5 Tips to Boost your Weight Loss Plans

Gaining weight is so easy, just being undisciplined in your lifestyle will end you up having a lot of extra weight in a very short span of time.

All you have to do is eat, sleep and ignore work. And suddenly you will see love handles, double chin and tight pants. In short, a messed up life with perhaps knee pain and other overweight symptoms.

Now, when it comes to losing your weight, you will have to do a lot of things. Firstly, control that eating, supplement exercise and other stuff, incorporate zero calories diet and other weight loss ideas like portion control etc. that are mostly not fun. And then you will see results, but it is slow and it will take time.

Here, in this article, we are going to discuss some of the easy weight loss tips.

Source - 48072865@N03

1) Self-control – Weight loss starts with self control. There is never a true need to shut down a particular habit of you which is known to be connected to your weight gain condition. Just have some self control and don’t overdo it. Learn to draw the line and things will be mostly under your control. Eat that junk food if it so matters to you, but in moderation and similarly exercise as much as you wish but keep it steady. Get some discipline in your life and at the end of the day, maintain a small notepad and write down the good things you did and the not-so-good things related to your weight loss targets. Slowly, keep doing the good things like diet and exercise and keep removing the bad ones like junk food and soft drinks.

2) Portion control – I like this concept, here you do not have to stop eating your favourite snacks and other tasty foods but simply lower the amount by taking up small amounts of such foods. Use smaller plates, take small servings and eat less, keep the rest for the next day.

3) Join a Weight loss group – You are surely not the only one overweight around? Look for a group of weight loss enthusiasts in your local area. Then join that group and take part in the weight loss activities that group provides. This way you can see what others are doing and what is working for them and what not. Also, working alongside others who are in a similar condition helps a lot, keeps you motivated and you learn other methods and see the results in real time.

4) Start Gym – Going to gym helps in many ways, one of them is consistency. It is always hard to self-discipline yourself at home. You might do some exercise at home for a few days but then you will get busy with life and forget your fitness routine. On the other hand gym provides a regularity of exercise. You go to gym every day or whatever the schedule you get and stick to it. Remember, it is about consistency that will deliver the results.

5) Do your home based work – This is a different kind of home work, it is known as your regular domestic work at home. Yes, you guessed it right. Clean your home and other related work that you have been either postponing or perhaps you are planning to hire someone to get it done. This is going to save you money and shed some pounds, so why not do it yourself? Clean your garage, sweep that roof, get rid of some cobwebs in the basement and perhaps paint your fence. If you have a garden, perhaps you can get started with it too. Gardening is a great activity, keeps you occupied and contributes a lot in weight loss.

There are no ends to weight loss tips and methods as everyone has something of their own. In short, if your diet is under control and your daily activity is good, then overall you are on the right track to lose weight. Take smaller measures every day, try taking that stair instead of that elevator, quit that tasty junk food for some healthy broccoli or drink plain drinking water instead of that unhealthy soft drink. Small measures and consistency will help you reach your weight loss targets in time.

About the Guest Blogger – Guest blogger is a weight loss enthusiast and suggests you to make proper weight loss strategies and recomends Diet Pill Universe. Look for long term results and lead a healthy life.

10 Health Benefits of Celery

Celery is an almost essential ingredient in stir fry dishes and salads. Some soups, broths, and stews incorporate this crisp vegetable. Even celery greens are added to some dishes in order to add a new dimension of flavor!

There are many myths about celery, foremost among them that ingesting celery gives the body fewer calories than it takes to chew celery. The real nutrition of celery lies in the stalk itself, not just in actually chewing the stalk.

Early experiments by scientists show that celery has several compounds that could help ease a wide variety of ailments. So don’t knock celery for having too much water, or for just being crisp. Here are a few reasons why you should eat celery, and how it can help you keep healthy.

Health Benefits of Celery

Source - clayirving

1. It can boost your immune system - Celery might taste light it has only water, but it actually has high amounts of vitamin C. This antioxidant vitamin isn’t taken lightly: higher amounts of vitamin C can boost your immune system. That’s why taking oranges or lemons when you’re sick can help you recover faster. In the absence of these citrus fruits, try some celery.

