Respect your body, respect your health – 10 ways to take care of your body

We live in a society that is experiencing many stresses associated with financial worries, longer working hours and independence on technology.

This has created a situation, which prevents some of us giving proper care and attention to our own personal health requirements.

By making a few adjustments in our lives, making careful efforts of self-control or will power and achieving small gains we can create a lifestyle that will not only benefit us but also benefit our family and friends.

Here are 10 simple ways to take care of your body so that it can take care of you:

1. The brighter the colours of the food on your plate the more variety of vitamins you are getting. Get your vitamins from your food, not from the pharmacy (if you think you are deficient in a vitamin see your doctor first)
2. Find quick and easy recipes that can be put together after a long day and plan a weekly menu and shop according to that menu
3. Spend one or two hours over the weekend preparing snacks, lunches and dinners to avoid buying your food
4. Avoid processed and packaged foods. Keep it fresh and healthy. If it’s in a packet or a tin you are getting a whole lot of preservatives along with your food
5. Make takeaway once a week as a treat, if not once a fortnight
6. Move – be more active. Physical activity is important to help reduce stress, increase stamina, control your weight, keep your heart healthy and strengthen your bones. Go for a walk, play ball with the kids instead of watching TV or take the dog for a walk – just move, move, move. A pedometer is a great idea to gauge how active (or inactive) you are
7. Limit your alcohol intake (this is not new to you- empty calories)
8. Avoid added sugars e.g. fructose, sucrose, glucose which are found in confectionary, cakes and biscuits
9. Maintain healthy social and family relationships and a positive mental attitude
10. Think cleaner eating and respect your body, respect your health and pay attention to what it needs to function at its best.

Take it slow, make changes to your life little by little because little changes will add up to bigger long term changes in the future. A healthy lifestyle will allow your body to function properly and you will be able to deal with the stresses in your life.

6 Nutritious meals for busy people

All of us lead busy lives so it can sometimes be difficult to eat healthy nutritious meals that don’t take forever to prepare and cook after rushing home from work, walking the dogs, picking up after the kids, getting a load of washing on etc etc (yes, I know you are hearing me!).  One of my aims in life is to stay healthy and live a long, fun-filled and fabulous life and maintain a healthy lifestyle to achieve my goals and plans for the future.

Here are some of my favourite quick and easy meals that nourish my family.

Lemon Garlic Chicken

Lemon Garlic Chicken

The combination of lemon, wine and honey gives this dish a sweet and sour flavour.

Tasty Potatoes

Tasty Potatoes

With the combination of baked potato and sweet potato, this dish is absolutely delicious. You can create this easy side dish in about 20 minutes

How to prevent injury and make the most out of your weight training sessions

Strength training offers many health benefits to your life that contribute to optimal health.