Tips to Quit Smoking (and living a better life)

The mind is very powerful, and the reason you are addicted to smoking is because your mind is addicted. You do not physically need to smoke. Here are some useful tips if you are aiming to quit smoking:

• You need to set a goal. If you do not take quitting seriously, it would be hard to quit.
• Obtain the support of your family and friends. Tell them what your goal is, and ask them to help you. Family and friends have a huge impact on your habits.
• Do breathing exercises daily. Envision clean air going into your lungs whenever you take a deep breath and compare this with the smoke you force down your throat when you smoke a cigarette.
• Love life. Embrace occasional hardship but do not allow this to stress you out physically. Life is full of ups and downs for everyone. Bring peace into your life and you will feel so much better as a person and physically.
• Release yourself of anything toxic in your life. Cigarettes are one.
• Last but not least; (this is a tip for smokers and non-smokers)...Laugh. Laughing is truly life's best medicine. Find reasons to smile everyday.

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Stretching

Stretching is important for preventing injuries to your joints and muscles. It also increases flexibility and can tone your body as well. Depending on the exercise you are about to do, or the exercise you just finished doing, you will need to stretch specific parts of your body.

When you are focusing on your legs, here are some stretches you can do:

• Hamstring stretch: Stand up on your feet and hold one foot behind you with your hands and feel that stretch on your thighs. Another alternative is to lie on your stomach and hold your two feet behind you with your hands and pull your feet towards your torso. This also improves your arm strength.
• Calves stretch: Stand facing a wall and put your two hand firmly on the wall in front of you keeping your elbows straight. Bend one leg forward while keeping the other straight behind you. You should feel this stretch in your back leg in your calves.
• Inner thigh stretch: Sit spreading your legs out as far as possible from each other and lean
  forward to the middle, then to the right leg and finally to the left leg. You should feel this stretch right in your inner thigh area.
• The twist: This stretch works on your outer thighs as well as your torso. Cross one leg across your other leg while hooking your elbow behind the leg being crossed over. Your torso should really feel this twist. Be careful with this stretch because you don't want to damage your spine so start with little intensity and work your way up.
• 

Stretches for the arms:

• Reach one arm behind your back as if you are scratching your back, and pull that elbow downwards with the other hand. You should feel this stretch near your underarms.
• Start with your arms reached out to your side and make small circles gradually increasing the size of the circles. Then switch directions. This warms up your shoulder joints.

Stretches for the abdomen:

• Lye down on your stomach and put your hands by your stomach on the floor. Push up with your hands until your elbows are locked, and if you lean your head back, you should feel your abs getting stretched out

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Sleep

Getting between 7-8 hours of sleep is ideal. When you sleep, your body restores itself, including your brain. It has been revealed that sleeping very little or too much, has been linked to obesity and diabetes. Dementia can also be brought on by little sleep or over-sleeping.

One thing that is often neglected about sleep is sleep cycles. A sleep cycle typically lasts 90 minutes, and it usually takes an adult human 15 minutes to fall asleep, therefore one should plan their sleep and wake-up times accordingly. In order to prevent being tired all day, make sure you do not wake up during your last sleep cycle, and you let that cycle finish.

Tips:

• Be consistent. Sleep at the same time every night, and wake up the same time every morning.
• Use Bedtime calculator to calculate when to sleep and wake-up.
• An average human takes 15 minutes to fall asleep, so plan your sleep cycles accordingly.
• A good night's sleep consists of 5-6 complete sleep cycles.

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Healthy Fruits

Top 25 Healthy Fruits to Eat Slideshow!

 

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Effects of Chlorine

Swimming is a great exercise for a total body workout, however one should be warned of the disadvantages of swimming in a chlorinated pool. First off, and most importantly is the affect of the pool chlorine on your lungs (especially if you go to the pool 5+ days a week for long periods of time in an enclosed space). Those with asthma may notice irritation if they spend too much time in the water since they are indirectly inhaling chlorine. It is important to give yourself breaks from that sort of environment because it may have long-term affects.

Aside from the intangible affects of chlorine, the most complained about disadvantages of chlorine are the damage it does to your hair and skin. Hair that is regularly wet with chlorinated hair may feel dry and brittle with more split ends. It is important to use a shampoo that cleans out the chlorine from your hair so that it does not linger. Also, those with coloured hair may notice a slightly green tint in their hair colour that is caused by chlorine as well. Luckily there is a way to lessen these affects; you may either wear a cap on your head to prevent your hair from even getting wet, or before tying your long hair up, apply hair conditioner.

Lastly, the skin isn't left unharmed either. Skin that is exposed to chlorine will feel dry and chapped. Skin (usually on the legs) will also appear shiny, which is an indication of skin stripped of moisture. Before entering the pool, it may help to apply Vaseline to your skin. Your skin will require serious attention right after leaving the pool. Make sure you wash your body with a body wash, followed by lathering body lotion.

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