Your 7 days program to self-improvement

I seem to lost count on how many times I've read and heard of celebrity marriages failing almost left and right. Not that I care (and personally I don't), it seems strange that we often see movie and TV stars as flawless people, living the fairytale life of riches and glamour. I suppose we all have to stop sticking our heads in the clouds and face reality. There are many ways to lose your sense of self-esteem despite of how trivial it could get. But whatever happens, we should all try not to lose our own sense of self. So what does it take to be a cut above the rest? Here are some of the things you can think and improve on that should be enough for a week. 1. Know your purpose Are you wandering through life with little direction - hoping that you'll find happiness, health and prosperity? Identify your life purpose or mission statement and you will have your own unique compass that will lead you to your truth north every time. This may seem tricky at first when you see yourself to be in a tight or even dead end. But there's always that little loophole to turn things around and you can make a big difference to yourself. 2. Know your values What do you value most? Make a list of your top 5 values. Some examples are security, freedom, family, spiritual development, learning. As you set your goals for 2005 - check your goals against your values. If the goal doesn't align with any of your top five values - you may want to reconsider it or revise it. The number shouldn't discourage you, instead it should motivate you to do more than you can ever dreamed of. 3. Know your needs Unmet needs can keep you from living authentically. Take care of yourself. Do you have a need to be acknowledged, to be right, to be in control, to be loved? There are so many people who lived their lives without realizing their dreams and most of them end up being stressed or even depressed for that matter. List your top four needs and get them met before it's too late! 4. Know your passions You know who you are and what you truly enjoy in life. Obstacles like doubt and lack of enthusiasm will only hinder you, but will not derail your chance to become the person you ought to be. Express yourself and honor the people who has inspired you to become the very person you wanted to be. 5. Live from the inside out Increase your awareness of your inner wisdom by regularly reflecting in silence. Commune with nature. Breathe deeply to quiet your distracted mind. For most of us city slickers it's hard to even find the peace and quiet we want even in our own home. In my case I often just sit in a dimly lit room and play some classical music. There's sound, yes, but music does soothe the savage beast. 6. Honor your strengths What are your positive traits? What special talents do you have? List three - if you get stuck, ask those closest to you to help identify these. Are you imaginative, witty, good with your hands? Find ways to express your authentic self through your strengths. You can increase your self-confidence when you can share what you know to others. 7. Serve others When you live authentically, you may find that you develop an interconnected sense of being. When you are true to who you are, living your purpose and giving of your talents to the world around you, you give back in service what you came to share with others -your spirit - your essence. The rewards for sharing your gift with those close to you is indeed rewarding, much more if it were to be the eyes of a stranger who can appreciate what you have done to them. Self-improvement is indeed one type of work that is worth it. It shouldn't always be within the confines of an office building, or maybe in the four corners of your own room. The difference lies within ourselves and how much we want to change for the better.

Cookie Cutter

Most diet plans, including low carb diet plans are best taken with a grain of salt, because although one may work for your best friend, it may not work for you. For those with serious weight problems and have co-existing issues such as hyperglycaemia (high blood sugar levels) or like some of us hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar levels) etc., the popular diet plans usually will not be able to cater to individual needs. We are all individuals and as such we need to feed ourselves as individuals, having said this some diet plans will be more beneficial for the general population that others. To assess which particular diet plan will be beneficial, you can follow these guidelines. They are very much common sense points, and provide a good framework which many nutrition professionals would broadly follow, and within which you can divide the scammy diet plans from those that can offer you safe and healthy diet ideas.

Diet offers sufficient balance and a variety of carbohydrates, protein and fats. Diet does not exclude one particular food group, and encourage excessive consumption of another. Diet encourages exercise to complement sensible eating habits. Diet encourages awareness of portion sizes. Diet does not encourage unrealistic quick weight loss. Diet is backed up with medical research data.

