ELEMENTS of a HEALTHY LIFESTYLE

Health is a combination of physical, mental, and social well being. You need to take care of all the important dimensions of your life. Personal wellness and good health are largely the result of choices you make. Take the time to review this guide and then let us help you develop a lifelong wellness action plan. Enjoy your life. Be fit, be happy, and feel great.

Make the Necessary Changes:
- Increase awareness by gathering information. Look at reasons to change and think about the results of your current behavior.
- Take a look at the benefits of change. Make a list of the benefits of change and what you would have to do to achieve those benefits.
- Make a plan, set a start date, and write a contract with yourself. Focus on the positive.
- Seek continuing support from those around you. If you relapse, start over again. Keep going.

Cancer Prevention:
One large study concluded that that the sedentary ran four times the risk of getting cancer, compared to the physically fit. Most cancers can be prevented by -
- Limiting exposure to known carcinogens, including too much sun and cigarette smoke.
- Not drinking or drinking moderately.
- Good nutrition habits and maintaining a healthy weight.
- Getting regular exercise.
- Getting periodic exams and knowing the cancer warning signs.

Weight Management:
Fad diets and fast weight loss programs seldom lead to long-term success in weight control and can be a health hazard. Controlling weight for a lifetime requires more than dieting. It requires behavioral changes: a commitment to new ways of eating, new activity patterns, and successful management of emotional issues. If you need to lose weight, don't plan on losing more than one to two pounds per week. Remember, 90% of successful dieters exercise. You will need to develop a systematic exercise program. If you want more help with a specific plan to follow while you are adopting good eating and exercise habits, ask us for our "Eating to Lose Weight" guide.

Dietary Practices:
- Eat a variety of foods daily.
- Choose a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol.
- Get plenty of vegetables, fruits, and grain products.
- Use sugars, salt and sodium in moderation.
- Drinking alcohol is not recommended, but if you do drink, do so in moderation.

Heart Health:
Keeping the heart healthy is basic to life. Anything that restricts circulation impairs health and puts your life at risk. There is nothing you can do about heredity, gender, or aging, but the cause of most heart problems can be explained by the following risk factors. Take action against any risk factors you may have. These include: A personal history of heart disease or diabetes; Total cholesterol over 240 (or LDL over 160 or HDL less than 35); Triglycerides over 400; Smokiing over 10 cigarettes per day; Being very sedentary; Consistent blood pressure over 140 systolic or over 90 diastolic; being more than 30% overweight.

Stress Management:
If stress is a problem in your life and you feel uptight, frustrated, overwhelmed, or mentally drained, plan now to reduce your stress burden. The following steps can be helpful.
- Get at least seven to eight hours of sleep daily.
- Avoid excessive amounts of change in your life all at the same time.
- Use your support systems. Foster meaningful social relationships. Take time to give and receive love.
- Have a positive outlook on life and be nice to yourself. Give yourself rewards.
- Talk out your problems and approach them intelligently and systematically to find effective and reasonable solutions. Accept gracefully those things over which you have no control.
- Learn to relax. Enjoy a good book, take a nap, visit a friend, or go for a walk. If more help is needed, try biofeedback or progressive relaxation.

Exercise:
Regular exercise has many health benefits other that making you look and feel better. Recent articles in the Journal of the American Medical Association and The New England Journal of Medicine offer the following list:
- Heart Health - Inactive people develop heart disease twice as often as active individuals. Inactivity increases the risk of high blood pressure, obesity, and high blood fat levels.
- Osteoporosis - Weight bearing exercises like walking, aerobics and weight training are essential to maintenance of good bone strength.
- Weight Control - Exercise helps controls body fat by burning calories, and strength training builds the lean muscle tissue that burn calories, even when you are at rest.
- Mental Health- Many studies show an association between physical activity and good mental health. Apart from endorphin induced fitness highs, fit people have a better self image, feel better, and have more energy.
- Reduces the risk of dying prematurely by 22%, even for the moderately active.
- Increases insulin sensitivity, improving the body's ability to control blood sugar.