Health and Fitness Journal

Looking for a new directory with value, I am having a hard time. I love places that offer free links, but they end up just putting my URL with all the spam sites too. I feel like Google is going to penalize me for it. I have been searching webmaster forums and directory ranking sites and I have found a few strong directories. I like the new design of the Za7 Web Directory. Its fun and easy to navigate now. I also like the V7N directory with Webdirectory7 as a good site that needs more page rank.

How do you know where to find the best web services now? I think SEO consultants and web hosting sites need a place to be listed so a webmaster can just look in one place to find what they need when starting a site. Graphic designers also want to be included in this category so they can offer their services to the webmaster who is shopping.

I’ve always thought that having a dog would benefit me both fitness wise and health wise. On the fitness side of things, you can enjoy a brisk walk in the park, on the beach or even a little run around in the backyard playing fetch. On the health side, animals, be they dogs, cats or anything else provide a positive vibe when you’re feeling blue.

The pit fall however is the sheer cost of owning a pet. I’ve had my Golden Retriever for many years now and I tell you the vet bills are more expensive than a trip to the doctors. Luckily, I have pet insurance that covers about 50% of the costs. Without it I don’t think I would be able to afford a dog. Almost everyday I go for a power walk with Rocky and he absolutely loves to run around chasing the ball. This has seen me keep in shape and at the same time feel positive every morning after our run. I highly recommend a dog as a good fitness partner for those looking for one.

Have you ever taken part in some corporate games before? No? Neither have I but a few of the Boulder real estate companies have decided to form a baseball league whereby they play each other on the weekend for the pride and glory of being the best baseball league in Boulder. Personally, I am on the fence with this one. In my opinion I am all for corporate fun with your co-workers but the fact that it is held on the weekend for me is a little annoying. I mean aren’t we supposed to have a happy balance between work and family? If these events are being held over the weekend, when does that allow me to spend time with my family?

If I choose not to participate then I run the risk of not being a team player. On the other hand if I do participate I will enjoy the benefits of being fit and healthy again. It has been years since I did any physical exercise let alone play a sport for several hours. The more I think about it the more I am excited at the prospect of being in shape again. I guess my wife could always bring the children to watch and meet some of the other players wives. Hmm…yes I think I am going to give it a try.

When it comes to personal health and fitness one should always be open to trying out new things but should also be careful, especially within alternative medicine, of products or practices that are no more than quakery.  Stuff like homeopathy and aromatherapy are two examples of such alternative medicine still pending scientific proof on their behalf.  Although the soothing qualities of aromatherapy are rarely contested (its their curative qualites under suspicion) and if fact I am a fan of using scent as a part of ‘interior design’ in helping establish the mood of a certain room, and though oils are the materials in aromatherapy, sometimes I like to use flowers instead.  And it just so happens that where I live Clare Florist are the No.1 online florist for flower delivery throughout the UK with the perfect flowers to send, whatever the occasion.  Or non-occasion as it is often my case which is great because they due provide a convenient alternative to the local florist.  In any case I am getting off topic.  While stuff like aromatherapy probably doesn’t hold the key to medicine’s future, there are other better supported cases for alternative remedies.

We’ve been hearing about the health benefits of chocolate for some time now; articles usually found in the ‘weird news’ section of the newspaper or variety magazine.  But in those cases the advocates seem to be professional researchers (not even the most audacious con artists would dare try to spin chocolate as a health benefit!).  In most cases though, the news item is still not taken seriously so the reports often fail to mention details like a recommended daily intake or type of chocolate.  Preferably no milk in the chocolate is recommended and its gotta be as pure as possible; 75% or greater, and about 239 calories a day.  The taste of chocolate in such an unadulterated state may not be so delecatble at first but one can easly work her/his way up to 90% chocolate starting with the lower ones first.

Now I just need to get some chocolate scented oils for my next decoration project (this is a health blog, I know!) or perhaps even a cacao plant, although that may be hard to care for in this cool Glasgow weather, plus it’s more like a tree.  

