Stress Management

Overview

First things first, what is stress and how do you know if you're under it? Many people don't realize that stress is a very natural and important part of life. We need stress, but not too much stress for too long (distress).

Our body is designed to react to two types of stress. Good stress helps keep us alert, motivates us to face challenges and drives us to solve problems. These low levels of stress are manageable and can be thought of as necessary and normal stimulation.

Distress, on the other hand, results when our bodies overreact to events. It leads to what has been called a "fight or flight" reaction. Such reactions may have been useful a long time ago when our ancestors were frequently faced with life or death matters. Our bodies really don't know the difference between a saber-toothed tiger and a teacher correcting our test. It is how we perceive and interpret the events of life that dictates how our bodies react.

When we view something as manageable, our body doesn't go haywire; it remains alert, but not alarmed. The activation of our sympathetic nervous system (a very important part of our general nervous system) mobilizes us for quick action. The more we sense danger (social or physical), the more our body reacts.
Problems can occur when over activation of the sympathetic system is unnecessary. If we react too strongly or let the small overreactions (the daily hassles) pile up, we may run into physical, in addition to psychological problems. Gastrointestinal problems (diarrhea or nausea), depression or severe headaches can come about from acute distress. Insomnia, heart disease and bad habits (drinking, overeating, smoking and using drugs) can result from the accumulation of small distress.

What we all need is to learn how to approach matters in more realistic and reasonable ways. Strong reactions are better reserved for serious situations. Manageable reactions are better for the everyday issues that we all have to face.

Chronic Anger

The other type of day-to-day stress response is called chronic anger.

Are you constantly holding in anger?
Are there people in your day-to-day life who repeatedly make you angry?
Do you spend a lot of your time angrily thinking about what certain people said or did to you?
Do you feel you are a victim of injustice?

Perhaps you are so angry that you are no longer holding it in. Do you find that interactions with important people in your life are becoming increasingly tense, hostile or explosive?

Researchers believe that this type of angry, prolonged stress is the most physically unhealthy, particularly for the cardiovascular system. If you suffer from this type of anger-related stress, you should be making some immediate changes in your life.

Ways to Manage Stress

Which effect stress has on you depends on how you handle it. How you handle stress depends on being able to recognize it, knowing where it's coming from and understanding your stress-management options so you can choose the best one for your situation.

Exercise

Frequent exercise is probably one of the best physical stress-reduction techniques available. Exercise not only improves your health, it also relaxes tense muscles and helps you to sleep. Exercise also has a number of other positive benefits you may not be aware of: It improves blood flow to your brain, bringing additional sugars and oxygen which may be needed when you are thinking intensely.

When you think hard, the neurons of your brain function more intensely. As they do this, they build up toxic waste products that cause foggy thinking. By exercising you speed the flow of blood through your brain, moving these waste products faster.

Exercise can cause release of chemicals called endorphins into your blood stream. These give you a feeling of happiness and well-being.

Breathing Control

Deep breathing is a very effective method of relaxation. It is a key element of everything from the "take deep breaths" approach to calming someone down, to yoga relaxation and meditation. It works well in conjunction with other relaxation techniques, such as progressive muscular relaxation, relaxation imagery and meditation to reduce stress.

Progressive Muscular Relaxation

Progressive muscular relaxation (PMR) is a purely physical technique for relaxing your body when muscles are tense. The idea behind PMR is that you tense up a group of muscles so that they are as tightly contracted as possible. Hold them in a state of extreme tension for a few seconds. Then relax the muscles to their previous state. Finally, you consciously relax them again as much as you can.

You can apply PMR to any or all of the muscle groups in your body depending on whether you want to relax just a single area or your whole body.

Experiment with PMR by forming a fist, and clenching your hand as tight as you can for a few seconds. Then relax your hand to its previous tension, and then consciously relax it again so that it is as loose as possible. You should feel deep relaxation in the muscles.

You might be able to relax muscles as much without the initial tension, but tensing the muscle helps to provide a starting point for the exercise. It also helps to gauge the initial level of tension in the muscle.
For maximum relaxation, use PMR in conjunction with breathing techniques and imagery.

