Body Wellness
by Stephen Lau
Body wellness is more than an absence of disease, because disease may be dormant for years before any outbreak occurs. Disease symptoms are usually precursors of disease or an internal disorder.
Body Fitness
Body wellness is body fitness for the mind and the soul.
Control the numbers
Manage your blood pressure, cholesterol levels, blood sugar level, and acid-alkaline ratio. Unfavorable numbers are disease precursors.
- Blood pressure levels should be below 120 (systolic) over 80 (diastolic). Maintain your blood pressure at the optimum levels, that is, 130/85 (given that as you age, your blood pressure tends to rise).
- Good cholesterol levels should be less than 40 mg/dl for HDL (good cholesterol) for a man, and 50 mg/dl for a woman; and more than150 mg/dl for triglyceride (bad cholesterol). Optimize these numbers for body wellness.
- Fast blood sugar levels should be maintained at no more than 100 mg/dl to prevent the development of chronic diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease.
- The acid-alkaline ratio should be balanced to provide an optimum environment for replication and rejuvenation of body cells. The pH (acid and alkaline scale between one and fourteen) level should be neutral, which is seven. Anything above seven is considered alkaline, while anything below seven is considered acidic. When your body is too acidic, the tissues of your cells are forced to relinquish their alkaline reserves, and thus depleting them of alkaline minerals, which are critical to tissue growth. Shortage of alkaline minerals reduces enzyme activity, and hence promoting disease.
It is important to control and improve these numbers naturally without the use of pharmaceutical drugs:
Acid-Alkaline Diet: Discover the natural diet to enhance your body metabolism to lose weight naturally without any fad diet.
High Blood Pressure Exercise Program: Discover how you can lower your blood pressure naturally without drugs
Prescription Free Cholesterol Cure: Discover the cholesterol-lowering alternative to harmful prescription drugs, such as statin drugs, which deplete the body of coenzyme Q10, a body nutrient required for energy and wellness.
Hippocrates, the father of medicine, once said: “Healing is a matter of time, but it is also a matter of opportunity.”
Give your body that opportunity for natural healing. Your body is very forgiving. Even after years of abuse, your body is still capable of recovering from any disease, if only you would give it the opportunity of natural healing. Remember, when you give your body a drug that replaces a substance your body is capable of making itself, you body then becomes weaker, not stronger, and begins not only to manufacture less of that substance, but also to become more dependent on the outside source, which is usually the drug. Over time, you become no longer drug-free. Unfortunately, no drug can give you insight into the circumstance that created your problems. At best, it can only temporarily suppress the physical symptoms created by your health situation. Even pharmaceutical drugs for preventive medicine should be avoided.
Maintain body shape
According to studies, your body shape may be a good indicator of your overall body wellness:
If your body shape is like that of an apple (i.e. with extra weight in the midsection), you may have a propensity for diabetes, high blood pressure, and stroke. The reason is that in a beer belly, your abdominal fat is more easily converted into cholesterol, and hence ultimately affecting your heart health.
If your body shape is like that of a pear (i.e. with extra weight around the hips instead of in the midsection), you may be less at risk for heart disease. If your body shape is like that of a pear (i.e. with extra weight around the hips instead of in the midsection), you may be less at risk for heart disease or other related disorders.
Physical fitness is an on-going physical activity that must begin TODAY without delay or procrastination, because TOMORROW may become a disease. Physical fitness gives you not only a good body image but also a clean bill of health. Physical fitness is a must for body wellness. Always keep your physical body mobile.
Cardiovascular fitness is one of the most important factor in physical fitness. A good cardiovascular fitness program achieves the following:
Running is one of the best and easiest exercises. It is best for endurance training and weight loss. It is also the easiest exercise: you don't need any equipment other than a pair of running shoes; unlike other sports, you don't even need to demonstrate any athletic ability.
Oriental exercises are also suitable for most individuals because of their natural movements and holistic benefits to the body and the mind..
Qi Gong is a set of self-healing exercises designed to balance your qi, bringing you back into harmony with Nature. These exercises incorporate your posture, movement, breathing, meditation and visualization to move oxygen and nutrients from your blood to organs and tissues. Distress and anxiety are dispelled during meditation; positive thinking with great confidence is affirmed; and concentration is emphasized. Through qi gong, you gain control of your body and mind, thereby instrumental in stimulating the circulation of your blood and qi. Qi Gong is an excellent exercise for natural healing.
