Reduce Stress and Be Happy

Anything taken too much is bad for the health. A little stress is actually good, as it could serve to help you function at your best. However, stress that seems a little too much could take a physical, as well as mental, toll to your body. Stress should be managed in order for depression or anxiety to be prevented.

So how should you do it then? The following are tips and advice to help manage stress.

Write it out, schedule it out.

It is best to write down everything that seems to be overwhelming. You will find a things-to-do-list much easier to manage than having errands all crumpled up in your head. Writing down the tasks, and putting a specific schedule and time to do them, helps anyone manage activities one chunk at a time. Crossing out an activity that has already been accomplished is very rewarding and could actually help you feel more relaxed when doing the other tasks at hand.

One at a time works.

Focus and put all your attention specifically on one task at one time.  It does not help to feel panicky about the other undone or to-do tasks. Thinking about them only adds unnecessary stress and could even hamper in doing the task you are attempting to accomplish at present. 

Relax and take it slow.

At least, try not to expend too much energy on activities that are currently not priorities. This is in order for your energy to be not easily expended on the tasks that are not that important, at least for now.

Delegate, delegate, delegate.

You need not do everything all at once, and you need not do everything on your own. Ask for help, get help, or pay for help.  When there is a feeling of being overwhelmed that is cropping up, hire someone to mow the lawn or get a sitter for your children. The feeling of being pressed to finish something on time will somehow be eliminated if tasks are delegated. It takes a load off unnecessary worry and anxiety. Moreover, it is easier checking up on how things are, than worrying yourself sick doing everything on your own, all at once.

Give yourself a reward.

You deserve it. Acknowledging your accomplishments, no matter how big or small, is an effort that is necessary before getting on to the next tasks and activities. It reduces stress and could even make you happier in doing the next task. 

Give yourself a break.

You need it to be more productive. A ten to fifteen minute break during your work is necessary. Go visit a café nearby, take a quick brisk walk, or do anything to put your mind off work, at least for a while. This is necessary to refresh and recharge. Believe it or not, you can also stay in your work and sit with your eyes closed as you visualize a peaceful landscape or a relaxing scene. This frees the stress from your muscles and your mind.

Relax and be cool. Doing so makes you healthier, happier, and a lot more productive.

Breast Augmentation Or Reduction - What Are The Implications?

People often tend to beautify and, at times, exaggerate the alluring portions of their body. A worthy example of this is breast plastic surgery, which contemporary women opt for in order to enhance their appearance. Breast plastic surgery has several forms, namely breast implant or enhancement, breast lift, and breast reduction. Each type has its own significance and is employed under different circumstances. While breast implant (also known as breast augmentation) is used to enlarge the size of a woman’s breast, breast reduction is often necessary when abnormally huge breasts result in orthopedic pain.

Breast implant has two primary types, namely saline implants and silicone gel implants. However, advanced research is bound to make other filler types available. A staggering fact is that breast augmentation is the third most popular cosmetic surgery procedure in the United States. Unequivocally, this is an absolute evidence of women’s obsession with their looks, and also a substantial proof as to the safety and efficacy of the procedure.

Breast lift is a surgical procedure designed to reshape sagging breasts, in order to give them a more appealing look. Primarily used to improve breast drooping, breast lift procedure can be combined with breast augmentation to improve volume as well. The procedure typically involves incisions around the base of the breast and, therefore, results in scarring.

Breast reduction is another surgical procedure which entails the reduction of the size of breasts by removing fat, glandular tissue, and skin. Breast reduction is primarily used for women with huge, sagging breasts, as the weight of their breasts may cause orthopedic, circulation, and breathing problems. Though relatively rare, obese men with women-like breasts may also opt for breast reduction surgery.

Whatever be the type of breast plastic surgery, people are increasingly opting for it. Since aesthetics play a major role in the choice of people we hang out with, women see no harm in enhancing the alluring portions of their body if it were at the cost of minimal scarring.

Alternatives For Cellulite Reduction

Are there any cellulite reduction alternatives? With the rare exception, liposuction is generally considered cosmetic surgery. For this reason liposuction is not considered as medically necessary.

Because of this, the decision is up to you whether or not to undergo liposuction procedure. You may decide that it is not right for you. And you can make that determination right up to the point of actually having the procedure.
Liposuction Alternatives
• Exercise.
• Accept your body and appearance as it is.
• Change diet to lose some excess body fat.
• Use clothing or makeup to downplay or emphasize body or facial features.
• Try some of the other methods such as topicals or body wrapping.

