These mobility exercises are best done as a warm up to your lower body workouts. They will prime the body for better performance by jump starting the correct muscles. These exercise will also keep you injury free and allow you to train longer and harder. Continue reading
The Big Toe and Your Health by William Smith, MS, NSCA, CSCS, MEPD
Do you ever run, walk, navigate stairs, squat, lunge or jump? Chances are you perform some if not all of these movement daily. Involved in everyone is your big toe. Stop and take a peek downward, you see it? Continue reading
Fried rice holds a special place in my heart. The year after I graduated from college and was living on my own for the first time, it was the first dish I learned to make. I pretty much ate nothing but fried rice for a year. It was fast, easy, convenient and most importantly, cheap! Continue reading
Healthy Baseline: Get a Baseline and Get Moving by William Smith, MS, NSCA, CSCS, MEPD
Often clients will ask how much physical activity is recommended to maintain and improve health? My response is essentially the same. There are two key questions that need to be answered first: Continue reading
Recently I came across an article titled ‘Graying of America’ in the New York Times. The article indicates that, “by 2050, 83.7 million Americans will be 65 or older, compared with 43.1 million in 2012, the report said. Continue reading
Shoveling Wisely, Save Your Back by William Smith, MS, NSCA, CSCS, MEPD
Living in the Northeast we expect a certain level of snow, thus the dreaded shoveling and possibility of days of back pain and muscle soreness thereafter. This past week ‘Snowmaggedon’ was predicted to pound the East Coast with snowfalls expected to reach historic levels not seen in years. Continue reading
Self-Assessment in the New Year by William Smith, MS, NSCA, CSCS, MEPD
This past week I was bending over to pick up my 1 year old son and as I was doing this my back tightened up. Nothing unusual about this by any stretch, yet the fact it began tightening up throughout the day struck me as odd. This ‘pulling’ sensation got me thinking “why would this happen now?” Okay, to be honest, I haven’t been exercising regularly so that plays into, but my back? Hasn’t been an issue in 10 years! Continue reading
Making Wiser Food Choices from Combat Fat for Kids
Cutting down on fat and excess calories doesn’t always have to involve drastic changes. It’s about making smarter choices and practicing moderation, not deprivation. Making small, deliberate adjustments to old eating habits can yield positive results for your family. Here are some tips from Combat Fat for Kids‘ authors Jo Brielyn and James Villepigue to help you make those wiser choices: Continue reading
8 Foods that Help Fight Stress Naturally by Jo Brielyn
We all have stress. No matter how relaxed we try to live, there’s no way to escape having a certain amount of it. Too much stress, however, can negatively impact our health as well as our relationships. How we handle and manage the stressors we face makes all the difference. One of the most powerful stress-fighting tools is learning how to manage it through the foods we eat. There are foods that actually have calming properties to help the body ward off stress more effectively.
Just to be clear, calming foods are not the same as comfort foods. There is a big difference between enjoying a food’s natural calming properties and using food to serve as a type of emotional anesthesia. Eating habits like that might give you a temporary calming effect, but it will wear off quickly leaving you only with the extra calories and often more frustration over your poor eating choices. Instead, choose foods like those listed below that contain specific nutrients proven to provide calming agents or that give a steady, reliable source of energy to pick you up when you’re feeling overwhelmed by stressful situations.
JO BRIELYN is an author and contributing writer for Get Fit Now and has currently completed 16 nonfiction books about health and wellness. Jo is the founder, writer, and editor of Creative Kids Ideas, a resource website that supplies parents, teachers, and family members with the tips and fun ideas to help build stronger, happier, and more creative kids. She is also the writer behind Good-For-Your-Health.com. Jo is a veteran of the United States Air Force and a former youth leader. She resides in Central Florida with her husband and their two daughters. Jo is the co-author of Combat Fat for Kids.
Are you looking for natural treatments for a cold, allergies, or the flu? These four herbal tea recipes courtesy of the Cooking Well: Healing Herbs book use the powerful healing agents of natural herbs to help fight cold, allergies, and flu and offer relief from the symptoms.
Cold and Flu Tea
Ingredients:
1 ounce blackberry leaves
1 ounce elder flowers
1 ounce linden flowers
1 ounce peppermint leaves
Directions:
Pour 1 cup boiling water over 2 tablespoons of tea. Cover and let steep for ten minutes. Strain and drink.
Flu Ridding Tea
Ingredients:
2 medium cloves fresh garlic
1 cup very warm water
1 teaspoon honey
Directions:
Combine ingredients. Stir and drink.
Calm Stomach Tea
Ingredients:
1/2 teaspoon dried ginger root
1/2 teaspoon clove blossoms
1 teaspoon chamomile flowers
Directions:
Steep 2 tablespoons of tea mixture in a cup of boiling water. Cover ten minutes; strain and drink.
Bronchial Congestion Tea
Ingredients:
1 1/2 ounces aniseed
1 ounce calendula flowers
3/4 ounce marshmallow root
1/3 ounce licorice root
Directions:
Crush aniseeds and add to herbs. Pour 1 cup boiling water over 1 teaspoon of mixture; cover and let steep 10 minutes before drinking.
Cooking Well: Healing Herbs offers recipes and information to help you uncover the beneficial properties of many of these herbs in easy-to-use recipes. Whether you’re looking to ease symptoms of a specific condition, seeking to energize or relax using herbs in tea, or just want to create tasty, healthy meals, Cooking Well: Healing Herbs is the perfect resource for learning to harness the powers of herbs.