Thanksgiving and your Health

All too often, our minds dwell on problems not resolved, opportunities missed, relationships lost, promises not kept, poor health,faded dreams, and fears of an uncertain future, regrets, and longings. While life does bring its share of challenges and disappointments, it also brings us great joys: problems solved, opportunities seized, relationships built, great health,promises kept, dreams fulfilled, hope that reassures our fear—blessing upon blessing.
It brings with it the opportunity of today and tomorrow.
A clean slate to keep on trying or to start all over again.
An opportunity to move forward even an inch each day, in spheres of our life such as health, wealth, career,relationships and spirituality.
An opportunity to be a little bit better than what we were yesterday.
An opportunity to practice kindness and cut down on worry.
Gratitude is a thankful appreciation for what an individual receives, whether tangible or intangible.
With gratitude, people acknowledge the goodness in their lives. In the process, people usually recognize that the source of that goodness lies at least partially outside themselves. As a result, gratitude also helps people connect to something larger than themselves as individuals — whether to other people, nature, or a higher power.
I have seen the power of gratitude transform the health of extremely sick people.
I have see victims of cancer turn their lives around by changing the way they think, by changing their attitudes towards life and all around.
I have seen people throw away their sleeping pills and anxiety meds because they learnt it was never a cure,and the real cure lay in their minds, in their attitudes and outlook towards life and themselves.
I have seen gratitude transform relationships and careers and how it has inspired people who would never work out or eat well, to start doing so.
In positive psychology research, gratitude is strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness.
Gratitude helps people feel more positive emotions, relish good experiences, improve their health, deal with adversity, and build strong relationships.
People feel and express gratitude in multiple ways. They can apply it to the past (retrieving positive memories and being thankful for elements of childhood or past blessings), the present (not taking good fortune for granted as it comes), and the future (maintaining a hopeful and optimistic attitude).
Regardless of the inherent or current level of someone’s gratitude, it’s a quality that individuals can successfully cultivate further.
When people think of Thanksgiving they think of turkey with butter and gravy mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie, football, and Macy Day parades.
But the original significance of Thanksgiving has its roots in the Puritan religion of giving thanks for a special blessing.
As the story goes, in 1621 the pilgrims held their first feast in Plymouth, Massachusetts to celebrate their bountiful harvest.
The pilgrims had been starving and dying and unable to cultivate food on the land. A Pawtuxet Indian by the name of Squanto assisted
them in growing foods and milking sap from trees. He taught the pilgrims to fish and how to avoid poisonous plants. He also assisted the Pilgrims in forming an alliance with another Indian Nation Wampanoag. This affiliation became a symbol of harmony that facilitated a coming together of two nations on this Puritan religious holiday. The feast, which lasted four days, was to give thanks for a bountiful harvest and good health.
Commonly, giving thanks included a symbol of gathering in unity for a common purpose (sharing in victory),an opportunity to teach the young people about their heritage, and to prepare the heart in gratitude.
So, anytime something good happened (defeat of the British, thriving community, or a bountiful harvest as examples) a feast was initiated. If something terrible happened like a drought, illness, death, or defeat in war, a day of fasting was required to give thanks.
George Washington designated more than one day a year for giving thanks. He encouraged each person to give thanks and gratitude.
You can find ways to give thanks for all that you have and all that you are.
Spend less time counting calories and more time counting your blessings.
Don’t compare yourself with other people or design your behavior, lifestyle and self to be what other people want. That may be your biggest misery. Stay real and be who you are meant to be.
Take each day as it comes, giving thanks for the little things in your life, and remember that it’s the sum of small things that make up the bigger beautiful picture.
Happy Thanksgiving to all !!!
A few tips on how to cultivate gratitude in your life.
Gratitude is a way for people to appreciate what they have instead of always reaching for something new in the hopes it will make them happier, or thinking they can’t feel satisfied until every physical and material need is met.
Gratitude helps people refocus on what they have instead of what they lack. And, although it may feel contrived at first, this mental state grows stronger with use and practice.
Here are some ways to cultivate gratitude on a regular basis.
Write a thank-you note. You can make yourself happier and nurture your relationship with another person by writing a thank-you letter expressing your enjoyment and appreciation of that person’s impact on your life.
Send it, or better yet, deliver and read it in person if possible. Make a habit of sending at least one gratitude letter a month.
Thank someone mentally. No time to write? It may help just to think about someone who has done something nice for you, and mentally thank the individual.
Keep a gratitude journal. Make it a habit to write down or share with a loved one thoughts about the gifts you’ve received each day.
Count your blessings. Pick a time every week to sit down and write about your blessings — reflecting on what went right or what you are grateful for.
Sometimes it helps to pick a number — such as three to five things — that you will identify each week.
As you write, be specific and think about the sensations you felt when something good happened to you.
Pray. People who are religious can use prayer to cultivate gratitude.
Meditate. Mindfulness meditation involves focusing on the present moment without judgment.
Although people often focus on a word or phrase (such as “peace”), it is also possible to focus on what you’re grateful for (the warmth of the sun, a pleasant sound, etc.).
Sacrifice a meal for the less fortunate: Probably the best advice i ever got. The day or night you feel like going out for a dinner with your family, actually don't go, and use that money saved to provide hot meal to someone who needs it. Its quite easy for us to donate and give away money for meals for the poor,but when you do it this way, you actually feel better and it becomes more meaningful.
Happy Thanksgiving to all !!

