Why You Do NOT Want To Lose Weight

Losing weight is one of the commonest resolutions that people make every year. Yet obesity and overweight are on the increase.

Makes you wonder what is wrong with that picture.

What makes it such a difficult goal to accomplish or stick to?

Well there are several things, but for now let's talk about the most important reason.

It's the way you state the goal. In other words, it's the command you're giving to your subconscious mind. Your mind functions to attract and bring about the physical form of what you think about. It does this by steering you in the direction of actions that lead to the result of the command received by your subconscious.

You say, 'I want to lose weight'.

This implies 'I have excess weight' or 'I have weight'; Your subconscious mind thus reads that statement as 'I have excess weight', or 'I don't have weight loss' because that's what you're implying when you state your goal that way. That's the thought behind that statement. As far as your subconscious mind is concerned, the thought behind what you say, is what you really mean, and this is what it acts to bring about in your life.

There are 3 main problems with stating your desire this way.

- Since the predominant thought behind the statement is 'abundant weight' or 'excess weight', that is what you get. Remember, you get what you think about most of the time. You become what you think about - it's the way your mind works, whether you're aware of it or not.

- Since there is also a thought on 'losing weight', there is the danger of your subconscious finding creative ways to help you lose weight, for example you could have an accident and lose a limb or something. You'd weigh less then, for sure. Not quite what you had in mind I'll bet.

- Your mind is designed to bring about what's best for you. So it doesn't want you to 'lose' anything. If you talk about losing weight, your mind will do everything to help you find it.

You can see how stating your goal the wrong way can set you up to lose the battle right from the start.

Many 'weight loss' programs fail because they deal with external activities without paying attention to what's going on in your mind. Yet your mind is what decides the results you get. The programs that teach you the right way to think are the ones that will help you maintain any weight level you seek.

A program that focuses on 'weight loss' is inadvertently focusing on attracting weight because that's the predominant thought throughout the program.

How should you state your goal then?

First of all you need to understand that 'weight' in itself is not the issue. What the weighing scale reads, is not the threat you face. Your threat is excess fat. Muscle weighs more than fat, so if you've got a lot of lean muscle, you'd probably weigh more than someone who has the same amount of fat, yet they're are the ones in greater danger, healthwise.

This is one of the flaws of the BMI measurements that are so popular. Body Mass Index measurements measure your weight against your height. They *are* useful indicators of weight- related health risks, but because they do not take account of the source of the weight (fat or muscle), the readings can sometimes be misleading.

If you desire to 'lose weight', a better way is to speak in terms of 'releasing fat'. The best way to state a goal is in the present tense.

So you could say 'I am releasing at least 500grams of excess fat every week' or you could say 'I weigh....(state your desired weight) of lean muscle and 10% body fat (if that's your desired body fat percentage level)'.

Those are examples - try them on for size. Better yet, come up with ones of your own.

Notice how you feel when you rephrase your weight goals that way. Notice the shift in energy behind those words.

Now here's a paradigm shift for you:

What if your goal statement had *nothing* to do with weight or fat. What if your goal statement focused on 'health'. Do you think you could achieve your ideal weight with that sort of goal statement?

Absolutely! This is, in my opinion, the best way to state a 'weight' goal.

Here's the thing: a perfectly healthy body is not over-weight. It's not under-weight either. When you are in perfect, true health, your body *naturally* releases excess fat and holds onto just what it needs to function perfectly.

So here's my challenge to you.

Don't join the masses who obsess about their body weight. A wise man once said that if you see the majority doing something, you'd better go the other way.

Be one of the few people who are truly 'health conscious'. What you are conscious of is what you attract. So state your goal as 'I am perfectly healthy now', and focus on that thought, for that is what you'll attract.

When you look in the mirror and what you see doesn't reflect your goal, remind yourself that your statement refers to the 'real' you, not the 'case' you move around in. The good thing about this is that your subconscious will latch onto your predominant thought which is 'I am perfectly healthy now', and guide you to do things that make it your physical reality.

It's amazing the way your mind works. Learn to make it work for you though, not against you.

Upgrade your 'weight' goal today. Focus on perfect health, for the 'ideal weight' is part of the 'perfect health' package.

Let me leave you with an excellent way to state your new and improved 'weight' goal. I learnt this (the 'I am so happy and thankful' bit) from Bob Proctor. Go ahead and say it out loud with me now:

"I am so happy and thankful that I am perfectly healthy now".

Make that your predominant thought and it will become your physical reality in good time. Always remember that your predominant thought determines your actions, which in turn determine your RESULTS.

PS: Note that this article focuses on what I call 'The First Pillar of A Healthy Lifestyle'. Read all about the rest of the Pillars here: Dr Kem's 8 Pillars of A Healthy Life (TM)

About The Author
Dr Kem Thompson is a General Practitioner, Author and Speaker. She specializes in Healthy Lifestyle medicine and is passionate about Health & Fitness, Personal Development, Success Principles and Women's issues. Subscribe today to her no-nonsense FREE 'Health & Success Newsletter' to receive practical tips, techniques and strategies you can use NOW to improve your health and life. You will receive 2 thank-you gifts when you subscribe at http://www.doctorkem.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dr_Kem_Thompson

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Take ACTION Now!

One difference between the 'haves' and the 'have nots', or the 'successful' and the 'unsuccessful' people of our world, is in what they've done or not done. Not what they say they will do or not do, but what they actually do or don't do.

Successful people are people of action. They act on ideas, instead of sitting and dreaming about them or talking about them.

Remember, every achievement or success story started as an idea in someone's mind. Everyone has ideas, some of them brilliant ones even, but not everyone acts on their ideas. Then when someone else gets a similar idea *and* acts on it, with good results you start to whinge, saying that you thought of it first.

Like that makes any difference!

I'm all for having ideas and I believe in positive thinking, affirmations and the other success principles more than anything, but in my opinion, they're all worthless until you back them up with ACTION. Even the Bible says that 'faith without works is dead.' Works means ACTION.

Many people remain broke because they did not act on a money-making idea they had.  Perhaps that has happened to you or someone you know. You've had this great idea, but because you're concerned about what others will think of you when you act on it, you do nothing about it. Guess who loses in the end.

Fact is, the sooner you act on your ideas, the sooner you'll know for sure which ones work and which ones don't. And the sooner you can keep on trying different ideas until you get the results you want. Also, taking action speeds up the process of making mistakes and learning from them and moving on.

Here's something for you to chew on: if you want to do something, your very desire to do it is an indication that you CAN do it.

Read that statement again. I like the way it's put in the Bible: the One who gives you the desire to do something has also given you the ability to do it well (my paraphrase).

So be bold. Learn that new instrument. Start that business. Ask that guy or girl out . Make new friends. Buy that book. Take that course or get that degree. Write that story or novel. Hire that Success Coach ;)

Whatever you want to do, know that you can do it and do it now. Don't worry about what anyone else will think. It's your life after all, and trying out new things is part of what makes life exciting and interesting. Sure you'll make mistakes along the way but it's all part of the learning experience.

