best life has to offer, you will have the best chance of having that vision become a reality.

Generating Mental and Physical Intensity

Building muscle is just as much mental as it is physical. Remember that the mind controls the body. If the mind does not want to go through hard and heavy workouts, the body will not want to either. You will end up going through the motions, but not doing the kind of heavy training necessary to properly develop your body. So, start with the mind and the body will follow.

An excerpt from my book, MISLED
www.HEALTHandINSPIRATION.com

Most studies suggest that alcohol destroys your body in just about every aspect, mainly because it inhibits the absorption of many necessary vitamins, minerals, and enzymes, and increases their excretion from the body. However, some studies propose that alcohol in moderation may have some health benefits. Alcohol is a confusing topic for many people, and especially for some religious groups, like Christians who aren’t sure if they are allowed to drink alcohol due to their beliefs. Let’s lay out some facts so that you can decide which approach is best for you.

Are you vegetarian, vegan, ovo, lacto, ovo-lacto, or flexitarian? If so, you know that it’s a constant struggle to find the protein sources you need to maintain a healthy and balanced diet. And if you’re feeling weak, fatigued, or have found that you’re prone to illness, it could be caused by a protein deficiency.

Here are some delicious foods nutritionists, dietitians, and chefs are cooking up to remedy this problem:

One of the newest crazes in trendy eating is going ‘flex’. A flexitarian’s diet staples are mainly vegetables and other non-meat products that are high in fiber and low in saturated fat. However, they permit themselves small, healthy portions of meat on certain occasions. The focus of the flexitarian diet is on produce instead of protein, and experts believe this may be the underlying factor that causes ‘flex’ dieters to excel in terms of fitness.

Comfort eating adds unnecessary and extremely damaging caloric amounts to your diet. Not only is it harmful to your diet, but it can also be harmful to you, since most comfort foods are high in fat and artery-clogging cholesterol. Here are some simple steps to cut comfort eating out of your life:

Scientists have known for about 70 years that cutting calories by 30-40% can extend the life of animals. However, it’s been difficult to determine the reasons for this phenomenon.

Researchers from Harvard Medical School have discovered two genes that determine cellular longevity. When cells are under stress, such as that caused by caloric restriction, these genes help protect cells from diseases associated with aging, such as cancer and diabetes.