In addition to these points, I've broadly outlined the low carb diet plans, which seem to be occupying the minds of dieters and researchers alike, as well as the research for and against pertinent to the low carb diet plans. Low Carb Diets A lot of the diet plans these days center around the low carb diet plans. These low carb diet plans are considered by some diet fads, others consider it the new wave in healthy eating. Diets such as The New Atkins Diet Revolution maintain that obese people are insulin sensitive and carbohydrates make them gain weight. Low carb diet plans such as The Zone lay down specific proportion of carbohydrates, protein and fats that should be consumed in order to lose weight and while fats are reduced, the main source of energy comes from the consumption of protein. Low carb diet plans such as Sugar Busters, believe that sugar is your body’s most heinous weight loss enemy and since carbohydrates are the foods that are processed into sugars – carbohydrates should be limited. The Scarsdale Diet also is a low carb, high protein diet and offers a 2 week crash dieting plan. Popular diets such as the South Beach Diet and the Carbohydrate Addicts Diet are also low carb diet plans that have become popular with dieters who have tried and failed at the Atkins diet. All these diets see themselves as the worlds answer to the obesity problem. To be fair, there are significant and many research papers that support and argue against the low carb revolution, as yet the wider medical community has not fully made it’s mind up as to whether the diets are something that is favourable in the long term. Recent research by Layman et. al., and Saris have found that the low carb and high protein diets provide little benefit to dieters. Researchers found that when protein was moderately increased and carbohydrates proportionately decreased, insulin levels stabilised but no significant weight was lost. Saris in his review concluded that it is probable that a low carb, high fat diet will increase the likelihood of weight gain. While there is a lot of evidence against the low carb philosophy, there is also a lot of evidence to support it. Research published in May, 2004, found that when patients on a low carb diet were compared with patients on a low fat diet, those patients who had consumed a low carb diet had a greater weight loss, decreased triglyceride levels and increased levels of HDL's - in other words their cholesterol levels had improved. To put the icing on the cake research has just been published to support the long term efficacy of eating a low carb diet.Despite the evidence to support low carb diet plans, mainstream medicine still does not recommend them. The main points of contention with the low carb, high protein diets is that they don’t offer balance and variety and could prove dangerous for people at risk of heart disease. Particularly with low carb diet plans such as the scarsdale diet, they are not realistic and cannot be maintained in the long term causing yo-yo dieting and no one wants that !

beauty salon

Life is hectic; it’s true. There are so many things that demand your time and attention. Between work, kids, family and household chores, there is precious little time left over for you. So, it is completely understandable why things like salon reservations get pushed to the end of your priority list. But is it at the end of the “to do” list where your next hair trim belongs?


The answer to that question is, of course, no. There are many reasons why you should keep your salon reservation. Aside from taking a little bit of time and relaxation for yourself, which I know is not going to motivate you since all of your energy goes toward enriching the lives of others and not your own, there are many practical reasons why you should not call and cancel your next reservation.
Here are 5 Reasons:

1. Keeping up with hair maintenance saves you time. You know how it is, your hair is doing just fine until that fateful morning on which you realize that your hair is way past due for a trim. It just won’t do anything. So, after hours of trying to coerce your hair into the style that it held beautifully just yesterday you resign yourself to the fact that nothing except a haircut will fix your bad hair day. But we all know that a spur-of-the-moment haircut is hard to come byThat means that you will spend the next week or so wasting time trying to style your overgrown locks while waiting for your reservation. Only if you would have kept your original reservation. You see, getting a regular trim, even if you think you can squeeze by another week or two, prevents this mess from happening in the first place. A cut that is the perfect length and shape will be a breeze to style in the mornings, and that will save you time.

2. Keeping your reservation saves you money. If your stylist has regular opportunities to keep your hair in tip top shape, he or she will have to do less in the long run to keep you looking beautiful. If you continually let your style grow out or let your color fade, your stylist will have to do more work to bring your wayward tresses back in line again. More work equals more time, and we all know that time equals money.

