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Weight Loss and Homeostasis

January 14, 2013 By

It’s a fact that humans crave sugar.  The body craves what it feels that it is missing.  Unfortunately, we now tend to crave sugary foods that are less nutritional than we did long time ago.

Feed your body, not the craving.

Homeostasis is a biological balance, the body’s method of keeping internal stability. It is a state of perfect wellness. Your body stores fat and will shift it to another area of your body rather than release it as energy.  When you exercise, try to get total body workouts. When you diet, do it gradually.

“With obesity being the Number 2 cause of preventable death in America and a 76% increase in Type II diabetes in adults 30-40 since 1990, people are looking for alternative, healthy ways to lose weight and change their lifestyle.”

Essential oils can complement or offer an alternative solution to mainstream diet plans because they can address various areas of health and wellness that are often the core of the issue.  Essential oils address the emotional and physical components of these issues. Essential oils kill the bad bacteria and leave the good, they can combat viruses and fungi, they don’t have any negative side effects, and they help alkalinize the body (better health).

Using essential oils on a daily basis helps to maintain vitality and wellness. 

The primary reason is that natural products help us reduce weight by bringing the body back into a state of balance or homeostasis. When this happens the body is supported in returning to its original state; and therefore long term weight loss is possible.

What oils can help with weight loss?

-     Cypress, oregano, and peppermint help strengthen us mentally and emotionally

-     Lavender and ylang ylang help us during times of stress

-     Grapefruit, peppermint, and rosemary give us energy

-     Peppermint and grapefruit help curb our appetite

-     A blend of basil, lavender, cypress, and grapefruit helps to reduce fat in the body

-     Cypress, lemon, oregano, and grapefruit are diuretics

Diffusing the oils, massaging them on your skin, or ingesting them are all good ways to use them.

When the body is out of balance – it will not let go of the weight!

Sources and Resources:

http://www.experience-essential-oils.com/all-natural-herbal-weight-loss.html

http://www.everythingessential.me/HealthConcerns/WeightLoss.html#page=page-1

To read the whole blog, click here.

For more infomation: www.oilsforhealthyliving.net

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3 Habits That Carry More Weight than “Know, Like, and Trust”

September 12, 2012 By

You may have heard this saying before: “People do business with the people that they know, like, and trust.” I wish it were that simple. If this cliché were really true, then we could all just hang out at cocktail parties, behave like good citizens, and wait for the money to roll in.

No matter how well someone knows you, likes you, and trusts you, they still might not think of you as the person to call when they have a need for what you do. That is a function of branding and positioning, and there is no shortcut around it.

Business decisions are made based on a combination of different factors and emotions. The psychology of each buyer is different, but ultimately, people buy what they want. Volumes upon volumes have been written about the factors that can influence marketing decisions. In the small business networking world, I’ve observed that one thing matters a lot more than “know, like and trust.” When someone in your network has a need and is ready to make a decision, they are most likely call the person who comes to mind at that moment. How do you get to be top of mind? There is no guaranteed formula, of course, but here are three habits that will improve your odds considerably. I don’t claim to be a paragon of virtue when it comes to these three things; rather, these are habits that I strive to become a little bit better at applying each day.

1. Fitting logically into a simple category.
I’ve always been a “rebel” type, and I don’t like being stuck into a “box” or a category. But like it or not, people mentally file each other in categories, and you are no exception. If you’re a CPA, people can put you in the “taxes” category without needing any further explanation of what you do. The same goes for “auto mechanic,” “Realtor,” or any other profession. If, on the other hand, you have five different businesses and it takes you 20 minutes to explain what you do, people will say, “You know, I really like you, but I just don’t know how to refer business to you.” The worst category to be in is the “I-have-no-clue-what-this-person-does” category. (Ask me sometime to tell you about my short-lived days as a “Transformational Energy Consultant” or the phase when I introduced myself as a “serial entrepreneur.”)