This week, pick one thing that you've always wanted to do but have been too afraid to do. Tell yourself that you can do it, and will do it.

Then go ahead and DO IT!

Remember, knowledge is only potential power until it's backed up with appropriate ACTION.

Permissions: You have permission to publish this article electronically or in print, free of charge, as long as the bylines are included. Please print the article in its entirety unchanged and notify the author by email when you use it ~*~

About The Author
Dr Kem Thompson is a General Practitioner, Author and Speaker. She specializes in Healthy Lifestyle medicine and is passionate about Health & Fitness, Personal Development, Success Principles and Women's issues. Subscribe today to her no-nonsense FREE 'Health & Success Newsletter' to receive practical tips, techniques and strategies you can use NOW to improve your health and life. You will receive 2 thank-you gifts when you subscribe at http://www.doctorkem.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dr_Kem_Thompson

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Top Ten Health Benefits of Whole Body Vibration...

Whole Body Vibration 
When I first saw a Power Plate in the gym... I was skeptical and wondered what this new fangled gizmo was all about, didn't think it could do anything - mind you I had no idea what it was or what it did, I had not done any due diligence to find out about it...my initial opinion was based purely on ignorance! Even after having a few goes on it as encouraged by my Personal Trainer (who didn't explain what the heck it was supposed to be doing for me...perhaps also due to ignorance?), I wasn't convinced.

However since I pride myself on being open minded, I decided to read up on it, see if there was any basis for its existence.

What I found impressed me so much, the evidence was so thoroughly convincing I had to get one of my own to use as I pleased, at home, as part of my exercise routine. My aim in writing this post, is to give you an overview of this piece of equipment so you can decide whether or not you'd like to use it next time you're at the gym or leisure centre.

WBV takes advantage of Newton's second law: Force = Mass x Acceleration.
It does it in such a way that you can achieve significant amount of fitness working out for just minutes a day. So if one of your excuses for not exercising is 'I don't have the time to exercise', read on cos after reading this article, you've got no more excuses buddy!

In conventional exercise, when you do weight training in order to improve your strength (Force), you challenge yourself by increasing the amount of weights you lift (ie you increase the mass you apply.) According to Newton's Law, if you increase the mass being applied, you get an increase in Force (Strength).

So that's all good. Whole Body Vibration, however, (WBV from now on), takes advantage of the 'Acceleration' side of the equation.  That's why it's also known as 'Acceleration Training'.  The machine you do this on is known as a Vibration Plate or a Power Plate, as made popular by the Power Plate brand. 

Before describing what this all means, here's how the machine looks:

My preferred brand (based on extensive research and comparison with other leading brands) is the JTX Pro-10, which looks like this:

WBV causes contraction of 95% or more of all your (individual) muscle fibres by vibrating at an accelerated rate. This is something you can't achieve by doing the regular strength training you'd do with weights. Having said this, I like to turbo charge my sessions by also doing weight training with weights while working on the plate (using the plate as the floor - this boosts each workout and gives me a much greater benefit per time...), however working out on the plate as is, gives you an enhanced and efficient workout, and you achieve in 10-20 minutes what you'd spend an hour in the gym (or on conventional exercise) trying to achieve.

There'll be more on how it works etc if you'd like me to write about it but for now let's cut to the chase and tell you what's in it for you - the true health benefits of WBV:

1. Increased bone density
2. Increased muscle mass and tone
3. Improved circulation - both blood and lymph
4. Weight management: you get to release excess fat as your metabolism is increased and more efficient...
5. Hormonal balance (decreases levels of stress hormone cortisol, increases levels of other hormones which help you look and feel good, fit and full of vitality (endorphins, serotonin, growth hormone, etc)
6. Decreases cellulite (likely due to its effect on improving circulation_
7. Improved physical performance 
8. Reduced pain and faster recovery after workouts, as well as for rehabilitation and recovery post-op
9. Improved balance and stability
10. Gives you a great massage too if you wish!

There are many more benefits, I just picked out my top 10. You can achieve these benefits by working out for just 10-20 minutes per day on your plate.

I'm particularly glad I got one because now that I'm recovering from major surgery and am not allowed to do my regular exercise just yet, I still get the full benefit with less strain on my body, by using my JTX Pro 10 plate. Then I round up my session with a massage. It's fantastic! Always ask your doctor though, if it's okay for you to use this machine, and if you've had any surgery, make sure you get the all-clear from your surgeon that you can do this.

Warning: Don't use the power plate if any of the following applies to you:

• pregnant
• pacemaker
• epilepsy
• metal or other implant eg in joints
• recent IUCD insertion
• severe heart failure or heart disease
• severe hypertension
• blood clots
• tumors which have chance of spreading
• recent surgery (less than 6 weeks) or wounds.

Otherwise it's a good way to get a whole body workout in a short time.

Pop into your local leisure centre and ask to be shown how to use one, see for yourself if the benefits listed above are things you wish to invest the time working for.

'Fat-free' or 'Low Fat' makes you FAT!

The 'Fat-free' Myth

The other day when I went grocery shopping, I decided to, for the fun of it, look through the labels of some 'fat-free' or 'low-fat' products at random, to reconfirm that what I teach and talk about is still the case. I was hoping things had changed, as information about true health is more available today than at any other time in our history...

Sure enough: every single one of those 'fat-free' or 'low fat' items had 'sugar' listed either as the first ingredient or the second one. (Remember that ingredients are listed in order of how much of each one is contained in a product - so if sugar is listed first, just know that your product is really just sugar with bits of other things added to it.)

I find it amazing that people still fall for this deception - they must still fall for it otherwise all these 'fat-free' and 'low-fat' things would not be on our shelves.

So here's the skinny on fat, folks - after today you cannot use ignorance as your excuse for continuing in this craziness.

Sugar makes you fat, not dietary fat.

(Bear in mind that trans-fats though, the sort found in margarine, and the sort of fat which vegetable oil turns into when it's heated...is dangerous for other health reasons such as cardiovascular disease...but it's not what makes you fat. Dietary saturated fats from healthy sources eg coconut oil, fat from grass-fed, hormone-free, antibiotic-free animals - actually serve numerous health functions, and can help you lose weight while you're at it...but that's for another post.)

 When you eat sugar, it triggers the release of insulin, a hormone which, among other functions, serves as a fat storage hormone; excess sugar gets converted to fat (the bad kind, including the so-called 'bad cholesterol'), which gets stored around your belly, and worse still - around your vital organs, not to mention the damage it causes your blood vessels.

Your sugar fix also suppresses the hormone glucagon, which among other functions, releases excess fat from your body.

So when you buy 'fat-free' or 'low-fat' products (you should always read the labels at the back to find out what you're really buying) - you're not really buying fat-free or low-fat. The sugar gets converted to fat which gets stored around your belly and is difficult to shift (not impossible, just more difficult). When you buy these products, you're actually buying 'unhealthy-fat' products. Nothing healthy about those products at all.

This is why your cholesterol levels reduce when you stop taking these products. It's also one reason why your healthy lifestyle efforts become more successful when you stop taking them.

