The goals might be the same ones you set for last year and the year before, and that's fine. I may have even written about these same goals in last year's blog. But they're all worth repeating because they can dramatically help with:
- weight loss
- energy
- pain-relief
- sexual performance (This could be linked with energy, but it's such a marketable bullet-point, it's hard to resist including it.)
All the benefits you'll receive from implementing these goals daily are inter-connected. A stronger immune system will give you better energy. Following the goals may result in better digestion and nutrient absorption, which in turn strengthens immunity, which leads to more energy.
Get the picture?
Already follow these principles? Please pass this info on. With 2 out of every 3 U.S. adults either overweight or obese, we all need to play our part in making our country healthier.
Stop the preaching already. Get to the Goals!
1. Eat More
That's right...more, not less. It sounds counter-intuitive with 66 percent of us significantly overweight to recommend eating more. But most people don't eat enough, especially in the morning to properly fuel for the day.
Many still skip breakfast; those that don't tend to eat unbalanced breakfasts that are loaded with carbs (read: sugar) like toast or muffins or waffles with orange juice. An unbalanced or skipped breakfast will throw you off for the rest of the day. The only way to attain steady energy for the rest of the day after an improper breakfast is eating a balanced lunch and a nap. But for those that don't have time for a nap, eating a balanced breakfast with enough calories is critical to having good, streamlined energy.
Remember, food should neither make you hyper, nor make you crash. Eat 3-6 meals a day (Obviously, the more meals, the fewer calories per meal should be eaten), and you'll enjoy rock-steady all-day, all-night energy; no naps needed.
2. Exercise less....
Am I on the Mayan prophecy bandwagon? Do I believe the end is near, so why bother exercising? No, but I do think the key to effective weight loss and all-day steady energy is to exercise as often as you eat: at least 3 times a day, in shorter bursts than traditional workouts.
Good for you if you have to sit all day at work but manage to squeeze in a trip to the gym. But even if you workout for an hour at the gym, sitting for several hours at a time will result in poor blood circulation and tight muscles.
If you're sedentary most of the day, try to do short bursts (as little as a few minutes is highly effective) of exercises that combine strength with flexibility, such as doing a push-up into downward dog. Try to perform at least one set every couple hours.
3. Eat enough Omega 3 fatty acids and less Omega 6 fatty acids
Omega 3 fatty acids have received lots of praise from the mainstream media and nutritionists over the last decade, and for good reasons that aren't over-hyped. Indigenous cultures may not have known an Omega 3 fatty acid from a spear, but they did intuitively know what foods were rich with them.
A very healthy dietary fat, Omega-3's may prevent Alzheimer's. They may also help lower blood pressure and triglycerides, which are processed by the liver and stored as potential energy in the form of body fat.
(Eating too much of anything will result in the body storing triglycerides. This includes protein, which is erroneously presumed to not cause body fat storage by Atkins Diet followers.)
So frequently eat a natural source of Omega 3s (at least a few times a week), such as salmon or walnuts. Don't get fooled into eating cereals or chewing gum with fortified Omega 3's. There's actually no gum with Omega 3s but you get the picture. There's no substitute for cold oily fish and walnuts. Flax and Chia seeds and sardines are also excellent sources. A recent study's results on Omega 3 supplements showed that the pills did not improve Alzheimer's. This is a major bummer but shows that there's nothing like the real thing. If you have inflamed and achy joints, ditch all sugars from your diet and eat more whole food sources of Omega 3s.
Just as ancient civilizations boiled animal bones into soups despite not ever hearing of the word 'calcium', old-world cultures instinctively knew which Omega 3-rich natural foods stimulated health. As advanced technologically as we are, most of us have only realized these benefits for at most 10 years.
If you want to improve your body composition, increase energy and stay healthy, following these 3 tips could result in your breakthrough year, in which you take control of your health and prevent highly preventable trips to the doctor and paying for medications.
Good luck and have a happy, healthy 2012.
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