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

Stress, Mindfulness and Health Stress is the key to our own survival. But too much stress is damaging to our health. Emotional stress and mental stress that stay with us for weeks, months or even years, will weaken our immune system and cause health problems such as fatigue, depression, high blood pressure, anxiety and even heart health problems. Good Stress Stress can be beneficial believe it or not? Stress is a burst of energy guiding you to all that needs to be achieved.  For example without some form of stress we might not feel motivated enough to meet the goals we so desire, or to meet our daily life challenges. Stress also triggers our "flight or fight" responses, creating bodily functions such as increased heart rate and a laser-like focus. This helps us to respond quickly to dangerous situations, such as jumping away from a moving oncoming obstacle in our direct pathway. Too Much Stress So how can we tell if our stress levels are becoming harmful to our health

When and Why Should we Stretch Stretching keeps our muscles flexible and healthy . Stretching our muscles after exercise whether it's walking, fitness classes or jogging will help to maintain a good range of movement within our joints. Without any stretching our muscles become tight and shorten, they become weaker and will not be able to extend in any way. This will in turn put you at risk of joint pain, instability, strains and muscle damage. Why Should we Stretch - The Effects of a Regular Stretching Programme As with anything worth maintaining or improving, it will take time and consistency. Lower limb muscles such as calve or hamstring muscles (back of the thigh) may take some time to lengthen and regain flexibility.  Years of not stretching these muscles will not recoup flexibility after a couple of weeks, however stretching regularly will make a huge difference to regaining some sort of flexibility. For example, if you have a sedentary job where you are seated for most

Why Should we be Thinking about Balance Training One of the most overlooked and possibly the most important component of fitness is balance . When we talk about fitness and exercise, we automatically conjure up thoughts of treadmills, dumbbells, the latest trend of fitness classes or celebrity "keep fit" DVD's. Does anyone actually put aside time in their busy fitness regime to concentrate on the art of balance? No they don't.....at a push perhaps 5 minutes on the Bosu ball but that's it! The Importance of Balance Good balance is required for just about everything we do such as walking, standing still, getting out of a chair and bending over just to pick something up from the floor. Balance skills may not come naturally to some and this skill needs to be worked at with consistency. Balance training strengthens the muscles that keep us upright and stable. This includes our legs and core muscles and working on these will improve stability and prevent falls