Yoga is more than an exercise: it is a science that has been practiced for thousands of years, based on ancient theories, observations, and principles about the connection between the mind and the body. The intrinsic benefits of yoga have been proven by modern medicine. Yoga not only provides you with the most practical approach to attaining a high level of physical fitness, but also stabilizes your emotions and elevates your mental attitudes. In other words, yoga unites your mind, your body, and your spirit. Essentially, it is a holistic approach to your well-being. Through awareness of your body’s posture, alignment, and patterns of movement, yoga is therapeutic in that it helps your body find true harmony, thereby healing the body and the mind. Yoga is also an excellent exercise for natural healing of the body, the mind, and the spirit.
Tai Chi is all about movements to circulate your body invisible energy called qi. Smooth circulation of qi energy ensures a healthy body. Stagnant and blocked qi energy causes all sorts of chronic disease. Tai Chi is an ancient exercise that has been practiced for thousands of years as an effective alternative healing for the body and the mind. By strengthening the immune system, Tai Chi can improve your chronic disease slowly but steadily. More importantly, it can relieve your stress and calm your nerves, and thus an ideal exercise for natural healing.
Manage body weight
Weight management is critical to total body wellness. Body weight is important because it determines your body shape, which defines your body image.
Self-confidence is an important factor contributing to weight loss.
Body weight is so important that Americans are spending billions of dollars each year to maintain their body weight just to keep them in better shape for an ideal body image. Sadly, many are lost in this battle of the bulge because they turn to fad diets, which strive to change the body metabolism without resolving the weight-gain issues.
Indeed, natural and permanent weight loss is not easy. Consider this: 3,500 calories equal one pound of your body weight; to lose 10 pounds of body weight, you have to expend 35,000 more calories than you consume. Mathematically, to lose 10 pounds in two weeks, you need to burn 2,500 more calories a day. You know this is not a piece of cake!
Acid-Alkaline Diet: Discover the natural diet to enhance your body metabolism to lose weight naturally without any fad diet.
High Blood Pressure Exercise Program: Discover how you can lower your blood pressure naturally without drugs
Prescription Free Cholesterol Cure: Discover the cholesterol-lowering alternative to harmful prescription drugs, such as statin drugs, which deplete the body of coenzyme Q10, a body nutrient required for energy and wellness.
Hippocrates, the father of medicine, once said: “Healing is a matter of time, but it is also a matter of opportunity.”
Give your body that opportunity for natural healing. Your body is very forgiving. Even after years of abuse, your body is still capable of recovering from any disease, if only you would give it the opportunity of natural healing. Remember, when you give your body a drug that replaces a substance your body is capable of making itself, you body then becomes weaker, not stronger, and begins not only to manufacture less of that substance, but also to become more dependent on the outside source, which is usually the drug. Over time, you become no longer drug-free. Unfortunately, no drug can give you insight into the circumstance that created your problems. At best, it can only temporarily suppress the physical symptoms created by your health situation. Even pharmaceutical drugs for preventive medicine should be avoided.
Maintain body shape
According to studies, your body shape may be a good indicator of your overall body wellness:
If your body shape is like that of an apple (i.e. with extra weight in the midsection), you may have a propensity for diabetes, high blood pressure, and stroke. The reason is that in a beer belly, your abdominal fat is more easily converted into cholesterol, and hence ultimately affecting your heart health.
If your body shape is like that of a pear (i.e. with extra weight around the hips instead of in the midsection), you may be less at risk for heart disease. If your body shape is like that of a pear (i.e. with extra weight around the hips instead of in the midsection), you may be less at risk for heart disease or other related disorders.
Physical fitness is an on-going physical activity that must begin TODAY without delay or procrastination, because TOMORROW may become a disease. Physical fitness gives you not only a good body image but also a clean bill of health. Physical fitness is a must for body wellness. Always keep your physical body mobile.
Cardiovascular fitness is one of the most important factor in physical fitness. A good cardiovascular fitness program achieves the following:
- Muscular endurance fitness is training specific muscle groups to respond optimally to prolonged physical activity. Muscular endurance training preconditions your body to use fat as fuel during physical activity.
- Muscle strength fitness is repeated performance against a load or weight, which is at least 75 percent in excess of your muscle potential, thereby instrumental in increasing muscle fibers for more muscle strength.
- Flexibility fitness is essentially stretching to free up blood from the muscles. In addition to supplying blood and nutrients to your muscle groups, flexibility fitness enhances the efficiency of your immune system.
Running is one of the best and easiest exercises. It is best for endurance training and weight loss. It is also the easiest exercise: you don't need any equipment other than a pair of running shoes; unlike other sports, you don't even need to demonstrate any athletic ability.
Oriental exercises are also suitable for most individuals because of their natural movements and holistic benefits to the body and the mind..
Qi Gong is a set of self-healing exercises designed to balance your qi, bringing you back into harmony with Nature. These exercises incorporate your posture, movement, breathing, meditation and visualization to move oxygen and nutrients from your blood to organs and tissues. Distress and anxiety are dispelled during meditation; positive thinking with great confidence is affirmed; and concentration is emphasized. Through qi gong, you gain control of your body and mind, thereby instrumental in stimulating the circulation of your blood and qi. Qi Gong is an excellent exercise for natural healing.
