Enjoy your bath

A long soak in the bath is a terrific way to make you look and feel fantastic.

A half hour soak once or twice a week can work wonders for both the body and the mind.

The perfect bath comprises the following key elements:

Environment - We can't all be lucky enough to have a luxurious bathroom but we can all have one that's tidy, uncluttered and distraction free.

Temperature - Bath water should be warm but never too hot. The goal is relaxation not stimulation.

Mood - Light candles or listen to soothing music to further increase the feeling of relaxation.

Oils, salts and bubbles - Use aromatic bath products to intensify the experience and to pamper your soaking body.

Enjoy!

How to Lift Heavy Objects Correctly

Never attempt to lift beyond your ability - it is better to get assistance than to injure yourself.

Plan before you lift something - know where you are going to put the load and how you are going to get it there, etc. It is also advisable to do some warm-up stretches before you start lifting the load.

If the load is on the ground or on a low bench, make sure you crouch beside the load with one foot in front of the other. Use the whole of your hands to grip the load. Keep the load as close to your body as possible. Lift smoothly using your legs to lift you, not your back. It may help to tighten your stomach and bottom muscles before you lift to ‘brace’ your back. Always keep your back straight during the lift. Never bend and twist at the same time with a load in your hands. 

Never lift heavy loads when you are tired.

Danie de Villiers

Listen to Your Body

Always listen to your body and know your body - it will tell you in time when it will need some time out and some nurturing.

Be kind to yourself. Do not compare yourself with elusive images of the perfect models you see on TV or in magazines, but rather acknowledge your own beauty. Remember, you will be less able to see beauty in others if you cannot see it in yourself first. 

Receive compliments with ease. Smile and say thank you when someone comments on how great you look or what a good job you have done. Avoid throwing the compliments back in their face by seeking another or dismissing it altogether. 

It is great to hear positive things about yourself. Acknowledging and receiving compliments with grace is a powerful thing. When you start to acknowledging your own beauty, and treating yourself as if you are your best friend, you will instantly start to feel better. 

Feel good and you will look good. Beauty is illuminated when you feel good about who you are. It shows in your posture, the way you walk, even the way you talk.

Fact File on Sunstroke

Sunstroke is a dangerous condition that occurs when the body’s thermostat breaks down from overheating. It can, and should always be prevented, as even with treatment it may be fatal or cause permanent damage. 

Although we are all used to thinking of this extremely serious heat disorder as something that only happens to people who stay out too long in the hot sun, in fact the heat itself is the problem and not the sun’s rays. For instance, people who find themselves in very hot places such as engine rooms and steel works can suffer the severe effects of ‘sunstroke’ without ever being near the sun. And, for this reason, doctors tend to talk about ‘heat-stroke’. 

The body’s reaction to heat

The body has two main mechanisms for losing heat. First, the blood vessels to the skin are dilated so that more blood flows to the surface, allowing it to lose heat through the skin into the air. Second, the skin is cooled by the action of the sweat glands. The sweat glands pour out their salty fluid on to the surface of the skin. It evaporates, and heat is lost as vapor. 

 Overheating

There are many ways in which the environment can intensify the effects of the heat on the body - it is not just a question of the reading on the thermometer. If the air is humid, then this reduces the ease with which the sweat evaporates, so that it becomes more difficult to lose heat. Similarly, if the air is very still, then less heat is lost from the surface of the body by convection. People doing hard physical work in a hot environment are, of course, producing a lot of heat of their own. They may be losing up to one liter of sweat every hour, compared with the one liter per day of sedentary workers in a temperate climate. This loss of salt and water can contribute to a condition known as heat exhaustion, which, unless checked, can lead to the eventual breakdown of the body’s temperature-regulating mechanism (heat stroke). Fortunately, however, as the body gets used to working in a hot environment, it adapts and the loss of salts decreases, making the body less vulnerable to heat disorders.

Extra risk factors

The very young and the very old are most at risk from heat disorders, and consequently from heat stroke. This is because their bodies’ temperature regulating mechanisms are not very efficient. Also elderly people tend to wear too much clothing in hot weather. 

However, there are several other pre-disposing factors. People who are unused to heat, who are very overweight, who drink heavily, or who are suffering from a feverish illness, in the right circumstances, may all be at a greater risk from heat stroke. 