3 Simple Things To Do Every Morning To Lose Weight

How do you wake up every morning?

Tired and sleepy?

Energetic?

Rested

Looking forward to the day ahead?

Grateful?

Hungry?

Coffee on your mind?

The way you wake up gives you a lot of insights about your health and the way you are living your life.

Morning is probably the best time for you to do simple things that can prepare your body and mind for the course of the day.

Also some of the choices you make in the morning can also impact your weight/fat loss.

When you wake up, the body needs water, to flush out all the toxins and waste from your body, which is a by product of all the various functions  it performed while you were asleep. We need to help our body in this cleansing process.

My first tip is DRINK WATER:   A lot of it. Water is the medium in which the flushing will happen and will also help form the bulk of your stools. You need to have a good stool every morning. It's the body's way to getting rid of toxic waster. Most migraines, headaches and feelings of fatigue during the day occur when there is constipation or improper excretion in the morning.

Ever notices how your urine feels a bit warm and tingly in the morning? It may even have a slight odor with it. Toxins !! and the more water you drink the better it is for your liver, kidney and cells.

I suggest working up to a later of water over 15 minutes. Works like magic. Add in some lemon and you help make your body alkaline and you jump start your metabolism.

My second Tip would be to STRETCH:   Imagine your body sleeping for 7 hours, the muscles are all tight and need to be relaxed and stretched to jump start your metabolism in the morning get you into action. Select any 2 -4 stretches and perform them slowly. The effect of stretching is so good for your body and mind, it may even be able to replace that coffee for those who need a mug to wake up completely. Stretching will improve your blood circulation and blood carries oxygen to all your billions of cells, energizing them and equipping them with the medium to perform their very important  functions.

My third tip would be BREATHE:  Some call this meditation, deep breathing, whatever the term is, what you need to do is sit comfortable, back erect and inhale with your tummy rising and exhale with your tummy deflating. Do this slowly and slowly build up the repetitions. You can spend 5 minutes and build up over time. Oxygen is so vital for our being and health and remember fat burns in the presence of oxygen. Energize those cells through breathing and watch how your metabolic rate fires up.Breathing mindfully prepares you mentally and physically for the day ahead and can have a massive impact on your health, both mental and physical.

Have a wholesome breakfast and your ready to go !!!

Wheat - And Myths About This Wonder Grain

‘ If you drink too much water you will bloat up and become fat ‘.  Is this true?  It can be if someone says it and humans start believing it and it becomes a spoken statement in social circles and people start to claim that their weight loss is due to the above.

Is it true? Absolutely not, just as  ‘Wheat ‘ has become a ‘ carb’ that must be avoided in order to lose weight and prevent bloating and other weight related issues.

