Healthy relationships

Healthy relationships. Exercising with a partner can be beneficial for a relationship, whether it's with a spouse, a sibling, or a friend. Exercise is always more fun when there's someone to do it with. People who have exercise partners tend to stay with their programs and reach their goals more often than those who try to go it alone.
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Gossip

Gossip. Researchers believe that a little bit of gossip is healthy, according to a published article on MSNBC. Psychology professor Frank McAndrew says people feel pleasure when they share gossip because it helps build and cement connections with others. In addition, gossip can be the tool people use to enforce unwritten societal laws and morals. McAndrew believes gossiping is a social skill, not a character flaw.
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The state of overweight

The state of overweight. Two in every three adults in the United States are considered overweight, that's nearly 125 million people, not counting overweight children. One in three adults is obese and nine million are severely obese. Obesity is responsible for as many as 300,000 deaths annually. The cost of health-care related to obesity runs at about $100 billion per year.
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Women's Health

Women's Health. Women's Health magazine is for women who want to be happier and stronger and reach a healthy, attractive weight through exercising and eating well. The magazine's mantra for women's health is "what you can do right now to improve your life." Learn more about Women's Health magazine at WomensHealthmag.com.
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How much weight

How much weight. How much weight should you lift during a weight lifting exercise? For those lifting for overall fitness and health, the general rule is to do a weight exercise for 10 to 12 repetitions. While lifting, the final repetition should be relatively difficult to complete. If completing 10 repetitions is too difficult, reduce the weight. If completing 12 repetitions is too easy increase the weight.
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The Vitamin and Nutrition Center

The Vitamin and Nutrition Center. The Vitamin and Nutrition Center at vitamins-nutrition.org is a handy guide to major vitamins, minerals, and food supplements, including Ginkgo biloba, Omega-3 Fatty Acids, Iron, Magnesium, and Vitamins B, C, D, and E.
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Swimming

Swimming. Swimming is good for increasing lung capacity, toning muscles and for stress relief. However, it is not the most efficient physical activity for losing weight. Because your body partially floats in the water, you do not work as hard in comparison to other activities, such as running or aerobic exercise.
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Back leg curls

Back leg curls. This exercise works the abs, back, buttocks, hips and quads. Start by getting on your hands and knees. Hold your head down, move your right knee forward toward your head, hold for two seconds. Move your right knee back then extend your right leg straight behind your body, hold for two seconds and return to the floor. Repeat for the left leg to complete one repetition of this exercise.
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Pendulum crunches

Pendulum crunches. This exercise works abdominal muscles, hip joints, and lower back. Start by lying flat on a mat. Stretch your arms to your side and raise your legs straight up. Keeping your torso firm, roll your legs to the left, hold for two seconds and return to center. Roll your legs to the right, hold for two seconds and return to center. Repeat to your desired set count.
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Trans fats

Trans fats. Trans fats are linked to at least 30,000 premature deaths a year. Trans fat is created when liquid oils solidify by partial hydrogenation, a process that is used to preserve food shelf life. Trans fats are concentrated in margarine, vegetable shortening, doughnuts, crackers, cookies, chips, cakes, pies, breads and fried foods.
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Heart rate

Heart rate. Exercising at around 70% to 75% of your maximum heart rate is the general recommendation for fitness gains, weight loss and anaerobic fitness. The rule of thumb for determining your heart rate is the equation 220 less your age. For example, at age 35 your maximum heart rate is 185 beats per minute. Take your pulse at the neck or wrist to measure your heart rate.
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Effective habits of weight loss

Effective habits of weight loss. The following are four commonly documented habits of those who have lost at least thirty pounds and kept off the weight. They read food labels and actively monitor the number of calories taken in; limit the fat in their diet; exercise at least one hour a day; and record and monitor weight at least once a week.
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Bananas

Bananas. The banana is the number one fruit among the world's leading athletes. Research has shown that two bananas, containing three natural sugars combined with fiber, provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout. In addition to energy, bananas have been shown to have a positive affects on depression, PMS, anemia, blood pressure, ulcers, stress and strokes.
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Sports medicine

Sports medicine. The earliest practice of sports medicine has its roots in ancient Greece and Rome. Sports medicine involves health care professionals, researchers and educators in curative, rehabilitative and preventive care for athletes. The recognized profession of sports medicine was formalized during the 1928 Olympics in St. Moritz, Switzerland.
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Wellness law

