The Key to Good Posture

Any chiropractic physician can tell you that good posture is important for a healthy back. It also can prevent other sore muscles and headaches. Good posture is also necessary to look good and stand tall. It gives you a confident look that cannot be found any other way. While adjusting out of a bad posture can be difficult at first, working toward it should help you get the great posture that you’ve always wanted. Over time, it will become natural.

Tips for Improving Your Posture

You will need to start by finding what good posture is for you. If you have a full-length mirror, it helps to stand in front of it and look at yourself while you do this exercise. Keep your back straight and bring your shoulders back a little bit. Pull in your belly and keep your chin up. Lower your shoulders and bring out your chest. You should be able to draw a line from your ankle to your knees to your hip and your shoulder. The vertebrae on your back should be stacked up on top of each other. Be careful to not scrunch forward or lean too far back. Try to stay like this as long as you can. It may be tiring at first. To help get used to this, there are some exercises you can do. Stand up straight and stick your arms straight out to the side so they are parallel to the ground. Slowly move them in small circles. After doing ten reps of ten, slowly raise and lower your arms to the hip from the same position. Do ten repetitions of ten exercises for this as well. This will help strengthen your muscles in the back so it becomes easier to hold yourself up properly.

Make Your Back Flexible

It’s important to make your back strong, but it is also necessary to keep it flexible as well. Find back stretches that you enjoy and put them into your routine every day. Even if you stretch while you are sitting at your desk, it will help. If you continue to have problems, start practicing yoga and go see a chiropractic physician.

Taking Care of Your Kidneys

Having a renal function result that indicated very high uric level is not a thing I can brush off easily. If I don't take care of my kidneys then I will have undesirable complications which may lead to diabetes, kidney diseases and kidney stones.

I scoured the internet for ways to take care of the kidneys. Here are some tips:

1. Watch your blood pressure and blood sugar levels.
2. Live an active life by exercising regularly.
3. Drink plenty of water. What our parents told us when we were young about drinking at least 8 glasses of water is very true.
4. Avoid consumption of refined and processed food like breads, cakes, canned goods.
5. Reduce red meant consumption.
6. Decrease salt intake.
7. Avoid alcohol.
8. Reduce caffeine.
9. Manage stress.
10. Have a kidney cleanse by detoxifying. Consult your physician when you are going to do this.

Do not take for granted these important organs in your body. They help filter impurities in our blood, remove toxins in the system, help regulate the calcium and water levels in our body and monitor blood composition.

Throbbing Headache

I didn't have any bouts with migraine nor had headache spells for sometime now. I think I would akin this to taking my hypertension medication. However, my blood pressure is shooting up the gauge again albeit my work stress level is very minimum.

I haven't been sleeping really well lately. I am just excited over my upcoming vacation back home so my mind is preoccupied at most times. 

My headache today is really over-the-top painful! I cannot take any pain killers because I have an allergic reaction to most medication and analgesic and other form of pain killer tablets or capsules are one of my no-no to take.

I hope I am not coming down with a flu or something. I feel my joints a little achy my body a bit heavy (too much fats?!?).

Aging Gracefully

I know that the time will come where I have to accept the fact that I will become a bona fide member of the "over-the-hills" club soon. Although I am not officially 40 yet, I may have to start psyching myself that the signs of aging will slowly creep and find their way to my once vital and young body.

The once svelte and very slim body is now pudgy and rotund. My normal outfit does not fall properly on my body. The perkiness of some attributes have slightly gave in to gravity. My next collection of favorites will include spandex! I am already checking my wardrobe and replacing the clothes I used to wear when I was younger. I think, as I age, I have to dress appropriately too. So, I am investing on the classics - business suits, shift dresses, comfortable jeans, not-tight fitting tees and blouses, and loafers. I need to dress down now not because I need to conform on what society dictates but because I want to look and act like my age. I leave the prancing-around-on-skimpy clothes to the younger and more able generation. Those outfits look better on them anyway.

An over-hauling of my make-up kit is also in the offing. I used to wear bright colors to highlight my eyes and cheeks. As I gracefully reach 40, I have started buying make-up palettes on the neutral and classic tones of brown and grey. I feel a little uneasy looking like "Raggedy Ann" when I can look like "Barbie" on neutral tones.