Refuse to be fooled by slick marketing folks. The truth sets you free from being overweight and sick, so act on it today.

Your take home message today therefore is this: 'Fat-free', 'Diet products' or 'Low Fat' products, actually, make you FAT.

He who has ears to hear and eyes to read and a mind to understand, should do so.

Read The 8 Pillars of A Healthy Life to get an overview of what you should be doing, if true health is what you wish to enjoy. Details of the pillar will be available on this blog. To find out when this happens, sign up for the Health and Success Newsletter over at www.doctorkem.comhttp://doctorkem.com/.

PS: 
Don't be fooled by 'sugar-free' either: if it contains aspartame or other such sweeteners, your health is in danger from these toxins too. Keep your eyes peeled for more information on this blog.

Spice Up Your Life with this Wonder Ingredient!

Today I'd like to share with you some fascinating information - just an overview really - about the humble but oh-so-amazing spice, Turmeric.

Originating in India, where it was possibly originally used as a dye, over the past few centuries and decades, the health benefits of turmeric continue to be unravelled.

So let me cut to the chase and give you the low down already.

The active ingredient in turmeric is curcumin, and it's the substance that gives curry its yellow colour.

There is growing evidence that shows the health benefits of turmeric include the following:

• Powerful antioxidant effects - stronger than vitamin E, vitamin C, grape seed extract, pine bark extract, able to mop up one of the most reactive oxidants known to man, the hydroxyl radical.
• Promoting healthy blood and liver functions
• Immune system booster
• Skin health and healing
• Digestive system help, helps regulate intestinal flora so great to take if you've just had a course of antibiotics or a bout of candida infection...
• Shown to prevent breast cancer from spreading to lungs in mice: curcumin has antioestrogenic effects, and as many breast cancers are oestrogen dependent, this shows great promise in preventing or at least halting progression of the disease
• Arrests prostate cancer progression, prevents prostate cancer when used with cauliflower
• Antiseptic, antibacterial
• Natural anti-inflammatory and pain killer: great for arthritis type of pain too
• Is thermogenic (as many spices are), meaning it boosts your metabolism and helps you burn calories, which can be useful in weight management...
• Shows great promise in treating other cancers.
• Supports overall eye health
• Helps you maintain normal cholesterol levels
• Helps you maintain normal blood sugar levels

These are just a few of the health benefits of turmeric. To enjoy these benefits you should have some turmeric every day in some form or other.



Turmeric in the news:

• 2004: Research done in Loyola University Medical Centre in Chicago suggests that turmeric may have a protective effect against Leukaemia, which would explain the low incidence of this cancer in children in asian countries
  
  
• 2011: Research done in Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre in Los Angeles shows that drug derived from turmeric may help the body repair some of the damage caused by stroke, in the immediate aftermath, once they found a way to make the curcumin cross the blood-brain barrier. According to the Stroke Association, this is the 'first significant research' showing that curcumin could help stroke patients. Human trials needed, as this study was done on rabbits...still very encouraging though.
  
  
• 2009: 'Eating Curry at least twice a week could slow down or prevent dementia' - paper presented at the Annual meeting of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, by Prof Murali Doraiswamy from North Carolina, citing the ability of curcumin to prevent spread of amyloid protein plaques in the brain (these plaques are implicated in dementia...)
  
  
• 2009: British Journal of Cancer - Turmeric kills off cancer cells in the gullet within 24 hours...
  
• 2007: Cancer Res 2007 Mar 1:67(5):1988: "Curcumin ...has emerged as one of the most powerful chemopreventative and anticancer agents. It's biological effects range from antioxidant and anti-inflammatory to inhibition of angiogenesis, and is shown to possess specific anti-tumoral activity."

Now that you have this information, what do you do with it? Here, let me help you out...

a) Where should you get your turmeric?
- Not necessarily in your local grocery store 'spice' rack, as this likely has the highly processed form of this spice, which is devoid of the health benefits listed above.

- Look for an organic source; if the one available to you cannot prove certified organic you may risk missing out on the health benefits of turmeric.

- Whenever possible, buy the actual root itself, ideally organically grown (this is available in some local grocery stores if you search carefully...otherwise health food shops may stock this.)

- If all else fails, find yourself a 'certified organically grown' turmeric supplement but please make sure it doesn't contain such chemicals and potential toxins as Magnesium Stearate, Dibasic Calcium Phosphate and other such substances with big sounding names.


b) How much turmeric per day, and how should you take it?
- You can take it in various ways, the principle to bear in mind is that you want to take it as close to its raw state as possible so if for instance you use it for cooking, add it to the meal when it's nearly ready to be eaten, rather than at the start of the cooking.

- So you can use it for cooking as described above: so many recipes are available to give you ideas on ways to use it. I use it to cook pretty much everything: chicken curries, egg salads, you name it.

- Or you can make a tea with the powder and drink it 2-3 times daily between meals. For this you'd need to use 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of the powder in a cup/pot, pour boiling water over it, let it infuse for about 5 minutes and drink. You could use honey as a sweetener but if you need to avoid sweeteners you can use Stevia instead to give it some taste. You could also add ginger to the tea for that extra 'kick'.

- You could also make a great tea by boiling the root directly and drinking the brew from there. Yum!

- Or you could take it a as a supplement, in which case you should take 250-500mg three times a day.


c) Are there any contraindications to taking turmeric?
- Don't take this without your doctor's advice, if you suffer from gall stones or biliary obstruction

- If you are on blood thinning medication you shouldn't take turmeric without your doctor's advice, as it's got blood thinning properties itself, and slows down clotting of blood

- If you're pregnant, talk to your doctor before taking turmeric as it can stimulate your uterus...Having said this, turmeric has been taken for millenia by pregnant women with no untoward effect. However it's just good practice that you should consult your doctor before you introduce anything new to your lifestyle if you are pregnant or otherwise unwell.

- "Curcumin has an outstanding safety profile and a number of multi-functional actions ..." Phase I clinical trials, using massive doses of curcumin, or turmeric extract (up to 8 grams/day for four months) "did not result in discernable toxicities."

Source: Adv Exp Med Biol 2007;565:471




Questions, Comments?
If you have any comments, questions or recipe ideas to do with turmeric, do please share in the space provided, thanks!

Book Review: The Healthy Home...

Dave Wentz and his dad, Dr Myron Wentz have written a very important book for our times. "The Healthy Home", written in a pleasant, reader-friendly and easy to understand way, walks you through every room in your house, highlighting the hidden dangers there AND offering practical, realistic solutions to help you overcome those dangers.

I've just read through it but will read it again just to make sure I pick up even more points to act on.

Grab your copy from amazon today!

100% of the proceeds from sales of the book go to charity.

Exercise - VITAL for treating Type 2 Diabetes

It's not that we didn't know this before, but it's now been established such that the American Diabetes Association and the American College of Sports Medicine have issued brand new guidelines and recommendations for exercise.

Please note that what is to follow benefits not only people suffering from Type 2 Diabetes, but also anyone who desires to be healthy, particularly if you are a victim of the Metabolic Syndrome.

