Stay Positive Through the Winter Blues

Short days, cloudy skies and inclement weather add to the gloom that often comes with the winter season. This mood of gloom often peaks right after the holiday season is over. The celebrations, blinking lights, parties and fireworks are over yet the days are still short and the air cold. You're feeling low and there may be a good reason for it.

Extended periods of low light and darkness have a direct effect on your hormones. Specifically, your body generates serotonin in response to exposure to daylight. In the absence of daylight, serotonin will be lower in your body. Serotonin plays a role in regulating your moods, your attitudes in general and it may also influence how hungry you feel. This can lead you to snacking, which may only sink you lower if the snacks are loaded with sugar or starch.

For many people, the feelings of sadness and depression in winter are symptoms of seasonal affective disorder, or SAD. Sleep may be disrupted by low levels of serotonin, as the body needs it to help produce melatonin which helps you to sleep. Other general symptoms include excessive napping, irritability, panic attacks and obsessing over things that seem trivial to others. Without assistance, most people find their symptoms abating when spring arrives, around April or May depending on where you live. The days are longer and warmer and serotonin levels and outside activities begin to regulate your body in a happier cycle.

Activities that help to boost your serotonin levels can go a long way to prevent SAD from affecting you during the winter. A variety of SAD lamps, or blue light lamps or sunlight lamps that emit daylight spectrum light have been shown to boost serotonin temporarily and enhance the mood. Twenty to thirty minutes a day in front of one of these lights and you should notice a difference quickly. Exercise is a great way to regulate your hormones and improve your overall health and fitness, which naturally leads to higher self-esteem and a positive outlook. Even a twenty-minute walk each day can make a big difference.

Avoid high carbohydrate sweets and starches as much as possible, including pasta, rice and bread. These foods spike your insulin levels which leads to further drowsiness and that only adds to your low feelings. Instead, choose nutrient-rich vegetables and proteins with every meal. These foods help to boost your metabolism and help to keep your hormones in balance. If you face a long gap between lunch and dinnertime, eat a few nuts such as walnuts or almonds. These nutrient powerhouses will keep you balanced and ward off the hunger pangs that tempt you in the wrong direction. Add Omega-3 oil to your diet as it also makes a direct contribution to enhancing your mood.

Go to as many open houses, social meetings and group gatherings that you can. Go walking with a friend. Connecting with other people keeps you socially engaged and outwardly focused. If you made a New Year's resolution, now is the time to put it into action. Aside from the health benefits of exercise, a regular routine or project with specific milestones is likely to lift you out of the doldrums. Celebrate every small accomplishment and before you know it, spring will arrive and you'll wonder what all the fuss was about.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Stay-Positive-Through-the-Winter-Blues&id=9588021

Lost Interest In Sex? Can't Lose Weight? It Could Be This

Testosterone levels are something we don't think about a lot, but they could have a major effect on your health. As a nutrition and fitness coach, I always keep this in mind when reviewing a client's diet.

Here’s the bad news, guys: Studies have found that testosterone (T) levels decrease about 1 percent every year after age 30, and low T affects 20 to 40 percent of older men.

Women, you aren’t off the hook. Researchers found that lower T levels contribute to depression, osteoporosis, declining libido, and an increase in total body fat mass.

So it should be no surprise that one study found that restoring your T levels to a more normal range could have a wide range of benefits such as improving your sex drive (libido), sexual function, and mood, while also reducing fat body mass and increasing lean body mass. It could also improve your bone-mineral density.

Talk with your doctor if you struggle with low libido, weight-loss resistance, mood swings, and other symptoms that signal low T levels. While some people opt for testosterone replacement therapy if their blood work reveals low levels of testosterone, the good news is that a few simple strategies can help normalize T levels.

Hormones can have a domino effect. When one gets out of balance, others follow. I’m not opposed to hormonal replacement therapy, but you have the power to reset your T levels yourself with these five strategies:

1. Go low-sugar impact.

Sugar keeps your hormone insulin ramped up, storing belly fat, lowering muscle mass, and crashing T levels. Belly fat elevates estrogen levels in men, and low libido and erectile dysfunction often result. One study found that glucose (sugar) significantly reduced total and free testosterone levels in men.Dumping the sweet stuff (including sneaky sugars) could help hit your T-reset button.