Imagery in Stress Reduction

Imagery is a powerful method of stress reduction when combined with physical relaxation methods such as deep breathing and PMR.

We are all aware of how certain environments can be very relaxing, while others can be intensely stressful. The principle behind the use of imagery in stress reduction is that you can use your imagination to recreate a place or scene that is very relaxing. The more intensely you use your imagination to recreate the place or situation, the stronger and more realistic the experience will be.

What is Imagery?

The human brain is a mass of nerve cells. Your sense organs (eyes, ears, nose, etc.) convert signals from your environment into nerve impulses. These feed into the areas of your brain that interpret that environment. Imagery seeks to create a similar set of nerve impulses that can feed into those areas of the brain that experience the outside world.

You can use imagery in the following ways to reduce stress:

One common use of imagery in relaxation is to imagine a scene, place or event that you remember as peaceful, restful and happy. You can bring all your senses into the image, with sounds of running water and birds, the smell of lavender, the taste of cool spring water, the warmth of the sun, etc. Use the imagined place as a retreat from stress and pressure. Your image can be anything that works for you, as long as it feels peaceful. Scenes can involve complex images such as lying on a beach in a deserted cove. There you may "see" cliffs, sea and sand around you, "hear" the waves crashing against rocks, "smell" the salt in the air and "feel" the warmth of the sun.

You can also use imagery as a "rehearsal" before a big event, allowing you to run through the event in your mind. It allows you to practice in advance for anything unusual that might occur, so that you are prepared and already practiced in handling it. This helps to give you the self-confidence you need to do something well. Many athletes and performers use this method.

Meditation

Meditation is a very effective method of relaxation. The idea of meditation is to focus your thoughts on one relaxing thing for a sustained period of time. It gives your body time to relax and recuperate and clear away toxins that may have built up through stress and mental or physical activity.

Meditation is particularly useful when you have been physically active, you have been worrying about problems or you have been under stress for a long time.

Meditation can have the following effects: lower blood pressure, slow breathing, help muscles relax, give the body time to eliminate lactic acid and other waste products, eliminate stressful thoughts, help with clear thinking, help with focus and concentration and reduce stress headaches.

Meditation Techniques

The essence of meditation is to calm your thoughts by focusing completely on just one thing. Meditation is actually an active process which seeks to exclude outside thoughts by concentrating all mental faculties on the subject of meditation.

First of all, it helps if your body is relaxed. It should be done in a position that you can comfortably sustain for a period of time (20 to 30 minutes is ideal). If you choose, and you are sufficiently supple, then the lotus position may be appropriate. Otherwise, sitting in a comfortable chair or lying on a bed may be equally effective.

A number of different focuses of concentration may be used. Which one you choose is a matter or personal taste.

Breathing

A useful method may be to focus your attention on your breathing. Concentrate on breaths in and out. You can accompany this by counting your breaths using the numbers 0 to 9. You can visualizing images of the numbers changing with each breath. Alternatively you could visualize health and relaxation flowing into your body when you inhale, and stress or pain flowing out when you exhale.

Focus on a Sound

Some people like to focus on sounds. The classic example is the Sanskrit word "Om," meaning "perfection." Whether or not this is practical depends on your lifestyle.

Imagery

This can be a very refreshing and pleasant way of meditating. Here you create a mental image of a pleasant and relaxing place in your mind. Involve all your senses in the imagery. If external thoughts or distractions wander in, try to make them drift out by attaching the thoughts to objects and then move the objects out of your mind. This takes time to learn how to do effectively.

You may find that your attention keeps when you first start to meditate. You will find that as you practice meditation your attention will improve. Keep in mind that meditation can take months or a year or longer to master, but you will find that meditation enhances many aspects of your life.

Eliminating those FATS

How To Lose Belly Fat For Beginners (a re-post from http://www.1healthfitness.com/how-to-lose-belly-fat-for-beginners-400)

Losing belly fat is not easy especially if you are attempting this for the first time. If you want to find success with your efforts you need to learn how to lose belly fat in a way that is healthy, safe and long lasting.