Yoga is more than an exercise: it is a science that has been practiced for thousands of years, based on ancient theories, observations, and principles about the connection between the mind and the body. The intrinsic benefits of yoga have been proven by modern medicine. Yoga not only provides you with the most practical approach to attaining a high level of physical fitness, but also stabilizes your emotions and elevates your mental attitudes. In other words, yoga unites your mind, your body, and your spirit. Essentially, it is a holistic approach to your well-being. Through awareness of your body’s posture, alignment, and patterns of movement, yoga is therapeutic in that it helps your body find true harmony, thereby healing the body and the mind. Yoga is also an excellent exercise for natural healing of the body, the mind, and the spirit.
Tai Chi is all about movements to circulate your body invisible energy called qi. Smooth circulation of qi energy ensures a healthy body. Stagnant and blocked qi energy causes all sorts of chronic disease. Tai Chi is an ancient exercise that has been practiced for thousands of years as an effective alternative healing for the body and the mind. By strengthening the immune system, Tai Chi can improve your chronic disease slowly but steadily. More importantly, it can relieve your stress and calm your nerves, and thus an ideal exercise for natural healing.
Manage body weight
Weight management is critical to total body wellness. Body weight is important because it determines your body shape, which defines your body image.
Self-confidence is an important factor contributing to weight loss.
Body weight is so important that Americans are spending billions of dollars each year to maintain their body weight just to keep them in better shape for an ideal body image. Sadly, many are lost in this battle of the bulge because they turn to fad diets, which strive to change the body metabolism without resolving the weight-gain issues.
Indeed, natural and permanent weight loss is not easy. Consider this: 3,500 calories equal one pound of your body weight; to lose 10 pounds of body weight, you have to expend 35,000 more calories than you consume. Mathematically, to lose 10 pounds in two weeks, you need to burn 2,500 more calories a day. You know this is not a piece of cake!
All-Around Weight Loss - Stephen Lau
This 143-page ebook covers all aspects of weight loss: the physical, the mental, the emotional, and the spiritual.
If you wish to lose weight permanently, empower yourself with knowledge and information on how to lose weight through the body, the mind, and the spirit.
Click here for a FREE download to find out how you may lose your weight without losing your mind.
Healthy Eating
You are what you eat and you become what you eat. Your foods and drinks form your body chemistry, which affects all your body organs and tissues. Therefore, healthy eating is essential for holistic body wellness.
Eating basics
Eating for balance
Body wellness, according to Chinese medicine, is founded on the concept of yin and yang, which is represented as the female and the male, respectively, or as any two opposing forces in nature that balance and complement each other for harmony and co-existence. Yin embodies negative electrical charge and contractive energy, while yang demonstrates positive electrical charge and expansive energy. A balance between the two polarities can help you stay in beneficial energy alignment, which is fundamental to body wellness. Essentially, the Chinese yin and yang diet is based on the principles of control and restraint to attain a healthy immune system.
According to the Chinese, all foods come into three types: cold (yin), hot (yang), and neutral.
The main functions of yin foods include:
Examples of yin foods include:
The main functions of yang foods include:
Examples of yang foods include:
For a healthy immune system, if the symptoms describe a warm or hot condition, a healthy diet should emphasize cooling, cold, and neutral foods with fewer warm and hot foods in order to achieve balance and harmony to boost the immune system
The balance of yin and yang is also reflected in the Five Elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, and water), which not only are fundamental to the cycles of nature, but also correspond to the different organs of the human body. These Five Elements, which are inter-dependent on one another for existence in the form of a cycle of nature, relate to five different colors as follows:
For your yin and yang body wellness, eat a diet that includes vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds, beans, and grains of all the colors from the Five Elements. This yin and yang diet creates balance and harmony between your body organs for optimal body health and wellness.
500+ Healthy Chinese Recipes: Learn how to cook 6 healthy Chinese dishes in under 45 minutes. Cook and eat like the Chinese for anti-aging living.
Best body wellness drinks
Burdock and daikon drink
Burdock root has been used as both food and medicine in Asia and Europe for thousands of years. Recently, it has been used as a nourishing tonic for cancer, liver disease, and rheumatism. Burdock root is a staple diet of the Japanese, who are among the people with the longest lifespan in the world.
Fresh burdock root is available at many greengrocers, Asian markets, and natural food stores in the United States. Daikon is Japanese radish. Its phytochemicals have recognized healing and anti-carcinogenic properties
This drink cleanses the blood (the kidneys), promotes energy circulation, increases the metabolic rate (a weight loss remedy in Asia), treats hangovers, decongests the lungs, clears sore throat, colds, and edema. The burdock and daikon drink can be taken any time, and as much as you like.