Fitness is something that is completely undervalued in this country. I’m sorry, but as a mother of three children, I think I have the authority to say that it’s true. I’m now online, and I came across a healthy alternative at www.schoolsinstlouis.com to sending my kids to what I’ve come to think of as the “unhealthy norm” at schools here in Seattle.

Bernie, my youngest, can’t pull himself away from the Pepsis and Hostess chips available at the junk food vending machines placed on every floor of his junior high here. I placed several telephone calls to Mayor Nickels’ office regarding this issue, but so far I’ve received no response. I suppose he is more interested in filling potholes than tending to the health concerns of Seattle’s schoolchildren.

The Internet, thankfully, has once again come to my rescue. As a mom’s resource I don’t think one could have a better home helper. St. Louis looks like it offers a completely different attitude to health than what we have in Seattle. I’m planning on doing some thorough searches for quality schools, offering junk-free learning environments for my family.

My girlfriend Pamela and I had a serious heart-to-heart talk the other night. To my great relief she has decided to stay in Seattle with me instead of heading off to nursing school. Of course, while I was elated to hear she’d reached this decision, I also felt guilty because I didn’t want her to lose her dream. Then she told me she would be attending an online nursing school. Why hadn’t I thought of this solution?

The last year of our relationship was pretty rocky. I don’t think it was any one person’s fault. Maybe every couple goes through these stages. A big source of stress was both of us insiting on maintaining independence in our choice of career paths. The news that Pam is going to be to get her nursing degree and live with me is just too good to be true. I feel so much better about where things are heading with us.

In my case, I’m fairly centered in Seattle with my work. I’ve been working here locally in construction for a number of years and I’ve built up quite a large clientele base I’d be foolish to just up and abandon. When Pam and I used to discuss her nursing goals, I tried to cut the conversation short. I regret it, but it’s a fact. Now I’m hoping all that is behind us. I hope she heads to the top of her online class.

Have you heard about Bhutan? It is one of the most exotic, exciting tourist destinations on the world map right now. My wife Peg and I are in the process right this moment of planning our trip to Magic Mountain there. I can’t wait to reach the top of that majestic mountain, wearing my North Face jacket and aviator glasses. The pictures I’ve seen of the peak on the Internet are absolutely stunning.

If you are interested in planning a trip of your own to Bhutan, you’d better set aside some serious pre-planning time to ensure smooth sailing. Although recently Bhutan’s king decided to open up the secluded nation to visiting tourists, there’s still a substantial amount of red tape to cut through in getting your dream trip all ready and set. The Bhutanese are friendly, but still have yet to shed years of cautiousness in dealing with foreigners.

Package tours seem to still be the norm, and Bhutanese guides pretty much run the show regarding what you get to see and when. You can, of course, make special requests for particular sites to see, such as Magic Mountain, or the Presidential Palace, but you’d be wise to get these details squared away well in advance to avoid disappointment.

I was leafing through the stacks of complimentary magazines in Dr. Jameson’s waiting room filled with digital camera reviews, famous movie star gossip, and the obligatory medical advertising, when I came upon a fascinating article about kung fu. I surprised myself by reading the entire piece; usually I’m not much of a reader. The words make me sleepy.

The author was former punk rock singer Lou Reed. I had heard my son mention him once in conversation but I really had no idea who Mr. Reed was. As it turned out, after years of dabbling in aggressive music and self-destructive activity which included drug and alcohol abuse, Mr. Reed began studying the ancient Chinese art of kung fu. I read on.

Mr. Reed originally became attracted to kung fu (or gong fu, as the Chinese pronounce it), after seriously injuring himself by failing to properly execute a back flip during a guest performance with the Las Vegas production of the Beatles’ smash musical “Love.” The musical is performed by the highly-versatile Montreal circus troupe Cirque du Soliel.