2. Specializing.
If you are known for being particularly good in a specific area of your profession, you tip the scales in your favor. For example, if you are a financial planner who has an exceptional talent for helping recently-divorced single parents with kids in college—and people know that about you—you will naturally stand out to the right person when the right time comes. Caveat: specialties take time, as well as trial and error, to develop. The first few might not stick. (I, personally, am still working on developing mine.)

3. Consistently showing up in the same places.
A lot of the business that I’ve gotten in the past few years might look like a stroke of luck. I happened to be in the right place at the right time, when the right person needed something and was looking for somebody like me. But I started to notice a pattern after awhile. The places where I showed up the most consistently were the ones that generated the most business and referrals. This is partly because the more often people see your face, the more they think of you. But also, when you show up consistently, people get to know all sides of you and understand what you do more fully than would be possible if you only stopped by once in a blue moon.

Developing referral relationships is like anything else: it’s simple, but not necessarily easy. You don’t have to be “slick,” you don’t have to be exceptionally confident, and you don’t have to be a natural salesperson. You just have to be willing to work on the fundamentals and keep at it.

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Losing Weight & Organization

May 10, 2012 By

1 in 10 U.S. workers report increased snacking during the day because of concerns over the current economic situation. 43% say they have gained weight in their current job.

If your kitchen doesn’t support a healthy lifestyle (no room to cook meals so frozen food or takeout are the best options, etc.) you might be sabotaging yourself. A disorganized environment could be making you console yourself with food; most often sugar, fat, chemical and processed foods.



So, if losing weight and better health is a priority, getting organized is a step in the right direction!

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Hire A Cheap Wedding DJ And Lose Weight

April 11, 2012 By

3 Tips On How To Be A Penny Wise Bride and Not Pound Foolish

(Click Here to go to Raleigh Event DJ’s Blog)

What’s the purpose of investing so much time, energy, money, and emotion into one special day . . .
if it isn’t ”to throw the most incredibly fun party for your friends and family?”

“Survey Says…”

What your guests will remember most about your wedding is: “the fun they had at your reception” – and that’s second only to food and drink.

The “noise” in today’s wedding market is so prolific that many brides take their eye off the “Prize,”
that is, for everyone to have fun!

Consider that a wedding is nothing short of a well choreographed ballet requiring the skills, talent and expertise of project minded individuals – but not every bride is an experienced project manager. Now consider the choices coming at you, from all directions, all at once, and changing relentlessly. It’s no wonder some brides get anxious about “the budget.”

Don't pay your DJ less than a veggie tray

 

Believe me when I tell you: “I’ve seen the road to ‘happily ever after’ and it is strewn with tons of un-eaten broccoli and too many disappointed brides suffering buyer’s remorse. “

Being thrifty and having a “Vision” of a storybook wedding isn’t enough. But don’t worry; you don’t need a business degree to manage your wedding project. There are a few easy things you can do to make everything work to your advantage . . .

 

The first tip is put everything in perspective based on the impact and importanceit has on the end-result. You want the biggest bang for your buck! Right? So, focus your resources on the things that contribute the greatest impact.

Unless you have money to burn, your friends and family won’t really miss (or remember): the overpriced veggie tray with ornately carved fruit creatures; the eccentric artisan cheese platter you provided during cocktail hour; the meticulously folded Bird-of-Paradise napkins perfectly paired with chic tablecloths; the gracefully melting swan ice-sculpture, or even the exotic flowers decorating the seats at your ceremony.

These things are indeed all very nice and Aunt Ethel will certainly praise your keen attention to detail. Remember though, everyone is there to “Eat, Drink and be Merry” so those elements are where your financial attention should be focused.

I’m not saying to omit ice sculptures or anything else – I’m just trying to help you keep it all in perspective.

Case in point: Your DJ is worth more to the success of your wedding than raw broccoli or a block of frozen water that can’t even be added to a Rum & Coke.

When it comes to booking wedding vendors, the typical pecking order is: Church, Reception Venue, Photographer, Caterer, DJ/Band, Cake, Florist, Videographer, etc. Along the way, you are going to be challenged with numerous distractions: Invitations, Dresses, Tuxedos, Honeymoon, Favors, Aisle Runners, Bridesmaid & Groomsmen Gifts, etc. It’s overwhelming and can quickly get out of control.

