Simpleology Blog

Many people bemoan the fact that they never have time to exercise. But they should ditch their all-or-nothing stance and find ways to sneak in some time for fitness. Experts recommend the following tactics:

1. Engage in quickies. Studies show that people people who consistently exercise in quick spurts reap the same benefits as those who undergo moderate 40- to 60-minute workout sessions. So, walk around your house quickly as you check each corner for clutter.

2. Maximize your breaks. During your breaks, take time to go up and down the stairs or to walk to the grocery store around the corner to buy a healthy snack. This way, you will also boost your energy.

3. Stretch it out. At work, you can do stretching exercises every hour. Though you may not burn that many calories, you'll improve your circulation and mobility. It's a good way to prevent muscle stiffness.

Remember that if you can always spare a few minutes of your day to do moves that will help you get fit. You just have to commit to making time for it--no matter how busy you may get.

Suggested Resource: Energize yourself the right way by signing up for Simpleology 103: The Simple Science of Personal Energy.

Posted by Grace Cook at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Did you know that by getting fit you could save the world and save money at the same time? You see, if you're fit, you can help lessen pollution as well as save money on gas.

In 2007, a University of Illinois study found that "cars on US roads must burn nearly one billion additional gallons of gas per year because of overweight drivers and passengers." With federal data on gas consumption and weigh gain from 1960 to 2002, computer science professor Sheldon Jacobson and his colleague Laura McLay used a mathematical model to determine the correlation between the two factors.

Jacobson and McLay pointed out that the average American's weight increased by more than 24 pounds over the time period covered by their data. According to them, this means that we use up "at least 938 million more gallons [of gas] than we did in 1960."

Then again, while lowering your gas consumption and lessening pollutant while you're at it are indeed an added incentives of getting fit, you should keep in mind that keeping yourself healthy should already be enough to motivate you.

Credits: Photo by Petr Kratochvil, courtesy of Public Domain Pictures.

Suggested Resource: Check out Simpleology 103: The Simple Science of Personal Energy and find out how you can start getting fit for life. You won't just save money on gas. You'll save money on medical bills that are sure to plague you if you aren't as healthy as you can be.

Posted by Bean Jones at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Junk food is all the rage among kids these days and it's hard to convince them that chips aren't really healthy. I find myself constantly restraining my son from dumping bags of chips into the shopping cart.

Late Developments
Then again, it's not just kids who need to be reminded that junk food is bad for them. Many grown-ups turn to junk food when they're pressed for time or stressed out. Some of them just can't seem to kick the junk food habit. My friend Chelsea will give me grief for this, but just like many self-confessed junk food junkies, her battle cry is, "It's too late for me to quit it, Grace."

But, oh, it's never too late to start living healthy. And I'm not just saying that.

Golden Years
Last year, the Archives of Internal Medicine reported that scientists from Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital conducted a groundbreaking longevity study. It proved that health and longevity is at the most only 30 percent genetically influenced and that lifestyle factors determine the quality of your life.

The researchers arrived at this conclusion after keeping a close watch on 2,357 male doctors whose average age was 72 when they joined the study between 1981 and 1984. The very capable subjects provided data on their health which included high blood pressure and exercise habits, and completed regular questionnaires each year until 2006.

As it turns out, some 970 of the doctors who served as research subjects--who became extra careful about their health--lived to 90 or longer. They were those who exercised two to four times per week, did not smoke, maintained normal body weight and blood pressure.

No Excuses
If anything, the study proves that it really is never too late to start making healthy choices in all aspects of your life.

The health slip-ups that you make when you're younger don't have to be with you for the rest of your life--especially if you want to be productive well into your 90s. The only thing that would stop you would be if you tell yourself that you've already run out of time to live well.

Hey, people in their 70s managed to do it.

Credits: Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Suggested Resource: Live healthy right now. Sign up for Simpleology 103: The Simple Science of Personal Energy.

Posted by Grace Cook at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

With energy drinks and workout candies on the store shelves, we often forget that we can easily maximize our workouts even without them. Here are some of the energy-boosting munchies that I picked:

1. Fiber is your friend. According to a study highlighted in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, fiber fires up your endurance. Tests conducted on runners showed that those who upped their fiber intake lasted seven minutes longer on the track and also burned more fat. So, eat a high-fiber meal--such as a bowl of oatmeal and a piece of fruit--three hours before a workout and you'll most likely have one heck of a great session.

2. Pepper up. In her article, "Foods That Boost Energy," Kelly Bastone points out: "Just one red bell pepper provides 380 percent of the recommended daily value of vitamin C, a nutrient crucial for repairing connective tissues and cartilage." As such, find a way to work some red bell pepper into your menu so your body can cope with and recover from your workouts much faster.

3. Yogurt is the way to go. "Another high energy snack that's filling as well as energy boosting is yogurt," writes Rena Sherwood in her article, "Quick Energy Boost Foods." She explains, "It contains the amino acid tyrosine, which helps not only make you less tired but makes you feel happier. The body loves tyrosine and quickly converts it to dopamine and adrenaline." Thus, a cup of yogurt would surely jumpstart your workouts.

Remember that food is the fuel that you put into your body. Just like a car, you will only be able to optimize your performance if your body is running on the right kind of fuel.

