Super Foods, Yoga

There isn't a day that goes by that I don't get an e-mail from the super food God's that proclaim they will save the world, if the world will just listen. The latest and current super food is the Acais Berry. It is sold in pill form and liquid form. While the pill form is easier to store and travel with, some people do not like to swallow pills, plus the body will only absorb about 20%(at the most) of the pill. This could of course vary with each individual, but is normally accepted as a fact from the medical and health community. So, there is the liquid form that when taken, is digested much easier with a 90% factor of absorption. While I am not aware of all of the brands that the Acais berry is offered in, I do know that the Mona*Vie product offering 19 Super Fruits with the Acais Berry as the star of the group has worked well for me and I have recommended it to my friends. The only DISCLAIMER I would have on this product is that I am a distributor for it and would get some form of commission if the purchase of this product was made through me. But, regardless I would not recommend any product if it had not been tried by me and/or if it did not give me some form of relief. Since I had some very extreme inflammation in my arms, legs, and hands, as a result of an abscessed tooth I do know that Mona*Vie has given me relief and continues to do so on a daily basis. Here are the 19 fruits found in Mona*Vie: white grape, aronia berry, apricots, lychee fruit, blueberry, acai berry, pear, camu-camu, cranberry, banana, prunes, purple grapes, nashi pear, wolfberry, pomegranate, bilberry, kiwi fruit, acerola cherry, passion fruit. Here are the areas of the body where these super foods do us good: BRAIN-blueberry, passion fruit, bilberry-SKIN-camu-camu, acerola cherry-HEART-banana, nashi pear, pomegranate, white grap, apricot, bilberry, kiwi fruit-JOINTS-acai, aronia berry, bilberry, passion fruit-EYES-apricot, bilberry, kiwi fruit, blueberry-DIGESTION-bilberry, pear, nashi pear, white grape, lychee fruit, acerola cherry-ENERGY-acai, camu-camu-IMMUNITY-acai, camu-camu, lychee fruit, acerola cherry-ANTIOXIDANT-acai, prune, white grape, cranberry, pomegranate, aronia berry. As you can see this covers every aspect of your body and when all of these areas are in good harmony you will remain healthy.

As our body ages the one thing I notice more than anything is the diminishing amount of flexibility I have. While I have never been very flexible to start with, and have participated in sports that were not conducive to flexibility I have tried to stretch enough to offset this deficiency. Over the year many people have encouraged me to take up yoga, for the mind and the body. I did attend one yoga class but was so intimidated by the instructor and my lack of flexibility that I never went back. Of course that was my loss and I should return. By writing this post I feel I will be able to accomplish my goal and doing yoga in the future, since I know that I need it very much. The Core Program: 15 Minutes a Day That Can Change Your Life," is authored by Peggy Brill and is published by Bantam books. The beginner's core workout is: DEAD BUGS-lie on your back with your knees bent, your feet flat on the mat. Keeping your abdominal muscles tight, raise your arms and make a scissors motion, alternating your arms back and forth for 30 seconds. Then life your knees to a 90-degree angle and repeat the arm movements. CROSS EXTENSION-Lie on your stomach with your arms and legs extended. Lift your right arm and your left leg 3 to 6 inches off the mat, keeping your toes pointed and your head in line with you body. Hold for 6 seconds, then relax. Repeat with the opposite arm and leg. Do the exercise 6 times, 3 times each side. LYING SPINAL TWIST-lie on your back with your knees bent toward your chest and your arms out to the sides. Slowly move both legs to the left side, without touching the ground, while gently rotating your head to the right. Hold for 6 seconds, then bring your knees back to your chest. Repeat on the opposite side. Do 4 twists, 2 on each side. THE COBRA-lie on your stomach with your hands flat on the mat at shoulder height and your head back(taking care not to overextend your neck). Slowly arch your spine while straightening your arms. Hold for 3 seconds, then descend. Do the exercise 6 times. DOUBLE KNEES TO CHEST-lie on your back with your knees bent, your feet flat on the mat. Keeping your abdominal muscles tight and your lower back pressed into the mat, slowly lift your knees and pull them toward your chest. Hold for 6 seconds, then lower. Do the exercise 3 times.

Now I know it would be easier to visualize those exercises if there was some form of illustration, but I think you can get it. Please buy the book for all of the answers, this is a start to saving your back, easing some pain, and strengthening your middle muscles. HEY, ROME WASN'T BUILT IN A DAY(AND I DON'T EVEN KNOW HOW LONG IT TOOK!!)

Mike Greer

Exercise values, again! Pie of Living-Six points

For people who do not exercise I am sure that another study on the values of exercise will create another big yawn and a "whatever" comment. However I have just read about a study that was conducted by a clinical associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard. He writes about brain-derived neurotrophic factor, or BDNF, a protein that builds and maintains the brain's cell circuitry. And guess what increases BDNF levels in the brain? Yep you got got it, exercise. The connection between the brain and exercise is very real and is another good reason to have some form of exercise program in place. But what really amazes me about all of this(not speaking as a scientist, since I am not) is that the common sense approach to the body would tell me that every part of the body has a tie in with each other. A few years ago a scientist told me about his magical software invention that would monitor the heart in harmony with the brain and that there was definitely synergistic activity between the two. He stated that cardiologists were very hard to convince of this principle since they approach the heart as a function all of itself. Again, my common sense tells me that each part of the healthy body works in complete harmony with each other to propel us through the ever day tasks of living. The study further revealed that exercise affects things like improved memory, academic performance and executive function at work. Of course we always have to consider how the social aspects of life will affect this proclamation and what if, "we just don't like to exercise and refuse to?" I had a very intelligent friend tell me a few years ago that he searched and searched for a doctor that would tell him he did not need to exercise to be healthy, since he hated the thought of it. Lo and behold that guy is now in his 80's and living a very good life. Since I believe that we all have our choices of how we want to live our lives, I do respect every one's choices. The only exception to that is if their choices affect my health adversely, i.e. inhaling second hand smoke is not something I like to do. My conclusion here is that this is another study that does prove that exercise has positive value to a healthy lifestyle. It also states that as our population ages, we will be concerned about preventing neurological disorders like Alzheimer's(actually I thought we were concerned about that now) and exercise has a role. It also brings up our youth and how important exercise can be for their further. Well, in addition to this exercise will fight the extreme obesity that is going on in our younger generations today.

