Five Ways to Drink More Water

By sportyafros.com

We have all heard it, 60% of the body is composed of water. But isn’t it hard to drink the recommended 64ounces of water a day? I can’t lie, I struggle with it but I’m working on it. So here are a few tips on how to drink more water.


Carry it with you!- It seems soda, coffee and energy drinks are all around. If you always keep a bottle water on you then you can sip it  throughout the day. Try putting water in one of these cute bottles.

Tea-This is a quick way to drink water without the added calories. Try having hot tea in the morning and cold tea during lunch. With a variety of flavors such as Ginger and lemon berry, you’ll never get  tired of drinking tea!
Random Note: Did you know there is Ayurvedic tea?! WHITE AYURVEDIC CHAI TEA. Ayurvedic items are everywhere!

Sparking Water- Get all the benefits of being calorie free but satisfies your fizz craving. Here are a few brands of sparking waters I like: San Pellegrino, Perrier, Trader’s Joe and Wholefoods. I love adding zest to sparking water with a little lemon and lime juice.

Frozen Fruit – Instead of flavoring your water with lemon, try new adding fruits and veggies such as: limes, raspberries, orange, cucumber or coconut. Take it a further step  by adding few frozen pieces of fruit into your water, tea or sparking water. It will make your plain jane glass of water look pretty and its really refreshing.

Eat It! -Fruits and vegetables contain large quantities of water in proportion to their weight. When these foods are eaten, the water can be absorbed by the body. Here are a few suggestions:  watermelon, broccoli, cabbage, grapefruit, tomatoes and cucumbers. All of these fruits are at least 90% water.

http://sportyafros.com/nutrition/five-ways-to-drink-more-water/

How do you plan to drink more water?

DITCH THE SODA POP!!!

3 Surprising Reasons to Give Up Soda

By David Zinczenko with Matt Goulding
Jan 24, 2012

Health Experts Main

Eat This, Not That

by David Zinczenko with Matt Goulding

America has a drinking problem. No, not booze. I'm talking about soft drinks. According to the Beverage Marketing Corporation, the average American guzzles 44.7 gallons of the sweet stuff every year. Not sure what 44.7 gallons looks like? It's about what you'd need to fill a small kiddie pool.
But the truth is, you don't need me to tell you that soda isn't healthy. We all know that America’s drink of choice contributes to our country's ever-expanding obesity problem. But, as Rodale.com writer Leah Zerbe discovered, love handles are just the beginning. Read on for her report on three shocking soda facts that will have you saying “Just water, please” from now on.

Shocking Soda Fact #1: Soda fattens up your organs

A recent Danish study revealed that drinking non-diet soda leads to dramatic increases in dangerous hard-to-detect fats. Researchers asked participants to drink either regular soda, milk containing the same amount of calories as regular soda, diet cola, or water every day for six months. The results? Total fat mass remained the same across all beverage-consuming groups, but regular-soda drinkers experienced dramatic increases in harmful hidden fats, including liver fat and skeletal fat. The regular-soda group also experienced an 11 percent increase in cholesterol compared to the other groups! And don’t think switching to diet varieties will save you from harm: Artificial sweeteners and food dyes have been linked to brain cell damage and hyperactivity, and research has shown that people who drink diet soda have a higher risk of developing diabetes.
Read out about the 7 biggest food label lies.
FIX IT WITH FOOD: The average American drinks 450 calories a day. By switching to water as your go-to beverage, you'll make room in your diet for these 40 Foods with Superpowers—foods that, even in moderation, can strengthen your heart, fortify your bones, and boost your metabolism so you can lose weight more quickly.