Wellness law. Several federal and state laws took effect in July 2006 that were designed to curb childhood obesity, promote healthy foods, and encourage exercise. The laws require school boards to adopt wellness policies as part of the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004. Any school that receives federal funds to provide free or reduced-cost lunches must adopt a wellness policy.
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Chakra healing

Chakra healing. According to Eastern philosophy, a chakra is a center of activity in our body that receives, assimilates, and expresses life force energy. Chakras are in the center of the body, starting at the base of the spine and running up to the top of the head. Charka healing involves the placement of gemstones on chakras, either on a single chakra or placement on all chakras.
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Fitness

Fitness. According to the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, "fitness" is defined as: the ability to perform daily tasks vigorously and alertly, with energy left over for enjoying leisure activities and meeting emergency demands. It is the ability to endure and withstand stress and is a major basis for good health and well-being.
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Low calorie

Low calorie. Many food products are marketed and sold as “low calorie.” The Food and Drug Administration defines the term "low calorie" as a food serving with less than forty calories per serving.
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BOSU

BOSU. The BOSU (BOth Sides Up) ball was invented in 1999 by David Weck. The BOSU is an inflated rubber hemisphere attached to a rigid platform. It has become a popular accessory for aerobic classes, physical exercise and for balance training. The BOSU works a variety of body muscles as you try to maintain your center of gravity over a surface that is constantly changing.
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Healthy women

Healthy women. The health and fitness editors at Good Housekeeping magazine rate the following websites as the best resources for healthy women. The sites are: the National Women's Health Resource Center at healthywomen.org and the federal government's National Women's Health Information Center at 4women.gov.
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Healthy eating

Healthy eating. The editors and CookingLight.com suggest taking time to savor your meals by eating slower and more deliberately. Divide your meals into courses with ten minute intervals. Start with a salad course, then fruit, entrée and then dessert. Take time to savor the scent, texture, and flavor of food.
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Compound training

Compound training. Compound training addresses rapid growth and gains in strength. This method calls for doing the same exercises with the same muscle with minimal rest between sets. These “giant sets” are done in succession in order to keep your heart rate up throughout the workout. Normal compound training sessions are designed to last about twenty minutes.
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Mesomorphic

Mesomorphic. Mesomorphic refers to one of three body type classes defined according to different digestive, muscular, and tissue types. Those classified as Mesomorphic are naturally muscular, have a trim waist and can easily lose and gain fat and muscle weight. The other two classes are ecotomorphic and endomorphic.
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Five

Five. Celebrity trainer Harley Pasternak's best-selling diet book is all about five. “The 5 Factor Diet” recommends a series of “fives” to improve diets and lose weight. Among the recommended fives, Pasternak suggests five small meals a day, five workouts a week and a list of five basic foods.
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Calcium

Calcium. Calcium is the most abundant, essential mineral in the human body. It is essential for bone and teeth formation as well as for blood clotting and muscle contraction. Your body does not make calcium thus making dietary intake from sources such as dairy foods, sardines, salmon and leafy vegetables very important.
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Annual check up

Annual check up. Regular annual check-ups are a key to good health. Doctors can inform you about preventive measures and detect life-threatening diseases or conditions. The earlier you and your doctor know about diseases like breast, prostate or colon cancer, the better your chances are for recovery. In addition, doctors can outline an eating and exercise regime that is most beneficial to you.
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Interval workouts

Interval workouts. Interval workouts may yield faster rates of weight-loss and fitness than traditional workout methods. The interval technique works by inserting eight, thirty-second, high-intensity segments every three to four minutes during your normal run, swim, bike-ride, or power walk session.
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Bad cholesterol

Bad cholesterol. Low-Density Lipoprotein (LDL) is considered “bad” cholesterol. These proteins are produced by the liver and can accumulate in the walls of arteries reducing blood flow to the heart and brain. An LDL level of less 100 is optimal. LDL over 160 is considered high.
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Back pain

Back pain costs. A recent study by Duke University estimated that back pain treatment represents about 2.6% of the total health care costs in the United States. This equates to nearly $26 billion annually. Nearly ten percent of all back pain patients suffer from chronic back pain.
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Fruits and vegetables for July

July. Freshly picked fruits and vegetables provide more nutrients and more flavor than canned or stored fruits and vegetables, and usually cost less as well. Try adding one or more of the following fruits or vegetables that are ripe and at their natural peak during the month of July: blueberries, cherries, green beans, nectarines, peaches, red onions, summer squash and watermelon.
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