Symptoms and dangers

The three basic signs of heat-stroke are: a very high temperature (more than 41 ⁰C (106 ⁰F); a total absence of sweating; and, most seriously, nervous system problems which may lead to coma. Disturbances of mood, disorientation and headache, often accompanied by dizziness and difficulty in walking all happen in the early stages of the stroke until, eventually, consciousness is lost. 

Unfortunately, a fully developed heat stroke is an extremely dangerous condition and over 20 per cent of sufferers may die, even with treatment. In addition, those who do recover may have persistent trouble in the nervous system and their balance and co-ordination may take months to get back to normal. However, if treatment is prompt - at the first sign of symptoms and before consciousness is lost – then the chances of recovery are good. 

Treatment and prevention

As soon as any symptoms appear, it is essential to call a doctor immediately. Meanwhile, cool the patient down as quickly as possible. The temperature should be brought down to about 39 ⁰C (102 ⁰F) - no lower as the patient’s circulation may go into shock. The best way to cool the patient down is in a bath of cold water. In hospital, special slatted beds on which sufferers can be doused with water and cooled by fans are used. The most sensible and effective way to fight sunstroke is, of course, prevention.

And this can be done quite simply by ensuring that the body is not overheated. This means not staying out too long in the sun; wearing cool, loose clothing in the heat; taking salt tablets and drinking plenty of liquids when doing physical work in very hot environments. 

Getting Quick Energy

The combination of food eating habits, regular exercise, and self-motivation is the best way to generate quick energy whenever you need it.  

There are moments when all of us feel the need for energy. Unfortunately, there are no magic potions available though there are some high-energy foods (like chocolates of crisps) and stimulants (like tea or coffee) that can give you a temporary lift. But getting quick energy depends on maintaining how to summon up the energy stored inside it. 

Good Eating habits 

Though most of us eat more than enough for our energy needs, we do not always eat in the most efficient way for generating energy. Irregular of unbalanced eating patterns make it hard to tap our energy resources when we need them. 

You should therefore try to eat three meals daily of roughly equal energy value, avoiding hard-to digest, rich, stodgy or fried foods. Some people prefer a bigger breakfast, others eat four or five small meals, with their content healthy and nutritious; you should be constantly supplied with energy. 

If your energy does flag, make yourself a high-protein drink from tomato juice, fruit juice or buttermilk by adding wheat germ or Brewer’s yeast, both high in energy-giving vitamin B. Natural yoghurt and non-fat dried milk are also good energy boosters, either on their own or mixed with fresh fruit, juices, and wheat germ or Brewer’s yeast.

 

Regular Physical Exercise

 Keeping your body in peak physical condition makes energy self-generating. A good keep-fit routine in the morning –even if it means 10 minutes of simple exercise like touching your toes and running on the spot – will limber you up and get your circulation going.

In the evening, after work, you should try harder exercises such as jogging of swimming. Doing these on a regular basis will bring your body into better condition and increase your ability to generate quick energy.  

If, during the day, your energy level falls, you can make it rise again in a number of ways, take a brisk walk or do some keep fit exercises during your lunch hour. 

Self-motivation

Energy has a psychological as well as physical aspect. If you feel enough motivation to do something, you can generally do it if you summon up the necessary energy.  Therefore, when you have a task that requires a rapid release of energy, or when you feel yourself going limp, take a few moments to think about what must be done. Try to motivate yourself by reflecting on the tasks of importance, or thinking about how good you will feel about achieving your goal. Then get up …..and get on with it!

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What is Pilates Exercise?

Pilates is an exercise designed to tone, stretch, and balance and strengthen the body. This is achieved through a series of body movements combined with a focus of breathing patterns. Although equipment can be used, the technique is similar to yoga in the sense that your body is the only tool you need.

There are many benefits of Pilates:

-Increased agility and flexibility

- Improved body strength without developing significant muscle mass

- Improved balance and co-ordination

- Noticeable toning of the body particularly in the thighs, buttocks and stomach

- An overall feeling of mind and body harmony 

Pilates incorporates many of the techniques used by its much older sister Yoga. They are both low impact forms of exercise with a focus on posture, flexibility and concentration. However there are differences. Pilates uses a series of machines and tools where yoga only uses the occasional strap or weight. In Yoga you move from one static position to another, whereas in Pilates you maintain your posture and perform movements from there.