Prepare your body

Your body is like a machine. In order to start this machine and put it in a mode that will lose belly fat you have to prepare it. The preparation at this stage has to do with detoxing. You need to eliminate all substances from your body that affect the proper functioning of all body organs. The way to do this is by drinking a lot of water and by eating foods that have such characteristics. Such types of foods are fruits (bananas, citrus fruits, apricots) and vegetables (lettuce, carrots, radishes).

Boost your metabolism

Once you prepare your body the next stage has to do about your metabolism. In order to lose calories and fat your body’s metabolism should increase. The way to boost your metabolism is through regular exercise and by eating small meals every 3-4 hours. The meals should certainly contain bran, low fat dairy products, green tea and other foods that are low in saturated fats and sugars.

Consistency

What you need to understand is that consistency is a very important step in the whole process. Your efforts should be continuous and consistent. This essentially means that once you start your efforts to lose belly fat through a balanced diet and regular exercise you should stick to this for a couple of months and until you get the results you want. If you start and then quit after a couple of weeks and then decide to start again you will not achieve anything. When you start this process you should follow your plan until the end. Be prepared that this process may take a lot of time. How much time exactly will depend on how hard you will try and how willing you are to lose belly fat.

Exercise is essential

We already mentioned above that exercise will help you boost your metabolism. This is essential for any weight loss program. You can not reach your weight or fat loss goals without exercise. The type of exercise you will do does not really matter as long as you do it regularly. If you are not type of person who likes exercise then you need to find a sport or hobby that is intensive enough and do that instead.

Proper Diet for Weight Loss

Overview

Weight loss occurs when you consistently eat fewer calories than your normal calorie intake or you consistently burn more calories with exercise without increasing the amount of calories you eat. A proper diet for weight loss is a healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and seeds, lean proteins, and beans and lentils and healthy fats from avocado, olive oil, nuts and fish.
A Healthy Diet

Sometimes it seems easier to just grab fast foods or convenient foods for meals and snacks. However, these foods are often loaded with added sugars and fats and contribute to weight gain. By preparing your own healthy meals and snacks you will know what your food is made out of and what you are putting into your body. With a little planning, healthy eating can be just as easy. In addition, healthy foods are just what your body needs to deal with the challenges of a busy lifestyle. Eating healthy will help you to be more focused, more productive and more efficient.
Healthy Eating Tips

There are many quick and healthy meals and snacks that you can eat at home or at the office. Some examples are yogurt or cottage cheese mixed with nuts and dried fruit, a peanut butter and honey sandwich on whole grain bread, fresh fruit with cottage cheese or nuts, raw vegetables with hummus dip, oatmeal with nuts and dried fruit, a turkey or chicken wrap using a whole grain tortilla, a chicken salad, a grilled chicken sandwich on a whole grain bun, brown rice with chicken and vegetables, and a grilled cheese sandwich with low-fat cheese and whole grain bread. In the past it would have been more difficult to make meals with brown rice but now stores offer fully cooked brown rice so all you need to do is heat it up in the microwave.
Combat Hunger Cravings

One of the challenges for weight loss is that when you decrease your calorie intake you may feel deprived or experience hunger cravings. Sometimes hunger cravings can result in overeating. To combat hunger cravings and overeating it is important to avoid skipping meals and to eat small meals and snacks every three to four hours. According to the Weight Control Information Network (WIN), "studies show that people who skip breakfast and eat fewer times during the day tend to be heavier than people who eat a healthy breakfast and eat four or five times a day." It goes on to discuss that eating small meals throughout the day results in appetite control.
Strategies to Feel Satisfied

Many people are successful at losing weight by making sure to eat adequate protein at each meal and snack, which can help you to feel satisfied for longer. According to an article posted by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute, "pairing protein-rich foods with your carbohydrates helps you to feel satisfied longer because proteins are digested more slowly." Examples of good sources of protein are peanut or almond butter, raw nuts, cottage cheese, yogurt or low-fat cheese.

