HealthMysteries

 Swimming for exercise is a terrific way to get some heart health without straining your joints.  Pool swimming can be fun, though the constant clorine exposure is drying to the skin and hair.  Swimming in an ocean or fresh water lake, if you can get to one, is a great option.

At some point in my life, I hope to have a lake front property and be able to swim all summer long in the northeast.  For now, I am fortunate enough to have a summer cottage rental and the chance to do some swimming. Give this a chance if you can. Even a regular regimen of visiting the local Y pool is better than not swimming at all, and is a great winter option. 

So take the plunge in the interests of better health and a whole lot of fun!

pix courtesy of dasnake at flickr.com

As I write these words, outside my front window on a sixty degree spring day, I can almost see the buds unfolding on the dogwood tree.  It sits and waits for the sun’s sweet kiss so it can open all its limbs and fingerlings to the glorious warmth and sunshine.

This is the best time you will have to rethink and re-energize your fitness regimen in preparation for the summer weather.  I see many people out walking their dogs or with baby carriages for the first time in quite a while.

The deer are back for their nightly feeding at a spot out in the woods just behind my house.  They will get plenty of exercise with Andy in tow, waiting to see them fly through the thicket with great grace and ease.

Unfortunately, the skunks have returned for their mating season and each night I can smell Pepe Le Pew and his many female admirers.  I believe he is living under my garden shed.  Such is the activity of spring.  I think I will take a peek at the yard in search of some new flora.  Happy spring.

 If you have not tried a class in Tai Chi, but would like an activity that is relaxing, self-paced and full of valuable exercises for balance and stamina, why not give this a try?  The movements are gentle and satisfying and there is no need to lie on the floor or contort unnaturally.

Tai Chi is great for increasing your ability to balance and also helps with your stamina for standing in place for a long time if you tend to have leg pain.  After only a few weeks of classes, I was amazed by how well I felt doing Tai Chi moves and after doing them. 

The positive effect it has on the body lasts much longer than the movements themselves.You need not be a dancer to be able to learn the moves, but some dance training will certainly help you learn them faster. There are many levels of the martial art and you are considered to be something of a beginner for the first couple of decades of practice.

Give this a try and let me know how you like it.

pix courtesy of lapstrake at flickr.com

With things being so hectic around my house, more often than not, I forget to eat enough fruit.  Even if this doesn’t result in a digestive issue, the vitamins I should be getting and the much needed potassium, are sadly lacking and I need to take pills as a supplement.

Potassium is so very important in heart health and in particular, if you take a diuretic medication to reduce fluid levels in the lungs and extremities.  Furosemide, also known as Lasix and similar drugs, deplete the body of certain minerals when they pull fluid out of body tissue and process it through the kidneys.If you are very low in potassium, you can experience heart palpitations as well as leg cramps in the calf muscles, which can be excruciatingly painful. 

Oranges and bananas are high in potassium and apples contain a good balance of vitamins. So get yourself plenty of fruit each day.  If you can’t eat an apple a day, how about a tomato?  Tomatoes are a great source of trace minerals in addition to the vitamins.

 When you have a free moment, please take a peek at my newest article over at Suite 101, The Top Ten Tips to Prolong Your Life.   

http://mindbodyfitness.suite101.com/article.cfm/the_top_ten_ways_to_prolong_your_life.

There are no big surprises or secret shortcuts to living longer.  The basics of a healthy diet, exercise and keeping your mind in shape are imperative to longevity. The other items worth mentioning are the fact that you need to work at not getting sick by avoiding germs, drink plenty of good fluids and take vitamin supplements.  If you can get the basics working for you, your chances of sticking around for a while are that much greater.

Now that the sunshine and warmer weather has come to the northeast, it should be that much easier to get outside for a brisk walk or some puttering around in the garden.  Have a great and healthy week.

pix courtesy of Stephen Haberman, who is seen here exercising by holding up a building.

We have all had episodes of the “I should have dones”.  Why did I let this happen or why couldn’t I have done something differently will plague many people much longer than should be the case.  So get over it already.

