Our sense of worth is largely based on the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves. I don’t mean our autobiography or our business success story as much as the way we internally answer questions like these:
• What type of person do I see in the mirror each morning?
• Am I paying attention to my body and what it needs?
• To whom and for what am I grateful?
• Am I measuring my self worth against my perception of others?
• How am I handling the less-than-perfect circumstances in my life?
• What positive things do I bring to my important relationships?
• What do I say to myself at day’s end?
When beginning a new project, such as working towards a HEALTHY WEIGHT and developing HABITS OF HEALTH, we all vow to sustain our excitement and enthusiasm. We are motivated, full of hope and eager to accomplish our goal. Two key factors that will help us accomplish what we want are DESIRE, which gets us going, and MOTIVATION, which keeps us going!
However, as time goes by, even the best of intentions can stagger, and we find ourselves losing ground. It can happen to all of us, so beware! AND…LET’S NOT BEAT OURSELVES UP! We are all fighting hard battles, and losing some of them. If we were perfect, we wouldn’t be here.
Our attitude has a major influence on our ability to handle the roadblocks and detours that slow our momentum. A positive attitude can help keep our minds focused on achieving our health goals.
Almost everyone has heard about antioxidants, and has a vague idea that they are "good for you." However, it's not clear to many of us exactly what they are, how they work, and how to include them in our diet or supplements.
The people of the Greek Island of Crete have long enjoyed exceptional health and longevity. Compared to the U.S. population, they suffer one half the cancer death rate. The risk of death from heart attack is an astounding one-twentieth the risk of North Americans. Compared to the Japanese they have one half the overall death rate, despite the fact that the Crete diet is 40% fat and the Japanese diet consists of a very low 13% fat. Clearly, there is something unique about the Crete diet.
Vitamin D is actually manufactured in the human body. Exposure to sunlight causes vitamin D to be created in the skin. We get small amounts of vitamin D in certain foods and supplements, including a multivitamin. Vitamin D is essential for bone metabolism and bone health. Vitamin D is required to deposit calcium from our diet into our bones, and deficiency of vitamin D can lead to osteoporosis. One third of women 60 to 70 years old have osteoporosis. Almost 7 out of 10 women develop this condition of calcium depletion and increased fracture risk by the age of 80 years. In addition to osteoporosis, many other health conditions are related to vitamin D deficiency.