Mom, How Much Is Your Health and Fitness Worth?

About four years ago....
The phone rings.
It's my brother. My brother never calls.
My guts know in an instant that something is terribly wrong.
My mother had fallen a few days before and was due for surgery to repair her broken hip.
"Les (my family's pet name for me), I've got bad news."
It's funny, or not so funny, how your body sometimes responds quicker than your mind.
My heart pounds in my ears. My lungs forget how to breathe. My stomach sickens.
The tears spring to my eyes and burn my cheeks.
I desperately hold myself together with an unraveling thread--just long enough to confirm what I already sense.
And then he says that word; that word that mercilessly pierces the heart and spins the world, out-of-control, upside-down, inside-out--forever.
Cancer.
The deafening echo of that word--cancer, cancer, cancer--drowns out the described details.
My mother and cancer conjoined in one sentence. How can that be?
My mother is gentle and quietly wise. She works harder than anyone I've known and does so with joy and gratitude in her heart.
She never complains, never brags, never steps into the limelight. That's not her place. She contently cheers silently from the sidelines.
She loves nature and animals, especially dogs--maybe even more than her six kids, we always tease her.
She loves and accepts people for who they are. I've never heard her say an unkind word about a living soul. With the perfectly placed word or two, she defends the defenseless; and you listen.
She never judges, guilts, pushes, preaches, or pretends that she knows the right path for anyone else, even her own children.
She gifted to me a rock-solid foundation and the freedom from which to grow and discover my own wings to fly.
My mother and cancer? It makes no sense.
And then, somehow, my brother's words surface. "Are you okay, Les?"
"No." And the thread snaps.
I hang up the phone and collapse in a puddle on the kitchen floor.
Just yesterday...the day before Mother's Day
The phone rings.
"Hi, Les!"
Ahhh, that familiar voice that instantly washes over me and through me; soothing me to my core.
"Hi, Mom! Hey, it's Mother's Day tomorrow, and I'm supposed to call you!"
"Les, you're a mother, too, and just as important as I am. So I decided to surprise you this year and call you first." Fitting words for a fitting mother.
The tears flow once again but this time tears of joy and gratitude.
My mother is still here to hold me and comfort me; and let me know that everything is okay and is exactly as it is supposed to be.
My mother is still here to love me just because I am me.
The next time, my dear friend, you wonder whether it's worth the effort to take care of yourself with wise food, health, and fitness choices, think about and feel your mother, your children, your spouse, and your friends.
And then ask yourself two questions.
"How much am I worth to those who love me?"
"How much am I worth to myself?"
Priceless.
You, my friend, are worth your effort.

Health and Fitness Success - Weight Loss in Style Without Sacrifice

You know weight loss shouldn't be about sacrificing everything that we love to eat and the good news is that it is not. When you are trying to lose weight your really attempting to just become healthy. The problem is that most people focus only on the dieting part of getting healthy or sometimes just exercising to get healthier. The truth is that you shouldn't focus on just one aspect of becoming healthier, you need to look at all areas of your life if you are going to succeed.
Dieting is an important aspect to becoming healthy, the whole point of dieting is not necessarily to lose the weight but to focus on what we eat and how much of the food we are consuming. This doesn't mean you cant eat chocolate or doughnuts or any of your favourite foods. What it means, is that you should reserve those foods as treats for the odd occasion and not as a regular part of your diet.
When you start your weight loss journey, don't think of it as a chore but rather as an opportunity to explore. Think about how big this world really is and how many different kinds of foods are out there. This is the best time to move away from fried chips and pizza's and to start exploring the different kinds of foods other cultures eat.
Try taking a boring bit of chicken and adding different spices to it and mix them up, through in some new and different vegetables and see how the food can be transformed into something new and amazing. Try mixing up everything you eat with new fruits, vegetables, herbs and spices. Instead of going home thinking I have to eat plain old boring white meat, think tonight I think we might try Indian food and tomorrow we are definitely going Mexican.
Once you get into a new habit of looking at different foods and flavours, I can guarantee you wont miss most of the old foods that you used to eat. Plus now there is nothing stopping you from having some of the old faithfuls once in a while and adding them in to a much larger diverse of meal choices. The best news is this though, now that you have started to try new healthy and interesting foods in moderation, you have been naturally losing weight, feeling much better. You can also impress friends by hold dinner parties cooking some of these new wild and great tasting meals they might not ever have thought of themselves.