2. It can hasten wound healing - The high amounts of vitamin C in celery allow your body to regenerate new cells faster. This can hasten the wound healing process, giving your body a chance to keep out bacterial, fungal, or viral invaders all while your tissues are being rebuilt.

3. Celery helps to regulate blood pressure - Celery contains essential minerals as well as phthalides. Phthalides, in particular sedanolides in celery, help increase the flexibility of blood vessels, allowing them greater leeway to pump blood. The combination of these compounds helps to regulate blood pressure.

Moreover, if you already have high blood pressure to begin with, you can take celery to get your daily dose of sodium. The body easily absorbs and uses the sodium present in celery, keeping the sodium out of your circulatory system.

4. It can help lower cholesterol - The phthalides in celery also increase the production of bile, allowing for better digestion of fats. This can lower the amount of cholesterol in your bloodstream by making your body’s fat metabolism machinery more efficient and faster.

5. It can help prevent cancer - Celery contains coumarins. Although research is still in its infancy, coumarins have been found to prevent cancer, making celery a promising green for health buffs. Of course, cancer prevention comes with a lot of lifestyle changes, and can still depend on genetics.

6. It can help in removing toxins from the body - The combination and balance of minerals in celery makes it a diuretic vegetable. it increases the flow of water out of the body, allowing the body to get rid of toxins through urine. This removal of toxins doesn’t just clean up your digestive and excretory systems; it also makes the rest of your organisms function more efficiently.

7. It can reduce inflammation - Research is still ongoing, but celery is thought to have promising anti-inflammatory properties. This can help treat inflammatory diseases such as arthritis.

8. It can aid in weight loss - Literally, celery doesn’t help you shed pounds, but it can control your appetite. It is high in fiber, making you feel more full than you are. This can help you get rid of other cravings that might be harmful to your body, and that might make you gain weight.

9. It can help ease constipation - Constipation doesn’t just allow toxins to accumulate in your colon; it can also be uncomfortable and take the productivity out of your day. Celery has high amounts of fiber that can help you pass bowels easily, pushing out toxins, cleaning out your colon, and making you feel healthier.

This ability of celery to clean out your colon could also lower your risk of developing colon cancer. Celery actually has several compounds that early lab tests show can contribute to cancer prevention.

10. It might slow the spread of cancer - The research in this respect is still ongoing, but it appears that celery might have compounds that slow down the growth of tumors. These compounds, acetylenics, have been shown in lab tests to stop the growth of tumors, although the question remains as to how much celery one should eat, and if simply eating celery will allow the body to absorb acetylenics.

You can have celery as a snack. Add peanut butter to it and crunch away for some crispy, light afternoon fare. Or pack it up with carrots and cheese for a high vitamin, high protein snack. Blend it with a variety of fruits and vegetables for a smoothie that will perk you up and boost your immune system.

Look for recipes that add celery to a hearty dish, such as stews and stir fries. These dishes will have extra vitamins and can be more nutritious with the addition of celery, among many other vegetables.

These are only a few recipes and ideas that will keep you eating celery. It’s not just about the chewing and crunching: this crispy green really can make you healthy!

About the Guest Author – Inez Ponce de Leon is a writer and researcher, and loves to keep herself active through dance. She also loves writing about health and loves to give health advice. Her work focuses on looking critically at health claims, in particular, Healthy Trim reviews and finding the best brain supplements. She loves to belly dance and fuse different styles with traditional steps in the dance; she also teaches belly dance and loves to teach her students how to be active and strong through muscle control and isolation.

7 Summer Foods to Keep You Cool During the Summer

The hot sun is beating the hell out of everything, what are your best chances to fight against it?

Stay indoors, turn on the AC and grab your TV remote and a bowl of chips, perhaps the best way to relax! The only problem is that we fitness people just hate that kind of idea. It will only make you weak. Rather take on the fight head on with the sun god with some quality foods that beat the summer heat. We discussed aam panna and it works pretty much nicely, but there is more, much more that one can do in terms of summer diet, you just need to explore well.

