Top Wellness Articles

20 Health Benefits of Fasting

author Dan Riefstahl date 04/18/2018

Fasting has been recognized for its many health benefits dating back to Hippocrates. These benefits extend to everything from better weight management, improved cardiovascular health, healthier blood composition, and better cell recycling, among many others.

Although there is not an abundance of research on fasting in humans, a growing number of health experts believe that the results of fasting from animal studies hold great promise for human health and future research efforts.

There are many different types of fasts you can choose from, and they differ in their results and difficulty. Much of the research included here comes from studies on caloric restriction and intermittent fasting. One conclusion is steadfast, fasting remains one of the most effective means of detoxifying your body and resetting your system for better overall health.

20 Health Benefits of Fasting

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The path to emotional wellness

author Dan Riefstahl date 04/07/2017

Being emotionally well is more than just handling stress. It also involves being attentive to your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, whether positive or negative.  Emotional Wellness implies the ability to be aware of and accept our feelings, rather than deny them, have an optimistic approach to life, and enjoy life despite its occasional disappointments and frustrations.

If you are a person engaged in the process of emotional wellness, you are willing and able to:

  • Arrive at personal choices and decisions based upon the synthesis of feelings, thoughts, philosophies, and behavior.
  • Live and work independently while realizing the importance of seeking and appreciating the support and assistance of others.
  • Form interdependent relationships with others based upon a foundation of mutual commitment, trust and respect.
  • Take on challenges, take risks, and recognize conflict as being potentially healthy.
  • Manage your life in personally rewarding ways, and taking responsibility for your actions.
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15 fitness tips

author Dan Riefstahl date 03/31/2016
  1. Small steps
  2. Find short-term rewards
  3. Track your progress
  4. Enjoy yourself
  5. Never ever give up
  6. Get a workout partner
  7. Vary your workouts
  8. Focus
  9. Rest is important
  10. Focus on long term
  11. Focus on your diet first
  12. Find the exercise that works for you
  13. Learn to be present
  14. Don’t let your body adapt too much
  15. Get inspired

source

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March 30, 2016

Is today the day? Featured

Greens is my motivation! Greens is my motivation!

I am afraid not. What am I talking about? I AM GOING TO GET FIT. Just not today.

Yes, getting fit is my goal, but what does that mean? Physically fit? Spiritually fit? Emotionally fit? Check. I often feel like they go hand in hand and I am sure many others do as well. I don't think it is realistic to try to get "fit" in all ways at once. You are setting yourself up to fail. Too much change at one time will overwhelm even the strongest of us. I don't have any real rules for this challenge.

Your 31 days can be anything you need to reboot. No TV, no internet, maybe dedication to read everyday. The reboot is anything YOU want to change.

Science say it takes minimum of 21 days to form a new habit. How long does it actually take to form a new habit?

Why not start today?

Because I don't want to. Really that is it. I have been thinking about this plan for months. I want to start today but I am being realistic. I am not ready. I want to go have a snack. I am going to spend the next 2 weeks motivating myself for this experience and hopefully my work will motivate you as I collect and publish articles and inspiration from each of the 7 dimensions of wellness. When someone asks me, "How are you?" I say "I am well"  I want to say this and actually mean it!

Backstory

I used to be fit. I was actually super fit. I had a six pack. In high school I weighed 185 lbs and could bench press 275 lbs. I was a wrestler, baseball player and avid skateboarder. By my junior year of college, I was about 215 lbs. Sure I was still active, but not to that level and let's not forget about all the fun we have in college. :)

A few years ago I went through an emotional issue and lost 31 lbs in one month! It was great and horrible. Great to be be lighter and tighter but I got there in the most unhealthy way. I just stopped eating. I did exercise a bit, but mostly it was my appetite. It was just gone. And for those of you who know me, I love food. Especially sweets. So at this point, I am looking good, but not feeling good. Emotionally I was a mess, but losing weight so quickly has physical effects as well. Immediately after the rapid weight loss, I developed a kidney stone. Yes to what everyone says. It hurts like a bitch. Pee out a rock. No thanks. It was a super painful experience, but I got through it. Slowly I began to regain my appetite and within a year I was back up to 225 lbs.

So 3 years later and I am 38. I weigh 236 lbs. I don't even like to type it. If I pretend I weight 220, isn't it true? I know it could be worse, but I am ready for a 31 day reboot in my mind. Time to motivate my self to put a pln into action.

My Motivation

Aside from my personal goals of overall well being, I am doing the physical work for my cousin, Jonathan Greenleaf. He was an inspiration to me. He lived life to the fullest and he wanted to be fit in all ways. About a year ago, the world lost this wonderful man to a rare disease called HLH. As a tribute to him we, as a family, set out to create a goals that we would accomplish in honor of Jonathan. Mine was to become fit again. Greens, this is for you!