The ingredients are: one burdock root (about 24 inches long), one daikon with green tops, one small carrot with green tops. To prepare the drink, cut all ingredients into small pieces; place them in a pot with water double the volume of the ingredients; bring it to a boil. Pour out the content, and drink it. You can also repeat the process one more time. This time, after bringing it to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for another 20 minutes. Let the ingredients steep in the hot water for another 20 minutes before drinking it.
Four greens drink
Bitter melon, a popular Asian vegetable, is well known for blood glucose control. It contains a substance similar to bovine insulin, which has been shown in experimental studies to achieve a positive sugar regulating effect by suppressing the neural response to sweet taste stimuli.
Celery is a good source of insoluble fiber as well as essential nutrients, including vitamin C, calcium, and potassium. In addition, it may reduce blood pressure, and block cancer cells.
Cucumber has been associated with healing properties in relation to diseases of the kidney, urinary bladder, liver and pancreas. In addition, cucumber juice is an excellent skin tonic.
Green pepper is loaded with vitamin C (a potent antioxidant) and beta-carotene (to prevent cataracts).
This four greens drink is excellent for controlling your blood sugar levels for body wellness.
Make the nutritious four greens drink simply by juicing them in approximately equal portions. Drink immediately.
Pine needles drink
Pine needle drink is a perfect drink made from evergreen pine needles. Select your pine needles by picking the newest green ones from a pine tree. Wash the pine needles thoroughly. Put them in a cloth bag, and steep it in a pot of boiling water–if you don’t use a cloth bag, then strain the needles before drinking. Cover and let it sit for 30 minutes.
Pine needle drink is loaded with vitamin C and other nutrients to benefit the eye, to overcome chronic fatigue, to combat heart disease, kidney ailments, sclerosis (inflammatory nerve disorder), and varicose veins.
Words of wisdom
Eating is a double-edge sword: it can make you younger and healthier for longer, but it can also age you faster and kill you prematurely. Eat well to promote body wellness.
Breathing Right
Your Creator has given you powerful lungs, which are capable of taking any strenuous workout well into your seventies. But your respiratory system may be severely compromised due to cigarette smoke, alcohol, gallstones in the liver causing allergies, disorders of the nose and nasal cavities, and diseases of the bronchi and lungs.
Body wellness replies on breathing right.
Breathing gives you invisible food to all your body cells and organs by supplying them with life-giving oxygen. Your intake of oxygen depends on the quality of the air as well as the how deeply you breathe in and out. All centenarians have one thing in common: they all breathe deeply and slowly. Conscious deep breathing may calm and integrate your body and mind, contributing to overall peace of mind, which is important to your physical and mental health.
The secret of right breathing is to take your lungs everywhere and breathe deeply and slowly.
The wrong way to breathe
The right way to breathe
Breathe with the diaphragm: breathe deeply through your nose; your belly and diaphragm should move noticeably while breathing.
How to breathe right:
Begin your 10-15 minute breathing session several times a day until your breathing becomes second nature to you.
Optimal breathing benefits the flow of qi (internal vital force). In the Orient, Yoga, Qigong, and Zen meditation, all teach correct breathing as the basic principle for practice.
Correct Posture
Correct posture affects body wellness in several ways:
Standing posture
Despite the importance of good posture for body wellness, correct posture is often overlooked because there is no one constantly reminding you to improve posture. To successfully improve posture, you must develop an acute awareness for correct posture at all times.
Correct posture means in any standing position, you body posture should be as follows:
You are what you eat and you become what you eat. Your foods and drinks form your body chemistry, which affects all your body organs and tissues. Therefore, healthy eating is essential for holistic body wellness.
Eating basics
- Eat to live, not live to eat: food is to be enjoyed, and taste buds can be changed within a few weeks.
- Eat less, not more: follow the “three-quarters” rule of eating: stop eating when you are three-quarters full. Never overeat!
- Eat frequently, not three times a day: eat only when you are hungry, not because it is mealtime.
- Eat living, not dead, foods: avoid all empty-calorie foods (only calories, no nutrients, e.g. refined white sugar) and processed foods (supermarket foods in boxes and packages), which are loaded with chemicals and preservatives.
- Eat sea salt, not table salt: research showed that increased table salt intake proportionately increases cancer risk in the bladder, esophagus, and stomach.
- Eat raw food occasionally: increase enzymes (destroyed in heat and cooking) to enhance the digestive system.
