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I can’t tell you how long “Learn to Meditate” has been sitting on my life-goals list. Not on my ho-hum to-do list, next to “schedule teeth cleaning” or “buy Huggies Pull-Ups.” I’m talking about the biggie, the list that serves as the repository for my deepest desires for myself, like “Find Hubby” and “Have Baby.” That’s how important I consider meditation to my overall health and wellness.

So if it’s so important, why haven’t I tackled it before now? I guess I wasn’t ready. Though I’m sure I could’ve benefited from meditation at earlier stages of my life, I was just too antsy to explore it (and yes, I see the irony in that). Another big reason is that I’d always assumed meditation required a lot of skill and knowledge. Not so. As it turns out, meditation is just like so many other things in life. Sometimes you just have to wade into the shallow end and start splashing around. “There’s no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ with meditation,” says intuitive guru Michele Bernhardt, a multitasking healer, astrologer, and metaphysician who’s produced several guided meditation CDs. (Learn more at her brilliant website, www.myinnerworld.com.) ”A big part of meditation is your intention.”

So at least intend to give meditation a shot, and in the process, you’ll be giving yourself the opportunity to relax, gain mental clarity, and connect with your spirituality.

Go with the Flow

As I said, I hope you don’t take a page out of my book by contemplating meditation for a good ten years before actually trying it. To help you move your intention into reality and make the whole shebang that much more compelling, here’s a list of tips:

•Designate a sacred space: For me, it’s my walk-in closet. I love the girl-power vibe — the shoes, the dresses, the purses. Attached to my office, my walk-in is a key part of my “Dana Zone.” I’ve stocked it with a few small pillows and a beautiful meditation mat Bernhardt gave me years ago. In one of my shoe cubbies, I’ve stashed a gorgeous sand timer, pictures of the ocean, candles, meditation CDs, and a player. Though pillows and candles are the norm, trick out your own sacred space with treasures that speak to you.

•Create a ritual: This can involve repeating a mantra, listening to particular music (I like Gregorian chants, but you might prefer wind chimes, Tibetan bells, etc.), or inhaling certain scents. “I think, deep inside, most of us love a ritual,” says Bernhardt. “So use sounds, a candle, or some kind of scentlike incense or myrrh. Patchouli is also perfect. With a scent, right away your body says, ‘Okay, I’m ready.’”

•Make sure you’re comfy: Sorry, that means no Spanx. (Kidding. Sort of.) If you’re not keen on sitting on the floor with your back erect and your hands on your knees, you can sit in a chair. Just make sure you’re maintaining good posture, that you’re positioned a few inches away from the back of the chair, and that your feet are on the floor. Kneeling is another possibility, though you might want to use a pillow for support.

•Observe your thoughts without “feeding” them: We discuss how tricky this is below, but it becomes easier once you realize that it’s all about detachment. For instance, if, midmeditation, you think about the fact that you need to take your DD to the doc, you say to yourself, ”I’m having a thought about needing to take the baby to the pediatrician.” What you don’t do is take that original thought to the next level, as in, “Next Tuesday afternoon might work” or “I hope the poor little doll doesn’t need too many shots.” Just let those snippets pass in and out without reaction.

themotherload

“I’ve gotten much more deeply spiritual since I had my child. I trace it directly to being pregnant with him. I was introduced to the notion that our babies choose us as parents. Well, that terrified me to my core. So, I started an intense inner dialogue with my unborn child about who I really am, what kind of mother I hoped to be, my hopes and dreams, etc. To do that, I had to really dig deep and explore the whole ‘Who Am I? Why Am I Here?’ business. It got me on the path that has led to my becoming a meditation coach. I meditate daily and love it. ”

Copyright © 2010 Dana Wood, author of Momover: The New Mom’s Guide to Getting It Back Together (even if you never had it in the first place!)!

By Wendy Chant,
Author of Conquer the Fat-Loss Code

As a former bodybuilder who went on to own a gym, I have spent more than my share of time around weight machines and the one thing that always amazes me is how people will take a perfectly effective, scientifically designed, thoroughly adequate exercise machine and adapt it thinking “more is more.”

In fact, more is more is one of the worst philosophies to have when exercising because, in fact, when you do it right less is actually more; less time, less effort, less weight, less often — IF you follow the rules and give it your all each time.

Unfortunately, everyone is so busy multi-tasking in every other part of their lives — eating while in the car, taking a conference call on your morning commute, with multiple windows open on every computer screen — that we naturally think we must do the same at the gym.