Shocking Soda Fact #2: Soda contains flame retardants

Some popular soda brands, including Mountain Dew, use brominated vegetable oil—a toxic flame retardant—to keep the artificial flavoring from separating from the rest of the liquid. This hazardous ingredient—sometimes listed as BVO on soda and sports drinks—can cause bromide poisoning symptoms like skin lesions and memory loss, as well as nerve disorders. If that’s not a good enough reason not to “Do the Dew,” I don’t know what is. (We reveal more insidious ingredients hiding onsupermarket shelves in the 15 Scariest Food Additives).
Are you addicted to diet soda? Find out now!
DRINK DISASTERS: Soda isn’t the only dubious drink you have to watch out for. Many bottled beverages pack enough sugar and calories to foil your get-fit plans in one fell sip. Protect yourself by avoiding the 11 Worst Beverages in the Supermarket!

Shocking Soda Fact #3: Drinking soda makes you a lab rat

Many American soda brands are sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup, a heart-harming man-made compound derived mainly from genetically engineered corn. The problem? Genetically engineered ingredients have only been in our food chain since the 1990s, and we don't know their long-term health impacts because the corporations that developed the crops never had to test them for long-term safety. Case in point: Some recent findings suggest that genetically engineered crops are linked to digestive tract damage, accelerated aging, and even infertility!
Ready to switch to water for good? Thought so. Here's a foolproof way to Cure Your Soda Addiction!

ARE YOU ADDICTED TO SODA? DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER FAVORITE BEVERAGES? I DRINK BETWEEN 6 - 9 GLASSES (8OZ) OF WATER PER DAY, SOMETIMES MORE WHEN I WORK OUT OR IT'S HOT OUTSIDE. MY OTHER FAVORITE BEVERAGES ARE TEA AND LEMONADE. I LONG AGO STOPPED DRINKING SODA AND KOOLAID.

Hilarious!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OL7XZ-bfVo&feature=player_embedded

FITNESS

7 Fitness Myths, Busted

By Lisa Collier Cool
Jan 18, 2012

Send

Share

Print

Health Experts Main

Day in Health

by Lisa Collier Cool

Recent Posts

• Is Genetically Modified Food Dangerous?

• Surprising Causes of Restless Sleep

• Weird Ways Running Affects Your Body

More Articles »

Related Topics

• Sports Injuries

Health Topics »

Did you make a New Year’s resolution to get fit in 2012? The fitness resolution is a perennial on the top 10 list of the annual promises we make to ourselves, just after the all-time winner “lose weight”).
If you haven’t moved many muscles since high school gym class, you might not be up to speed on fitness myths, a stubborn bunch that just won’t die. A dose of reality right about now might strengthen your resolve.
Here’s a rundown on the seven top evergreen exercise myths that you’ll probably hear but can safely ignore:
Build a home gym for under $150

No Pain, No Gain

Maybe this one took on a life of its own because it rhymes and is so easy to remember. Forget it. If an exercise causes pain, you’re either doing it wrong (a session or two with a personal trainer can set you straight) or you’ve already managed to hurt yourself.
Be sure to separate pain from muscle soreness, which comes on after you tax a lax muscle and will wear off in a few days. Actual pain can mean that you’ve exhausted a muscle or torn a ligament. If what you’re doing really hurts, stop.
Figure out what to eat and when to eat

Stretching Before Exercise

The idea here is that stretching before and after you exercise can prevent injury while you’re working out and muscle soreness afterward.
While stretching does promote flexibility (something you should strive for as an element of overall fitness), a study published in British Medical Journal found no scientific evidence to back up the notion that stretching before a workout reduces injuries or that stretching before and after can prevent muscle soreness.

Exercise Speeds Metabolism for Hours

While partly true--your metabolism does amp up during exercise and for a few hours afterward--the truth can be a big disappointment: the number of calories you can expect lose thanks to the afterburn is negligible, only 20 extra ones for the whole day according to one study.
But (and this is a really big “but”) you may be able to set your metabolism on high for hours after your workout if you can exercise intensely enough to reach the top of your VO2 max (the maximum amount of oxygen you can take in during exercise) and continue at that high level for 45 minutes. A tough prescription, but if you can manage that, a recent study found that you could burn as many as 190 extra calories in the hours after exercise.
Use these 10 creative tips to burn calories

Crunches Lead to Sixpack Abs

Sure they will as long as you also get rid of any belly fat that obscures your abdominal muscles. While crunches strengthen muscles, they won’t burn off the fat in your belly.
To flaunt your newly crunched abs you’ve got to trim the fat via diet, cardiovascular exercise and resistance training. And, of course, for crunches to work, you’ve got to learn to do them right.