Whatever method you select for cellulite reduction make certain that, you have done your due diligence and select the most suitable method with the least amount of risk to obtain the results you desire.

There really is no alternate for good, old-fashioned, healthy nutrition and exercise. The tried and true methods do work:
1. Watch your diet.
2. Incorporate fresh and natural foods into your diet.
3. Get plenty of fiber.
4. Avoid high fat foods.
5. Drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration.
6. Limit the consumption of caffeine and alcohol
7. Quit or cut down on smoking.
8. Get plenty of exercise.
9. Avoid medications not necessary to health and well being.

You can rid your body of excess toxins and promote a general state of health by following a regimen of good health, nutrition and exercise that is optimum for pursuing any program for dealing with cellulite.

Exercises

Cellulite exercises, which will help you to get rid of cellulite, are weight training and cardiovascular exercises. These two exercises when done together will help you a lot in reducing cellulite.

Cardiovascular exercises include walking, jogging and swimming. Where as weight training exercises are simple to complex, which include squats, lunges, leg presses, leg curls, etc. Along with this cellulite exercises a five minutes massage and drinking of plenty of water will increase the blood flow, which indeed reduces cellulite.

Walking
Walking is an incredible exercise, which is useful in many ways. Walking puts the body in continuous rhythmic motion and benefits most parts of the body. It is not just the feet and legs but also the neck muscles, shoulders, back, abdomen and arms that you are putting into motion.
Jogging
This is another wonderful exercise, which is useful in many ways. Body as a whole, will be getting benefited with jogging by strengthening the cardiovascular system, improving blood circulation, toning up muscles and thus helpful an exercise to get rid of cellulite.
Swimming
Swimming is a great activity. It tones your entire body while providing an excellent cardiovascular workout; it strengthens your heart muscle and improves delivery of oxygen to muscles. Swimming is also a relaxing activity.
Weight Training
Weight training exercises to get rid of cellulite can range from simple to complex. Exercises such as squats and lunges are easy to do at home since they simply use the weight of your own body. Free weights can be used at the gym or purchased for home use and can be incorporated into exercises like squats.

You can find different weight training machines in Gyms and health clubs that have built in weight systems and provide a range of different exercises such as leg presses and leg curls.

7 Beauty Tips for Looking Younger

Ever since Eve took that first bite of the apple, the human race has been obessed with beauty.

The truth is we begin the aging process just as soon as we pop out of the womb. Every day of our lives our bodies slough off and regenerate new cells. The speed at which that process takes place when we are children is vastly different as we get older.

Every day you are bombarded daily with commercial messages and beauty tips that attempt to lure you into believing that the most recent miracle drug is just what you need to fight off the ravages of Mother Nature.

We are living longer as a whole. Singularly, that can be a curse or a blessing, depending on your perspective.
The best route to natural beauty and healthy skin is to take care of what you have. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? The truth is that your skin takes a beating from the environment every single day. Here are some of our favorite beauty tips for keeping your skin fresh and healthy:

1: Stay hydrated and do it with plenty of water! That does not mean soda, caffeine or any other type of liquid, even if it is low cal. Soda (even diet soda) has a high concentration of sodium. Sodium retains fluids. You need fluid that will hydrate and flush your body free of toxins. Make sure you are drinking at least 8 glasses a day!

2: Protect your skin from harmful ultra violet (UV) rays. We all love the sun. We love being in it and we love having a beautiful tan. The truth is you can poison yourself with too much sunshine. UV rays cause skin cancer and if that isn’t bad enough it causes your skin to age faster than it should, contributing to unsightly wrinkles. If you must play in the sun, make certain you are using an adequate sun screen. Don’t leave home without it!

3: Keep your skin clean. Use a soft warm cloth. Skin does not require scrubbing. You will do more harm than good if you do.

4: The best cure for wrinkles is to never have them in the first place! If you are like most of us, you didn’t listen to your Mom when she tried to tell you to stay in the shade, stand up straight and stop squinting!

5: Eat healthy. Knowing how and what to eat, can make a huge difference in how you feel. Improper eating habits can cause depression, weight gain, illness and an overall lethargy.

Weight gain causes your skin to stretch. As you get older, it loses it's elasticity and you're left with sagging skin.
The best solution to this is to maintain a proper weight.

A rule of thumb for eating habits are...don't eat more calories than you consume. Don't go one single day without doing something extra and physical for at least 30 minutes per day. This can be three ten minute walks. Or 30 minutes of vigorous aerobics, or 12 minutes of weight lifting and 18 minutes of walking.

