Like most women, you probably started out the New Year with a long list of resolutions, one of which probably was to live healthier. The reason that most of us don’t attain the goals we set out to achieve is that we don’t make a clear plan of action. It’s all good and well to plan to live healthier, but without clear steps you will soon fall back into your old habits.

You already know that you need to eat a balanced diet, exercise regularly and get enough sleep in order to remain healthy, so it is now time to take a good look at your lifestyle and determine what needs to change. Healthy living is a way of life that needs to be adopted, and in order to do so, you will need to form entirely new habits.

Diet

Most of us already know the basics of a healthy diet, like getting the right amount of protein, vitamins, minerals and carbohydrates, but here we will briefly discuss a few specifics that you should be aware of if you want to start living healthier.

1. Never skip breakfast

For those of us who lead busy lives, taking time out of the day to eat breakfast may seem unrealistic. However, breakfast is the fuel that you need to make it through till lunch time. You have already gone the whole night without food, so if you don’t eat anything you will literally be running on empty, which will make you less productive. You are also more likely to snack on unhealthy things at work if you have not eaten a proper meal.

2. Replace red meat with fish

There is nothing wrong with a nice piece of red meat a couple of times a week, but too much red meat can increase your risk of cancer, heart disease and ulcers. Fish is an excellent substitute protein, low in fat and rich in Omega 3 fatty acids, which are known to lower your cholesterol, promote weight loss and improve your skin.

3. Hydrate

Most people don’t drink enough water, which can cause all kinds of problems from digestive complications to excess body fat. By the time you feel thirsty, your body is likely already dehydrated, so keep a water bottle near you and drink throughout the day. It is recommended that you drink eight to ten glasses of water a day, but if you are exercising or live in a hot climate, you should drink more than ten. Don’t drink sodas or even too many fruit juices, as they are high in sugar content.

Lifestyle

1. Plan a diverse exercise routine

One of the main reasons that people give up on their exercise routines is that they don’t have a plan, or their plan is not diverse enough. Plan to exercise at least five days a week, and incorporate everything from cardio and strength training to stretching and balance workouts into your routines. For example, you could go to the gym and take an aerobics class one day, while the next you could go for a jog or take a yoga class. Mixing it up not only keeps you challenged, it is also a more effective way of losing weight, building muscles and increasing overall energy levels.

2. Get enough sleep

This may seem obvious, but without sufficient sleep, you cannot be healthy. The amount of sleep that is necessary varies greatly from person to person. Some people can function well on just six or seven hours a night, while others may need nine or even ten. Learn to listen to your body and give it what it needs. Sleep is like the glue that holds everything together, so find out how much you need and plan to get it each night.

3. Get some sun and fresh air each day

If you exercise indoors, you should make time to get outside for at least half an hour each day. Fresh air helps your body get the oxygen it needs and the sun provides you with vitamin D, which is necessary for your body to absorb calcium. Of course, it goes without saying that too much sun is bad for you, so don’t overdo it. Simple outdoor activities like walking the dog or having lunch in the park can help you meet the requirement for fresh out and sunshine.

When preparing your new healthy lifestyle plan, remember that you can’t change everything all at once. Keep track of your progress and reward yourself at the end of every successful week. This could be anything from a trip to the movies to relaxing spa weekend. Changing your lifestyle takes a lot of determination and hard work, so go easy on yourself and don’t give up just because you made one mistake.

Guest post by Liz Goldman from Wink Bingo – home of online bingo games.

There’s a fantastic range of dance games out there for all styles, abilities and age ranges. So get the music blasting and get your best dancewear on! Here’s our pick of the best.

5. Just Dance Kids (2010) for the Wii, Xbox 360, Kinect, PS3 and Playstation Move.

40 great popular kids songs, including Jackson 5, Justin Beiber, and The Beach Boys. Suitable for a variety of age groups and abilities!

4. Zumba Fitness (2010) for the Wii, Wii Balance Board, PS3, Playstation Move, Xbox 360 and Kinect.

Dance yourself fit with the newest dance craze from Zumba. Certain game devices can track your progress and fitness levels along to popular music tracks!

3. Dance On Broadway (2010) for the Wii and PS3

From the makers of Just Dance, this great dance games features 20 of your favorite songs and dances from stage musicals. You can play single player or with up to 3 players, where you can dance in sync with each other, or dance different roles!

2. Michael Jackson: The Experience (2010) for the Wii, Xbox 360, PS3, and Playstation Move

Featuring all of the biggest Micheal Jackson hits. With a choice of classic or duo mode where you can select to be MJ himself, or as the partner. Also features a dance school where you can learn the more difficult moves. There’s even singing options too!

1. Dance Central (2011) for the Xbox 360 Kinect

From the makers of Guitar Hero and Rock Band, your moves and tracked by the Kinect censors! With over 650 moves, 90 routines, and a variety of options including Perform mode, Workout, Dane Battle, Challenge, and a practice mode you can have hours of dance fun with friends or on your own time. There’s over 32 tracks, and a further 32 available to download, plus you can even create an avatar! Dance Central 2 is now also available.

We are just over two weeks into the New Year — how are you doing on your New Year’s Resolutions?