Foods to keep you cool during summer

Source - araswami

1) Watermelon – Most foods with good amount of water content is good for the summer. Rich in vitamin A and C, and contains magnesium and potassium. The calorie content is low, so it is a good weight loss food as well. This is true for more foods that are high in water content, they keep you well hydrated and does not contribute to your weight.

2) Coconut Water – When the coconut is young, the un-ripe coconut contains water inside it. It is very healthy, contains a lot of minerals and has electrolyte that makes it an excellent sports drink. On a hot summer day, a glass of coconut water can do wonders to your health. It is very low on calorie and sugar but tastes too good.

3) Lassi – It is made from yogurt and is particularly good in the summers. Easy to prepare, just take some yogurt and put it in the mixer, mix some ripe mangoes, some water and a bit of sugar. Mix it well and it is ready. The taste is just brilliant and all you will need is some ice cubes perhaps.

4) Aam Panna – We discussed this one in details in the previous post. Aam Panna is great but since only un-ripe mangoes can be used in this, so you better get them while you can. March and April are basically the best months for this.

5) Yogurt – It is made by fermenting milk with bacteria, once done it looks thick and becomes particularly good in taste. Yogurt is great for health, with iodine, calcium, phosphorous and much other important nutrition; yogurt is arguably the healthiest snack available. It can boost your immunity, make your life longer, keep cholesterol in control and do much more for your good health.

6) Lemonade – Take a glass of water, squeeze a half cut lemon and a spoon full of sugar into it and perhaps some ice cubes and your lemonade is ready. This is perhaps the easiest to make on the list and has plenty of health benefits. It prevents dehydration, boosts immunity, keeps the weight off and fights hypertension. So all in all an excellent summer drink.

7) Butter Milk – After you boil milk and let it cool, you can see cream on the top of the milk. Take this cream, collect daily as it will require quite a bit. Then churn it well. This process will remove butter from cream and the liquid left behind is butter milk.

Those of you who are against sugar might try to replace sugar with honey, but otherwise it is all healthy and great for keeping you dehydrated during the hot summer season. Apart from these Indian spices like Amla, Avocados, etc. fresh fruits and green vegetables, green tea and grilled foods like grilled fish or grilled tomatoes are great to beat the summer heat.

About the Guest Blogger – This blogger loves to eat and can’t wait to enjoy these summer foods and more. Like him if you have trouble keeping track of glucose while gorging on summer treats check out this Wireless Glucose Meter that he uses himself.

9 Tips To Keeping Fit As You Age

When I was younger, exercise was something I just did without thinking. At that age, you’re more concerned with keeping in shape, keeping your weight down, and having fun. So you don’t tend to think about the health and psychological benefits of it all.

As you get older, you become more aware of the health benefits that staying fit can bring. But all the additional responsibilities you have make it difficult to motivate yourself to keep fit, so you have to make some extra effort. Here’s 9 useful tips for aging in a healthy way.

Keeping Fit As You Age

Source - dw_photo

1. Remind Yourself of the Benefits of Staying Fit

Physical Health: As you age, health problems become more of a concern. Staying fit will help prevent many health problems including osteoporosis, heart disease, diabetes, and depression.

Psychological Benefits: Achieving your fitness goals increases your confidence, and helps raise your self esteem.

Staying In Good Shape: It’s easy to believe that the middle-aged spread is just a consequence of getting old. But there is no reason why you should weigh more at 60 than you did at twenty. There are many people who even manage to stick to quite intense workouts like the P90X, even in their later years. Staying in shape and keeping your weight down will make you look good and feel good about yourself.

2. Choose the Right Fitness Program for You -You’ve Got To Enjoy It

There is no point choosing a fitness program you don’t even enjoy. You have a far greater chance of succeeding in your quest to stay fit if you like the exercise you do.

If you exercise in the gym, try spending ten minutes on three different cardio-vascular machines, and 30 minutes doing weights, as opposed to spending an hour on the treadmill.

