Wednesday, March 10, 2010
It’s a tough choice: walking, jogging, treadmill, fixed bike, spinning, stairclimbers, rowing machine, elliptical walker… what’s best for you and what’s the best way of making the most of it?
First let’s look at why you want to do aerobic exercise? General health? Forty-five minutes to one hour three times a week. Trying to lose weight and complement your diet? Go four to five times a week.
One of your first questions is probably whether time or intensity is more important. It’s key to understand that your body fat only starts to be used up after 20 minutes of continuous aerobic exercise. Any less than that, and you’re just burning the glucose metabolized after your last meal. However, aerobic exercise, unless extremely intense, is only a part, albeit an important one, in your weight loss strategy—you won’t lose weight just by doing exercise alone. It needs to be combined with a low calorie diet and resistance training which accelerates the metabolism and increase calorie burning. (Continued)
Looking good isn’t just about washing your face in the morning and putting on make-up before you leave the house. There’s a long-term investment involved in keeping your face young and healthy which pays off over time, particularly after you hit your forties. The keystone has got to be moisturize, moisturize, moisturize… but to get the most out of your moisturizer, or indeed any other face cream– anti-wrinkle, lifting, serum, or acne prevention–you need to make sure your skin is clean and healthy. Make sure you use the right products for your skin, be it sensitive, dry, oily or combination and never forget to use sun protection as part of your routine even if you’re just going to the store around the corner: sun-exposure is public enemy number one when it comes to keeping your skin looking young.
Start your routine in the morning with a foaming gel or fresh cool cleanser to wipe off the traces of your night moisturizing cream and stimulate sluggish circulation. Then use a toner or astringent to close the pores and lightly pat dry with a special face towel before applying a moisturizer. (Continued)
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
In addition to a healthy low-fat diet, plenty of water to flush out the system and a daily exercise program combining aerobic training to burn off fat with localized exercises to tone up the abdomen, buttocks and thighs, there are other specific things you can do to help decrease the visibility and presence of cellulite.
Exfoliation and brushing: before showering, use a body brush to remove the dead skin cells and stimulate the circulation to hips, buttocks and thighs where it tends to be more sluggish. Once in the shower, use a massage glove or loofah in gentle circular movements towards the heart on the cellulite affected areas with plenty of bath oil or gel so as not to stretch the skin. Finish off with a jet of cold water from the shower head. Pat dry the skin with a towel before applying one a special anti-cellulite cream. The previous brushing and exfoliation means that the product will penetrate more deeply, as the pores are open and the skin clean and clear of flaky cells. (Continued)
Sunday, February 21, 2010
A dusting of white flakes on a dark dress or suit that isn’t snow… dandruff is a very common and equally embarrassing scalp condition also called scurf. It’s simply the shedding of dead skin cells from the scalp, which in itself is a normal process and part of the way skin keeps healthy. However, some people shed abnormally large amounts of dead skin cells, visible in large flakes or clumps, and perhaps also accompanied by an irritable scalp and dry hair as well as dry patches of skin on other parts of the face and body.
This condition can either be chronic, or triggered by extreme cold or very dry weather, or psychological factors such as stress. Dandruff happens when a particular fungus reacts with the natural oils in the skin to produce oleic acid which irritates the top layer of the skin and sparks off the flaking process. A poor diet, poor hygiene, genetic disposition, hormonal imbalances and infections may all possibly contribute to dandruff. (Continued)
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
A truly miraculous substance, Jojoba oil has been used for centuries by Native Americans and Mexicans to help cure cuts, bruises, sores, and speed up the process of recovery from wounds. The oil, which is a liquid wax ester at room temperature, is obtained by pressing and heating the seeds and is unusual in that it is not like other vegetable oils but more similar to sebum, the natural oil produced by human skin. As you age, you produce less of these natural oils, dehydrating the skin which loses its natural youthful glow and can become more susceptible to dry skin conditions such as dandruff, flaky skin and psoriasis.
Jojoba, the name given by a Native American people in the Sonoran desert of Arizona to the nut they used to make a special paste applied as a salve to treat burns, contains a number of key nutrients and minerals, in particular Vitamins B and E, copper and zinc. It also contains a large proportion of iodine, which makes it particularly effective in the treatment of bacterial conditions such as acne, cold sores and athlete’s foot. Its chemical make-up is in many ways so similar to the skin that its topical use can actually control the skin’s over-production of oil in certain irritable conditions which have the effect of clogging the pores, leading to pimples, blackheads and comedonal acne. (Continued)