These are the key points from the latest guidance, as published in the December 2010  issues of 'Medicine and Science in Sports & Exercise', and 'Diabetes Care' journals:

• Regular physical activity can prevent type 2 diabetes, improve glucose control, positively affect blood fat levels, blood pressure, improve cardiovascular disease and improve mortality.
  
  
• These improvements are because of the short and long term benefits of exercise on insulin activity.
  
  
• Most of these benefits are accomplished with a combination of aerobic and resistance exercises.
  
  
• The expert panel recommend at least 150 minutes of AEROBIC exercise each week, spread out over a minimum of 3 days, with no more than 2 consecutive days between physical activity.
  
  
• RESISTANCE TRAINING should  ALSO be done at least 2ce a week - ideally 3 x per week - every other day. See below for examples of resistance exercises that anyone can do..If you're just starting out, get a personal trainer to guide you to make sure you don't injure yourself, until you get the moves right.
  
  
• Using a pedometer regularly is a good idea as it helps you quantify your progress when you set a measurable goal eg to walk 10000 steps per day. Also, a study found that people who used a pedometer increased their physical activity by 27% over their baseline.
  
  
• You must exercise regularly to get the full benefits of it.
  
  
• Exercise improves your insulin activity for 2-72 hours after the exercise. It's got to be moderate to vigorous exercise to be of benefit.
  
  
• If you lead a sedentary life, you need a pre-exercise assessment if you plan to do exercise more than brisk walking. Visit your doctor and ask them to arrange this.
  
  
• If you are at high risk of cardiovascular disease (get your doctor to confirm this), and you have no symptoms, you may benefit from having an Exercise Stress ECG done before you commence your improved exercise program.
  
• Works best also if you're part of a support system of one or more people...

About Those Resistance Exercises...

Here's the link to a post I wrote, with pictures of 6 simple resistance training exercises you can do every other day...
Strength Training Blog Post

As For Aerobic Exercises...

Examples include:

• Walking
• Climbing up and down your stairs at home
• Cross trainer
• Treadmill
• Swimming
• Running
• Sports eg tennis, basketball, football, martial arts...

There are others of course. The point is you've got to pick one you enjoy and can stick to. Then do it for up to 150 minutes per week (break it down to say 30 minutes per day) - and add resistance training every other day to the mix.

Getting Started...First, choose your preferred aerobic activity or activities

• Break it down into baby steps.
  
• If you've been sedentary, don't expect to be able to easily exercise for 30 minutes each day from day 1.
  
• Start with 5 minutes of aerobic activity each day. This will get you into the habit of doing something each day. Setting aside a regular time to do it each day, works best for some people.
  
• When you've done 5 minutes exercise each day for 1 week, upgrade to 10 minutes each day.
   
• Do this for 2 weeks.
  
• Upgrade to 15 minutes each day
  
• Add in resistance training every other day: aim to go through the 6 exercises I mention in the article at least once every other day.
  
• Stick with 15 minutes aerobics daily and resistance training every other day - for 3 weeks
  
• After 3 weeks, upgrade your aerobics time to 20 minutes daily
  
• Stick with this for 4 weeks
  
• After 4 weeks, upgrade to 25 minutes of aerobic activity daily
  
• Do this for 2 weeks
  
• After 2 weeks, upgrade to 30 minutes of aerobic activity daily
  
• CONGRATULATIONS!!!!  You've just completed a 12-week jumpstart to a regular exercise program that has been proven to improve your blood sugar, blood pressure, reduce LDL cholesterol and improve quality of life overall!
  
• By now regular exercise should be a habit for you. You can't remember or imagine what your life was like without it.
  
• Now hook up that pedometer and let's see how many steps your 30 minutes get you. If you're not walking 10000 steps in your 30 minutes you'll need to gradually increase until you do.

Here's wishing you a fit, healthy and happy life!

Blessings to ya.

The Tongue: Your Untapped Resource for Success

Your level of success really depends for a start, on what you believe you are capable of achieving.

Your self image determines your level of performance in any given area of your life.

 It determines the type of person you are, the way you behave, the way you speak and think.

Today I'd like to share with you a powerful concept that can seriously boost your self-image, if you choose to believe it.

The inspiration for this concept is none other than the Holy Bible, in my opinion 'The' ultimate Success Manual, from which all other publications derive their messages (though they either deny this - for what ever reason - or they refuse to acknowledge it...some do, though, give credit to Whom it is due).

Right from the first chapter of the first book in the Bible, we are told that 'God made man in His own image, after His own likeness'.

This means that you, dear reader, whether or not you accept this, were made in the image of God almighty, creator of the universe and all that exists. If this is the case, it means that you too can operate the way He operates. The amazing thing is that this principle applies to believers and non-believers alike (just like all of God's laws and principles apply to everyone equally- take the law of Gravity for instance - God put it in place, and it applies to His children as much as it applies to those who aren't His children...).

For the purpose of today's blog message, I wish to draw your attention to one particular resource that you - God's image and likeness - have right now, but are most likely either under-using or not using at all.

It's your tongue. Powerful little organ inside your mouth. There's lots I could write about this organ but today's post is about the power of the spoken word, which your tongue helps you articulate.

The spoken word has phenomenal creative power: whether you believe this or not, your words are either creating or destroying in your life right now.

The wisest and richest man who ever lived, King Solomon, understood this principle well, which was why he wrote that 'death and life are in the power of the tongue...'

The same way the entire universe was created can be summed up in these words:
"And God said...and it was so".

Dear reader, this is what's happening in your life right now.
Because you've been made in God's image, you are saying...and it is being so.

If you wish to know what you're speaking into your life, just take a look at the results and circumstances in your life.

Do you wish to see joy, love, peace, abundance, health, etc, in your life?

Then change the words you are speaking on a daily basis.
Your (choice of) words is an outward reflection of your (choice of) thoughts. Similarly, your words can direct your thoughts. And we all know that your (choice of) thoughts determines your behaviour, which in turn determines the results you achieve in your life.

This is what the practice of affirmation is meant to do for you - train you to think differently so that you speak differently, which gets you in the mental and emotional state to act differently so that you can achieve different results.

If you have a mental image of the life you desire, make sure your words line up with that vision - whether or not things outwardly look that way. Creation always starts within first before it manifests on the outside. However creation won't happen if your thoughts (mental image), words and actions don't line up.

When God showed up on Earth in human form (Jesus Christ), here's one thing He said: "...if you believe that the things you say shall come to pass, you shall have whatsoever you say".

This from the One who made you. Don't ever think the human race was created without a 'User's manual', folks.  It says it right there in the book - you shall have whatsoever you say. If you don't have something, it could be that you don't believe you could have it, but it could also be because you've not said it should be so.

He actually then went on to say that "whatever things you desire, when you pray, believe you receive it, and you shall have them." So if you don't have the things you desire, now you know why.

You've gotta change what you're saying, folks. Don't give in to the temptation to say negative things about your future, or even about your present situation. If you do, you will attract (create) more of the same.

