Healthacker.com

If you’re interested in healthy living, you need to pay attention to your cholesterol level.

According to the American Heart Association, a total blood cholesterol level of 200 or below puts in your in the low risk category for heart disease. A reading of 200 – 239 would be classified as borderline high and a level of 240 or above is high risk for heart disease.

A good place to start when you’re looking to lower your cholesterol is by making changes to your diet. Just like the saying goes “you are what you eat”.

Here are some other tips:

• Keep your weight at the recommended level for your height
• Make sure you get at least 30 minutes of exercise three times a week
• Eat foods that are rich in nutrients (stay away from junk food)
• Eat high fiber foods
• Get 5 fruit and vegetables every day
• Reduce sodium
• Avoid alcohol

You should always check with your health professional before making any drastic changes to your diet or exercise. They can help you create a safe and effective program.

Links for more info:

• What Your Cholesterol Levels Mean
• Healthy Living
• High Fiber Food Chart

Developing good communication skills is essential in all walks of life and with all kinds of people. If you have good communication skills, you’ll hve all the skills you need to deal with almost anyone.

Most of us have to deal with difficult people at some stage or another in our personal and professional life. Through effective communication, you can mend relationships when necessary and communicate effectively with anyone.

Here are some tips to get you started:

• Avoid the subjects of politics or religion when making light conversation
• Realize that you can’t change the other person
• When someone reacts negatively to you, refrain from coming back with more negativity. It’s amazing what you can create when you treat people with polite respect
• Try seeing the situation from the other person’s point of view
• Keep your sense of humor

This is just the tip of the iceberg, but you get the idea. Keep yourself focused on clear communication and positive interactions with other people. You’ll be pleasantly suprised with your results.

Do you realize the value that sleep has to your body? Well, it’s one of the most important things you can do for your health and your body. It’s imperative to get adequate rest in order to support a healthy immune system and get us through each day with enough energy.

Not getting enough sleep can have a negative impact on your hormones. And hormones regulate so many of our body’s systems, that if they’re not working well, you can really feel out of it. Hormones regulate our metabolism, energy, reproductive cycles and more, so you can see why it’s important that they’re working well.

So, what can we do to make sure that we get enough good quality sleep?

• Avoid eating anything after 7 pm
• Get at least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise during the day
• Buy a great mattress that you feel totally comfortable in
• Go to bed at the same time every day – set a routine for yourself
• Don’t take naps during the day – save your sleep for the schedule time
• Create a relaxed environment in your sleeping space – use blinds to darken the windows or use a sound conditioner to block out extra noises

More Info: The Better Sleep Council

Many back problems are the result of poor posture or sitting incorrectly. Over time, as our abdominal and back muscles weaken, this can cause back pain. But I’m sure you’ll be happy to know that Pilates can help you regain the muscle strength you need to be pain free.

Pilates is a form of exercise that focuses on the core muscles of the abdomen and back. These muscles help keep the body balanced and strong. It’s a method that teaches correct breathing methods and alignment of the spine.

Although Pilates is a simple exercise program, you should not underestimate what it can do for your body when practiced on a regular basis.

For people with severe back problems it would be wise to have a session with a Pilate’s instructor to learn the correct form before beginning a Pilates exercise program. This will help you see where your weaknesses are what you need to work on. It will be more expensive to work with an instructor than doing home videos, but will be worth it in the long run.

To gain benefits from cycling you don’t have to be super fit or an athlete, but you do have to be committed to doing it regularly. Three days a week or more should be adequate for most people.

Consistent cycling can help you shed a few pounds, increase muscle mass, improve muscle tone, reduce stress and since it’s good cardio exercise, you can reduce your risk of heart disease.

Here are a few simple suggestions and safety tips to help you started:

• always carry repair kit
• take a water bottle with you
• keep your tires inflated correctly
• wear a helmet
• make sure your bike has lights and reflectors
• wear bright colors to keep yourself visible

Carpel tunnel syndrome is notorious for effecting people who use their wrists and hands a lot. Those of us who type all day long or do any type of repetitive motion with our hands and wrists are at particular risk.

The bones and tissues in your wrist help protect a nerve that is called your median nerve. If this nerve becomes swollen or painful then it may mean you have carpal tunnel syndrome.