3. There is never a better time than today to get your hair done. Sure, we all think that we’ll have more time next week, that our work load will be less than it is today. But does that ever really happen? Let’s face it; next week will be just as busy as this week. And when you’re busy, a little bit of R & R will give you the energy that you need to keep going.

4. Another reservation is weeks away. Why do you go to your stylist? It’s because he or she is a fantastic stylist and knows your hair inside and out. Well, if your stylist is this great with you, I’m sure there are other clients dying for your stylist’s services. If you miss this reservation, it could be weeks before you get another one.

5. Keep your reservation out of respect. When you make a reservation, your stylist carves out time from a hectic day to cater to you. If you don’t show or cancel at the last minute, your stylist will end up sitting around making no money when he or she could have filled that time slot with another guest. Canceling reservations repeatedly may cause you to be placed on a pay in advance or last minute reservation list. Or even in some cases you can get fired for missing too many reservations.

Granted, sometimes things happen that make canceling an appointment a necessity. When this is the case, be sure to give a minimum 24 business hours and reschedule as soon as you can. Not only will your stylist thank you, but your hair will as well.

younger looking skin

Although there is no conclusive proof that antioxidants keep skin from aging, experts do agree they have the ability to ‘capture’ free radicals and may protect us from certain diseases. Antioxidant-rich foods can also give us a healthier, glowing complexion.
According to Susan M. Kleiner, R.D., Ph.D, a Seattle-based nutritionist, eating foods rich in antioxidants is best.

“There’s no substitute for getting nutrients through food. The body absorbs and assimilates them far better than in supplement form.”

Kleiner suggests following the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Guide Pyramid, and eating three to five servings of vegetables and two to four servings of fruit each day. Choose at least one citrus fruit, such as an orange, a tangerine, or a grapefruit, for vitamin C. To increase beta-carotene intake, eat at least two orange-yellow or leafy green vegetables each day.

Eat Right for Younger Looking Skin

Eating healthy equals younger looking skin. Drinking a cup of orange juice and eating one raw carrot provides twice the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) of vitamin C and beta-carotene. The RDA for vitamin E is harder to meet, especially for those on a low-fat diet.

“Don’t be afraid to add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to your diet, or to eat some nuts or seeds,”

advises Dr. Kleiner.
The following guideline can be used for RDAs for three of the most common antioxidant nutrients, vitamin C, vitamin E, and beta-carotene; good sources and how best to maximize benefits of each are included.
Vitamin C:  RDA at least 60 mg. (1/2 cup orange juice = 70 mg.)  Citrus fruits and juices and tomatoes are good sources of vitamin C. Eat whole fruit for extra fiber. Avoid juice in glass containers, and heat-pasteurized juice. Light and heat destroy some of the vitamin C.
Vitamin E:  RDA 8 mg for women / 10 mg. for men (1 tablespoon of canola oil = 9 mg.)  Good sources include nuts, seeds and their oils, fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, halibut, and trout, and wheat germ. Use canola, olive, or another vegetable oil in place of butter or margarine when cooking.
Beta-carotene:  no established RDA. Expert Dr. Kleiner, however, recommends 5-6 mg. ( One carrot = 12 mg.)  Orange and yellow vegetables, and leafy green vegetables, including broccoli, are all good sources. Instead of potato chips or popcorn for an evening snack while watching television, opt for prepackaged, washed and peeled baby carrots.
If you feel you are unable to meet the RDAs through diet alone, by all means take an all-in-one antioxidant vitamin supplement a day, but continue to pay attention to rich food sources.

Summary  

Because many over-the-counter cosmetics containing antioxidants don’t have enough to be totally affective by themselves, it is best to ‘feed’ them to your skin in combination with a healthy, antioxidant rich diet for younger looking skin.
We at Savvy Spa Luxuries care about you and your wellbeing. With proper skin care, a healthy diet, regular exercise, adequate sleep, and ample amounts of water, you can enjoy a more fit body, improved quality of life, increased stamina, and a glowing complexion!