***** Positive Thinking, Happy Living

What is one of the hardest parts about following a restrictive diet? I've found most people struggle to follow the diet totally and usually end up feeling as if they've failed.

I believe that it's not you who've failed; it's the diet that's failed you. Most diets have too many rules. First, it makes it difficult for you to put all the rules into practice from day one. Second, most of us, as normal human beings, don't want to be held down by rules, so we start to feel rebellious.

Just the other day, someone asked me what I thought was the #1 "Most Important Factor" in determining how fit you became.

They wanted to know if it was Cardio, Weight Training, or Proper Nutrition.

I think my answer may have puzzled him a bit because I said it was none of those.

After I thought about the question for a few minutes, I told him that there was a more important factor that preceded any of those he mentioned.

I told him it was your attitude that determined your fitness levels and what type of conditioning you'll achieve.

I answer many e-mails from confused, albeit enthusiastic readers, on how to trim or firm a specific part of the body. Everybody wants those flat abs, tight thighs, and sexy shoulders, but unfortunately, most are terribly misinformed on how to go about getting them.

Believe it or not, losing a little or a lot of fat involves pretty much the same concept - consistent dieting coupled with cardiovascular exercise and weight training. This is how the professionals do it, and it works. Many of you may be hesitant to start a weight training program, but the benefits far outweigh any reservations you may have. Weight training enhances your fat loss by increasing your muscle mass and more muscle means more calories burned (faster metabolism).

What causes you to eat when you’re not feeling hungry? Perhaps you feel tired? Although there are many other causes, this is the one we’ll look at today. It’s a busy time of year and most of us undoubtedly have lots to do. Running around trying to get everything done can often leave us feeling tired or even exhausted. The thought of eating healthily often gets pushed to the back of our minds, because we need to fix a meal which is quick, convenient and fits in with everything else.

Many diets make you lose water weight! It's a dirty secret that the weight loss industry would rather keep under wraps. You've seen it thousands of times - a brand new weight loss product comes on the market promising to help you lose huge amounts of weight in a very short period of time. They then show you glowing testimonials of people who were able to achieve those miraculous results.

What they will often leave out is that those people in the testimonials and the weight that you would lose with the product is not fat!

"Why Does It Matter? I Just Want to Weigh Less..."

As I write this article, 65% of American men and 62% of American women are overweight. 22% of our children are overweight and 0% of them are obese. All of this despite the fact that Americans spend an average $40 billion a year on diet and weight loss related products! For $40 billion a year, you would think that we would be getting better results than we obviously are.

I believe that the average American is confused about how to lose weight, get themselves in good shape and protect themselves from

Balance in all things is critical to maintaining health, not only physical health, but emotional and spiritual health as well. In the hectic drive of today's world, many women forget to take care of their most important asset, themselves. In an effort to help woman of all ages learn to take care of and nurture themselves, here are 6 easy ideas you can use to bring balance and harmony into your life.

Eat Right

Eating right is another key toward having and maintaining health and balance in your life. As our society changes and the basis of life

Do you ever feel that every day that passes feels longer, you feel more tired and all you want to do is sleep? Your cure could just be something you surely try to avoid, I am talking about exercise. If your eyes almost popped out as you are reading this, don't be scared, exercise doesn't have to be so dreadful, on the contrary! The more you exercise, the healthier you become and it can even be fun.

When most people think of exercise, they envision working out to keep their bodies physically fit and healthy. But the brain – so important to living a full life -- also needs an ongoing exercise regimen to stay agile and alert as we grow older.

Scientists used to believe that people were basically stuck with the brain they were born with – and that individuals naturally began to lose cognitive function as they aged. This old thinking allowed people to accept memory loss as inevitable and believe that nothing could be done about it.