Top of the day to you once again!

It's time again for a short article. And this month it's all about the nine things that's going to keep you healthy?

I've been in 23 countries and studied a lot of people who have reached 100 years of age and, of all the people who have been ranked as the healthiest in the world, they all had certain things they did that kept them healthy.

I call them the nine biological imperatives and they form an acronym: A NEW START

“A” ... stands for ATTITUDE
The people I studied all had a reverence for their health. I've noticed when kids don't want to learn, they don't learn too much. But when they have a genuine enthusiasm for learning something ... well, they learn a heap.

I feel this is true with our health. All through my life I didn't care about my health until I lost it. Then it became my main focus. I understand now that things just don't happen, they happen justly. So, I guess there was some divine reason for my being sick for so long. One thing for sure is I've learned that it's much easier being healthy as it's a real challenge being sick!

“N” ... stands for NUTRITION
What's for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.

There's nothing mystical about nutrition. Nutrition is a series of 4 processes that the body employs to make food for our bodies to use. Food doesn't cure or heal - our body does that. And food doesn't act; it's acted upon by the body. But it is through nutrition that we came into existence ... and it's through nutrition that we have whatever vigor we possess.

Our health corresponds precisely to the quality of our nutrition. This is true with all plant and animal life. Living organisms whenever /wherever found, with all their wonderful capacities and enjoyments, are merely the results of good nutrition and drainage.

“E” ... stands for EXERCISE
And the main focus about exercise is to have fun and just do it! When you are in front of your computer for quite sometime and need some relief, just stand up and sit down 5 times without using your hands to get in and out of the chair and each time you stand up you use 102 moves just to do that. And when you sit back down again, you do the same thing. So 5 times will create 1020 moves and researchers from The University Of Southern California found that people under pressure could make difficult decisions 20% better if they just stood up! They discovered that merely standing up arouses your nervous system by increasing your heart rate 10 beats per minute.

“W” ... stands for WATER
The people I studied stressed drinking good clean water. A good phrase that a lot of Olympic Athletes I interviewed all echoed, “Don't drink the crap from the tap!”

“S” ... stands for SUNSHINE
Of course, we can overdo anything. But the sunshine in small doses is excellent for good health. I try to encourage my clients to stay out of the sun between the hours of 10 A.M. and 2 P.M.

“T”... stands for TENACITY
“The greatest ability in the world is stickability.” See is all through and it WILL happen for you.

“A” ... stands for AIR
I've been in places where I didn't have that luxury of fresh air for periods of time. And if you talk to Captain Gerald Coffee, I'm sure he'll acknowledge the grandeur of fresh air when he was a prisoner of war in Viet Nam. As an athlete, I've learned that the person who wins in any activity is the one with the best oxygen.

According to Jenny Steinmetz, Ph.D., A Psychologist At The Kaiser Permanente Medical Center In Hayward, California! "Taking 4 deep breaths with a 7-second inhale and an 8-second exhale is the quickest way to reverse the ill effects of stress!"

Smell a rose ... blow out a candle ... Ahh, and it's still free.

“R” ... stands for REST
All these healthy people indulged in a daily nap and good rest at night. I've learned its the fastest way to feel better. Whenever I feel a little low for whatever the reason, I try to get 1/2 hour to an hour nap during the day ... time permitting. I've observed during my travels in 23 countries that we are the only culture that avoids naps in the day and also make excuses not to take them.

“T” ... (the second T) stands for TEMPERANCE (or MODERATION)
We can't have everything in life - where in the world would we put it?
Here is another little poem:

No matter how much we acquire
Or fulfill our every desire
What good is all that wealth
When we've lost our health
And have to suffer until we expire!

We have over 60,000 miles of Blood Vessels in the body to keep us working…2 ½ times around the Globe and pumping enough blood in your entire lifetime to fill a freight train 25 miles long. Be good to yourself…we're awesome whether we like it or not!

Copyright © 2003 Center for Nutrition, Inc