My skin texture is also showing the years. I have small lines on my face and may soon need to apply anti wrinkle serum. My face is not the only one showing the passing of time. My hands and feet look a bit wrinkly unlike before. I don't really mind. I just know that these things are going to happen. I just didn't realize how it felt like seeing the graceful signs of aging.

I guess becoming more mature physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually will do wonders to one's well-being. It is the course of human nature. I am not one to defy that. So, next year, when I officially become 40, I will rejoice and say - "Life begins at 40!"

What Is Mesothelioma?

I came across an article on varied kinds of cancer. I know very little about this malady but the article is like an awakening.

There are various kinds of cancer. There's skin cancer, bone marrow cancer, cervical cancer, etc. However, there is little that we know about mesothelioma. It is actually a rare form of cancer which develops from the lining protecting our internal organs. It is caused by asbestos. Like any cancerous disease, there is also a Mesothelioma treatment patients can undertake. Although this certain cancer is rare and the prognosis is not promising, improvement is still seen when treatment is undertaken.

Beauty Tip 101: Instant Body Shimmer

Do you want an instant body shimmer or glitter without having to cash out? Well, you can if you have an aloe vera gel (the one you use for sunburn) or light lotion and loose glittery or shimmery eye shadow. Just mix a sprinkle of the loose eye shadow to your lotion or aloe vera gel and viola! Your instant body shimmer!

Up and About

It's only 6:30 a.m. and I am already up as the sun is. I have finally settled back to this part of the world's time but still has minor glitches to fix with my body clock. I still wake up very early than usual even prior to my alarm clock setting off.

I have no qualms about it. But it's the weekend today and I prefer lingering in my cozy bed wrapped in my warm comforter.

So, how is everybody's morning???

Health Nut - Post-Vacation Health Track

Every time I go on a long holiday, I always come back with excess baggage! No pun intended! Hahaha. Honestly, I leave Dubai weighing so and so, and then, I come back with extra weight on. This is horrendous!

Carole Holditch of Good Habits offers tips to getting back on track with our health regime and weight loss goals:

1. Jot it down.
Set your goals, track the progress and share your thoughts by writing them all down. Doing that gives you a very vivid picture of reality.

2. Start small.
Bee realistic with your goals. We cannot lose 10 pounds in one go in a week's time! However, we can lose 2! The process of getting healthy and fit takes time. Envision losing 1 at a time and stick to it. Next time you'll know it, you have lost so much without even realizing it.

3. Figure it out.
Learn more about healthy living, nutrition and fitness. Planning to live a healthy lifestyle is a process. You do not just think it but not actually do it.

4. Watch your habits.
We are all creature of habits. Our plans get derailed with the mundane everyday activities we do. Chop the old vices of eating rapidly, munching on chips and empty calories, being inactive. Move around, eat healthily and keep fit!

5. Allow setbacks.
Acceptance is the key. Accept that we are all human prone to err. Make it a positive thing rather than beating yourself down. So what if you "accidentally" shove that teeny-tiny sliver of chocolate bar down your throat?!? Yes, we all give to temptations but learn from it. When you realize you have succumbed to bad habits or your old ways, learn, stand up and be firm. Say no next time.

What a Dismay!

Uh-oh! I knew I have been very bad with my eating habits the past few weeks because of the holidays. How can someone resist mom's home-cooked meals since the nearest decent meal I can prepare is popping an instant meal in the microwave and that's it! I know, I am bad. Like I earlier conveyed, I never liked cooking so if someone cooks the kind of meals I love very well, who am I to resist???

With all the gorging happened during the holidays, I was so dismayed to see how my measurements shoot up like a NASA rocket ship going to space exploration. I am not kidding but I can call myself "Little Miss Piggy" now...hahahaha. I cannot believe the figures right before my eyes as my daughter laughs her bum off on how big the numbers are on my body measurements. As in B-I-G! Coming from an ex-super-skinny person like me, yup, the numbers are way too big for me to fathom. Wow! How can I ever, and not just ever, successfully at that, lose weight for good? I have lost and regained and lost again and when I lose it, I just want it to stay that way. Any tips??? I am desperate now and this calls for serious measures. Not gastric-bypass. I think I am still skinny for that but I need healthy habits to kick-in again. I need proper food to eat at proper times. I know that when you speed-eat, you tend to gorge more. I think I have to stop that.

Oh my, and I have a wedding to attend to and I need to look fab in a long, formal gown. Help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Seriously, like the Beatles sang, "Help!!!!!"