2. Get optimal nutrient levels.

One study found that higher zinc levels mean normal T levels. Another found magnesium supplementation increases free and total testosterone values in sedentary men and athletes. Look for these and other nutrients in a professional-quality multivitamin.

3. Burst to raise T.

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) gives you a killer workout in just minutes a day, but the most efficient, effective exercise on the planet can also help to normalize testosterone. One study found that for middle-age men, supplementing with dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) combined with burst training could raise free testosterone levels.

4. Sleep well.

Ever noticed you’re not really feeling frisky when you’re tired and jittery, coasting on your third dark roast? Among its other detrimental effects, studies find sleep-loss reduces testosterone levels in men. Aim for seven to nine hours of quality, uninterrupted sleep every night.

5. Reduce stress.

Chronic stress levels can crash and burn T levels, sinking your libido in the bargain. Among other problems, one study associated increased job stress with decreased T levels in men. Whether you choose massage, yoga,meditation, or deep breathing, find something that helps you de-stress, and prioritize it.

If you’ve struggled with low libido or other low-T signals, did you opt for testosterone replacement therapy? What strategy would you add here to normalize testosterone levels? Share yours below.

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-22089/lost-interest-in-sex-cant-lose-weight-it-could-be-this.html

7 Habits That Force Your Mind to Stop Worrying

We all worry, but it can get hamper productivity and your mood if it goes on for too long. Here are seven ways to force yourself to stop worrying.

Worrying can get the better of almost anybody. Work stresses, personal concerns, and sometimes even irrational thoughts can seep into your mind and interfere with your ability to concentrate on ordinary tasks. Unfortunately, stopping those worries isn't easy--there's no "off switch" that can shut your worried thoughts down. However, there are a handful of habits that, once integrated into your life, can force your worries to leave and free up your mind to focus on more positive, productive things.

If you find yourself excessively worried, try one or more of these habits to relieve yourself.

1. Establish a designated "worry time."

You know you're going to worry about something most days, so instead of letting the worries control your thoughts, set aside time so you can control your worries. Establish a period of time during your day--like between 3:00 and 3:30--that you allow yourself to worry. Some research from Penn State University suggests that setting aside a period like this can help you defer your worries to a later period, freeing up your plagued mind for more productive activity in the present moment. Additionally, you can use that worry time as productively as possible by working to find solutions for your problems, rather than just focusing on the problems themselves.

2. Compile your worries in a list.

Most people encounter worries in groups; instead of just one problem coming across your mind, a dozen separate or related problematic thoughts start nagging at you. When this happens, try writing them down in a list (and don't just list them in your head, either--you'll see why in a moment). This helps reduce your worried thoughts in two ways. First, it forces you to confront and catalog your worries, oftentimes rationalizing them or grouping them so that your six small worries really only boil down to two core ones. Second, it gives you a visualized list of items you're worried about. They'll seem smaller on a sheet of paper, and you'll feel better about whatever it is you're facing.

3. Busy yourself.

This may seem like an obvious bit of advice, but forcing yourself to work on something while you're worried really can make your worried thoughts go away. The key here is to occupy your hands or your mind--preferably both--in some task that requires a level of focus. For example, you could busy yourself with a task you don't mind doing that requires your concentration, or pull up a mobile game on your phone and lose yourself in it. With the right task, you'll surrender your mind in a matter of moments, and your worries will slip away.

4. Talk to someone about something else.

In a similar strategy of distraction, occupy yourself by talking to someone else nearby--it can be anybody, as long as the topic is something other than your worries. Doing so engages the language and emotional components of your brain, forcing you to invest in the conversation rather than the internal conversation that's causing your worries. As long as you can keep this up and keep it interesting for a few minutes, your attention will likely shift to the topic of conversation (and away from your worries).

5. Meditate.

For meditation to be effective, you have to practice it during moments of calm. Whenever you aren't worried or distracted, find a few minutes to clear your mind. Don't think of anything, and if you find a thought entering your head, calmly acknowledge it and let it go. This level of mindfulness is difficult to achieve, even under perfectly calm circumstances, but with practice, you'll be able to enter that meditation seamlessly. Once you've practiced enough, you'll be able to call on meditation in even the most stressful or worrying situations.