Hire A Cheap Wedding DJ and Lose Weight

To help you avoid getting to that point of sheer desperation, where you have an exhausted budget and seemingly never ending expenditures, and you’re resorting to typing “Cheap Wedding DJs” into Google, and now you’re losing weight from all the stressof worrying whether “Tom, Dick & Harry DJ” will even show up, let alone be any good . . .

My second tip is to set reasonable budget expectations for those services you identified as having the greatest contributionto your wedding’s success. It’s all too easy to let minute details ambush and hijack your budget. Before you know it, all those little things quickly add up to hundreds of dollars.

Let me reiterate . . . no one’s saying forego signature details that personalize your wedding and reflect what’s unique about you. By prioritizing and allocating your budget to the “value-rich” services that ensure the WOW-Factor your guests are expecting, all those “details” that truly will enrich the whole experience will become obvious.

 

To help you set a realistic Wedding Budget check out: Cost of A Wedding. Not only can you get estimates for your overall wedding budget, but you can also refine them specifically to you local area, as well as focus in on individual vendor/service categories.

Keep in mind that “averages” are mathematical calculations that even out the highs and low for a series of numeric data and provide no insight to quality or value provided at that price.

Brides and grooms should always meet with prospective service providers and never select a service based on price alone– which leads me to my final point . . .

Raleigh Event DJ - Wedding DJ services

Don’t judge a book by its . . . price. Is “average” or “cheap” how you really want your wedding to appear? You deserve the best and you can have it too. You might be surprised what you really can afford when you begin by first focusing your budget’s attention on the things that genuinely make a difference.

You know better than anyone what you can afford and what you are willing to spend. But keep in mind that the old adages that have stood the test of time are often your best advice . . . “If it seems too good to be true then it probably is” and “You get what you pay for.”

A “Cheap DJ” is no bargain if no one has fun at your wedding.

When surveyed after their wedding, nearly 85% of brides wish they budgeted more for their DJ. Your DJ has a far greater impact on the success of your entire wedding celebration than to be simply thought of as someone who plays music for 3 or 4 hours.

 

Contact Raleigh Event DJ today to learn how you CAN “have your cake and eat it too!” Our wedding experts are ready to help you throw the most incredibly fun wedding party for your friends and family and make the most of your budget.

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Weight Watchers: What’s the point?

February 25, 2012 By

I wanted to share my thoughts about the weight watchers article from N&O 2/21/12 and welcome comments;

article overview: There is a controversy over the idea that the weight watchers new point program assigns zero points for fruit. WW (weight watchers) program works by assigning points to foods and asking members to limit total points they consume in a day. By giving fruit zero points, their goal was to encourage more fruit/veggie intake while some members claim that they are gaining weight on the new point system. Here are my POINTS/questions for you all:

Fruit makes you gain weight, REALLY? Do you know anyone who pigs out on fruit? Our overeating and corresponding weight gain is motivated by many factors, like stress, mindless eating or any food for mood reactions. What makes you overeat? What do you crave when you are stressed, an apple or a bag of chips/cookies?

Weight watchers uses points, accountability, education and support to help people lose weight. When you use these techniques as opportunities to gain greater awareness of current eating habits and replace them with more nourishing behaviors, then true transformations can happen. But if you simply play the point game and eat all your points with processed products, how healthful is that? I applaud weight watcher for moving in a healthy direction where their points encourage foods to have different values. After all if a cookie and a piece of fruit have the same amount of points, do they have the same nutritional value?

Practice small “try it’s” not diets and learn not only what truly nourishes you, from the inside out.
You are invited to a free workshop : what is a healthy eater:

wed. 2/29/12 from 5:30-7:00pm

open branches wellness center 919-846-5255 (reserve your seat)

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Weight Management Meal Replacement from Juice Plus+

January 20, 2012 By

Juice Plus+ carries Weight Management Meal Replacement Powder in Chocolate and Vanilla! Come see me at www.AdrianJuicePlus.com to find out more! Get weight management and all of your required nutrition at the same time! Ask me about it!