And if you exercise at home, consider combining exercise like walking, yoga and a weights workout with a set of dumbbells.

3. Include Plenty of Variety

A fitness routine which incorporates various different types of exercise stops you from getting bored. Also, you will be exercising your whole body, so you will see faster results and that will motivate you to keep going.

4. Adapt to the Weather

The weather can have a major impact on your workout routine and your motivation. You may enjoy a nice leisurely jog in the summer but the idea of doing it in the winter sounds like torture.

Prepare yourself in advance for the changing seasons, and plan to replace your seasonal exercise program for a different one. That way, you won’t give up when the weather makes your usual routine less than enjoyable.

5. Keep Track of Your Progress

When you don’t feel like working out, reminding yourself of what you’ve already achieved is a great motivator.

Take Pictures: Keeping a weekly record of pictures that shows your changing physique is a great way to motivate yourself to keep going.

Keep a Weight Chart: If you weigh yourself, chart your progress on a weekly basis.

Set & Record Goals: Set yourself regular fitness goals and record any improvements. The sense of achievement you feel when you look back at your improved performance is a great motivator.

6. Reward Yourself

Set yourself mini-goals and reward yourself when you achieve them. Choose rewards that genuinely appeal to you, so that you are more motivated to work towards them.

7. Work Out With a Friend

Working out with a friend can be fun, plus you can both motivate each other to keep going when the going gets tough. Do pick a friend who is as keen as you are to keep fit though. A friend who isn’t serious about sticking to their regime could do you more harm than good.

8. Invest in a Personal Trainer

If you’ve tried everything and you just can’t get yourself motivated, why not invest in a personal trainer? A skilled personal trainer will increase your motivation in no time at all.

9. Avoid Injuring Yourself

An injury is one of the biggest de-motivators you can experience during your fitness regime. If an injury prevents you from carrying on your fitness regime for several weeks, it can be difficult to get started again. Your fitness levels will have gone down, and you will be out of shape. It can feel like starting over again from scratch.

There are steps you can take to avoid injury during your workout:

• Always warm up and cool down.
• Stretch after you have warmed up and at the end of your workout.
• Wear the appropriate clothing.
• Don’t eat a large meal less than two hours before you work out.
• Take the time to learn to use techniques and equipment properly.
• Use a heart rate monitor to make sure you don’t push yourself too far.
• Vary your routine to make sure you’re not over-exercising a particular muscle group.
• Give your body a rest at least once a week.
• Consult your doctor before you begin a new fitness regime.
• Choose a gym with a qualified instructor who shows you how to use the equipment.

Remember, you are never too old to begin a fitness regime, and regular exercise will have a positive impact on your health. So don’t use age as an excuse not to keep going, or worst still, to stop you from getting started.

About the Guest Author - Derek Carroll runs a popular blog at Wise-Buyers.com where he reviews top selling products in the health and fitness category like Bowflex dumbbells and the P90x workout. His mission is to help consumers choose the best buys and find great deals and savings. In his free time, Derek enjoys spending time with his wife and children in the Lakelands of Fermanagh, Northern Island. He also has a passion for music, travel and philosophy.

8 Foods to Avoid Cancer

Want to keep yourself safe from cancer? Then why not quit the cigarette to start with.

There are a number of other cancer causing foods that you can stop taking as well, this will not guarantee anything and if cancer still has to come, it will. Think of this measure as a preventive measure where you give yourself more of a chance to not get cancer. Read more

9 Health Benefits of Aam Panna

Summers are on and that means, no more waiting for mangoes, go get yours!

Among so many other things that one can relate to the summers, like ski vacations and summer holidays for school children, and the availability of the most desired fruit, that is mangoes. However, if you are wondering about the summer heat and the harsh sun then ripe mangoes might not be the best option for you.

Here, we are going to discuss an underrated and much less known drink that can beat the summer heat and keep you cool and hydrated. And it does not include ripe mangoes, but the raw ones.

Health Benefits of Aam Panna

Source - 36483205@N00

Beat the Heat – It prevents you from heat stroke, gives you an additional edge to fight the summer heat. This is perhaps due to the fact that it prevents our body from secreting excess salt and iron during sweating.