Exercise, Health and Fitness - The Battle Against A Sedentary Lifestyle

We all know that cigarettes are bad for us. But did you know that there's evidence showing that a sedentary lifestyle can be just as detrimental to our health as smoking? Several other studies also found that prolonged sitting increases the risk of heart disease - America's leading killer - as well as cancer, obesity, diabetes, and even premature death. We've always known that sitting for long periods of time can make us more vulnerable to serious diseases. These findings are all the more alarming because they come on the heels of other recently released studies indicating that long periods of time spent sitting in our cars and offices are significant contributing factors in the obesity epidemic sweeping the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than two-thirds of Americans are overweight, and a third of the population is considered obese.
It's all an unfortunate chain of events: sedentary lifestyle leads to obesity, which, in turn, is a well-known factor in heart disease, diabetes, and some types of cancer, which render us even more inactive. Statistics show that 40 to 50 million Americans have sedentary jobs, which don't allow them to get the recommended amount of at least 30 minutes of moderately intensive physical activity five days a week. Add this to research indicating that 60 percent of Americans don't exercise enough and over 25 percent are not active at all, and what you get is a recipe for disaster.
Since it is not always possible to avoid situations where prolonged sitting is necessary - for example, in a workplace, try to sneak some exercises in to offset inactivity.
Finding time to exercise, be it in the morning, evening or at lunchtime, can literally be a real lifesaver. Here are some examples of mini workouts that can help you battle a sedentary lifestyle:
Stairs - Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Better yet, run up and down. If you do it several times a day, every day, it adds up. In fact, take 2 breaks a day for 5-10 minutes where all you do is walk the stairs.
Avoid your car - Especially for short distances, resist the urge to take your car. Walk to your destination and back quickly enough to get your heart rate up.
The "Idiot Box" - So you're finally home from a long day at work, sitting in from the computer? Don't go "relax" in front of TV for another 3 hours. If you finally have a bit of free time, use it for some form of physical activity, not to sit around some more. I currently live in South Carolina and a study done not too long ago said that SC is the #1 state for hours of TV watched. Guess I have my work cut out for me.
OK. I know I was the bearer of bad news here, but the good news is that there are easy fixes. Just make up your mind to help yourself and keep moving!

Ian Hart is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) with 2 kettle bell certificates and a certificate in integrated stretching techniques and is an FMS specialist (among other qualifications). He has also been featured in Men's Health Magazine, on the Men's Health website, was a featured Health Expert on New York 1 News and was a guest on the Mike and Juliet Morning Show. Ian loves training, and helping people reach their fitness goals. Not just physically but also mentally.
K. Clifford has worked in the field of finance until 2009 when K left the field to pursue a different route into the world of fitness and business management at a fitness center in South Carolina. Helping clients reach their goals and managing a great business are the main focuses in K's life.

Seniors Beware, Health and Fitness Equals Great Sex

Having a great sex life by adults over 60 is largely dependent on health and lifestyle. Their children and grandchildren are having a hard time getting used to the facts of life, that their aging parents or grandparents might still be enjoying sex. The baby boomers that are actually the original 'flower children' started the sexual revolution over 40 years ago. For a lot of them who are over 60, the revolution is still goin' strong 'though it is an undeniable fact more than a few of them are experiencing problems in getting the va-va-vroom back in the old engine.
Sexual arousal doesn't die when a person gets older. Aging is simply a period in life. It does not mean that a person becomes physically or sexually unappealing nor does it mean you become less interested in sex as you age.
According to a recent study, the number of seniors in their 70's who are sexually active - and are bragging about it being great sex - is increasing. Also, older women are indicating being satisfied with their sex lives. There's an increase in the number of these women who are reporting having an orgasm during sex and a decrease in the number who report not having an orgasm. There also is a general increase in the number of women who are reporting high sexual satisfaction. Though not as many women are reporting low satisfaction with their sex lives, it is a different situation for men - there has been an increase in the number of men who are reporting not being satisfied. Probably, this is due to the new idea of men accepting responsibility for sexual failure instead of blaming the opposite sex, according to the authors.
The coverage by the media of retired baby-boomers and their older cousins paint a picture of seniors that are a homogeneous group who jump into bed and 'hook-up' with great abandon. Sex is now a Fountain of Youth. In fact, the diversity in sexual interest and activity in the over 65 crowds is as diverse as the individuals who are part of that group. It is evident that the later years can be a time of relief since there are no children hiding in nearby bedrooms, and you don't have to worry about jumping up early in the A.M. to head for work. For many of us, this is a time we are free to explore sexual expression in ways never before realized. A time to cast away the societal expectations of earlier years. For others, they no longer worry about sexual performance, and seek other forms of companionship and sharing.
Regarding health, one fascinating recent study found that older men having more than two orgasms per week have a lower mortality rate. Of course, these numbers demonstrate a correlation between sex and longevity; the numbers do not show that sex prolongs life. More than likely, the answer is that older people who are well enough to engage in sexual activity are more than likely also healthier in general. But I believe that sexual activity can be and is physically, intellectually, and even spiritually fulfilling. Also, it's considered a good form of exercise, and it can stimulate the brain and promote good mental function.
Today's older adults are active, on the go and still doing many of the things they enjoyed in their younger years, a healthy sexual relationship can positively affect all aspects of your life, including your physical health and self-esteem.
You might get the idea from movies and TV that sex is only for younger adults, but that's not true. Man's need for intimacy is ageless. Humans never outgrow the need for affection, emotional closeness and intimate love and they never will. People still have their sexual fantasies and desires into their 80s and 90s.
It's true that sex in the 70's and 80's is not the same as in the 20s, but it can be as fulfilling and as enjoyable. Understanding the changes your bodies are going through will help you prepare for the challenges you'll face. These changes can affect sexual relationships. The physical changes are the most often discussed, but psychological issues must also be considered. Testosterone regulates the sex drive in both men and women. The good news is, most aging men and women produce the testosterone levels required to maintain their interest in sex. Some changes that occur in your body may make some aspects of sex more difficult; with these changes you will have a reason to try new positions and techniques.
Here's news you can use! A study at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor has found that caffeine may hold the secret to a better sex life for seniors. They found that among married men, 59% that didn't drink coffee had trouble getting it up when needed while only 36% of the same group who did drink coffee reported similar problems. Of course, this correlation between coffee and sex might just be a statistic. The group that chooses to drink coffee might just be healthier overall.
It is a known fact, better health translates into better sex lives, healthy people are more likely to engage in sex and not just sex, but good sex, and to actually express an interest in more sex. So, lets make sure we do all we can to live healthy and enjoy our later years fully.