Eating for balance
Body wellness, according to Chinese medicine, is founded on the concept of yin and yang, which is represented as the female and the male, respectively, or as any two opposing forces in nature that balance and complement each other for harmony and co-existence. Yin embodies negative electrical charge and contractive energy, while yang demonstrates positive electrical charge and expansive energy. A balance between the two polarities can help you stay in beneficial energy alignment, which is fundamental to body wellness. Essentially, the Chinese yin and yang diet is based on the principles of control and restraint to attain a healthy immune system.
According to the Chinese, all foods come into three types: cold (yin), hot (yang), and neutral.
The main functions of yin foods include:
- cooling the body
- loosening muscles
- reducing body tension
- slowing down body movement
- inducing sleep
- loosening bowels
Examples of yin foods include:
- apples, apricots blueberries, grapes, strawberries, watermelons (moderate yin fruits)
- burdock, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, onion, parsley, pea, scallion (moderate yin vegetables)
- most tropical fruits, nuts, dairy products, stimulants (alcohol, caffeine, nicotine, spices), chemicals and drugs (extreme yin foods)
The main functions of yang foods include:
- warming the body
- tightening muscles
- causing body tension
- increasing body movement
- promoting wakefulness
- hardening bowels
Examples of yang foods include:
- most whole grains, including pasta and rice (moderate yang foods)
- shellfish and fish (moderate yang foods)
- eggs, meat, and poultry, salt (extreme yang foods)
For a healthy immune system, if the symptoms describe a warm or hot condition, a healthy diet should emphasize cooling, cold, and neutral foods with fewer warm and hot foods in order to achieve balance and harmony to boost the immune system
The balance of yin and yang is also reflected in the Five Elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, and water), which not only are fundamental to the cycles of nature, but also correspond to the different organs of the human body. These Five Elements, which are inter-dependent on one another for existence in the form of a cycle of nature, relate to five different colors as follows:
- The element of wood relates to green color. Accordingly, eat green vegetables from asparagus to dark leafy greens, such as spinach; green fruits, such as lime and green apples; green-colored nuts and seeds, such as pumpkins; green-colored beans, such as mung beans; and green grains, such as rye.
- The element of fire relates to red color. Accordingly, eat red vegetables, such as beets, hot red peppers and bell peppers; red fruits, such as cherries and red strawberries; red nuts and seeds, such as pecans; red-colored beans, such as red lentils and red beans; and red grains, such as buckwheat.
- The element of earth relates to orange and yellow colors. Accordingly, eat orange and yellow vegetables, such as pumpkins, squash and yams; orange and yellow fruits, such as mangoes, oranges and papaya; orange and yellow nuts and seeds, such as almonds and cashews; orange and yellow beans, such as chickpeas; and orange and yellow grains, such as corn and millet.
- The element of metal relates to white color. Accordingly, eat white vegetables, such as cauliflower; white fruits, such as bananas and pears; white nuts and seeds, such as pine nuts; white-colored beans, such as soybeans; and white grains, such as barley and rice.
- The element of water relates to black, blue, and purple colors. Accordingly, eat dark-colored vegetables, such as black mushroom, eggplant and seaweed; dark-colored fruits, such as blackberries, blueberries and raisins; dark-colored nuts and seeds, such as black sesame and walnuts; dark-colored beans, such as black beans and navy beans; and black grains, such as black wild rice.
For your yin and yang body wellness, eat a diet that includes vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds, beans, and grains of all the colors from the Five Elements. This yin and yang diet creates balance and harmony between your body organs for optimal body health and wellness.
500+ Healthy Chinese Recipes: Learn how to cook 6 healthy Chinese dishes in under 45 minutes. Cook and eat like the Chinese for anti-aging living.
Best body wellness drinks
Burdock and daikon drink
Burdock root has been used as both food and medicine in Asia and Europe for thousands of years. Recently, it has been used as a nourishing tonic for cancer, liver disease, and rheumatism. Burdock root is a staple diet of the Japanese, who are among the people with the longest lifespan in the world.
Fresh burdock root is available at many greengrocers, Asian markets, and natural food stores in the United States. Daikon is Japanese radish. Its phytochemicals have recognized healing and anti-carcinogenic properties
This drink cleanses the blood (the kidneys), promotes energy circulation, increases the metabolic rate (a weight loss remedy in Asia), treats hangovers, decongests the lungs, clears sore throat, colds, and edema. The burdock and daikon drink can be taken any time, and as much as you like.
The ingredients are: one burdock root (about 24 inches long), one daikon with green tops, one small carrot with green tops. To prepare the drink, cut all ingredients into small pieces; place them in a pot with water double the volume of the ingredients; bring it to a boil. Pour out the content, and drink it. You can also repeat the process one more time. This time, after bringing it to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for another 20 minutes. Let the ingredients steep in the hot water for another 20 minutes before drinking it.