Take this moment to stop and forgive yourself for things that you think were wrong or showed weakness in the past.  The more important part of any kind of regret is learning from your mistakes.  If the situation were to occur today and you know now how to handle it better, would you do things differently?

Self-improvement is an important part of the learning process and sometimes we do things that are painful to look back on.  Moving forward with a different and wiser perspective is the healthy way to go.  People who go through step programs like AA understand that you have to forgive yourself and have faith that you can conquer things like substances, that used to conquer you.

pix courtesy of tuscany-photo.com

A great exercise for all of us is the art of life planning.  This ties in well with the attraction theory of the universe and the fact that positive thinking and concentrating your energies on achieving specific results does work.

Take a hour out of your day to start the process.  Sit down and document on a computer file all the things you can think of that you would like to achieve in the next several decades.  Be as specific about this as you can, so you can focus your energy on the most tangible objectives.

Certainly, your career plan is part of this process, but think in larger terms than just your career.  Think about the development of all people and life itself.  What will be your contribution to the world during your lifetime?

After you have a draft, put it away for a month or so and then look at it again.  Revise it over and over until you are happy with the result.  And then, get to work!  You only have a few decades to make it happen.

Yes, you heard me, take it and hurl it out the window as far as you can throw it.  It’s great exercise! There is really much too much emphasis on body weight, when you really should be focusing on how you feel and how your clothes fit.

As many of you already know, muscle tissue weighs more than fat tissue.  So two people at the same body weight could be at completely different levels of fitness.  Certainly, the one with the higher muscle mass ratio is the winner in terms of overall health.

Not only does this person have more muscle, but the muscle he has will be burning calories at a higher rate that the fatter person at the same weight.  His body works more productively when he exercises and burns more calories than the other person.

So get out your hand weights and your pedometer and keep you body moving and building more muscle mass and less fat.  Oh, and you might want to go out and pick up your bathroom scale in the yard.

Fiber rich foods are such an important part of your daily diet.  But even more important are the leafy green vegetables, like lettuce and broccoli, to take in those harder to find vitamins and minerals we all need to stay healthy and disease free. 

Some people - myself included - have to be careful not to ingest too much of the broccoli and cauliflower veggies because they contain high amounts of Vitamin K.  Normally, this would be a great thing to eat.  However, if you take Coumadin (Warfarin) as a blood thinner, it can mess you up and throw your blood viscosity off.

This is not a good thing, since you need to keep it at a very steady level to avoid the possibility of clot formation that could cause heart attack or stroke. On the other extreme, too much blood thinner can put you at risk for a serious or even deadly bleed, from even a minor injury. 

In my case, because I have an artificial heart valve, I have to take Coumadin for the rest of my life. So what do you do in this situation?  My answer has been to be sure that I take a consistently similar amount of vitamin K through fresh vegetables.  That way, it has a roughly equivalent effect on the INR level in the blood.  So enjoy your veggies.  Farm fresh foods are not far off, now that it is spring.

pix courtesy of Ze Eduardo at flickr.com

There is nothing more spectacular than an up close and personal encounter with a whale.  This one, a humpback who is breaching, was only about twenty yards off the starboard side of the vessel.  Some people, including my daughter, are actually afraid of these glorious creatures.  I find them to be beautiful, curious and generally harmless.

My very favorite pasttime over the course of the last several years has been to get as far up in the bow of the boat and fly through the ocean-sprayed wind on a warm summer day, chasing behind the humpbacks, minkes and finback whales, with a half dozen of dolphins thrown in for a good giggle.

Ever since I was a young child and get to go boating with my dad on lakes up in New Hampshire, I have loved being out on the open water.  The sea is my first love and the bigger the waves are, the better I like it.  From a mental health perspective, this is my little bit of Nirvana. 

So I am hoping to take a few shots as lovely as Michael’s here on my California trip.  What environment makes you happiest and revives your spirit?  Here’s to hoping you get to enjoy it sometime very soon.   

pix courtesy of Michael Dawes at flickr.com