Historically, 78% of people keep their resolutions for the first week, but there’s a significant drop off after that. Taking care of yourself physically and mentally is extremely important, especially at the University of Southern California where they have a strong understanding of mental health as it is one of their biggest concentrations at the School of Social Work.

They created this infographic to make sure that everyone does a better job this year of taking care of themselves. They asked us to share this with our readers and they are asking the question, “How are you doing with your 2012 goals?”
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Brought to you by MSW@USC: Masters in Social Work
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Running is the best exercise for blasting fat and losing weight. No doubt. However, if you’re an overweight person, then the high impact nature of this activity can leave you injured and disappointed. In fact most overweight people shy away from running and regard it as a form of torture and a waste of time. This can not be further from the truth.

Starting running the right way can help you avoid much of the trouble. The reason for most running injuries is doing too much too soon while ignoring the body’s own indications of discomfort and overload.

Therefore, if you’re an overweight person, or a new comer to the sport of running, here are few guidelines that can help.

Walk First

The biggest mistake beginners make is running too much too soon at a quick of a pace. This is a recipe to disaster and will only leave you injured and disappointed. In fact, if you’re really out-of-shape, running is a physical impossibility. Instead, the better approach is start walking first, then introduce the running later on.

Therefore, during your first weeks of training, go for 4 or 5 long walks and test your fitness level.  Not only this will help you burn calories, it’ll as well help you build stamina, cultivate the habit of regular exercise and most importantly: taking action.

Walk-Run-Walk

On your second week of training, and only if you’re confident about your skill, add 30-45 running intervals into your walks by following a walk-run-walk pattern. This simple training strategy will boost your endurance level without running the risk of injury or overtraining. You get to stay within your fitness level while gradually building your stamina and cardiovascular power.

Each training session should last no more than 30 minutes, 3 times per week. Make sure to space out your training days with a recovery day. This will give your body the time it needs to adapt and adjust itself to the training load so it can get stronger for future workouts.

Run For More

As the training progresses forward, make sure to incrementally lengthen the running and taking less and less walk breaks. Keep it challenging but don’t overdo it. If running for 2 full minutes is too much, back off or walk more for recovery. And as you get fitter, you’ll be able to run your first 10K without much huffing and puffing.

In addition, if want to up the ante, make sure to increase your week mileage by nothing more than 10-15% on each week. For instance, if your current weekly mileage is 10 miles, you could increase it to 11 or 11.5 miles next week. But don’t go overboard; otherwise you’ll definitely increase the likelihood of injury and heath problems.

Nevertheless, change can only take place when you start taking action on what you’ve just learned. Therefore, make sure to put into practice the above tips and always remember to stay within your fitness level.

About the Author:

David Dack is a runner and an established author on weight loss, motivation and fitness.

If you want more free tips from David DACK, then go to Runners Blue Print and for a limited time you can grab this special “Weight Loss By Running” FREE report

If you really want to Lose Weight fast and forever, this is a proven step-by-step technique that can help. You can lose up to 5 pounds each week by just following this simple report. So what are you waiting for? Click Here Now!
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San Francisco, CA – Jan 11, 2012 – Traditionally, winter is the time of year when folks find it hardest to get out and exercise.  In the hopes of keeping folks motivated, readers from Run Hundred–the web’s most heavily-trafficked site for workout music–were  polled regarding their favorite, current workout songs.  The resulting top 10 list has a little of what you’d expect—and a little you might not.  Flo Rida, who’s no stranger to this list, shows up in two recent tracks.  Enrique Iglesias continues his transition from balladeer to club rocker.  And Kelly Clarkson, after faltering with the first single off her new album, bounced back ferociously with the second.

As for surprises, they’re mostly entries from folks relatively new on the dance scene.  Highlights include songs from Tim Berg (who remixed his own track under his Avicii moniker), Skrillex (whose collaboration with Kaskade is the first dubstep track ever the make the Top 10), and Wolfgang Gartner (who’s made the chart with a little help from the Black Eyed Peas’ Will.I.Am).

Here’s the full list:

Tim Berg – Seek Bromance (Avicii Vocal Edit) – 127 BPM

Katy Perry – The One That Got Away – 135 BPM

Alexandra Stan – Mr. Saxobeat (Maan Studio Remix) – 126 BPM

Flo Rida – Good Feeling – 129 BPM

Wolfgang Gartner & Will.I.Am – Forever – 128 BPM

Hot Chelle Rae – Tonight Tonight (Goldstein Remix) – 118 BPM

Taio Cruz & Flo Rida – Hangover – 129 BPM

Enrique Iglesias, Pitbull & The WAV.s – I Like How It Feels – 129 BPM

Kaskade & Skrillex – Lick It – 128 BPM

Kelly Clarkson – What Doesn’t Kill You (Stronger) – 117 BPM

To find more songs–and hear next month’s contenders—folks can check out Run Hundred’s database of workout songs. Visitors can browse the song selections there by genre, tempo, and era—to find the music that best fits with their particular workout routine.

Contact:
Chris Lawhorn
Run Hundred
http://www.RunHundred.com
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