Hi girls,
I hope you all went to meet Pn. Rozmel regarding our group's draft.As she is not satisfied with our draft, we should work on a better draft. If you all couldn't make it, I've to work on my own. Sorry.

What Does A Healthy Diet Consist Of?

A healthy diet should contain a wide variety of foods including lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, starchy foods such as bread and pasta, protein from meat, fish and eggs and some dairy products. A healthy diet should be as low as possible in saturated fat, sugar and salt.

Try some of these tips to help you eat better. Most meals should be based on starchy foods such as bread, rice and pasta and the wholegrain versions of these if possible. They are an excellent source of energy and provide a wide range of vitamins and minerals.

It is recommended that we should eat more fish than we currently do including one portion of oily fish such as salmon or mackerel each week. Oily fish contain omega 3 fatty acids which is necessary for a healthy heart.
Eat more fruit and vegetables. Most people know that we should be eating 5 portions a day but many people don’t. Fruit and vegetables are an excellent source of fibre and they are low on calories. A healthy diet should be low in saturated fat because it can increase cholesterol levels, block arteries and lead to heart disease. By reducing consumption of foods such as meat pies, sausages, biscuits, cakes and butter you will be able to reduce the amount of saturated fat in your diet. Try and eat more healthy fats from sources such as avocados, nuts and extra virgin olive oil.

Aim to drink 8 glasses of water each day to stay properly hydrated and to ensure the body has all the water it needs to function properly.

Eating healthy does not mean banning all your favourite foods as this will only make you crave them more. Eat everything in moderation and the occasional treat will do you no harm whatsoever.

How To Live A Healthier Lifestyle

.There are a number of simple ways to live a healthier lifestyle that can make a great deal of difference to the way you look and the way you feel. By improving your diet and doing more exercise you will increase your energy levels and reduce your risk of health issues that are associated with being overweight. One of the main risks of being overweight is an increased risk of diabetes. If you want to learn about diabetes related health issues and how to achieve target blood sugars there are many health websites online that will help you to do this.

One of the best things that you can do to lead a healthier lifestyle is to quit smoking. Smoking has many well known health issues such as the many forms of cancer that it can give you but it is also bad for the skin and causes premature aging.

If you want to lead a healthier lifestyle making some changes to your diet is a good place to start. Cutting down on the amount of junk food that you eat and the amount of alcohol that you drink is an easy way of improving your diet. Increase the amount of healthy fats in your diet by eating more avocados, nuts and berries. Make sure that you eat your five a day of fruit and vegetables as a great way of getting all the fibre and vitamins and minerals that your body needs. Being properly hydrated is essential if you want to look and feel at your best so aim to drink 8 glasses a day.

Doing more exercise is a good step on the road to a healthier lifestyle. Any increase in activity will help to burn off excess calories and help to tone muscles as well as releasing feel good endorphins into the bloodstream.

What are the components of a healthy lifestyle?

A healthy lifestyle should mean that you are physically fit and have good mental and emotional health. It is important to try and achieve a balance of all three if you want to live a healthy lifestyle. After all what is the use of being physical fit if you are stressed out all the time and can’t sleep at night.

With the increasing pace of modern life it can sometimes be hard to find the time to lead a healthy lifestyle. Many times we eat the wrong types of food that we know aren’t good for us simply because they are convenient and we don’t have time to get anything better. If snacking at work is a problem for you start planning ahead by bringing a healthy snack into work with you and make sure that you have a good breakfast in the morning.

Exercise is a very important part of a healthy lifestyle. Exercise is good for improving strength and flexibility and it also boosts the metabolism. Exercising also releases feel good endorphins into the bloodstream which improves mood and well being. Any exercise is good for you but it is best to do some light strength training as well as cardiovascular work. Yoga is an excellent way to exercise for people of all ages.

If you are feeling stressed or tired all the time have a look at your work life balance. All work no life? Then you need to make some time for yourself to de-stress and relax. Try aromatherapy or having a massage as a good way of relieving tension. Make sure that you get enough sleep each night-seven hours is the minimum you should be aiming for but even an extra half hour each day will make a great deal of difference to energy levels.

Introduction To A Healthy Lifestyle

A healthy lifestyle should mean that you are physically fit and have good mental and emotional health. It is important to try and achieve a balance of all three if you want to live a healthy lifestyle. After all what is the use of being physical fit if you are stressed out all the time and can’t sleep at night.

With the increasing pace of modern life it can sometimes be hard to find the time to lead a healthy lifestyle. Many times we eat the wrong types of food that we know aren’t good for us simply because they are convenient and we don’t have time to get anything better. If snacking at work is a problem for you start planning ahead by bringing a healthy snack into work with you and make sure that you have a good breakfast in the morning.