My Plan

I want to lose those 20 pounds. I want to do it in a healthy way. I read an article recently about John Krasinski. He got super fit for a role and he said, in his interview, that he became addicted to working out and working on his body. I remember that feeling back in the cobwebs of my mind. That is one of the main reasons I liked to wrestle. It was almost like boot camp. We trained like crazy. I burned thousands of calories a day and felt so strong. I was strong. Mentally and physically. So how am I going to achieve this again?

My Goals

  • Fat loss with full muscular retention 
  • To look good naked. Sexy factor = 7,000.
  • To gain confidence and conquer mydomain.

Know the numbers 

In order to lose one pound, you will need to burn 3,500 more calories than you consume in a day. How many calories you burn in a given day just by existing will depend on your current weight and level of physical activity. You can calculate this by multiplying your weight by ten. If you weigh 150 pounds, then you burn about 1,500 calories per day just by going about your usual business. If you eat 1,000 calories, then you'll need to burn 3,000 additional calories each day to lose one pound.

Reduce my caloric intake

To lose a pound a day, you should consume between 800 and 1,200 calories a day depending on your weight and how much you exercise. You can cut down on calories by both eating smaller portions and by eating healthier foods. 

  • Eat low-calorie foods that fill you up. Your diet should consist primarily of vegetables and lean proteins. Eat lettuce, celery, broccoli, green beans, spinach, and other greens. For protein, eat chicken, turkey, fish, and tofu. Vegetables and proteins fill you up quickly and have very few calories.
  • Cut out sugar, fat, salt, and most carbohydrates. While a normal diet should contain these things in moderation, you should cut these foods out completely while trying to lose weight quickly.
  • Don't add salad dressings or cooking sauces to your food, as these are loaded with extra calories. Season your food with pepper, lime, vinegar, or hot sauce.
  • Cut down on calories by using a cooking spray rather than olive oil, vegetable oil, or butter.

Keep a weight loss journal

Studies have shown that people who keep track of what they eat by writing it down lose more weight than those who do not. Write down everything you eat in a journal, and be sure to include the calorie content of each food and add the numbers up as you go.

  • Include the calories you burned from exercising and subtract them from your total.
  • Try using an online food tracking service like My Fitness Pal or Calorie King to make things easier.
  • I plan to use this website as my "online" journal. I will share everything so as to take a complete picture of my steps.

Get one to two hours of aerobic exercise every day.

No matter how little you eat, you will absolutely have to burn additional calories in order to lose a pound a day. The following is a list of top calorie-burning aerobic activities:

  • Hot Yoga (My Choice) Calories burned per hour: 475 (moderate) to 600 (intense).
  • Cross Country Skiing. Calories burned per hour: 545 (moderate) to 1,125 (intense).
  • Biking. Calories burned per hour: 570 (moderate) to 850 (intense).
  • Running. Calories burned per hour: 850 (for an 8 minute mile).
  • Boxing. Calories burned per hour: 615 (moderate) to 815 (intense).
  • Squash. Calories burned per hour: 850.
  • Swimming. Calories burned per hour: 545 (moderate) to 680 (intense).
  • Rock Climbing. Calories burned per hour: 540 (Rappelling) to 750 (Ascending).
  • Rugby. Calories burned per hour: 681 (moderate) to 715 (intense).

Join an online fitness community

This website is not really meant to be a "fitness" community in the traditional sense since we are covering all areas of wellness, not just physical. One wonderful physical fitness community is Fitocracy. The members of this community are on the same journey– a relentless march toward becoming healthy and fit, but with inevitable setbacks. Become active in the community and you will find an increase of support that will lift you up and over hurdles as they arise. The fitocracy platform allows you to share your goals, daily progress, and your setbacks. The most important aspect of such communities might be knowing that others are walking the same path and are ready to offer unconditional support as well as their experiences in overcoming difficulties.

Drink plenty of water

Not only does drinking water keep your stomach full, it will help replenish your fluids and keep you energetic while exercising. Drink at least half your body weight in ounces each day.For example, a 200 lb person should drink 100 oz of water. That is a little over 6 16 oz bottles per day.

  • TIP: Add lemon, lime, or cucumber to your water to make it more appealing.

Don't eat anything after 7:00pm

Remember that your metabolism slows down dramatically while you are sleeping, so you will need to give your body ample time to digest everything you eat before going to bed. The earlier you finish eating for the day, the better. Be sure to eat a proper dinner, though, so that you don't wake up hungry in the middle of the night.

 

source: wikiHow
 
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