Healthy Forever Fitness Motivation

Happiness and a Healthy Mind Happiness ......we all strive to be happy. We want to wake up in the morning happy, go to work happy, every day we want to be happy?  But is this endeavour to be full of joy actually making us unhappy? Maybe happiness isn't something that just happens to us naturally? Social media, T.V, magazines all depict scenes of happiness, everyone is happy with their lives and grateful for all their family and friends........no wonder we feel inadequate at times and wonder how we too can live in this bubble of joy .  We are humans, we have a plethora of emotions......happiness being just one of them. Being happy promotes good health and longevity . With a little effort we have the ability to make small changes in our lives, our behaviour and our relationships to help us on our path to a healthier, more positive life.  Ways to Happiness and a Healthy Mind - Write a Journal The simplest ideas can be the most effect. Writing a journal , taking a thought from your min

Stretching for Stress Relief and Relaxation When you are experiencing stressful situations or faced with constant pressure on a daily basis, the likelihood of muscle tension, headaches and emotional stress will be present, inhibiting you from total relaxation and sleep. Engaging in a regular stretch routine releases tension in tight muscles, increases flexibility and calms the mind. Stretching  acts as a powerful stress reliever and I cannot be a bigger advocate of a regular stretch routine for a stress free and healthier life. Stress and tension are not just mental and emotional issues....they can become physical triggers too. For example headaches, stomach upsets and back pain. Chronic tension can be the reason for long term health conditions such as heart disease, high blood pressure and type II diabetes as well as mental issues including depression, anger, anxiety and insomnia. Stretching regularly can release the chronic tension causing many of these health problems. Str

Exercising with Resistance Bands Resistance bands are very versatile and an easy to use ' go to ' piece of fitness equipment.  They come in all shapes, colours, and sizes. They are very portable and provide a wide variety of strength exercises, targeting all your muscle groups. The other benefits of these bands are that you can take them anywhere, whether you want to take them with you on holiday, to work or even to the park if you prefer to do your workouts in the fresh air.  Resistance bands are very simple to use. They are not as confusing as some of the equipment in today's "hi tech" gyms that can feel very intimidating to those who are novice exercisers. It's hard to believe that these bands have any power when you place them next to a dumbbell or kettlebell, but the power they have will surprise you. Resistance bands are similar to free weights (dumbbells, kettlebells) in that they provide external resistance so you have to engage your muscles to oppo

Fibre and Weight Loss - What is Fibre? Roughage or fibre is part of plant based food that cannot be broken down. Examples of fibrous foods are nuts, fruit, vegetable, beans and grains. Fibre passes through the body undigested which keeps your digestive system healthy and eases bowel movements. Fibre also flushes cholesterol and harmful carcinogens (a substance capable of causing cancer in living tissue) out of our body.  Fibre rich foods within a balanced and healthy diet can improve weight maintenance and improve good gut health. Fibre provides a good food source for "friendly" gut bacteria helping to improve our overall general health. A healthy gut is very important to maintain or improve our health. Anything that can feed our good gut bacteria will keep us free from illness. When our gut is happy then we are happy too. In 2015 the Government guidelines for the consumption of fibre equates to 30g per day per adult. On average we consume approximately 18g per day which is