6: Don't worry, be happy. A happy outlook appears to trigger the release of endorphins. Endorphins relax the cardiovascular system and cytokines which alert the immune system to pay attention in detecting abnormalities like cancer cells. Listen carefully to yourself. If you have put yourself down since childhood, over a lifetime, negative subliminal messages can take their toll by turning you into a pessimist. Spend one week writing down the phrases you use in your “self talk.” Chances are you will find that you repeat a dozen or so phrases over and over again that reinforce that negative image. If you know about them, you can change them. Outer beauty and inner joy go hand in hand.

Here are a few quick tips for increasing joy, hope and optimism that will work no matter what your age:

Make a list of at least 50 great things that happen to you every day.

Laugh a lot. You’ll heal your body and your mind.

Discover a new challenge each month.

Try meditating for just five minutes each day.

7: Sex After 50 – Ha! How many of you jumped ahead to this section?

The importance of physical intimacy actually depends on the couple. An alarming number of men used to give up on sex after 60 and many women used to feel that their sex life ended with menopause. Thankfully, that is no longer the case.

Sex at middle age can actually become better and more satisfying than ever before. Maturity gives a couple more experience in lovemaking. The children are usually grown and left home. The pressures of building a career and day to day life are usually less stressful than in younger years.

Is beauty really skin deep?

The answer is yes and no.  It’s a paradox, isn’t it? True beauty begins from the inside out. Don’t you wish there was some way to “wriggle your nose” and regain that soft skin you had as a child? Well, until someone comes up with the true “Fountain of Youth” we are stuck with what we have.

Just remember that getting older doesn't have to mean getting old.

“Feed” Your Skin Antioxidants for a Glowing Complexion

Although there is no conclusive proof that antioxidants keep skin from aging, experts do agree they have the ability to ‘capture’ free radicals and may protect us from certain diseases. Antioxidant-rich foods can also give us a healthier, glowing complexion.

According to Susan M. Kleiner, R.D., Ph.D, a Seattle-based nutritionist, eating foods rich in antioxidants is best. “There’s no substitute for getting nutrients through food. The body absorbs and assimilates them far better than in supplement form.”

Kleiner suggests following the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Guide Pyramid, and eating three to five servings of vegetables and two to four servings of fruit each day. Choose at least one citrus fruit, such as an orange, a tangerine, or a grapefruit, for vitamin C. To increase beta-carotene intake, eat at least two orange-yellow or leafy green vegetables each day.

<b>Eat Right for Younger Looking Skin</b>

Eating healthy equals younger looking skin. Drinking a cup of orange juice and eating one raw carrot provides twice the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) of vitamin C and beta-carotene. The RDA for vitamin E is harder to meet, especially for those on a low-fat diet.

“Don’t be afraid to add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to your diet, or to eat some nuts or seeds,” advises Dr. Kleiner.

The following guideline can be used for RDAs for three of the most common antioxidant nutrients, vitamin C, vitamin E, and beta-carotene; good sources and how best to maximize benefits of each are included.

Vitamin C:  RDA at least 60 mg. (1/2 cup orange juice = 70 mg.)  Citrus fruits and juices and tomatoes are good sources of vitamin C. Eat whole fruit for extra fiber. Avoid juice in glass containers, and heat-pasteurized juice. Light and heat destroy some of the vitamin C.

Vitamin E:  RDA 8 mg for women / 10 mg. for men (1 tablespoon of canola oil = 9 mg.)  Good sources include nuts, seeds and their oils, fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, halibut, and trout, and wheat germ. Use canola, olive, or another vegetable oil in place of butter or margarine when cooking.

Beta-carotene:  no established RDA. Expert Dr. Kleiner, however, recommends 5-6 mg. ( One carrot = 12 mg.)  Orange and yellow vegetables, and leafy green vegetables, including broccoli, are all good sources. Instead of potato chips or popcorn for an evening snack while watching television, opt for prepackaged, washed and peeled baby carrots.

If you feel you are unable to meet the RDAs through diet alone, by all means take an all-in-one antioxidant vitamin supplement a day, but continue to pay attention to rich food sources.

<b>Summary</b>  

Because many over-the-counter cosmetics containing antioxidants don’t have enough to be totally affective by themselves, it is best to ‘feed’ them to your skin in combination with a healthy, antioxidant rich diet for younger looking skin.

We at Savvy Spa Luxuries care about you and your wellbeing. With proper skin care, a healthy diet, regular exercise, adequate sleep, and ample amounts of water, you can enjoy a more fit body, improved quality of life, increased stamina, and a glowing complexion!


©2006 Lori S. Anton
Savvy Spa Luxuries Editor
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