Running on a Treadmill is Easier on the Knees

Sorry, but it is the running itself that stresses the knees, not the surface you’re pounding.
To ease the impact on your knees, experts advise varying your aerobic activities: mix running with riding a stationary bike or using the elliptical machine at the gym.
Learn about the weird ways running affects your body

Ice Eases Muscle Pain 

Applying ice to a sore muscle can numb it so it feels better, but a new review of evidence from 36 earlier studies concluded that icing doesn’t help heal muscle tears and can actually reduce muscle strength and power temporarily. This makes it a poor strategy for football players and other athletes who are itching to return to the action immediately after icing.
The researchers suggested that it is okay to ice sore muscles provided you don’t go right back to exercising. And they noted that more study is needed to learn more about the effects of icing, but this will be tough to accomplish since, for comparison purposes, there’s no placebo that feels like ice.

Using Exercise Machines is Safer

If you know what you’re doing, using machines at the gym can help you get the most out of your workout. But first the machines have to be correctly adjusted for your height and weight by a savvy coach or trainer. Otherwise, you’re as vulnerable to injury and as you would be if you were doing the same type of exercise with free weights or without any devices.
Nor is an expensive gym membership essential to get in shape, since jogging gives you a great cardio workout, while investing a pair of dumbbells to use at home helps with strength training.
Check out the top fitness trends for 2012

SURPRISINGLY HEALTHY PACKAGED FOODS

http://shine.yahoo.com/shine-food/10-surprisingly-healthy-packaged-foods-145700013.html

This list didn't include raisins, hummus, and nuts. Do you buy prepackaged foods?

4 Bad Habits that Are Making You Sick

By Reader's Digest Magazine

What happens when you don't sleep enough, skip breakfast, don't exercise, or hold grudges? Find out how these behaviors are harming your health.

What happens when I only sleep five hours?

The inside story: No one knows for sure why sleep is necessary, but there's no doubt that getting too little throws a wrench into your body's works. For example, studies show that a sleep debt lowers levels of the hormone leptin, which helps keep your appetite under control. Implication: Sleep too little, and there's a good chance you'll be soon overeating. Sleep deprivation also boosts levels of stress hormones, which prompt your body to send more glucose into your bloodstream. Too little sleep also makes your body less sensitive to insulin.

But that's just the beginning. Research shows that sleeping too little shuts down production of certain chemicals in the immune system that defend your body against germs. Shortchange yourself on shut-eye and you may want to have a box of tissues and cough medicine handy: A 2009 study found that people who sleep less than seven hours a night are up to three times more likely to develop a cold.

Other studies show that even modest sleep deprivation - cutting back from your usual eight hours a night to six hours, for instance - can turn up levels of chronic inflammation, which increases the risk for many conditions, including heart attacks, strokes, and osteoporosis.

PLUS: 8 Things That Are Making You Fat

Then, there are the immediate effects. When the alarm clock blares you out of a deep sleep, you're apt to start the day in a sour mood. As the day passes, you're also likely to feel dull witted and foggy. Some neurologists believe that one purpose of sleep is to give your brain a chance to build and strengthen the wiring between neurons. Studies show that well-rested people learn new information faster and have sharper memories. Short sleep reduces your reaction time, too, making you at risk for car accidents and other mishaps.

BOTTOM LINE: While some people can get by on relatively little sleep, most of us need seven to eight hours a night. Experts say one sign that you're getting adequate sleep is that you can wake up on time every day without using an alarm clock.

