Positive Body Image

Our society places so much emphasis on what we look like on the outside, not the inside. A positive body image allows you to feel good inside and out.

The best way to have a positive body image is to feel positive about yourself as a person. Stay active, exercise regularly, and be confident. Nurture your body with nutrition and exercise. Keep a positive support system around you; avoid people who are negative about weight and being healthy.

Try yoga, meditation, pilates, or relaxation strategies daily if you are struggling with body image. These activities will help you feel less anxious about food and more positive about your body. Try focusing on your health, not your weight.

Healthy eating and exercise habits, along with a realistic attitude toward body image will lead to optimum wellness, performance, and confidence. Do not be discouraged if you fall into unhealthy habits occasionally--every day is a new day! Try to return to your healthy habits as soon as you can.

In times of stress, relax. Keep exercising regularly, and make sure you fuel yourself with nutrition. When you lose inspiration, focus on how good a workout feels. Do not deprive yourself of calories and nutrition. You can still 'treat' yourself occasionally. Drink plenty of non-caloric fluids, control your stress, and make yourself as happy as possible.

Maintaining a healthy body image and weight requires work and patience, just like anything that is worthwhile. In time, you will feel great about how you look and how you feel every day!

Boost your Immune System with Nutrition

Do you find yourself always coming down with a cold or sinus infection during the winter? With the stress of the holiday season and plenty of leftover sweets and junk food to go around, you may find yourself susceptible to getting sick. Don't throw your healthy eating habits out the window this winter...build your winter immunity with nutrition!

To function optimally without illness, your immune system needs a variety of nutrients, particularly vitamins A, C, E, B complex, iron, selenium and zinc. Give your body the support it needs by eating nutrient dense, whole, unprocessed food, such as veggies, fruit, legumes, whole grains, and healthy fats (monounsaturated fats and omega-3 fatty acids). Diets that are high in fat seem to depress the immune response and thus increase the risk of infections. Reducing the total fat content in your diet can increase immune activity. Limit your intake of saturated and trans fats, alcohol, and sugar, all of which suppress the immune system. Regular consumption of fermented dairy products such as yogurt may enhance immune defenses in the gut. Recent studies suggest that yogurts made with probiotics may have a beneficial effect on the immune system.

Energy intake seems to have an important influence on immune activity. Undernourished people are at greater risk from infections. Be careful of weight loss schemes after the holidays! Eating less than 1200 calories per day can also reduce immune function, an excellent reason to avoid unhealthy 'crash diets'. Excessive energy intake may also compromise the immune system's ability to fight infection. Control your calories by cutting your portions in half, reading food labels, and keeping a food journal.

Don't forget about exercise and stress management! Exercise has the capacity to protect and even enhance the immune response. Some past studies have shown that a regular exercise program may bolster many defenses of the immune system. Thirty minutes of brisk walking five days per week is an ideal training program for maintaining a healthy immune response. To try to reduce the stress and anxiety in your life, consider yoga, tai chi, walking, breathing exercises, or keeping a journal. In addition, to keep an abundant supply of your natural killer cells, try to get at least 8 hours of sleep every night.

To maintain the strongest immune system possible, you must have a nutritious diet, get regular exercise, and reduce stress in your life. You must attend to all three of these areas to achieve your optimum health. No better time than now to start this wellness routine!