Fight De-hydration – Staying hydrated, especially in the summers is very important and to do that one does need to drink a lot of water. Apart from the water and not counting the bad-for-health soft drinks, this aam panna is perhaps the best option you got. Very easy to make, a lot of water content and good to taste.

Vitamin C – It is rich in vitamin C thus adding nutritional value with the other benefits, making this drink even more important. This feature also helps in boosting our immune system.

Helps in Preventing Diarrhoea – The summer diarrhoea is a cause for worry for many, however this drink can help with that. Keeping dehydrated, keeping salt and iron in the body, it all helps in preventing diarrhoea.

Indigestion and Constipation – It helps in preventing a lot of such diseases and they are all connected with each other.

Fight Diabetes – It is believed that mangoes have a positive effect on diabetes. It can help you in fighting against diabetes. Since this is up for debate, make sure to ask a doctor before putting this into action. The same should be for the rest of the points too.

Beat Anemia – those of you who are low in iron and face diseases such as Anemia can use this drink to your advantage. Being rich in iron it can help you to fight against Anemia.

Anti-oxidants – Antioxidants present in mangoes helps in fighting cancer.

Improves digestion – Another problem that grows in the summer but aam panna can fight the acids and keep your stomach cool.

How to make Aam Panna?

This is the easiest part, this drink is really easy to make. Here is a step by step guide that explains how to make aam panna.

1)      Take some raw mangoes. They are easy to get in the months of march and april, after that they ripe. Do not try this with ripe mangoes, it won’t work.

2)      Peel their outer skin and remove the seed in the center. Throw away the seed. Take the rest and cut it in the smaller parts.

3)      Boil it, and then drain the water. Take the pulp in a container and put some water, sugar and salt. Then mash it well.

4)      Put the liquid in a jug, add some ice cubes and serve chilled.

There you have it, an easy to make and so healthy and tasty to drink, for your good health – Aam Panna.

About the Guest Blogger - Guest author is an expert on dentistry services, for more details, please check out Dr. Safarian

10 Health Benefits of Brown Rice

Every nationality, culture and group of people includes rice as a staple in their diet.

Rice can be found in abundance around the planet. Rice comes with an outer layer called a “hull” which is like a kernel. Once the hull is removed, you have brown rice as we know it. The difference between brown and white rice is that white rice is milled and polished. Read more

Sleep – The New Weight Loss Secret

A new study came up with a surprising health benefit of sleep. Now you can sleep your way to your weight loss success.

The genetic problem regarding weight loss is one of those unfair things that so many overweight and obese people have to deal with. Even if you are not eating enough, your gene will make sure to keep you fat!

Not anymore. This new cool study done on identical twins came up with surprising results. Those that were taking more than 9 hours sleep during the night time were less fat.

Source – eraphernalia_vintage

Why identical twins? Identical twins have similar genetics. So basically, any change that occurs will be due to environmental factors.

This way, the researchers find out the reasons, other than the genes that are responsible for a particular problem. In this case, it is the weight gain.

The study was done on identical twins and non-identical twins. The identical once share the same gene and this difference in sleep time was a major factor in the weight gain or loss in the twins compared to the non-identical ones. Those that got more sleep, that is over 9 hours a night sleep, showed less weight gain. Thus it is known that if you get more sleep then the genes that are supposed to make you over weight, fails to do so.

Apart from this, sleep helps in weight loss in many more ways. Imagine you are a night guy, that is, one that sleeps late in the night. What do you do, apart from watching TV or wasting time on your computer? You eat! Munching on snacks in the night time does sound like a great idea, but it contributes to a major weight gain in the process. Now if you were sleeping tight for hours it would had been a different case.

Anyway, here are a few quick health benefits of sleep, just to let you know that it is not just the weight loss that you should be thinking about. Sleeping has other health benefits too.

