JOGGING DO'S AND DONT'S

Your body needs exercise. And you can exercise through jogging. Many people want to jog but many also quit after a few tries. How do you decide on making jogging a part of your lifestyle? How do you keep track on your desire to do this?

First, take an honest inventory of your fitness level. Based on your fitness level, make realistic goals. Remember, you can't go from sitting on the couch to jogging five miles in just one try. It will take time and a lot of resolve to keep on jogging happily.

In the beginning, set up a distance as your starting point. Should you get tired, you can always walk to catch your breath. Then, jog again when you get your breath back. In time, you will be jogging the entire distance! After you've reached this, increase the distance in small increments each week. Remember, the key is not in finishing the distance in less time but in getting more distance covered.

Also, it is of utmost importance to stretch before and after jogging. If you don't do this, your muscles will feel tight and painful, thus making you stop jogging for a couple of days. Proper stretching will also prevent injuries to your legs and feet while jogging. If and when you do get sore, alternate with walking for a few days until you feel better. This way, you still get to exercise regularly.

Another tip is to jog at your own pace and not at someone else's. Remember, your goals are based on your fitness level. So don't get intimidated when other people jog longer or faster than you do. Compete only with yourself. And never forget to do the following: compliment your efforts, focus on what you have accomplished, and celebrate reaching the milestones and goals that you have set.

A routine route can also be boring. Choose various routes for you to enjoy the view. This will certianly motivate you to continue jogging. But do get a pedometer so you can keep track of the distance that you've covered.

Lastly, dress in layers so you won't get too hot or cold. You can always tie a light jacket around your waist.

Happy jogging, everyone!

Get Rid of Toxins the Natural Way

Today was dubbed as one of the the hottest days of the year. Just playing with our new puppy made me sweat a lot. I just wanted to stay under the shower or inside Nanay's room where the aircondition is. But then, I thought that sweating has its benefits also.

Our bodies contain toxins. These toxins come from the food we eat, stress, and environmental pollution. And when toxins start accumulating in our bodies, our detoxifying organs start working harder. These organs are the kidneys, lungs, intestines, liver, lymphatic and immune systems. Did you know that our skin is also one of these detoxifying organs?

The skin, known as the largest organ in the body, can help in the detoxification process by sweating (or perspiring)! Sweating is not merely for regulating our body temperature.

Because whenever we sweat, toxins also come out of our bodies. Most of us know that sweat contains water. But aside from water, it also contains minerals like urea, sodium, lactate, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and others. When the concentrations of these minerals become higher than normal, our body must secrete them. For instance, urea is a waste product that our body secretes through the urine. Naturally, our kidneys will work harder to get rid of the excess urea in our body. But, as we age, making the kidneys work doubly hard can result in kidney diseases. Thus, instead of just waiting for our kidneys to do the job, we can help by secreting urea through our skin.

Getting rid of toxins through sweat has been used since the Stone Age. And most cultures around the world have their own versions of the sweat bath: Thermae or Balnea in Rome, Onsen in Japan, Banya in Russia, Hamam in Turkey, Sauna in Finland, and many others. This means that people have acknowledged the benefits of sweat baths starting from the Stone Age!

Today, saunas are gaining popularity mainly because more and more people are realizing its health benefits. But not everyone has the time or the money to visit the spa for a sauna. So instead of leaving your house or spending your cash for a sauna, you can still gain the benefits of one right at your own home without spending extra cash! How? Simply by sweating!

Remember, we don't have to go to saunas or spas to detoxify. Start sweating by exercising, dancing, gardening, or doing some household chores. So what are you waiting for? Sweat out those toxins!

Kudos to the Destroyer!

Manny Pacquiao made the entire country proud once more when he defeated Ricky Hatton within 5 minutes and 59 seconds. Kudos to the Destroyer!
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It was a very short fight, I must say. But not knowing much about boxing, all I know is that as a Filipino, I am proud of what he has achieved. I am neither a fan of Manny Pacquiao nor of boxing. But one thing stands out in my memory when talking about the fights of Manny. Years ago, I couldn't remember whom he defeated that day, I used to live in a condo unit in Makati. One afternoon, I set out to clean my room and the living room. While scrubbing the floor of the living room, I heard lots of people collectively shout. Imagine my shock when these shouts pierced the silence of the afternoon. Mind you, I was 12 storeys from the ground. And the shouts were really ear-piercing! Then I thought, what must be happening? And it dawned on me... Manny Pacquiao won again. After that incident, I set out to watching his fights. Eventhough I didn't know any of the technicalities and terminologies in boxing.

Last Sunday was no exception. As Daddylove and I were on our way home from Laguna, we marveled at how easy it was to drive home on a day that Manny Pacquiao had a fight. There were very few cars in sight. And we were home in an hour. A trip that usually takes us at least 2 hours.

Even if ABS-CBN already flashed that Pacquiao won, we were still waiting for the channel 7 coverage to begin with Manny's fight. And it was really mind-blowing! 5 minutes and 59 seconds was all it took! Goodness, it seemed too easy!

After realizing what had happened, it dawned on me how easy it was for Manny to win the crown. At first I thought, "saglit lang daming milyon na naman ang pera nya." But much thought made me realize that it wasn't just minutes. It was months of training. And for Manny to get to where he is know, he put in most of his life into training to be the best boxer that he can be. Looking at his life, he is showing us some keys to success: faith (I always see him praying in a corner of the ring before a fight and his mother prays for him a lot), hardwork and perseverance. It wasn't easy to get to where he is now. It is not easy to achieve success. But if you put your heart into winning, God will do the rest.