What happens when I skip breakfast?

The inside story: When you wake up after a long night's rest, your body has gone as much as 12 hours without a meal. That means one thing: You need fuel. More precisely, it means there's probably a shortage of glucose in your bloodstream. If you don't eat breakfast and head out the door with low blood sugar, one organ in particular won't be operating at full speed: your brain, which requires a steady flow of blood sugar to run effectively. And even a mild case of low blood sugar can leave you queasy and jittery. You may also feel less sharp-witted. Studies of school children have shown repeatedly that kids who eat breakfast have better memories and learn more than their classmates who don't.

What's more, blowing off breakfast is a set-up for pigging out later on. "Breakfast is important for keeping your appetite under control the rest of the day," says endocrinologist Suma Dronavalli, MD, of the University of Chicago Medical Center. In other words, skip breakfast and by noontime your groaning stomach will convince you to skip the salad and order a Dagwood-size sandwich, instead. Most people more than compensate for the calories they miss at breakfast by overeating at lunch and dinner - especially foods high in saturated fat, the kind that plugs arteries.

PLUS: Lose Weight Around the Clock

Meanwhile, breakfast skippers are also more likely to snack on junk food between meals. One study found that women who usually nixed breakfast were able to take off four pounds - simply by adding a nutritious meal in the morning. Eat breakfast regularly and you'll not only lose weight, but your blood sugar should shape up, too.

BOTTOM LINE: More than three quarters of people who lose weight and keep it off eat breakfast. Sitting down for the morning meal may also make you up to 50 percent less likely to develop insulin resistance, the problem that causes type 2 diabetes.

What happens when I spend the day sitting around?

The inside story: Remember that old saying "the devil finds work for idle hands"? Spending a lazy day on the sofa may not seem evil to you, but your body finds plenty of ways to make trouble with the sugar, or glucose idling in your bloodstream. Taking a walk or getting any other type of physical activity forces muscle cells to soak up glucose, which it uses to produce energy. On a day when you don't give your muscles enough work to do, glucose goes unused. Over time, a sit-around lifestyle encourages two major problems:

* Your body converts some unused sugar to fat. Build up too much and your butt, thighs, and belly will expand. The latter flab depository is the most worrisome; research shows that fat cells around the waistline produce chemicals that cause insulin resistance and low-grade inflammation, which promotes heart disease and other conditions.

* Having lots of glucose lingering in the blood increases levels of dangerous compounds called AGEs that damage nerves and blood cells. That's why high blood sugar causes diabetes complications such as blindness and kidney disease.

Getting up off the sofa and heading out the door for a walk can help you to avoid these fates, of course. Exercise is a reliable fat burner and research shows that physical activity lowers levels of AGEs, too - among many other benefits.

BOTTOM LINE: Sitting around all day may help you get caught up on your favorite cable shows, but it is also a set-up for bad blood sugar, weight gain, and all the problems they can cause.

PLUS: 13 Ways to Have More Energy at Work

What happens when I spend the day really angry?

The inside story: There's nothing wrong with getting angry - it's perfectly natural and healthy to get ticked off now and then. Staying angry is another matter altogether: It's terrible for you. Apart from wrecking your mood and alienating others, fuming all day can make it much harder to manage diabetes. Anger is a form of emotional stress, which causes your body to release adrenaline and other related hormones. One effect of these "stress" hormones is to raise blood sugar. Also, stress may make you indulge in bad habits, such as eating junk food, which can make matters worse.

There's more. Letting your anger boil all day can damage your heart. Do you get irked and annoyed now and then, but you're able to shrug it off? No big deal. But scientists now know that clinging to anger raises blood pressure. While that's not a big surprise, a recent Yale study found that people who tend to let their anger stew also have high levels of a substance called endothelin, which is known to trigger heart attacks by causing plaques in the arteries (clumps of fat, cholesterol, and other gunk) to burst open and form blood clots. Other research has found that intense, sustained anger can actually cause an arrhythmia, or irregular heartbeat, which can stop your ticker from ticking - permanently.