Top 5 Health Benefits of Sleep

Live Longer – We have discussed this in the past. A good 8 to 10 hours of night time sleeping can help you to live past 100 years.
Heart Health – Sleeping enough keeps your blood pressure under control and thus improves your heart’s health.
Improves memory – Sleep and dream helps in improving your memory.
Damage Repair – Sleep helps in the repair of your body.
Keeps you alert – Sleep refreshes you and thus you stay more alert.

So, in short, if you sleep more, the obesity gene is somehow suppressed, and it does not contributor to your weight gain, and less sleep means that your obesity gene is going to work over time, thus making you overweight or obese.

Am already feeling sleepy, what about you?

About the Guest Blogger – Sleeping, exercising and proper diet is the secret to good health. For more details on the guest blogger, check out this site at commercial water softener products.

20 Tips for Elders to Feel Young and Healthy

Getting older is a fact of life.

However, your age doesn’t have to determine how young and healthy you feel. Your mindset plays an important role in aging.

Allow your mind to take control and shed years off of your age.

20 Tips to Help you Feel Young and Healthy.

Source – wellyproject

• Choose to participate in life. Sitting around the house doing nothing can make you feel old. Choose to participate in the activities of life rather than wasting it away sitting at home.

• Don’t be depressed about aging, embrace it. Being depressed about your age can make you feel older. Embrace your age and choose to defy the odds.

• Stay on top of your health. Good health is the key to feeling younger. Know that you are doing what you can to stay healthy.

• Eat healthy food. Eating healthy food is the key to living a long life.

• Gardening can keep you active. In an effort to eat healthy food and life longer, choose to grow your own garden. Staying active with gardening is a great way to provide your own food.

• Get plenty of exercise. Make exercise an important part of your life if you want to feel young and healthy. Exercise as least 3 to 5 days a week.

• Keep in contact with your friends. Socialization is important to staying young and healthy. The more time you spend with your friends, the younger you will feel.

• Find new hobbies. New hobbies will keep you adventurous. Adding adventure to your life will help you feel young and healthy.

• Stay with the current trends in fashion. If you want to feel younger, you need to dress younger. Don’t be afraid to show a little skin or stick to the current trends in fashion. No one said that getting older meant that you have to dress older.

• Keep up you appearance. Keep your hair appointment to maintain a youthful experience. Keeping up your appearance will say that you still care.

• Be involved in the community. Being involved in the community will promote the socialization that is so important to feeling young and healthy. Are there areas that you can volunteer in your community?

• Join a gym. Joining a gym will encourage you to exercise. Exercise can make you feel young and healthy. It is also the perfect place to meet new friends.

• Do something that you never thought you could at your age. Don’t let your age put limitations on you. Train to run a marathon or do something else that seems almost impossible at your age.

• Meet new people. Focus on meeting new people to add to your social circle. You may just meet friends who have the same goal and ambitions as you do.

• Stay up to date on technology. Technology is ever evolving. Falling behind in technology can make you feel old. Update your cell phone and learn new computer programs to stay up to date on technology.

• Keep your home up to date. Don’t let your home get behind in the times. Keeping your home up to date can actually make you feel younger.

• Maintain your independence. Do what you can to maintain your independence. Keeping your independence will make you feel younger.

• If you can do it, don’t hire it done. If there are things that you can do, don’t hire people to get the job done. If you can mow your own yard, mow it yourself instead of hiring a lawn boy.

• Travel. To feel younger, go to the places that you dreamed of visiting when you where younger.

• Go back to school. Now, more than ever, older people are choosing to go back to school. It is never too late to get the degree that you always wanted to get. Going back to college can make you feel younger and be very rewarding.

Use the 20 tips listed above to help you feel young and healthy. The key to having a successful later adult life is to stay active. What will you do to help you feel younger today?

About the Guest Blogger – This post is contributed by 1001WalkingCanes.com – a store for elderly to buy fashionable walking canes and sticks.

How your Diet can Increase your Pleasure in Life

You may not believe it, but your diet can seriously affect how much pleasure you get out of life.

I’ll say that again. What you eat affects your mood.

The science behind the claim

There are chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters which pass on information between parts of the brain. One of the most important neurotransmitters for transmitting pleasure, motivation and excitement is dopamine.