“I’m not a circus performer; I should have known better,” Mr. Reed said of his experience. But after months of training in stretching with kung fu master Ju Gongin, twelve-time World Kung-fu Grand Champion, Reed was able not only to perform classic back flips, but had risen to the coveted level of “Burgeoning Lotus”. Such persons are said to possess mild mind-reading power.

Since I’ve had my own troubles bending and stretching, I decided to give kung fu a look. If I can fly through the air while aiming a kick at my opponent, I’ll be in Seventh Heaven. That’s the truth.

I feel so bloated I can’t even get up. My doctor told me I should cut down on fatty foods and get myself a StairMaster. But I feel so bloated that I don’t have the energy to get up, get out of the house and go looking for a StairMaster. And anyway, my New Year’s resolution was to cut down on buying useless junk, like Stairmasters.

“It’s a good thing you still make housecalls, Dr. Beckles,” I told my G.P. “I’m so bloated these days I can…”

“I know, I know,” Dr. Beckles cut me off, “you’re so bloated you can hardly find the energy to get up off the couch.” He coughed without covering his mouth. “Well, it’s a good thing you could a least find the energy to dial my phone number and call my office,” he said, wrinkling his busy black eyebrows up in a classic “Don’t give me any of your guff” physician’s scowl.

“Oh, Dr. Beckles!” I poked him in the collarbone. “But what can I do to…stop this bloating thing I got? I ain’t getting any younger, you know.”

It was at that point he loosened his collar and leaned over after wiping the back of his sweating neck with a hanky. “You need a strict non-fatty foods regimen, complete with treadmill exercise and a lightweight aerobic component.” His breath was heavy with barbeque sauce, most likely from Aruba Joe’s, the nearby gourmet sausage café. Suddenly I was hungry.

“Couldn’t you just…go in there with one of them little probes and suck it out?” I wanted to know. “Couldn’t you just cut it off a bit here,” I gripped a bit of the bloated area in question so he could get an eyeful, “and kind of nip it in the bud, so to speak?” But Dr. Beckles wasn’t having it; he was a professional – he’d seen my likes before:

“If I was say, Dr. Lapus, down at the clinic, I might well advise you to take such a foolish path. But it would be unconscionable for me to do so. It would also probably be illegal. The thing for you to do is to practice aerobic twisting exercising movements. These will get your heart rate and blood pressure up. If you visualize yourself sort of picking apples and reeeaching over to pick them off the coffee table here, you’ll be taking the first step at least towards reducing your bloating.”

After he had gone I still felt bloated. And I was hungry. For a barbequed sausage. At least I would have to get up and go out of the house to get it. Maybe I was only taking baby steps, but wasn’t it a sign of some small progress?

In my office Willa, my secretary doubles as a coffee maker, in addition to shouldering her formal duties as greeter, data entry specialist, and all-round shoulder to cry on when some of us fall prey to personal catastrophes. We love Willa’s jet black joe, but recently she’s been bowling us over by serving up Japanese green tea in between shots of espresso and cappuccino.

I’ve never been to Japan because of the extreme distance between that country and ours. But I’ve long heard of the magical healing powers Japanese green tea supposedly possesses. I decided to keep a daily tea dairy to chart any health benefits which might arise due to my new habit of Japanese green tea drinking.

For the first week, just drinking two or three cups a day, I didn’t notice much of a change in my health. But when Willa reread these initial tea diary entries to me a month later as the two of us were taking a well-deserved break at my chalet, I was flabbergasted. The truth of the matter was that my production levels at work had doubled. Then tripled. I had better drink more green tea, I thought.

Other staff members reported similar surges in their office productivity levels. Randy, a senior partner at my firm, confided to me in a brief aside during a departmental heads meeting,that the tea had helped smooth things over in his on-again off-again relation with Fay Pasis, a stunning but fiery saleswoman who often visits our floor to try and sell us parchutes in case of terrorist attack. It seemed the tea had made itself a part of our lives. Once again good old Willa had added a much appreciated dash of pizzazz to our office lives.