6. Physically exercise.

My guess is you're already well aware of the innumerable mental and physical benefits that exercise provides. It releases serotonin, a "happy" chemical, and reduces stress so you feel better throughout the day. In addition to and in combination with those effects, exercising regularly can decrease anxiety levels, so you literally find yourself worrying less. Exercising in the morning can lead you to fewer worries throughout the day, but if you do find yourself worrying, you can always sneak away for a quick walk or jog around the block to free your mind.

7. Disconnect from your phone and the internet.

Our limitless communications are a major source of worry and anxiety, whether you realize it or not. The constant beeping of incoming emails, calls, and text messages can whip your mind into a worried frenzy, and even innocuous activities like checking your Facebook feed can introduce you to negative news, querulous friends, and event reminders that equally worry you. Don't let these forms of communication interfere with your thoughts. Whenever you can afford to, disconnect entirely--that means turning off your phone and unplugging (or disconnecting from) the internet. You'll feel better afterward. I can almost guarantee it.

I call these "habits" for a reason; while some of them can work in random, one-off instances, the majority of them gain power when you use them regularly as an evasion tactic for worried thoughts. Don't be frustrated or disheartened if you're still affected by worries after using one--instead, try a different strategy and work to integrate both as institutions in your life for a healthier, freer mind.

http://www.inc.com/jayson-demers/7-habits-that-force-your-mind-to-stop-worrying.html

6 Ways Sex Is Good For Your Health

Talking about sex can be contentious, often encouraging people to express strong opinions, and even debate each other. It is just such a subjective topic, so most people have a specific set of feelings about sex one way or another.

For instance, some people believe that sex is one of the basic human requirements like food and sleep. Some recognize it as pleasure, not necessity, but still place a lot of importance on it in their lives. And others may think it's less important, seeing it for reproductive purposes — or perhaps they just have lower libidos. In any case, what cannot be disputed is this: science has shown that sex has numerous health benefits, and therefore can certainly enhance your life. Here's how ...

1. Sex lowers your risk of heart attack.

A recent study indicated that those who have less sexual activity are at increased risk of cardiovascular disease. By extension, the more often you have sex, the less likely it may be that you develop heart disease. So, perhaps increasing your sexual activity could just save your heart. Because sex also lowers your cortisol levels (e.g. one of the hormones that makes you stressed out!), it is also associated with stronger immune systems, better sleep and improved quality of life. In other words, sex may just heal your heart.

2. Sex may reduce pain.

Science has shown that when women orgasm, the body produces an analgesic effect, thereby reducing pain. One study tested women who engaged in vaginal self-stimulation, while also placing painful compression upon their (free) finger. During this time, those women reported that their pain threshold was significantly increased, meaning that they were less impacted by the pain and more focused on the pleasure. So, before you pop an ibuprofen, perhaps try masturbation instead?

3. Sex lowers blood pressure.

Sexual activity actually lowers blood pressure. Research conducted in 2006 indicated that men and women who regularly had (heterosexual, penile-vaginal) intercourse displayed lower blood pressure, which also resulted in reduced stress.

Interestingly, unlike in #2, masturbation (or any other kind of sexual activity) had little or no effect on blood pressure, which indicates that intercourse specifically may be what directly impacts blood pressure.

4. Sex improves your mood.

Having sex, or even just cuddling, releases oxytocin and dopamine, which are both bonding and feel-good hormones. These hormones are also associated with improved mood and increased happiness. It can be difficult to imagine even having sex when your mood is low or you are feeling flat, but having an orgasm can make a big difference to how you feel.

5. Sex strengthens your immune system.

Having frequent sex strengthens the immune system to protect the body against disease. A study conducted in 1999 on college students measured immune system functioning in correlation with sexual activity. The study found that those who reported to have frequent (once or twice per week) sexual activity showed higher concentrations of immunoglobulin, which is one the commonest antibodies which protect against infection and disease.

6. Sex helps you sleep.

Numerous studies have shown that sexual activity and intercourse promotes the release of the hormone prolactin. Prolactin is not only responsible for the feeling of satisfaction but is also higher during sleep. This means that having an orgasm or sex can increase your likelihood of falling asleep, and possibly relieve you of those sleepless nights. Next time you find yourself lying awake at night, perhaps a little coitus could ease you back into dreamland.

If healthy living is high on your list of priorities, then including sex could be as beneficial as diet, exercise and sleep. Including sex into your health regime is likely to show many changes in your health and general well-being, so my advice to you would be to get it on!

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-15858/6-ways-sex-is-good-for-your-health.html