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The Weight of Your Clutter

January 19, 2012 By

Now I am not asking you to put all of your stuff on a scale. For some people there might not be a scale large enough, I am talking about a feeling. Do you feel overwhelmed when you enter your home or office? Does the amount of stuff in your space negatively impact your physical self? Does the length of your to-do list making you feel like you are drowning? These are the signs that your physical or time-related stuff is taking its’ toll on your life.

But here’s the rub…if I asked you to delete some of your possessions or some of your tasks, you would probably tell me all of the reasons why you can’t.

  1. The X brings back memories. (and that’s why I need to keep 20 elephant figurines packed in a box rather than the five most treasured ones on a display shelf in the living room)
  2. The Y will fit once I lose weight and it is still in good shape. (of course it is eight years old and I need to lose 30 pounds)
  3. Group Z will be upset if I don’t take on the project. (I’ve done it every year even though I really dislike doing it and know that someone else could do a better job)
  4. <Your reason…excuse here>

I’m not saying that these reasons are wrong. I am simply suggesting that we try to look at the situation from an alternative vantage point. Mark Twain wisely said, Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. So let’s take the examples above and turn them around a little bit.

  1. What adventures will you miss because you are living in the past rather than in the present? Decide to honor “the best” items and then create some new memories.
  2. Can you touch any item in your closet or dresser and know that wearing it will make you feel and look good? I saved lots of great clothes from when I was a “different weight”. Meanwhile I purchased what was most convenient and dreaded making the “clothing decision”. I started working with a wardrobe consultant and learned how to look and feel good with clothes that fit my “current body”. I deleted items that didn’t fit or didn’t look good, Dressing is no longer a chore and I love the compliments I receive. Good thing I took the initiative because I found out after the fact that my sister had nominated me twice for What Not To Wear! Decide to “deacquire” items that aren’t being used.
  3. Would you like to take up a new hobby or spend time with family and friends? When you work on tasks you don’t like or aren’t skilled at due to feelings of guilt, people-pleasing behavior, or the inability to say “no” you are denying yourself the opportunity to participate in more enjoyable activities. Decide to be more deliberate in choosing your projects.

Name one item weighing you down and take one step toward “lightening” it.

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I Can’t Lose Weight!

January 18, 2012 By

Last week we talked about how our beliefs can hold us back from living a healthy lifestyle.    Our belief, or lack of belief  in ourselves and our mindset in what it takes to get healthy are a huge part of WHY we fail to make a lifestyle change.  

While our emotions play a significant role, so does our physical body.  How frustrating it can be to break through limiting beliefs, making massive efforts to eat well and exercise regularly, but still have little or no reward! 

Imagine being able to sleep well through the night, waking up refreshed.  Imagine eating good, whole  food throughout the day, not  counting calories or skipping meals, only to inhale anything in sight that evening.  Imagine no longer judging yourself by that magical number on the scale.  Imagine a healthy life of abundance!

The biochemistry of our body is a driving force behind how so many of us have found ourselves holding on to more pounds that we desire.   As a biologist I appreciate understanding why our bodies work as they do.  One aspect of why we hold onto weight depends on natural hormones, leptin and ghrelin.

The Role of Leptin and Ghrelin

Leptin and ghrelin are two hormones that have been recognized to have a major influence on energy balance and weight. 

 Leptin is primarily secreted from fat. The more fat you have, the more leptin is secreted. When you lose weight, leptin levels goes down and signals thehypothalamus to increase appetite and decrease metabolic rate.  

Ghrelin is a hormone secreted by the gastrointestinal tract.  It stimulates appetite, and levels depend on your intake of nutrients and water. 

Historically both hormones were important survival mechanisms for our ancestors.  The gathering, hunting, and even the farming of food was intense work.   Our bodies needed the regulation of these hormones to hold onto body fat when it was needed, and to provide the energy needed to continue to live and grow. 