Fiber can also help you to feel full and as a result eat less. Fiber comes from whole grains, fruits and vegetables. Vary your whole grains to include brown rice, barley, rye, quinoa, buckwheat, amaranth, millet, bulgar and cous-cous. Try eating at fruit or vegetable with each meal and snack.
Avoid Empty Calories

Empty calories are calories from foods that contain little if any nutrients. These foods can add up to a significant amount of calories, which translates into weight gain. Empty calories come from processed and refined foods, chips, sodas, cakes, candies, sweets, artificial fruit juices and fried foods.

The article was re-posted from http://www.livestrong.com/article/78185-proper-diet-weight-loss/

Best Foods for a Healthy Heart

Eating for a healthy heart is not difficult. Just eat real food. "Yeah, right," you say. "What's that?"

Perhaps the injunction to "just eat real food" is not as simple as it sounds. We are so confused by conflicting messages in the media. Yesterday, oatmeal was good for the heart, but today it is bad (high in carbohydrates). Yesterday, eggs were bad for the heart (high in cholesterol), but today they are good (low in carbohydrates).

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It is easy to see why we are bewildered. It is enough to toss it all aside and dip into a hot fudge sundae.

Before we stoop to that level, however, let's simplify a diet for a healthy heart. Can you remember "two sets of three?"

Three Foods You Should Rarely (if Ever) Eat
Bacon and other rancid fats top the list of nefarious foods. Considering the popularity of high-protein diets that emphasize bacon and eggs for breakfast, we're probably consuming more bacon than ever, but science (and common sense) says that bacon and other processed meat consumption are associated with an increased risk of certain forms of cancer, diabetes (a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease) and stroke.

Carbonated beverages are second on the list. This subject hits so close to home that I ask the studies to deliver the message: "Higher consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages is associated with a greater magnitude in weight gain and an increased risk for development of Type 2 diabetes in women..."

Another study reports, "Increasing intake of rapidly absorbed carbohydrates... can create self-perpetuating insulin resistance state and predicts greater CHD (coronary heart disease) risk..." And, "recent data suggest that a high intake of rapidly absorbed carbohydrates... may increase the risk of coronary heart disease by aggravating glucose intolerance and dyslipidemia."

Soft drinks certainly fall into the category of rapidly absorbed carbohydrates. What this simply means is that soft drinks cause weight gain, increased risk of diabetes, insulin resistance, and elevated blood fats, all of which lead directly to coronary heart disease.

You'll hate the third category of "no-no foods": processed carbohydrates such as white bread, white pasta, white rice, etc. These foods also fall into the class of rapidly absorbed carbohydrates and lead directly to an increased risk of heart disease.

***re-posted from http://www.ediets.com/news/NewsArticle.jsp?id=3200011

author:Carol Simontacchi, CCN, MS

eDiets Contributor

EJ: In a Glimpse

Naimbag nga aldaw!

That is the best greeting an Ilocano could give you which means “Good day!” Yeah right. I am from Cagayan Valley (Region II), specifically from the Land of Smiling Beauty- the Province of Cagayan.

Before moving on, I am Emil Jon Buentipo y Biado.  I am fondly called “EJ” by my close friends but they often create other pseudo’s like --- ah never mind. (*laughs)

Anyways, I am now enrolled at the Alfredo M. Velayo College of Accountancy, University of Santo Tomas, Espana, Manila. I love to play volleyball and badminton way back gradeshool days. It even brought me to several inter-school games. What makes me different from others? --- Nothing much. Just my heart functioning every time and I love being me! 

Yeah, without much ado, as the leader (leader-leaderan?) of the FNC22 – Group 5 or should I say the Fit and Five group, I welcome you here in our site for our Physical Fitness course in UST under Mr. Jerome Porto. BTW, please leave your comments. 

Agyaman nak la unay ken ni Apo Diyos koma ti kanayon nga mangtarabay kadakayo (Thank you very much and may God bless you always).