Exercise is a very important part of a healthy lifestyle. Exercise is good for improving strength and flexibility and it also boosts the metabolism. Exercising also releases feel good endorphins into the bloodstream which improves mood and well being. Any exercise is good for you but it is best to do some light strength training as well as cardiovascular work. Yoga is an excellent way to exercise for people of all ages.

If you are feeling stressed or tired all the time have a look at your work life balance. All work no life? Then you need to make some time for yourself to de-stress and relax. Try aromatherapy or having a massage as a good way of relieving tension. Make sure that you get enough sleep each night-seven hours is the minimum you should be aiming for but even an extra half hour each day will make a great deal of difference to energy levels.

WHY YOUR DIET FAILS?

Results are not magical when trying to maintain a diet. Many people initially start out very optimistic when trying to lose weight and stay fit, faithfully going to the gym and burning more calories than their calorie intake. When they don’t get the results they want in the time they expect, however, the enthusiasm falters.

Normally, the stricter the diet plan, the least likely it is for the subject to stick to it. On average, people stay on a diet for about six months, even much shorter when diet plans are entirely different from the eating pattern that the person is used to. There are many reasons for failure to maintain a diet, here’s the list of the four most common.

Studies have shown that the following are the four leading causes of failure to stick to a diet:

1. Wrong Diet Choice

Diet plans are not custom made to individual needs; hence, there is no best choice in this area. Lifestyle is a major determinant in choosing the diet plan suited for you. The plan should fit your lifestyle and should not be difficult to follow, initially; otherwise, keeping the diet going for a long time would be very tedious. The ideal diet should be one that the dieter could easily adjust to and stick to like it was his/her normal diet. It should also allow the dieter to enjoy his/her favorite food items from time to time.

Tip for Diet Success: A viable diet is one that you can stick to for a long time, even for a life time. Let your lifestyle determine your eating plan; just make sure that it is a healthy diet plan. People who lose weight successfully are those who are vigilant in minding their lifestyles. It is very difficult to lose weight and keep it off, hence, the added vigilance required for the lifestyle of a dieter.

2. Unworkable Expectations

There is no magic potion for losing weight quickly and dieters who expect to lose weight in a very short span of time are in for a great disappointment. To add to this, almost all dieters expect to lose 30% to 40% of their total body weight and if they don’t achieve this, they easily give up. Setting very high expectations can translate to utter disappointment when these expectations are not met. You are most likely to fail if your expectations are too high, and when you fail, the resulting stress or depression can send you back to your old eating habits.

Tip for Diet success: Achieving the weight that you have set your sights on should not be considered the only reward for your dieting efforts. Losing 10% of your body weight can be very healthy in the long run. The 10% that you lose from your total body weight can work by lowering blood pressure, cholesterol and triglyceride levels, as well as resolve glucose sensitivity and sleep apnea. This also gives you a general feeling of well being.

3. Exercise-less Dieting

Dieting goes hand in hand with physical activity. For a diet plan to work, this should be accompanied with some form of physical activity that you can do for most days of the week. Success in losing weight also requires being physically active, regularly. Of course, other than weight loss, exercise also has other health and psychological benefits.

Tip for Diet Success: Do not limit your concept of exercise to the gym. Exercise can come in many forms; even day to day activities that you enjoy doing can be forms of exercise. Gradually increase your intensity when the activity feels like it’s too easy for you. Pool workouts can also give you the extra benefit of water resistance, plus, the buoyancy from water relieves strain from the joints. How about counting your steps everyday using a pedometer? Just aim for 10,000 steps a day and you’re well on your way. Always make sure to talk to your doctor about your physical restrictions before trying any form of exercise.

4. Static environment

While it is true that a strong will can help in losing weight, such is not all that you need. You also have to create an environment that would encourage your diet plans whether at home, at work, or with friends. If you want to lose weight successfully you have to get rid of temptations in your surroundings, such as not keeping a candy stash or limiting your night-outs where you are bound to consume huge amounts of alcohol. Your family and friends also play an important role in your quest for weight loss; without their support it would be impossible to achieve your goals.

Tip for Diet Success: You need to get your family and friends into your weight loss plan. Have diet-friendly foods and ingredients in your kitchen so that you have what you need to prepare healthy meals and snacks. Pack up on these nutritious foods so that you can grab one anytime you feel the urge to eat. Stay away from temptations.

TAKEN FROM healthy.lifestyle

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IS MALAYSIA REALLY IN BETTER SHAPE TODAY?

With mega gyms mushrooming all over the country and the fitness industry thriving here in Malaysia (which I believe is still very much at it’s infancy), I must say that over the past few years, I have personally noticed an increased INTEREST among the public when it comes to keeping fit. Yes, there are definitely way more gym goers now than before.