Credits: Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Suggested Resource: Get energized the natural way! Check out Simpleology 103: The Simple Science of Personal Energy and learn how you can give your body the best fuel possible.

Posted by Bean Jones at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBacks (0)

Willpower can be a tricky thing--especially when you're just starting to get rid of your bad eating habits and learning how to stay consistent with an exercise routine.

Indeed, people who are trying to lose weight get bogged down when they give in to the need to snack. Alas, one or two bites lead to many more and they keep going. Before they know it, they're right smack in the middle of a pig out that could throw them off the fitness track.

Brian Wansink, author of Mindless Eating, knows how challenging it can be to stick to a fitness plan. As such, he offers his advice on how you can avoid pigging out:

1. Magnify your meals. Don't go for big servings. Instead make your small servings look big. Wansink points out: "In one study, people felt just as full after eating a quarter-pound burger if it was stuffed with lettuce, tomato, and onion as they did from a plain half-pound burger." So, make your burger a fish or turkey variation, hold the mayonnaise, and don't mash it down.

2. Step up to the plate. "When people put their food on a plate, they eat about 14 percent less than if they take small portions and go back for seconds or thirds," says Wansink.

3. Take it tall and thin. The beverages to drink can contribute to your weight gain if you don't watch it. Wansink's research shows that people pour 19 percent more juice or soda when they're given a short, wide glass than when they have a tall, thin glass.

These are just some tips to keep you from falling off the fitness wagon, so to speak. Ultimately, you have to figure out how you can strengthen your resolve to get over your cravings for the wrong kinds of food.

Credits: Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Suggested Resource: Sign up for Simpleology 103: The Simple Science of Personal Energy and take pointers on what sort of food you should be snacking on if you want to get fit.

Posted by Bean Jones at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (10) | TrackBacks (0)

For many of us, it's a struggle to stay on the fitness track. This is mostly because we often have a skewed perspective of our eating habits. There are things that we do that make it harder for us to shed off unwanted pounds.

Thus, I've compiled three common diet saboteurs that we always encounter:

1. Pass on the soda. According to researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, for every can of soda that you drink daily, your risk of gaining weight rises by as much as 37 percent. You also have to take it easy on diet sodas because they contain artificial sweeteners, which may mess up the body's ability to keep track of the calories you've consumed.

2. Dine out less. Rachel Brandeis, a registered dietitian, reveals: "Restaurant meals usually have about 50 percent more calories, fat, and sodium [than the dishes] prepared at home." This is because even seemingly healthy choices such as fish are likely to be cooked with the liberal use of oil or butter.

3. Go small. Researchers at the Cornell University Food and Brand Lab in Ithaca, New York discovered that when people have smaller dishes, they serve themselves smaller portions. This way you can easily keep track of the amount of food you consume.

It goes to show that if we're serious about getting fit, we have to spot the habits that would easily derail us from our goal of shedding the pounds that weigh us down. We have to make changes that would help us eat healthy.

Credits: Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Suggested Resource: The first step towards total fitness starts with the right information. Check out Simpleology 103: The Simple Science of Personal Energy and use its principles to help you achieve your goal.

Posted by Grace Cook at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Detox Device. You can watch a soothing video clip such as this one to keep yourself motivated to get fit.

With so many so-called diet gurus telling us what we should do to lose unwanted fat, things can get confusing. For while one self-proclaimed experts says that carbohydrates are the enemy, there are others who say that it isn't. The thing is, they all sound equally convincing. People often have to do their own intensive research to find out who's right or wrong.

But while scientific data may uncover more information that will either reinforce or dispel some of the information we already have. Simpleology user Kelly Stein, who signed up for Simpleology 103: The Simple Science of Personal Energy, shares her epiphany: "Simpleology 103 lists down common sources of distress. One of the sources of distress is 'mental poison.' I realized that I had faile din all my other attempts to get fit in the past because I didn't start out with the right mindset. No matter what sort of program it was, I had set myself up for failure because I wasn't mentally prepared to tackle both the physical and emotional obstacles on my plate."

Here's what Kelly realized when she became conscious of the presence of mental poison:

1. You have to deal with negativity from others. "There will always be people around you who will say that they think you won't be able to get fit," says Kelly. "They may be insensitive to your struggle or they may not realize that they are being negative. Either way, you have to get away from these types of people so you can focus on your goal to get fit. If you keep hanging out with them or being around them while you're still finding your footing, then it's likely that you won't get anywhere."

2. You have to get rid of your baggage. Kelly explains: "You also have to take responsibility for the the fact that you may be holding back your own progress. This is when you cling to your past failures and mistakes. You have to let go of your hatred and anger so you can start being proactive,"

3. You should be patient. "Don't think that things will happen overnight," states Kelly. "Mental poison usually sets in when you're operating under a delusion that things should happen right away. You must accept the fact that you have to work hard to achieve results."

Overall, Kelly says that the great thing about Simpleology 103 is that it gives "scientific advice in tandem with practical ones." "The course didn't overwhelm me with flashy data or bogus promises of drastic weight loss. I appreciated the fact that it empowered me and put me on the road to positivity."

Tired of being tired all the time? Get on the road to fitness with Simpleology 103: The Simple Science of Personal Energy.

Posted by Grace Cook at 12:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)