Four greens drink
Bitter melon, a popular Asian vegetable, is well known for blood glucose control. It contains a substance similar to bovine insulin, which has been shown in experimental studies to achieve a positive sugar regulating effect by suppressing the neural response to sweet taste stimuli.
Celery is a good source of insoluble fiber as well as essential nutrients, including vitamin C, calcium, and potassium. In addition, it may reduce blood pressure, and block cancer cells.
Cucumber has been associated with healing properties in relation to diseases of the kidney, urinary bladder, liver and pancreas. In addition, cucumber juice is an excellent skin tonic.
Green pepper is loaded with vitamin C (a potent antioxidant) and beta-carotene (to prevent cataracts).
This four greens drink is excellent for controlling your blood sugar levels for body wellness.
Make the nutritious four greens drink simply by juicing them in approximately equal portions. Drink immediately.
Pine needles drink
Pine needle drink is a perfect drink made from evergreen pine needles. Select your pine needles by picking the newest green ones from a pine tree. Wash the pine needles thoroughly. Put them in a cloth bag, and steep it in a pot of boiling water–if you don’t use a cloth bag, then strain the needles before drinking. Cover and let it sit for 30 minutes.
Pine needle drink is loaded with vitamin C and other nutrients to benefit the eye, to overcome chronic fatigue, to combat heart disease, kidney ailments, sclerosis (inflammatory nerve disorder), and varicose veins.
Words of wisdom
Eating is a double-edge sword: it can make you younger and healthier for longer, but it can also age you faster and kill you prematurely. Eat well to promote body wellness.
Breathing Right
Your Creator has given you powerful lungs, which are capable of taking any strenuous workout well into your seventies. But your respiratory system may be severely compromised due to cigarette smoke, alcohol, gallstones in the liver causing allergies, disorders of the nose and nasal cavities, and diseases of the bronchi and lungs.
Body wellness replies on breathing right.
Breathing gives you invisible food to all your body cells and organs by supplying them with life-giving oxygen. Your intake of oxygen depends on the quality of the air as well as the how deeply you breathe in and out. All centenarians have one thing in common: they all breathe deeply and slowly. Conscious deep breathing may calm and integrate your body and mind, contributing to overall peace of mind, which is important to your physical and mental health.
The secret of right breathing is to take your lungs everywhere and breathe deeply and slowly.
The wrong way to breathe
- Hold in your stomach or have a flat stomach while breathing in and out.
- Take rapid, small, and shallow upper-body breaths (leading to aches and pain).
- Exhale carbon too quickly (disturbing the balance of acidity and alkalinity in your body–known as the pH level).
- Use your neck and upper-back muscles to breathe (resulting in high blood pressure and racing heartbeats).
The right way to breathe
Breathe with the diaphragm: breathe deeply through your nose; your belly and diaphragm should move noticeably while breathing.
How to breathe right:
- Sit comfortably in a relaxed mode with your feet resting comfortably on the floor.
- Place your hands on your stomach.
- Breathe in slowly through your nose on a count of five, while gently pushing your hands up on your stomach.
- Hold your breath for a count of five.
- Breathe out slowly through your mouth on a count of five, while pushing your hands down on your stomach.
- Repeat. Allow your eyes to close as your breath deepens and your belly begins to rise and fall.
Begin your 10-15 minute breathing session several times a day until your breathing becomes second nature to you.
Optimal breathing benefits the flow of qi (internal vital force). In the Orient, Yoga, Qigong, and Zen meditation, all teach correct breathing as the basic principle for practice.
Correct Posture
Correct posture affects body wellness in several ways:
- Correct posture results in good body balance, which prevents falling—one of the most common causes of frailty in the elderly. Improve posture to improve body balance to prevent falling, which is due to weak body muscles, often aggravated and perpetuated by incorrect posture.
- Correct posture avoids debilitating back pain, neck pain, leg pain, and even headaches. Due to poor body posture, all the muscle groups supporting the crooked spine become stretched and strained, causing wear and tear, resulting in lower back pain. In addition, an arched lower back exerts undue pressure on the joints and nerves, causing joint pain and rheumatism. In short, many physical ailments are due to poor posture. Therefore, it is important to improve posture to enhance overall body wellness.
- Correct posture enhances breathing. Correct posture affects not only your breaths but also the natural flow of qi, which is the internal life force energy responsible for transporting oxygen and nutrients to different organs and tissues in your body. Good posture contributes to breathing right. Incidentally, rodents, with the shortest breaths in the animal kingdom, also have the shortest lifespan. Therefore, breathing right is an important component of body wellness.
Standing posture
Despite the importance of good posture for body wellness, correct posture is often overlooked because there is no one constantly reminding you to improve posture. To successfully improve posture, you must develop an acute awareness for correct posture at all times.