What you say, forces you to focus on what you're saying. What you focus expands. What do you want to expand in your life?

Ill health? Lack? Debt? Disease? Misery? Are these the things you want more of? I didn't think so either. Then speak health, abundance, freedom, joy.

PLEASE NOTE:  

Don't ignore the bad stuff if it exists in your life - but don't talk about it all the time: speak of it only in the context of doing something about it, then get on with the good stuff. Remember, if you ignore the weeds in the garden, they'll take over the land. So don't ignore them - get rid of them and move on with the process of planting, nurturing and harvesting your crop.

Think about that! And make it a fantastic day, dear reader!

PLEASE ALSO NOTE:

This message is about life success principle - which applies to every human being on earth equally, it has nothing to do with your soul or your eternal salvation. For that you can visit my Christian blog - Success-thru-Christ. 

For what does it profit a man or woman or child even, to gain the whole world and lose their soul? 

So get your priorities right, cos success here on earth is good but worth nothing if you lose it all once you leave here...

The 8 Pillars of A Healthy Life...An Overview...

The 8 Pillars of A Healthy Life

1. Positive Mental Attitude

 
- This includes

• personal development, 
• stress management: what is YOUR biggest source of stress? Comment below please.
• self esteem and confidence building, 
• self-motivation,
• self-discipline and in general, the mindset that promotes health and success in life.
  
  I have a whole portion of this site www.doctorkem.com (Personal Development – and the corresponding blog) devoted to this pillar, it’s that important. You’re not truly healthy if this area is messed up.

- Optimists are generally more healthy than pessimists, likely because they interpret events in ways that are conducive to health in the body.

- Your body responds even at a cellular level, to your thoughts and mindset. Mind-body connection is for real.

- Cultivate a positive mental attitude, learn how to manage your stress and build a healthy self esteem, self-image, self-concept, discipline yourself to take appropriate actions and do what you know to do when you know to do it – and your health will improve. The newsletter and blog over at www.doctorkem.com teach you how to do all this.

- The Healthy Lifestyle Project (www.thehealthylifestyleproject.com) includes practical ways to help you out in this area too, so go check it out now!



2. Adequate Hydration
- You must drink enough water for your body size, each day, in order to function optimally.

- Dehydration causes many symptoms such as headaches, body and joint pain, heart burn, etc. Don’t treat these symptoms with drugs – treat them with water! If you’re well hydrated (see below) and you’ve still got the symptoms then go see a Doctor.

- Drink (33ml x your body weight in kg) of water each day. More if you exercise or drink anything that dehydrates you eg caffeine-containing drinks, alcohol, etc.



3. Adequate Nutrition
- You must eat the right types of healthy carbohydrates, healthy fats, healthy proteins, in a proportion that depends on your ‘metabolic type‘. No one ‘diet’ fits all.

- Adequate nutrition shall be your medicine, as Hippocrates wisely said all those years ago. Nutritional medicine is Preventive Medicine.

- You must also take high quality, comprehensive, complete and balanced nutritional supplements daily, to provide optimal levels of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants for your cells.

- According to 2 reviews published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in June 2002, “…it appears prudent for all adults to take nutritional supplements.”

- So start eating a healthy balanced diet according to your Metabolic Type, PLUS take high quality nutritional supplements such as the Essentials made by USANA Health Sciences (Visit the page on ‘Essentials!’ to learn more)

- What constitutes a healthy balanced diet? What are healthy carbs, proteins and fats? Sign up for the FREE Health & Success newsletter at www.doctorkem.com to find out!

- As a participant in The Healthy Lifestyle Project, we work with you to help you optimise your nutrition - you'll get to go through your larder and replace unhealthy, disease-promoting foods with healthy, life promoting ones. What fun! Apply to take part here: www.thehealthylifestyleproject.com - you get FREE consultations (worth £75 - £195) for the entire 3 months, as well as unlimited, FREE email support, and FREE weekly webinar attendance.



4. Adequate Physical Activity and Posture
- You must exercise regularly, and your exercise program must include aerobics, strength training and flexibility exercise.

- At least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise at least 3 times a day, strength training with weights for at least 20 minutes every other day (check out my health blog for pictures of 6 simple strength training exercises you can do at home), stretching for flexibility daily.

- Start today, don’t delay! Discipline will bridge the gap between your dreams and their realisation so get that butt moving!

- You must maintain correct posture at all times as well. Images of examples of good posture are found on my health blog over at www.doctorkem.com.


- The Healthy Lifestyle Project includes 2 powerful exercise resources that empower you to cultivate regular exercise habits at home or at the gym, up to you. You've got no excuse now! Apply to take part here: www.thehealthylifestyleproject.com


5. Adequate Oxygenation
- You must breathe well enough to ensure your cells have enough oxygen for you to function optimally. Many other benefits of being well oxygenated (see FREE newsletter when you sign up!)

- This includes deep breathing exercises and laughter.

- Now you know why laughter is like medicine! So find reasons to laugh each day.

- Do daily deep breathing exercises. An example is described in an earlier post on this blog.



6. Adequate Sunlight
- Vitamin D is now known to do more than just give you strong bones and teeth: it affects the functioning of most every cell in your body, and boosts your immunity, therefore a host of illnesses occur when your levels are lower than normal. Certainly if you feel ‘tired all the time’, get your doctor to add this to the other blood tests they’re doing to see if low levels are contributing to your symptoms.

- Pregnant women also MUST have their Vitamin D levels checked as low levels have not only been associated with hypertension in pregnancy, but are also known to lead to deficiency in the baby, with sometimes serious health consequences for the baby.

- You must ensure you have optimal levels of Vitamin D (ask your doctor to test for ’serum (25, OH) Vitamin D’ levels. If insufficient, order USANA’s Essentials today – the HealthPak alone contains enough vitamin D per serving (2000IU Vit D3) to keep you from having insufficient levels of this important vitamin, and to treat you if you ARE already insufficient or if deficient, order USANA’s Essentials PLUS USANA’s Vitamin D3 supplements, then go have your blood levels tested again after a month on the supps. to make sure they’re improving.)

- It's 'flu season'. One reason why flu and colds are more common in the winter seasons is that there isn't much Vitamin D being made at this time, so you've gotta make sure your levels are optimal, to boost your immunity.

- Again, as a participant of The Healthy Lifestyle Project, this will get checked and optimised for you. Sign up NOW for these FREE sessions www.thehealthylifestyleproject.com


7. Adequate Rest
- You must get enough sleep each night. A lot of your body’s restorative and growth processes take place while you sleep. Certain hormones are released at night while you sleep, to aid in the said processes.

- Just as a point of interest, inadequate sleep has been linked with weight gain…

-’Experts’ seem to agree that 6-7 hours of sleep minimum per night, are enough for most adults.



8. Support: Receive support, Give support
- Studies show that being part of a support system helps you maintain a good habit. Studies also show that people in a stable relationship are generally healthier than those who are not.

-’Support’ could be in form of a spouse/partner, friends, coaching group, Personal coach, church fellowship, etc.