You may have carpel tunnel syndrome if you experience any of the symptoms listed below:

• Tingling or numbness in the hands
• Pain in the palm of your hand
• The numbness or pain may get worse at night
• You have difficulty holding on to things

If you do have carpel tunnel syndrome there are a number of treatments that can be done to help reduce it. These include wearing a splint or brace to keep your hand in the proper position. It can also be worn at night. Most people say the splints reduce the pain quite a bit, so if you have any of the symptoms, you may want to try it to give yourself some relief.

Here are some easy things you can do that will make a big difference in your health.

• Set a goal to improve your health and then work towards it
• Support your new way of thinking by learning all you can on good health
• Go through your kitchen cabinets and eliminate all the unhealthy foods that don’t support your new goal
• Replace the unhealthy food with new healthier choices
• Get your time organized and schedule time for healthy meal preparation
• Keep a journal to record your successes
• Fill your head with positive thoughts and affirmations about the new healthy lifestyle you’re living
• Increase your exercise
• Eliminate any bad habits such as smoking or drinking
• Make sure you’re eating the recommended 5 portions of fruits and vegetables each day
• Work to eliminate or manage stress
• Reduce salt and the high fats foods in your diet

Walking is one of the best forms of exercise you can do. It’s easy to get started, doesn’t cost a thing and you can do it almost anywhere and at any time.

If you’re not used to exercising, start out slowly by walking for about 10 minutes three times a week. You can gradually build up to 30 minutes 3 times a week.

Here are some of the health benefits of a consistent walking program:

• An increase in your overall fitness and the tone of your muscles
• Feel better and look better
• Increased energy level
• Feel less stress and deal with stress better
• Find that your sleep is better
• Reduce risk of heart disease
• Reduce the risk of developing certain types of cancer
• Reduce depression and increase a more positive mood
• Improve outlook on life and feel better every day that you walk

You can start gaining all these benefits and more simply by increasing the amount of time that you walk each day. Find a time to fit walking into your schedule. You’ll look better, feel better and have a healthier life.

Want to be a success? Well it’s not going to happen if you just sit around all day and think about what you want. You’re going to have to get out there and take some risks along the way.

Taking risks doesn’t necessarily mean something is dangerous, it just means that you’ll need to be prepared to step outside of your comfort zone and do things you’ve never done before. Things like public speaking or speaking to a group on a moment’s notice, presenting yourself as an expert on a certain subject or pushing yourself beyond your current physical limits.

It takes a constant effort to achieve your goals and get what you want out of life, but it doesn’t have to be difficult.

A good place to start is to take an inventory of your life to see where you are right now. Then decide where you want to go.

The next part is the most difficult. It’s now time to plan your road to reaching your goal. Will you need skills that you don’t have right now to achieve your goal? Will you need to do things your not comfortable with? Talk to people you don’t want to talk to?

This is where the personal growth (and the risks) come in. In order to achieve the things you say you want, you’ll need to be willing to learn whatever you need to learn and do whatever you need to do.

Find someone who’s already good at the things you need to learn and model them. Ask them for advice or where to go for training. Get online and do your research. If your role model is a famous person or celebrity it may be difficult to meet them personally, but you should be able to find plenty of written material on the person’s background, schooling and mental disposition.

Start gradually on your road to success. Don’t pressure yourself to get there too soon, but stay persistent and focused. A big part of achieving a goal is all that you learn along the way – you don’t want to miss it!

If you want to be a success in any area of your life, the best way to get there is by focusing your thoughts and energy on positive things. Positive thinking puts you in the right mindset to achieving positive results.

Negative thinking will only make a situation worse. And, once we start down the path of negativity, it can be extremely difficult to pull ourselves out. One thing builds on another and before you know it, you’re up to your eyeballs in misfortune and difficult situations.

You really do hold the power of success in your own hands. Visualize the success you want, think of a positive way to achieve it and then get started. Keep yourself focused and on purpose and don’t let anyone deter you from your path.

In his day, Andrew Carnegie was described as “singleminded” and “relentness”. Nowadays these words usually carry a negative conotation, but think about it. If you decide on your goal and then are “singleminded” and “relentness” about going for it, don’t you think you’ll achieve it?

If you use Carnegie as your example, your success is a sure thing!