In my "Moving Out of the Comfort Zone" motivational seminar I use what I call the pie of life graphic to emphasize and point out what we do in our every day lives, i.e. work, play, family, exercise, etc. I try to emphasize that the slices of this magical pie should be as equal as possible. This is also a way to see how your time is actually spent and what you can do to increase your quality of life. Now after reading some interesting stuff from Ms. Jan Montague I have created what I call the pie of living and the six points associated with it. These are points of living that exist in the everyday life without exception. In my book, "Mind Management" I emphasize three facets of life, being: physical, spiritual, and emotional, while Ms. Montague takes it a little further. The six dimensions of personal wellness, or living are: EMOTIONAL-Go to http://www.fasttwitchmind.com/ and read my recent post about our ego's and you will see how emotion fits into our daily lives. Our emotional feelings reflects the degree to which an individual feels positive and enthusiastic about oneself and one's life. Recognizing this dimension will give us the ability to copy with the stresses and challenges of the day, plus it enables us to accept our selves unconditionally. In most cases, except for the egomaniac, we have a tendency to be our own worst critics. Our self talk should always be positive in nature and not talking to ourselves in a negative tone. INTELLECTUAL-The intellectual phase of our lives promotes the use of one's mind to create a greater understanding appreciation of oneself and the rest of the world around us. It should involve a person to think creatively and rationally. The key here is determining just exactly what the intellectual capacity is and how to apply it. Some people will have obvious gifts, i.e. mathematics, music, science, etc., while others will have to search for their intellectual gifts(kind of life finding those hidden presents at Christmas). PHYSICAL-(Here we go again), The physical dimension promotes participation in activities for cardiovascular endurance, muscular strengthening, and flexibility. My thoughts are that we should find what we like to exercise in for minimum healthy fitness. If we find ourselves obsessed with competing then that adds another dimension to physical, but that is up to the individual. SOCIAL-The social dimension is humanistic, emphasizing the creation and maintenance of healthy relationships. This is the ability to add positive notes to the society that we live in, while developing our own individual social grace. SPIRITUAL-This dimension is totally an individual choice, in my opinion, and does not have to be based on any certain religion, philosophy, or group. It is up to the individual to find their own peace of mind as to personal values and ethics. VOCATIONAL-Everyone should have some form of vocation and it is the responsibility of the parent to guide their children into some for of vocation. There is a popular movie at the movie titled, "Step Brothers", and the theme revolves around two mature adults falling in love and getting married; however, they both have sons 40 year of age still living with them. These guys have never held a job and still act like adolescent children. The point here is that they were never taught and encouraged by these two parents to move out and move on with their lives. While it was a comedy it really had some realism in it for many parents of today. Happy ending, THEY GOT A JOB FINALLY!!

Now I guess my readers will be saying, "let's get away from this deep stuff and get back to EXERCISE." We will of course, but I believe strongly in the pie of life(living) and it affects every aspect of our lives and health. Go get that physical if you haven't!!

Mike Greer

How to Be Younger, Longer, part II

In my previous post I gave some tidbits on being younger, longer, etc. I promised a list of 10 terrible aging foods and 10 to anti-aging foods. Here goes:

The good news first: 10 top anti-aging foods-

1. Apples, 2. Blueberries, 3. Spinach, dark leafy greens, 4. Salmon and sardines, 5. Whole-grain cereals, 6. Popcorn, unsalted, 7. Legumes, including peanuts, 8. Green tea, 9. Nuts, notably almonds, walnuts, 10. Extra-virgin olive oil. Note: the bonus food now being placed on every list is the Acai berry. Grown only in the Amazon of Brazil. It can be consumed by pill form(only 80% of the pill form is actually absorbed) or liquid form(most of the liquid form is digested). The most popular brand for the Acai berry is Mona*Vie. It is packaged in a bottle looking like an expensive wine bottle, and it is good. I take it daily.

The bad news: 10 terrible aging foods-

1. Bacon, 2. Hot dogs, 3. Potato chips, 4. White bread, 5. White potatoes, 6. Corn oil, 7. Sugary processed cereals, 8. Sugary soft drinks, 9. Red meat, 10. Doughnuts. Note: from this list we see that most foods that are white in color are bad. While I can testify that I have eaten everything on this list at one time in my life I have been able to eliminate/and or cut down on these baddies considerably. All are very easy for me except the read meat, so I limit myself to two times per week and no more than 7 oz. at a time. After replacing white bread with wheat I have found it impossible to eat white bread again. The other items that I still eat are done on a very limited, moderation basis, i.e. bacon, hot dogs(once a year), potato chips, doughnuts, etc.

Aging is fun if you are healthy, and if you are not I can't imagine how dreadful it would be to face the day without feeling good. Remember, eat to live, not live to eat!!

Mike Greer