So many people are giving up wheat today. Such an important grain, so nutritious, cultivated for decades, used as a staple food in countries across the world and all of a sudden this humble grain gets a tarnished name for no reason.

Wheat contains gluten, a tough protein that some people’s digestive systems find difficult to break down, so they tend to bloat or get gassy. The immediate reaction is, ‘ wheat’s making me fat ‘ . The truth is wheat has negligible fat and most people confuse bloating for being fat or feeling fat, so blame it on wheat, but what really is the problem is your digestive system. It’s weak and it cannot break down gluten, which it should be able to.

Blaming wheat and switching to other grains to replace it may not be the solution. If your digestive system is weak, find out why and fix it. ‘ Quick fixes ‘ like abandoning this powerful grain is not the solution. Your digestive system will continue to get weaker and create more serious problems for you down the line if you don’t do something to strengthen it.

Yes, there is a population of people and children that cannot have wheat as they are allergic to it and they are called ‘ celiac ‘ .

Having wheat in your diet is super for your health. It’s a great complex clean carb with some protein and a small amount of good essential fat.

One of the reasons women , especially pre-menopausal, suffer from hot flushes and other symptoms that most women dread when they hear or talk about the word ‘ menopause ‘can be attributed to the cut out of wheat. Wheat reduces CRP levels in pre –menopausal women, something that is necessary to control, reduce and even stop hot flushes and pains, and no other grain does this better than wheat.

Wheat is not the issue you put on weight or you cannot lose weight. As discussed above, bloating is a function of poor digestion, incorrect eating habits and eating too fast and mindlessly.
 
Making small lifestyle changes is the way forward, rather than eliminating key essentials and nutrients from your diet. The goal should be to get stronger so that your body can handle foods that body’s have been able to handle for years.
GMO wheat ( genetically modified)  Yes – im against that.That can create problems of it’s own.

Have some wheat today,,,it’s not bad and if you feel uncomfortable, start working on improving your digestion.

Urinary Tract Infection ( UTI ) - Healing Naturally

A urinary tract infection (UTI) (also known as acute cystitis or bladder infection) is an infection that affects part of the urinary tract. 

When it affects the lower urinary tract it is known as a simple cystitis (a bladder infection) and when it affects the upper urinary tract it is known as pyelonephritis (a kidney infection).

Symptoms from a lower urinary tract include painful urination and either frequent urination or urge to urinate (or both), while those of pyelonephritis include fever and flank pain in addition to the symptoms of a lower UTI.

In the elderly and the very young, symptoms may be vague or non-specific. The main causal agent of both types is Escherichia coli, though other bacteria, viruses or fungi may rarely be the cause.

Urinary tract infections occur more commonly in women than men, with half of women having at least one infection at some point in their lives.

Recurrences are common. Risk factors include female anatomy, sexual intercourse, improper hygiene, dirty loos, especially public and on an airplane and family history.

The easy cure is  a round of antibiotics, which I am definitely not in favor off, especially if it’s lower urinary tract infection and the symptom’s are just frequent or painful urination or the urge to constantly urinate.

Antibiotics are heavy on the system and in the long run, damage the liver and eventually other organs.

A natural cure is far better and really is quite simple. The thing is the virus or bacteria that causes lower UTI  survives, multiplies and breathes in an acidic environment. If you can change the PH level of your system from acidic to alkaline, you kill this virus and automatically reduce the pus cells in your urine culture.

Load up on a lot of water. Even though you may be urinating frequently, the more water the better.
 
Add some lemon to that water so you instantly change the pH level of your system.

Fresh cucumber juice or eating just raw cucumber is excellent for this condition.
 
Vegetable juices with lemon added to it.

Coconut water.

1.2 tsp of baking soda added to a glass of water will also change your PH system.
 
Pure cranberry juice or a cranberry extract supplement can work wonders for you .
 
Take a Vitamin C supplement to boost immunity and fight out the virus.

Yogurt.

Crushed coriander seeds soaked in water overnight, drink the water in the morning.
 
Use these natural methods to heal yourself and as a preventive measure, try and keep your body more alkaline. That’s best for you’re over all heath and well-being.