- You must be plugged into a proactively support system if you are to establish, build and maintain 8 strong Pillars for your Healthy Life. Isolation is bad for your health! You’ve got to have at least someone you can confide in and offload/share your burdens with. ‘No man is an island’ may be cliche, but it’s true. We were not created to be loners. And disease (either mental or physical) ALWAYS results when we go against the way God designed us to function, as a general principle…

- You should also seek out ways to be a source of support to others. Give of your time, talents, money, to those in need. This is a powerful therapeutic habit. Volunteering. Certainly does wonders for you if you suffer from depression: it’s hard to feel depressed if you’re focused on others and what you can do for them…(this mindset ties in with the first pillar, however the taking action bit of it is under Pillar 8.). Seek ways to bless others and you too will be blessed: it’s an undeniable and irrefutable spiritual law.

If you find yourself feeling unwell, go through the above 8 pillars and honestly ask yourself where you’ve gone wrong. Contact me if you need help in working through this. Better yet, sign up now for The Healthy Lifestyle Project and you'll be coached to optimal health, for life!

Sign up over at www.thehealthylifestyleproject.com

HOW TO SHRINK YOUR FIBROIDS NATURALLY

I get asked a lot to advice women on how to shrink their fibroids without surgery. So here're my top tips. But first, a bit of background on the issue.


WHAT IS A FIBROID?
A fibroid is a benign (non-deadly) tumour of the smooth muscle cells of your uterus (womb). A woman can have just one or multiple fibroids as you can see in the image below:

Fibroids in multiple locations in the womb...

However the point of this article is not to tell you all about what a fibroid is - the focus is to tell you how to get rid of it without getting rid of your womb!


Symptoms of fibroid include these main ones: (if you have any of these symptoms, see your doctor to make sure there's no other cause for them)
- Heavy periods
- Painful periods
- Pelvic pain
- If large and pressing on your urinary bladder you may experience the feeling of going to pee often, and not emptying your bladder completely


NATURAL WAYS TO SHRINK FIBROIDS
The basis for this is controlling oestrogen levels in your body because one major factor in fibroids is excess oestrogens and oestrogen-like effects. This is why fibroids naturally shrink when a woman reaches the menopause.

Note that the reasons for fibroids in your case may be different for the reasons in another woman, as you will see below from the lists of causes of increased oestrogens. So you'd need to have a discussion with a Healthy Lifestyle Medicine practitioner to ascertain what is the cause in your case, if it's not clear to you after reading this post:


Causes of increased oestrogens
- Stress
- Overweight/obesity
- Contraceptive pills
- Pregnancy

Causes of increased oestrogen effect
- Substances that mimic oestrogens in your body, such as pesticides used in non-organic foods,
- hormones used in non organic beef, poultry, etc.


HOW TO SHRINK YOUR FIBROIDS NATURALLY...
(First make sure your doctor has assessed you to confirm there is no other gynaecological condition you're suffering from, apart from the fibroids).


The 8 Pillars of A Healthy Life (www.doctorkem.com) will guarantee you to be free from symptoms of fibroid, because it takes care of these components:

a) Healthy Liver
This includes avoiding things which not only contain oestrogens, but also things which mimic oestrogens, such as certain toxins (such as the pesticides used in non-organic foods) and pollutants (which is why a healthy liver is essential to your total health: it helps your body get rid of these toxins, thus contributes to shrinking your fibroids if this is the cause in your case.)

Practising the 8 Pillars keeps your liver detoxified. In addition, if you suffer from fibroids, I would recommend that you take a high quality supplement that contains nutrients that support your liver function.


b) Healthy Weight
Excess oestrogens are stored in fat cells. Fibroids have been shown to occur more often in overweight women. If this is the cause for your fibroids, then when you lose weight, your fibroids will shrink.

An overweight body is an unhealthy body. The whole point of The 8 Pillars of a Healthy Life is to empower you to transform your body into a healthy body: weight loss is a 'side effect' of this process.


c) Anti inflammatory state
If your fibroids are due to your being in a hyperinflammatory state (which can be the case if you're, among other things, eating the wrong types of food)…eating naturally anti-inflammatory foods may help, eg purified fish oil capsules, cumin, rosemary, hops, oat.

Certain lifestyle habits keep your body in a hyperinflammatory state. For instance eating a lot of processed foods, eg refined carbohydrates, processed meats, etc contribute to this. Lack of physical activity also contributes to this because then your body is unable to produce the substances that protect you from this effect.


d) Healthy Nutrition
The 4th Pillar.
In addition to the basic healthy nutrition guidelines you follow in The 8 Pillars of A Healthy Life, you need to :Avoid food that has been injected with hormones eg meat, poultry. Eat only organic foods as these are free from pesticides. Include non GM soy isoflavones (about 80mg/day) in your diet. Take complete, balanced, bioavailable, comprehensive, high quality nutritional supplements daily.


e) Stress Management
This is part of the 1st Pillar of A Healthy Life.Stress leads to release of cortisol. Cortisol increases fatty tissues and fat cells. Fat cells store excess oestrogens. Stress management is a way to manage your weight also.


f) Sunshine!
The 6th Pillar of A Healthy Life. Vitamin D has been shown to halt the growth of fibroid cells, which could explain why fibroids are commoner in black women - dark skinned people make less vitamin D and thus have insufficient levels in their bodies for it to do its protective work.

Vitamin D helps your immune system suppress tumour activity. Fibroids are tumours (benign ones)

So take a blood test with your doctor (ask for 'Serum (25,OH) Vitamin D levels) and if your levels are below normal, take a good vitamin D3 supplement at a dose of 2000IU per day.


g) Miscellaneous
Needless to say you must stop smoking and other such unhealthy habits, and keep your alcohol intake to the barest minimum, as these contribute to your worsening fibroids.


You CAN beat this, ladies!
You CAN shrink your fibroid!
You CAN avoid needless surgery!


Give your body a chance to do what it does best: heal and restore itself. However, it can't do this if it is receiving less than optimal treatment from you.


That's why I've written this overview on The 8 Pillars of a Healthy Life to stir you up to treating your body the right way - when you do, your body will reward you with health. No more fibroids!


Here's to your Total Health!


Dr Kem
www.doctorkem.com
www.thehealthylifestyleproject.com

GIVING AND RECEIVING: A UNIVERSAL LAW OF SUCCESS

Life is governed by principles or Laws. Act in accordance with these laws and you can only benefit.

Violate these laws and death in some form or other, results (and manifests as disease, poverty, lack, misery, relationship breakdown, etc,  or actual, physical, death).

Ignorance is not ever a virtue, friends.

Discover these Laws and act on them. One of my works in progress deals with 7 of such Laws (watch this space...)

Take the Law of Sowing and Reaping for instance:

- This could also be called the Law of Giving and Receiving.


- You exist because a sperm was given and was received by an egg. You are the harvest of that process. GIVING preceded RECEIVING. Sowing and reaping, giving and receiving.