Even just last night, while I was having dinner at Finnegan’s at MidValley Megamall, this guy at the table next to me was showing off his fancy new dumbbells to his friends at his table. He was even making a fool of himself in the restaurant trying to simulate a run with his new toys, but hey.. that tells me something besides the fact that he’s had too much to drink - its the fact that he is interested to keep himself fit. It’s a good thing… really… but let’s just take a few steps back and think of the bigger picture today - are we, as a nation, really in better shape today than we were before?

Look around you the next time you’re out in the city - we have access to exercise facilities, gyms, freely available information on health and exercise, healthier eating options at certain places.. but as a nation, has it really brought us any good?

The rapid developments in the areas of science, nutrition, the better understanding of the human body today… has it impacted our lives like it should? Is our nation today in a better state than it was before?

Many of us were taken by surprise with the shockingly true statistics when the New Straits Times ran a frontpage story entitled FAT NATION (yes, thats us - Malaysia) last year on the 29th of September, 2006. The MySon (Malaysian Shape of the Nation survey) revealed that:

- Malaysia has the MOST number of fat people in the Asean region, exceeding that in many developed countries, including Germany and France
- 54% of our adult population are either obese or overweight, up from 24% 10 years ago.
- 48% of our adult males and 62% of our adult females are fat.

The report also went on to reveal the reason which was believed to be the cause of all this - the good life, and the unhealthy lifestyle in Malaysia. Too much fast food, carbonated drinks, and a lack of exercise (for example, today, we prefer lifts/escalators instead of stiarcases).

Honestly, I dont think that living a good life is a decent ‘excuse’ to justify the state some of us are in. It is more of the changing of our lifestyles, which comes along with the good life we’re living today.

Our jobs today are more sedentary in nature than ever. We hire foreign labourers to get the hard physical jobs done. When was the last we picked up the broom and swept, and mopped our floors dry at home? We’ve left it all to the maids we hire from Indonesia. Some even get the maids to wash their cars.. or send it to the automatic car wash.

Now, food.

A simple example of the McDonald’s outlets in the United States having healthier grilled options, and KFC having GRILLED CHICKEN (yes.. they’re not stuck with FRIED chicken only) shows the pathetic immature state of the demand for healthy eating options here in Malaysia. It’s sad, honestly, and you may be amused to know that I sometimes have to resort to squeezing my chicken nuggets between paper towels or wiping off the mayonnaise from the burgers at fast food restaurants here just so that I can have my own version of a healthy menu item.

Then, there is white rice. Now, don’t get me started!! Ridiculously large helpings of white rice is basically our staple food. Many say that rice is ‘fattening’ (by the way, I dislike that term because ANYTHING eaten in excessive amounts lead to weight gain, not just rice!). If it’s not rice, then it’s white bread. In Malaysia, the Malays love the breakfast of white rice cooked in coconut milk - Nasi Lemak (so famous I think it should be called our National Dish!). Nasi Lemak is a real killer when you take into the consideration the sambal (ground chillies paste) which come soaked in a pool of oil. The Chinese love pork, the Malays and Indians (Indians especially!) consume way more rice than they should with oily curries, spread over 3 large meals over the entire day, not inclusive of the snacks in between. The portions/ratios of carbohydrates, proteins and fats have all been distorted. Today, instead of consuming a balanced meal consisting of protein + carbo + fats, alot of times, our plates are filled with carbo, more carbo, fried carbo, steamed carbo.. all topped with a little bit more carbo. I’m sure you get what I mean.

We also take more coffee/tea breaks than we need to, and these breaks are accompanied by curry puffs, doughnuts, and yes, even NASI LEMAK again. I was once at our Ministry of Defence for a 10AM meeting, and their break included oversweetened coffee, fried noodles, and yes.. NASI LEMAK. This is the culture we’ve grown to practice.

Although us Malaysians are more health conscious today than before, and gyms mushrooming all over.. are we seeing the results we rightfully deserve? Or has it just become another fad, another craze to be seen carrying a gym bag at a cool looking gym, or simply the craze of having a gym membership?

Are we really reaping the benefits of the growing fitness industry here or have we just found the biggest and sneakiest excuse to GET FAT? You tell me. How many of us can read the above statistics and proudly say - Hey DM, thats not me..?

As more of us become busy, the more time we spend sitting still at our offices with sedentary jobs, I really wish that progress would mean a progressing healthy lifestyle too.

You know people… I actually started this writeup to comment on the opening of the new True Fitness gym at Petaling Jaya… I even took pictures of gym under construction with my camera phone - but it kinda got skewed to something totally different.

taken from dailymuscle on March 28, 2007