So I see people barely using any weight and trying to perform an exercise while talking on the cell phone. They use the gym more as a time to socialize than for what they are meant to do there: lift weights! While others do the same workout every time (with no break in the routine): they come in and go down the circuit of machines in the same order and then decide, “Well, that’s it; workout’s over and I feel good! Time for a post-workout smoothie . . . ”

Resistance training (free weights, stationary weight machine, etc.) can be a fabulous way to build muscle, boost your metabolism, increase toned muscle mass and increase your overall health. Likewise, cardio exercise (Stairmaster, exercise cycle, treadmill, etc.) can increase your heart rate, burn fat and expend calories quickly.

So naturally, you might think, combining the two is the surest way to both build muscle and burn fat, get your heart rate up and expend lots of calories fast. But, in fact, doing more when it comes to resistance and cardio actually produces less results. That’s because when exercising you should put like with like.

In other words, a great resistance workout can produce much better results when you concentrate purely on resistance, focusing on the tension of the weight, the number of sets and reps, really feeling the burn and completely focused on those main goals of resistance, i.e. building muscle and boosting metabolism.

Likewise, a great cardiovascular workout should focus strictly on cardio to produce maximum results. The last thing you want to be doing while running around the neighborhood is fiddling with your weight straps or figuring out how to drink from your water bottle in one hand while adjusting your easy-grip, five-pound barbells in the other! So when it comes to exercise, put like with like; resistance, resistance, resistance, cardio, cardio, cardio — not resistance, cardio, resistance or cardio, resistance, cardio.

I see this drastic mistake at the gym all the time. I see people, especially women, on a stair stepper machine, who add resistance thinking, “Wow, my butt (glutes) and legs are getting a hard workout.” And they are, but the fact of the matter is this is a counterproductive way to perform cardio.

In fact, this is using a method of weight training called “time under tension” and what it will do is force the body to store more glycogen — and possibly fat — to the lower half of your body — actually making your butt bigger, because your body has to know how to anticipate the load, so the body says, “We need help; store more there!”

And that sure isn’t the reason why you are doing cardio in the first place, right? So remember to use no resistance when doing cardio and only apply resistance when weight-training. One of the best methods I teach my clients to burn the most amount of fat is do a method called 1:2s.

For example, after warming up for about 5 minutes first, get on a treadmill and do one minute quick-paced and 2 minutes at a slow pace. (The treadmill should be set with no incline and, to make this exercise most effective, try not to hold on.)

This method, called the HIIT method (High Intensity Interval Training), is the best method for burning fat and, if you are doing weights in the same session, make sure to do weight training first and cardio last to get the most fat burning results out of your workout. Remember, like with like: resistance with resistance, cardio with cardio for the most effective results every time.

©2009 Wendy Chant, author of Conquer the Fat-Loss Code

Author Bio
Wendy Chant, author of Conquer the Fat-Loss Code, is a certified personal trainer and a specialist in performance nutrition. She holds a bachelor of science degree in medical science and nutrition science. A champion bodybuilder, she opened her own training center, ForeverFit® , in 1998.

by Kim Duess

I have a very cute 8 month old nephew, and, therefore, I am much more aware of the ‘baby world’! There is a lot to learn and one of the most important things to pay attention to is what goes into their little bodies.

He is lucky enough to have parents who are extremely conscious about his health and what goes into his body (and what goes on it for that matter!). Along with being breastfed, he now has all organic food. Remember, breast milk is the healthiest food that a baby can eat! If you can, stay away from infant formula and definitely do not feed your baby soy infant formula! Soy formula can expose your baby to estrogen, affect thyroid function, and can affect hormone levels.

I read an article recently called Junk Food Babies. I wasn’t surprised at what I read. A quote from the article:

“Researchers discovered that Farley’s Original Rusks contained more sugar than McVities Dark Chocolate Digestives, that Heinz Toddler’s Own Mini Cheese Biscuits had more saturated fat per 100g than a McDonald’s Quarter Pounder with cheese , and that Cow&Gate Baby Balance Bear Biscuits contained trans fats”

Yikes! So if you are going to purchase baby food, try to buy organic. Even organic has its downfalls as the levels of sodium can be very high. It is worth taking the time to steam some veggies, mash them up and – voila – organic, fresh food for your little one!

To YOUR (and your baby’s!) health,

About the Author:
Kim Duess’ life’s passion has become learning about proactive health and helping spread the word to others. She says, “There is too much disease in this world and preventative medicine is starting to take a stand. We can stop the current medical “madness”, get back on track and get healthy – Naturally.”

On her blog, You Be Healthy, she brings leading edge information and education for informed health decisions.