- The moment you were born, you had to FIRST GIVE out a breath before you could receive your first breath of life. You FIRST gave out a yelp (probably with the assitance of the midwife or doctor smacking your bottom!), and THEN you received air to fully inflate your little lungs. Sowing and reaping started right the instant you were born, and you really were meant to apply this principle in all areas of your life from then on...if you had not FIRST GIVEN out a breath, you'd be dead before you knew it...


- All the food you eat exists because someone planted a seed into something. Your food is the harvest. But FIRST someone had to give seed to something.

- When you have an exam to take, you FIRST GIVE time and effort into the work before you RECEIVE your harvest of success.

- When you want to enjoy electric light, you have to GIVE the switch a flick. This sets in motion the FLOW of current through the cables that cause you to RECEIVE light.

There are many other examples of this law which I'm sure you can think of but without belabouring the point, here's what I want you to know:

There's nothing you can do to change the fact that Law is Law. God put Law in place not to bind or restrict you, but rather to free you to enjoy your stay here on planet Earth in fullness and abundance.

So you've gotta acknowlege the Laws that govern our Universe, because whether or not you believe they exist, they do exist and are affecting you right now.

Gravity for instance, is in operation right now regardless of who believes it or not. Some folks have tried to defy it but have not lived to narrate their experience.

Sowing and Reaping is a Law.
Sowing ALWAYS COMES FIRST before Reaping.

Giving ALWAYS COMES FIRST before Receiving.

Sowing and Giving trigger the FLOW of your harvest to you.

It is not your responsibility to understand how a seed becomes a harvest.
The HOW is not your problem - it's God's job so let Him figure it out, cos He's the only one Who can - it's futile for you to stay up late at night trying to figure out how your harvest will come so don't do it!


How To Act In Accordance To This Law:
Learn from the farmer
- Determine your desired harvest: Be specific now. Farmer doesn't say 'I want a tree'. He says 'I want an Apple Tree'. Then he goes and plants apple seed. Until you are clear on your desired harvest, you cant plant the right seed.

- Acknowledge and BELIEVE that God is the Source of ALL your harvest. This way, when you've for instance, sown a financial seed by giving to someone in need, you don't expect your harvest from that person, rather you fully expect it from God - let Him decide the channel He'll use to bring it to pass, while you happily and expectantly go about your normal business.

- Plant a seed that matches your desired harvest

- Do all things with GRATITUDE that your harvest is here. RECEIVE it with gratitude, BY FAITH, in your heart, NOW, and express daily gratitude for it until it manifests physically. The farmer doesn't plant a seed one day and spend the rest of the days agitating over when it's going to bring him his harvest.  He rather works to ensure that weeds are out of the soil, and that the soil is in perfect condition for the seed to grow, which brings me to the next step:

- TAKE ACTION! Sometimes planting the seed IS taking action, but on other occasions you plant your seed then you start taking action, but do this with FAITH AND GRATITUDE that your harvest is here now (because it is, only not in tangible form. But as surely as The Law of Perpertual Transmutation of Energy is real, your harvest is BEING transmuted from intangible to tangible...your action, taken with faith and gratitude, hasten this process though.)

- EXPECT your harvest. Speak of it only in terms that express your faith and expectation. Don't negate your efforts by speaking negative or contrary words about this.

- RECEIVE your harvest. With thanksgiving.

- SOW from your harvest: keeps the cycle of life going. When you receive breath, you give out breath also, then you receive another one and give out another one. The nature of life and its cycles, teach us that giving and receiving should continue throughout life - as long as you have breath in you.  In blessing others you also shall be blessed.



"He who waters shall himself be watered; There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty" King Solomon the Wise


He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

FLU SEASON IS UPON US! HERE'S A SAFER WAY TO BEAT THE FLU!!

The flu season is fast approaching, and it's on everyone's mind how to fight the bug that seems to be so rampant today.

Today's post is about a nutrient which is gaining more prominence as it's numerous roles in keeping you healthy emerge. It's my favourite preventive and possibly curative 'secret' weapon for beating the flu:

Meet the humble vitamin, the sunshine vitamin, Vitamin D. Vitamin D is the 6th Pillar of A Healthy Life. All 8 Pillars must be solid in your life for you to enjoy true health and success in every area of life.





This vitamin is well known for its role in healthy bone development and calcium metabolism. However, for the past 30 years, other roles for Vitamin D have been emerging and some recent, well-conducted studies are coming to the fore now and we now know that:

There is a vitamin D deficiency epidemic worldwide.

This deficiency is worse in the winter months because there's not enough sunlight for our skin to make enough of its own vitamin D.

Vitamin D boosts your immune system and helps it work better.

Most of your cells need adequate levels of Vitamin D to function optimally.

Vitamin D has been shown to be protective against colds and flu when taken in adequate amounts, therefore in winter months, when vitamin D levels are particularly low, colds and flu are more common.

Vitamin D in appropriate levels, is also protective against several forms of cancer: one of its functions is to arrest the multiplication of these abnormal cells in the body.

Vitamin D insufficiency symptoms include, among other things, depression, joint pain, tiredness (which has often been 'diagnosed' as chronic fatigue syndrome or fibromyalgia or 'psychological'), muscle ache, diabetes (Vit D helps regulate insulin activity), osteoporosis, heart disease, some cases of high blood pressure (Vitamin D plays a role in regulating the Renin-Angiotensin pathway). Deficiency causes osteomalacia in adults, rickets in children, and heart failure if severe.

The current recommended daily allowance of 400IU/day is not nearly enough to protect you from the major illnesses and symptoms mentioned above.

The level of Vit D in your blood should be in a range between 75-150nmol/l. (Get your Dr to test your level asap, to know if you need more vit. D).

You need to make sure you are well stocked up on Vitamin D, especially in the winter months. It's been suggested that the reason colds and flu occur more frequently in winter months, is lack of Vitamin D (less sunlight).




Those at most risk of suffering from dangerous Vit D deficiency are:

• Dark skinned people, or people whose clothing covers most of their skin most of the time
• obese people, 
• people suffering from malabsorption syndromes eg coeliac, inflammatory bowel disease,
• the elderly, 
• housebound, 
• excess use of sunscreen.
• Babies of mothers with insufficient levels of vitamin D.

How To Get Enough Vitamin D:
1) Stay out in the sun (sunbathe) for 30 mins each day (this makes your body produce 20,000IU of vitamin D per day.) Clearly not practical though. However, do get as much sun as you can manage. Early morning sunlight is best as that contains mostly the UVB rays which protect you from getting skin cancer, while helping you make Vitamin D.

2) Eat loads of foods containing Vit D. Foods like Oily fish, cod liver oil, egg yolk. The amount in these foods is really minimal. Still won't give you enough per day, but these things all add up and every little counts, so do this as well.


3) Take a high quality Vitamin D3 supplement (there's a cheaper counterpart, Vitamin D2, but this form is less effective so you want to avoid it if possible. Certainly you wish to avoid any Vitamin D plus calcium only combination unless blood tests show your calcium levels to be lower than normal).

This is the most practical way to ensure you are getting the right amount of D3.