Correct posture means in any standing position, you body posture should be as follows:
- Your head is directly above your shoulders.
- Your chin is tucked in.
- Your ear, shoulder, and hip are in a straight line from a side view.
- Your upper back is straight, not slouched.
- Your shoulders, relaxed and straight, are flat against your back.
- Your pelvis is in a neutral position.
- Your knees are unlocked.
How to improve posture
Here are the steps to improve posture, in particular, standing posture: to stand up straight, you require a straight spine, straight shoulders, and no slumping:
Practice the above until correct posture becomes second nature to you. Develop your awareness of good posture at all times.
Here are the steps to improve posture, in particular, standing posture: to stand up straight, you require a straight spine, straight shoulders, and no slumping:
- Stand with feet hip-width apart (for better balance).
- Align ears, shoulders, and hips (Using a mirror for alignment).
- Unlock both knees (maintaining “neutral” pelvis; avoiding pelvis tilting forward).
- Pull in abdominal muscles.
- Inhale naturally.
- Exhale slowly while pulling belly button into the spine.
- Lift rib cage (straightening rounded upper back; expanding the lungs for deeper breathig).
- Realign head over shoulders (head not leaning backward).
- Unround shoulders (by rotating arms until palms facing thighs).
- Gently press shoulders down, away from the ears.
- Pull shoulder blades towards the spine.
- Stretch head upwards without tilting backwards.
Practice the above until correct posture becomes second nature to you. Develop your awareness of good posture at all times.
Perfect Posture Program - Mark Sias
Workout may make you lose a few extra pounds, but it does not change your body shape if you have postural problems. A misaligned body is the culprit not only in distorting your physical appearance but also in impairing your overall health.
Follow Mark Sias, a fitness expert and a gymnastics instructor, in his detailed and well-structured program with videos to fix your postural problems.
Brace posture does not solve your postural problems! Brace posture only increases your dependency on gadgets to correct posture. Instead, improve posture with Mark’s personalized exercise program with videos based on “postural muscle equilibrium” theory. Click here for more information.
Body Relaxation
Body relaxation contributes to body wellness.
Natural sleep for body relaxation
Sleep is natural human instinct. It relaxes and rejuvenates both the body and the mind. Good sleep is an essential component of holistic health and wellness.
Research studies have shown that sleep is natural to all living things. According to a Swiss research study, even gold fish requires sleep: having been deprived of sleep for an extended period of time, gold fish would remain still for an extended period of time to make up for its lack of sleep. In other words, sleep deprivation will have to be compensated by an increased need for sleep later, and all animals need sleep and instinctively know how to sleep. Man is no exception.
Natural sleep is just as important to your health as exercise and a balanced diet. You just cannot enjoy holistic health without natural sleep.
Sleep problems
Sleep problems have little to do with how much sleep you can get. As a matter of fact, experts cannot agree on how many hours an individual should sleep: some experts say if you sleep 1 to 2 hours less than what you should, you will suffer sleep deprivation; others maintain that you should sleep at least 8 to 9 hours for optimum body wellness. But both sleep deprivation and oversleeping may cause health problems. The bottom line is not the quantity but rather the quality of sleep you are getting that defines your sleep health. Hence, sleep problems have to do with how well you sleep, and, of course, also whether you can sleep at all.
Stressful emotional and mental problems in life may be the underlying cause of sleep problems. Natural sleep is about relaxation of the body and the mind. Stress is the in the No. 1 enemy of emotional and mental health. When you are under stress, your body naturally responds to the increased tension by producing hormone epinephrine. Excess production of this hormone may wear out your hormonal glands, leading to elevation of blood sugar, acceleration of breathing rate, increase of muscle tension, and excessive sweating—all contributing to insomnia. In contemporary living, stress may come in many different forms that disturb your natural sleep.
- Sexual problems or relationship problems, which are often a cause as well as a reflection of bedroom problems, may also lead to sleep problems. Avoiding sexual problems will create only more stress that causes insomnia.
- Family problems, such as confrontations with teenager, may cause heated arguments and conflicts. Learn the techniques of good parenting to reduce stress at home.
- Money problems may also generate financial stress. All in all, everyday life problems have to be taken care of before sleep problems can be resolved.
These stress-inducing issues and problems need to be addressed in order to resolve sleep problems.
Good feng shui and natural sleep
Feng shui is an ancient Chinese art that may play a pivotal role in natural sleep. It is based on the balance and harmony of yin and yang, and the Five Elements. Essentially, feng shui is the philosophical and scientific belief that internal life energy, known as qi, is responsible for bringing oxygen and nutrients to different parts of the human body for health and wellness. Any blockage or stagnation of this flow of qi energy may create internal stress and thus lead to insomnia.