The problem is in today’s world, there is food available all the time. Packaged convenience foods, fast foods, vending machines:  you can’t go anywhere that food is not out there calling your name.   Half of the time we don’t even need to use energy to cook it ourselves! 

 

Constantly overeating sugar rich, high calorie junk food messes with our hormones.  The signals to our brain gets disrupted even though the levels of leptin are high.  Similar to insulin insensitivity, our cells develop a leptin resistance.  When we are not eating food high in nutrients, the brain gets a “false” message that the body has not eaten enough, and tells it to store more fat and stimulates the release of ghrelin. 

 

Ghrelin makes you hungry.  Very hungry.  When you are go on a diet that only restricts calories, your body just naturally increases levels of ghrelin. It’s one reason why people tend to feel like they are on a weight induced roller-coaster. It kind of makes sense to me that the name of this hormone reminds me of an evil gremlin. 

 

Wouldn’t you love to find a way to release leptin but at the same time reduce the evil gremlins of ghrelin?

 

USANA’s 5 day RESET program helps lower your insulin levels to a steady state. 

Keeping your body fed through both supplementation and eating densely nutritious foods evenly throughout the day, as well as drinking plenty of water helps keep the ghrelin gremlins away.  So does having a good night’s sleep. 

Change your Beliefs and Change your Life.  You CAN release weight and live a healthy lifestyle.    Let me know how you are fighting the ghrelin gremlins with your comments below. 

 

Live Well!

Robin

 

References:

The role of leptin and ghrelin in the regulation of food intake and body weight in humans: a review

 

 

 

 

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Healthy Weight Loss

January 11, 2012 By

Is losing weight on your list of resolutions? 

You are not alone. Losing weight is always one of the top New Year’s resolutions in America. There is a surge in the purchase of weight loss products, gym memberships, and even ( gasp!) diet pills.  Everyone wants to lose weight fast, but generally by the middle of January, most people have already given up.  Besides, the Super Bowl is coming up, and who wants to deprive themselves of all those delicious chicken wings and sliders?

Why do we give up so easily?  What is holding us back?

Think about what has held you back in the past.  Those habits will always tend to creep in to your daily life if you don’t change the way you think. Do you feel like you are “too busy” to change your habits?  Do you tend to procrastinate?  Do you feel defeated even before you ever really begin? 

Many people have strong limiting beliefs that hold them back. 

Have you always been overweight?  Some people who are starting a weight loss program have struggled with weight their entire lives.  They are frequently slaves to their scales, their mood rising and falling according to the pounds lost or gained.  They have a hard time believing that they can actually live life off the weightloss rollercoaster.

Were you thin as a teenager and find yourself overweight now?  Other people were once quite thin, and now weigh more than is healthy.  There is a danger that these people can be stuck in a mindset of denial of where they are.  They may think they shouldn’t have to work as hard to lose the weight, and when weight loss takes longer than they think it “should” they develop a resentment that the program is not working. 

Are you generally a “thin” person who just wants to lose a few pounds?  Many people are just starting to gain some weight around the middle.  They have been thin most of their lives, and can’t understand why this is happening to them.  We hear them say: ” I haven’t changed anything in my diet or exercise and I’m still gaining weight!”  Their mindset is one unwilling to make a change to a more healthy lifestyle.  They think they “know it all”.

Are you healthy and happy and just want some information? There’s an old saying: “Ya don’t know what ya don’t know”, so these people in particular need to keep an open mind to new ideas.  Any complete healthy lifestyle program  provides emotional and mental as well as physical transformation.  Often people focus only on the physical weight loss.  All aspects of a healthy lifestyle are of vital importance for true health both now and in the future. 

Get Off Your Diet and Change Your Life

Break free of disempowering beliefs and habits and live a vibrant, healthy life.

What if you could learn a healthy lifestyle that has the side effect of releasing weight that you could share with your whole family? What if you had more energy and felt more positive about yourself? What if you could truly have it all? The Healthy Edge lifestyle offers you just that!

Get started with two complementary weeks through this link:  The Healthy Edge .

Live Well!

Robin

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