But first get your doctor to test your Vitamin D levels by requesting the test called 'Serum (25, OH) Vitamin D).

If blood tests show you have insufficient levels of Vitamin D, you need to take between 2000IU and 5000IU of Vitamin D3 daily and remain on a maintainance of 2000IU when your levels normalise. So you'd need a repeat blood test when you've been on the supplements for at least a month.

If blood tests show you to be Vitamin D deficient, you need to take at least 10,000IU of Vitamin D3 per day, and maintain on 2000IU per day when your levels normalise. So here also you need a repeat blood test after a month on supps.

This may sound like a lot of Vitamin D to be taking, but remember your body can easily make twice that amount just by you sitting out in the sun for 30 minutes.

During flu season, you may, if you were originally insufficient or deficient, need to increase your daily intake to 5000IU per day, then go back down to maintainance doses afterwards. Read on to discover the supplements I trust, use and recommend (highly).

Take home tips:

If you want to win the fight against flu this year, optimise your vitamin D levels.

Get your Dr to request Vitamin D levels for you. Ask for the 'serum 25-OH Vitamin D' blood test. Optimise your intake such that you're well within healthy levels of Vit D. Give your body a fighting chance this flu season! The supplements I use and recommend to friends and family are the ones made by USANA Health Sciences: they're of the highest quality, contain the right amounts in the right proportions and have been independently shown to not only contain what they say they contain in the amount it says on the 'tin', but also that they are bioavailable (available to your cells after you've taken them, which is where they're needed!)

Every adult should be on their Essentials multivitamins, multimineral and antioxidant pack. Their HealthPak contains 'The Essentials' including 2000IU of Vitamin D3 per serving, as well as additional antioxidants. If you are vitamin D insufficient then this is all you need.

They also make Essentials for children and for teenagers so your young ones have the chance to optimise their levels too. Every child should be on the Usanimals (Essentials multivitamin, mineral and antioxidants for children aged 1-12 years old) and every teenager should be on BodyRox (Essentials for teens)

If you are vitamin D deficient then you ALSO need to take their Vitamin D3 tablets (each little tablet contains 2000IU of vitamin D3), to optimise your levels.

Take control of your health! Continue eating your veg and fruit (ratio of 3 veg to 2 fruit, mind you), exercising regularly and applying all the other components of The 8 Pillars of A Healthy Lifestyle (TM).

6 simple strength training exercises

Do these exercises every other day (check with your doctor first before you start any new exercise program).

This series of exercises workout every major muscle group and if you do them consistently, they will help you shed your excess fat FOREVER.


Recommended Reading for men and women:
Strong Women Stay Slim, by Dr Miriam Nelson.





For each exercise below:
- Do 2 sets
- Each set should consist of 8-12 reps.
- Maintain good posture throughout
- Breathe out on exertion
- Move slowly and deliberately to a count of 1-2-3-up, 3-2-1-down.
- Re: dumb bells, start with say a 1kg pair then gradually increase.
Target to aim for depends on your age range, and the specific exercise in question.
You could get a Personal Trainer in the gym to show you or advice you on your specific target.
- If you don't have dumb bells, be creative. A friend of mine used 1.5L bottles of water in each arm (roughly 1.5kg) to start with. Or cans of food. Be creative. Where there's a will there's a way.



1. The Chair Squat

- Aim to just about sit on the chair - without actually sitting on it. This forces your core muscles to hold you steady.
- Slowly 1-2-3-up, 3-2-1-down!
- You will feel the effort in your thighs, buttocks and trunks.



2. The Biceps Curl

- Start with dumb bell weights that are comfortable but challenging for you to use.
- Do this with both arms at the same time.
- You will feel the effort  in your upper arms.
- Slowly now: 1-2-3-up, 3-2-1-down!



3. Overhead Press

- Slowly do it: 1-2-3-up, 3-2-1-down!
- You will feel the effort in your upper arms, shoulders and upper back.



4. Calf Raise

- To make this more challenging for yourself, take your hands off the chair!
- You will feel the effort in your ankles, feet and calves.
-Slowly: 1-2-3-up, 3-2-1-down!


5. Seated Reverse Fly

...or variations of this.
- Slowly: 1-2-3- up!, 3-2-1-down!
- To make it even more challenging, bend your elbows slightly.
- Assuming you're doing aerobics to aid in the fat burning process, this exercise helps strengthen your shoulder muscles, making them also look lovely and shapely.
- You will feel the effort in your shoulders and upper arms.



6. Bent-over Row

- If you can't do this standing up, sit on a chair: sit close to the edge of the chair, bending slightly forwards at the waist, with your back straight, until your chest is just above your thighs.
- Slowly 1-2-3-up, 3-2-1-down!
- You will feel the effort in your upper back, upper arms, shoulders, lower back, abdomen, thights.



ALWAYS MAINTAIN GOOD POSTURE THROUGHOUT.

Strength training will also help you develop good posture as your muscles become stronger and more toned.

Your Daily Action Steps...

Discipline: Your Daily Discipline

Today I want you to focus on ACTION STEPS.


The reason Discipline bridges your goals and their accomplishments is that you use it to take ACTION, to do the things you have to do, to make things happen for you.


I want to introduce you to the concept of 'Daily Disciplines'. You may be familiar with this concept already.


A 'daily discipline' is a non-negotiable contract you make with yourself to do regularly, whether you feel like it or not. Note that even though it's called a 'daily' discipline, the key thing here is that you do it regularly.


For instance, a daily discipline could be to exercise every day, or to attend a networking meeting every week.


Whatever the action is, it's got to have these qualities:

a) It's got to be something that pulls or draws you closer to your goal
b) You've got to do it when you're supposed to - leave no room for negotiation either with yourself or with someone else. (negotiation here means discussing whether you feel like doing it or not, etc). Just do it!


It's been said that it takes just half a dozen daily disciplines, done regularly, for breakthrough type of success to happen in any endeavour.


Don't know how accurate that figure is, but the principle is solid.


There's just no other option, if you're consistently doing the right thing relevant to your goal, but to achieve it.


When you remember this, you ought to be inspired, and motivated from within, to keep on keeping on, until you reach your goal.


As Og Mandino said in the great little book 'the greatest salesman in the world', you've got to form good habits and then become a slave to them. That's what your daily disciplines are about: a set of good habits that you've become a 'slave' to, whose end result can only be good for you.


So my question for you this week is this:
- Name 3 things which, if you consistently did them, would greatly improve your outcomes, your life.
- How regularly should you be doing these things, in order to bring you closer to your goals? Write this down beside each one.


These things should be things which have a global positive impact on your life in general, not necessarily specific to any one goal, but should positively impact your goals anyway.


Decide what these 3 things are.
Write them down.
Start doing them NOW!


Develop other daily disciplines based on your individual goals but don't have so many that you're overwhelmed into doing nothing. A good range to work with is 6-10.


Keep track of what you're doing so that you're encouraged when you see the results you're achieving along the way.


This habit of daily disciplines is one of the most important ones you can form so start NOW.