BOTTOM LINE: Day-long anger can be toxic, so find a way to let it go. Write down your rage in a journal. If a friend or family member made you mad, tell 'em. Or just go outside and scream - whatever helps you blow off steam.

http://shine.yahoo.com/healthy-living/4-bad-habits-making-sick-151800574.html



Wow! This is a great article and adds more fuel to my desire to LET IT GO!!! Your anger is not more important than your health! Have you noticed holding grudges has affected your health? Weigh in!

ALL NATURAL MEATS & OTHER GOODIES

On Friday, January 13th, I went to Landes meats. I have always believed that eating all natural foods would be out of my budget. I am a very strict budget type of person. So I just stuck with regular grocery store meats and tried to get certain organic things, like maybe strawberries. Well, I decided to try Landes Meats. It is local, all natural, antibiotic/hormone free real foods without the crazy prices. I purchased a loaf of freshly baked whole wheat bread, a package of swiss cheese, 1 pound of ground chuck, 1/2 pound of bacon, 1 center cut porkchop, 10 chicken wings, 1/4 pound or so of sliced turkey meat. None of these foods were highly processed and best of all, they are LOCAL. From everything I've read, it's better to eat things that take less time to get from the farm to your home because it decreases the chances of contamination. Also, the less preservatives it will need to have if any. So I purchased all these things for a grand total of $23.40. I don't think I could have done better than that. Happy eating!

Do you purchase any foods local? Do you eat organic? Have you tried a farmers market or other store such as Landes?

 http://www.landesfreshmeats.com/

WHAT TO EAT AT RESTAURANTS

http://shine.yahoo.com/shine-food/best-worst-fast-food-meal-choices-173500043.html

The Best and Worst Fast Food Meal Choices

By Glamour Magazine

• Posts

By Glamour Magazine | Jumpstart 2012 – Wed, Jan 11, 2012 7:28 PM EST

• Email

Courtesy of McDonald's

Jenna Williams, Glamour

When you're in a rush, it can be hard to judge the nutritional value of your favorite value meal. Read our tips for making your fast-food choices both fast and healthy.

McDonald's: Bad and Better Food Choices
We know it's tough to resist the lure of the golden arches, but DO pay attention to portion size when ordering from McDonald's.

Breakfast
BAD Deluxe Breakfast, with a large biscuit and no syrup or margarine (1,150 calories, 60 grams of fat)
BETTER Bacon, Egg & Cheese Biscuit, made with a regular-size biscuit (430 calories, 24 grams of fat)

Burger
BAD Double Quarter Pounder With Cheese (740 calories, 42 grams of fat)
BETTER Cheeseburger (300 calories, 12 grams of fat)
*Leave off the cheese and you'll save 50 calories and 3 grams of fat!

Salad
BAD Premium Southwest Salad With Crispy Chicken (430 calories, 20 grams of fat)
BETTER Premium Caesar Salad With Grilled Chicken (220 calories, 6 grams of fat)
*Totals are without dressing. Remember, Caesar dressing is very high in fat and calories.

Related: 12 Secret Signs He's Into You

Courtesy of Burger King

Burger King: Bad and Better Food Choices
When ordering a burger (and, hey, it is Burger King), DON'T double (or triple!) up on patties. One extra piles on extra calories.

Burger
BAD Triple Whopper Sandwich With Cheese (1,250 calories, 84 grams of fat)
BETTER Hamburger (290 calories, 12 grams of fat)

Side
BAD Large Salted French Fries (580 calories, 28 grams of fat)
BETTER BK Fresh Apple Fries With Caramel Sauce (70 calories, 0.5 grams of fat)

Courtesy of Wendy's

Wendy's: Bad and Better Food Choices
DO eliminate unnecessary calories in your salad without sacrificing taste by avoiding words like creamy or crispy. And always opt for grilled (not fried) chicken.