Dopamine also helps to control motor functions, hormone regulation, the immune system, and blood circulation, so it is essential to our general well-being. A low level of dopamine can cause a number of medical and psychological problems including lack of motivation, anhedonia (loss of feelings of pleasure), fatigue, bad circulation, weight gain, apathy and depression. Dopamine deficiency is sometimes treated with anti depressants, which may in themselves cause further problems including manic phases, suicidal thoughts, sleeplessness or drowsiness.

However, there is an alternative. Studies have shown that some foods are dopaminergic, in other words they increase the levels of dopamine in our system. So besides a generally healthy diet, there are specific foods you can eat which will increase your mood because they increase the levels of dopamine.

Food for your mood

Source – thevortext

To increase your mood, you should focus on foods from ALL of the following groups. If you only focus on foods from one group, it could be detrimental to your health, and it will also make your diet extremely boring.

1. Dopaminergic foods – Foods which contain high levels of tyrosine are dopaminergic. These include soy products such as miso, tempeh, natto and fuyu, as well as products such as avocados, almonds, spirulina and organic eggs and dairy.

2. Whole foods – Whole grains such as whole wheat, barley, oats etc. These are much better for you than refined grains. If you eat bread or cereal for example, check that the grains used are whole grain. Also, use unrefined, whole rice and pasta. It should say on the packaging if the product is made from whole grain. Manufacturers are starting to realize the importance of whole grains now so tend to advertise this fact more.

3. Fruit and vegetables – These are really important in a diet. Try to include a wide variety of fruit and vegetables in your diet, and buy organic where possible. Organic products will not have used any harmful chemicals in the growing or production process so are generally much better for you.

Fruit and vegetables are rich in fiber, and also in vitamins. It is important to remember that many nutrients can disappear if you overcook them so try and eat raw or lightly steamed vegetables rather than ones which have been cooked for a long time.

4. Protein – Everyone needs protein in their diet, but not everyone wants to eat meat. There are other sources of protein available which are also mood enhancing foods, such as lentils and beans. If you are unsure what to do with these, then there is a vast range of recipes on-line for you to try.

5. Supplements – There are some supplements which specifically treat low dopamine levels, such as L tyrosine, Mucuna pruriens, Rhodiola and Green Tea. Omega 3 fats are also needed by the body to produce neurotransmitters. One popular way to get Omega 3 is in fish oils, but it can be taken as a supplement if you don’t get enough Omega 3 in your natural diet, or you don’t want to eat fish.

Other ways to improve your mood

Besides a healthy diet, one of the most important ways to improve your mood and increase the amount of pleasure you can get from life, is by exercising.

Exercise releases a chemical similar to dopamine, and this is why people often feel on such a “high” when they’ve been to the gym or participated in sport or exercise.

There are so many different exercise programs available but I personally found that the p90x DVDs were fantastic. I couldn’t believe how good I felt afterwards. And with my healthy diet, I’ve noticed a difference physically as well as mentally.

Of course if you are going to invest in exercise equipment to use with an exercise program then you want to make sure you are getting the most suitable equipment. I looked at a few adjustable dumbbell reviews to find the most suitable ones to use with the DVDs in my home gym, and was really pleased with what I got.

Relaxation is also very important to keep yourself on an even level mentally and physically, and it shouldn’t be neglected. Whether you take time out to have a long hot bath with candles and soft music, or whether you meditate, paint, or cook to relax, you should take time out every day to forget whatever troubles you have.

I hope this article has given you some good advice, and that you can help yourself to enjoy life a little more. After all, life is there to be enjoyed, and always remember the old saying: “variety is the spice of life, and the mother of enjoyment”, keep a broad mind for new experiences too.

Have you got any tips to share?

About the Guest Blogger -Derek Carroll has his own website at wise-buyers.com, where he offers reviews of health and fitness products like the P90X schedule and the popular Bowflex Selecttech dumbbells. He lives with his wife and two kids in Northern Ireland where he enjoys listening to music and finding everything positive that life can offer.