Apply the following principles of feng shui to your sleep environment to enhance your natural sleep:
- Your bedroom should be a square or a rectangle in shape to enable the free flow of qi.
- A bedroom too cluttered with objects or furniture does not contribute to an optimum environment for natural sleep. If you sit on your bed and look around, you would be able to decide if there are items that have no place in the bedroom, such as a computer work station.
- According to good feng shui, you bed should be raised, that is, it should not be lying flat on the floor, in order to encourage the free flow of qi energy.
- Your bed should be strategically placed in the bedroom. Do not place your bed between windows and doors, or between two doors, where energy may directly disrupt your natural sleep. Also, try not to place your bed in a spot of direct sunlight: the energy of the sun does not conduce to natural sleep.
- Avoid hanging mirrors on the walls. If you do need a mirror in the bedroom, do not place it directly opposite the bed. The reason is that you do not want the mirror to reflect the qi energy back to you while you sleep.
The optimum sleep environment
- Adjust your bedroom temperature because your body temperature changes according to your biological clock, which makes you want to sleep. Your body temperature rises in the early evening, and gradually cools down throughout the night until around 4 o'clock in the morning. Accordingly, the temperature of the bedroom and that of your bed must be optimum to induce natural sleep: that is, a temperature in the range of 62º F (16º C) and 71º F (24º C); anything above or below that temperature range may cause restlessness that prevents natural sleep.
- Adjust the humidity of your sleep environment. A too-dry sleep environment may cause bronchial passages, leading to constant coughing, which interrupts deep sleep. To prevent dryness, place a bowl of water to humidify the bedroom environment, especially in winter with the heat on. On the other hand, a too-humid bedroom causes dampness, which may raise your stress hormone levels. To avoid dampness, you may want to have your bed linen made from natural fabrics to help absorb any perspiration as well as to allow your skin to breathe more freely.
- Insulate your bedroom from harsh background noise, such as the sound and vibration of heavy traffic, may disturb and interfere with your sleep. The quality of sounds affects the quality of your sleep, and hence gentle sounds of water may make you fall asleep fast.
- Pay attention to the intensity and color of light in your sleep environment. If you are accustomed to or have acquired the habit of sleeping in a dark environment, then the intensity of light is critical to obtaining good sleep. Colors are also important to natural sleep. For example, blue and green colors are generally more relaxing, and thus more sleep promoting than red and yellow colors. Therefore, the use of drapes or shades, and bedroom decor can help you sleep better.
Changing behavior
Eating increases your metabolic rate as well as your body temperature, which prevent natural sleep. A heavy meal causes your brain to divert energy from your muscles to work with your digestive system. This may disrupt your brain activities, and thus preventing you from sleeping well. Stop eating at least three hours before going to bed.
The types of food you consume during the day may also adversely affect your sleep. Cheese, for example, is said to give nightmares because it contains tyramine, an ingredient in cheese that can elevate blood pressure. MSG (monosodium glutamate), a taste enhancer in most restaurant cuisines, may cause digestive upsets, heartburn, and headaches, which often interrupt natural sleep. Yellow tartrazine (E-102), often added to fizzy drinks, candies, and cookies, may increase hyper-activity that may prevent you from falling asleep fast. In short, foods that damage your health may also impair your sleep health.
Many seniors have erroneously believe that if they drink too much, they need to frequent the bathroom more often, and thus may affect their sleep patterns. However, dehydration may affect the brain, and hence the ability to sleep well at night. To improve sleep health, drink at least two liters of water a day, and drink it early in the morning so as to avoid bathroom trips at night.
To sleep well, avoid smoking or drinking an alcoholic "nightcap." Nicotine may relax your body and mind, and make you fall asleep faster. However, once the nicotine is metabolized, it will wake you up in the middle of the night. Research studies at the University of Pennsylvania indicated that smokers took twice as long to fall asleep as non-smokers. Quite smoking to benefit both physical and sleep health.
Physical activities, which expand the natural range of movements, may help you sleep well. If your body remains too long in any one position, tension builds up in you muscles, and physical stress causes restlessness that prevents you to sleep well. Do pre-sleep stretch exercise to relax muscles and to relieve anxiety to make you sleep well. But avoid any vigorous workout at least two hours before bedtime.
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Meditation for total body relaxation
Meditation is a proven alternative mind-body therapy. Use simple meditation techniques as your mind-body medicine for total relaxation of the body and the mind by lowering blood pressure, improving exercise performance (if you have angina), enhancing breathing (if you have asthma), promoting natural sleep, and relieving stress. In short, meditate to relax.
Learn the Secret of Meditation from Alan Lee. It is simpler and more effective than Reiki. Relax your mind and body totally with only 10 minutes a day. It comes with 2 bonus books.
Stephen Lau
Copyright© by Stephen Lau