Salad
BAD Chicken BLT Salad (470 calories, 27 grams of fat)
BETTER Mandarin Chicken Salad (180 calories, 2 grams of fat)
*Totals do not include dressing.

Sandwich
BAD Triple With Cheese (960 calories, 60 grams of fat)
BETTER Jr. Hamburger (220 calories, 8 grams of fat)

Conde Nast Digital Studio

Five Guys: Bad and Better Food Choices
DON'T be fooled by names. At this patty palace, the "little burger" is anything but small. Cut calories by topping your burger with mustard or hot sauce instead of mayo and cheese.

Burger
BAD Bacon Cheeseburger (920 calories, 62 grams of fat)
BETTER Little Hamburger (480 calories, 26 grams of fat)

Condiment
BAD Mayonnaise (100 calories, 11 grams of fat-in 14 grams)
BETTER Mustard or hot sauce (0 calories, 0 grams of fat)

Courtesy of Jack in the Box

Jack in the Box: Bad and Better Food Choices
We usually recommend skipping dessert if you're gorging on fast food, but if you're going to give in to your sweet tooth, DO skip the milk shake.

Dessert
BAD Oreo Cookie Ice Cream Shake (1,454.5 calories, 75.1 grams of fat)
BETTER Chocolate Overload Cake (300 calories, 7 grams of fat)

Burger
BAD Sirloin Bacon & Cheese Burger (1,136.8 calories, 74.9 grams of fat)
BETTER Hamburger (281 .1 calories, 11.7 grams of fat)

Entrée
BAD Large Fish & Chips (1,153.2 calories, 72.6 grams of fat)
BETTER Chicken Fajita Pita Made With Whole Grain (306.8 calories, 9.4 grams of fat)

Courtesy of Blimpie's

Blimpie: Bad and Better Food Choices
We usually recommend skipping dessert if you're gorging on fast food, but if you're going to give in to your sweet tooth, DO skip the milk shake.

Dessert
BAD Oreo Cookie Ice Cream Shake (1,454.5 calories, 75.1 grams of fat)
BETTER Chocolate Overload Cake (300 calories, 7 grams of fat)

Burger
BAD Sirloin Bacon & Cheese Burger (1,136.8 calories, 74.9 grams of fat)
BETTER Hamburger (281 .1 calories, 11.7 grams of fat)

Entrée
BAD Large Fish & Chips (1,153.2 calories, 72.6 grams of fat)
BETTER Chicken Fajita Pita Made With Whole Grain (306.8 calories, 9.4 grams of fat)

Related: The Top 10 Ways to Wake Up Prettier

Courtesy of Subway

Subway: Bad and Better Food Choices
DO choose lean turkey meat. It's lower in fat than most other meats and has a subtle enough flavor to be paired with just about any topping.

Sandwich
BAD 6-inch Double Meatball Marinara With Cheese (860 calories, 42 grams of fat)
BETTER Jared Sandwich: 6-inch Turkey Breast (280 calories, 4.5 grams of fat)

Salad
BAD Sweet Onion Chicken Teriyaki (210 calories, 3 grams of fat)
BETTER Oven-Roasted Chicken Breast With Fat-Free Italian Dressing (175 calories, 2.5 grams of fat)

Courtesy of Arby's

Arby's: Bad and Better Food Choices
Whether it's paired with a burger or sprinkled on a potato, DO watch out for calorie-laden bacon.

Sandwich
BAD Roast Turkey, Ranch & Bacon (818 calories, 38 grams of fat)
BETTER Ham & Swiss Melt (268 calories, 5 grams of fat)

Side
BAD Large Mozzarella Sticks (426 calories, 28 grams of fat)
BETTER 4-piece Southwest Eggrolls (225 calories, 7 grams of fat)
*Totals are without dipping sauces. The Chile Lime sauce that comes with the eggrolls adds 190 calories and 19 grams of fat. Yikes!