| Never Stop Learning: LifeBalance offers numerous courses and programs available for those whose quest for knowledge hasn’t ended with graduation. From art to literature to music to language classes, LifeBalance members have a great deal to choose from in their quest to learn.
For a complete listing of LifeBalance Providers offering courses, classes and seminars, visit the LifeBalance Continuing Education pages.
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Water Treatment: Most people learn to swim at an early age, but never truly improve their stroke after that. The good news is it’s easier than you think if you actually focus on what you’re doing in the water.
Swimming is just like any other discipline; you have to go in with your brain turned on and a goal in mind. If you have no idea what you’re aiming for beyond the wall at the far side of the pool, you won’t see results. So if you are looking to squeeze a little more progress out of your own flipper time, check out these wet and dry prescriptions for the perfect pool program. Run through this checklist in your head the next time you take to the lanes.
- The Head - Swimming with your head out of the water causes your hips to shift downward, creating more resistance in the water and slowing you down. Grab a kickboard, and kick with your face submerged, so that your nose is pointing toward the bottom of the pool.
- The Chest - The torso is the one part of the body you want to allow to sink. Imagine that your weight is pooled in your chest; the rest of your body will stay closer to the surface.
- The Arms - Focus on alternating your breaths from side to side to avoid developing an inefficient windmill arm movement on the side you always breathe on.
- The Legs - Kick from your hips, not your knees. You’ll generate more power and reinforce the rhythm of your stroke by churning your hips back and forth.
On dry land, try strengthening and stretching moves to boost your swim power when out of the pool like an exercise called the standing cobra resistance-band pulldown, which can be done by standing with your feet a little more than shoulder-width apart and with both hands gripping a resistance band over your head; contract your shoulder blades, and pull the band down toward your hips, keeping your arms stiff. Draw in your belly button and keep your hips steady. This will help build every upper-body muscle you use in the pool. The rotator cuff (a group of four tendons that stabilize the shoulder joint; each tendon hooks up to a muscle that moves the shoulder in a specific direction) is a focal point of lap swimming, since it allows the shoulder to rotate. Loosen up the tendons by swinging your right arm forward and in circles, then switch direction and swing the same arm backward. Repeat using your left arm. This will help that newly pumped upper-body stay loose and injury-free. (Global Health & Fitness)
For a complete listing of swimming opportunities, visit the LifeBalance Swimming pages.
Alaska | Idaho | Montana | Oregon | Utah | Washington
Fifteen Super Foods: Here’s a great list of some of the world’s best super foods for you and your body:
- Amazing Avocados - They contain amazing blood pressure lowering amounts of potassium.
- Brain Boosting Blueberries - Antioxidant leaders and plump with fiber and vitamin C.
- Brazil Nuts - Hearty tree nut is a supper source of selenium to help fight cancer cells.
- Broccoli Bonanza - It increases the enzymes in your body to fight carcinogens and cancer.
- Butternut Squash - This tasty fruit is an exceptional source of beta-carotene, vitamin A and calcium.
- Eat More Edamame - Green soybean helps to lower bad cholesterol and strengthens your bones. Just steam them and pop the beans out of their pod.
- Fabulous Flaxseed - The tiny, nutty-flavored seeds are a great source of omega-3 fatty acids and lignans and pack plenty of protein and fiber.
- All Eyes on Kale - Leafy green tops the veggie list in antioxidant power protecting against age-related eye diseases. Collards, spinach and turnip greens also give your body the benefits.
- High-Flying Kiwifruit - Name for New Zealand’s flightless kiwi bird, these berries fly to the top of the list as the most nutrient dense fruit of all packed with potassium, vitamin C, fiber, folate, magnesium and vitamin E.
- Lentils Love Your Heart - These protein nuggets are loaded with heart protective nutrients like folate and fiber.
- Long Live the Onion - The Egyptian symbol of eternity may actually prolong your life. Sulfur compounds, also found in garlic, thin your blood and lower your blood pressure.
- Hurrah for Quinoa - The Incas knew what was good for them as quinoa is a high quality protein and fiber that contains ample magnesium, potassium, zinc, riboflavin and iron.
- Sardine Standouts - Sardines are the number one fish pick for exceptional omega-3 fatty acids to protect your heart.
- We Say Tomato - They are your best source of cancer-fighting lycopene.
- Go for Yogurt - An excellent source of protein and calcium and famed for its friendly bacteria.
Eat your way to health! (Environmental Nutrition)
To keep track of what you eat and more, visit the LifeBalance Food Tracker & Journal.
Each month, Boone Bridge Books features a different title for LifeBalance members. This month's title is:
Kathy Freston, the "New York Times" bestselling author of "The One," is back with a life-changing guide to increasing health of the mind, body, and spirit through small steps that can yield extraordinary changes.
LifeBalance members save 32% on this title!
Buy This Title Now from Boone Bridge Books
Boone Bridge Books offers members at least 25% Savings on all titles (excluding textbooks) ordered from their website.
The
randomly drawn correct answer to this trivia question
wins a LifeBalance Member Event gift certificate to
an upcoming event.
Last
month's trivia question, which asked members to identify a photograph of a LifeBalance Vendor was
correctly answered by Crystal Wright. The correct answer was Wild Waves. Congratulations!
This
month's question is in the form of a photograph from a LifeBalance Vendor in Oregon. Who is this LifeBalance Provider?
To
answer this month's trivia question, simply fill in
the form below.
The
correct answer to this month's question will be revealed
in the next edition of eAction!
 The randomly drawn correct answer to this trivia question wins a $10 certificate from LifeBalance Partner CNCA. Remember, LifeBalance members receive special savings from CNCA. Visit the LifeBalance / CNCA page for details.
Last month's trivia question, which asked about omega-3 fatty acids was correctly answered by Elena David. The correct answer was Fish Oil. Congratulations!
This month's question: Curcumin (Turmeric) is a primary ingredient in curry and can be taken as a supplement. It has the following benefits:
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LifeBalance Food Tracker: The LifeBalance Program is pleased to announce the launch of the new LifeBalance Food Tracker & Journal. Members can search a database of thousands of food items to add to their daily journals, add favorite foods to the list, set their caloric intake goals, monitor progress and more. Log in to your MyLifeBalance account today to get started.
LifeBalance Activity Planner: Plan out your weekly exercise & activity regimen and calculate how many calories you can burn with the new LifeBalance Activity Planner in the MyLifeBalance section of the website.
Inflation Busters: With prices rising on most everyday items, many people have been feeling the pinch of their shrinking wallets. However, being active in your free time does not have to cost you an arm and a leg. Here are some inflation busting activities, tips and even some horrible poetry to inspire you save money, reduce stress and enjoy life.
Visit the LifeBalance Inflation Busters page today.
Reasons to Start Walking: Lila Ojeda of LO Solutions offers up a great list of reasons to begin a walking program today in her article Why Start Walking in the Ask the Experts section of the Wellness Window.
The LifeBalance Wellness Window offers members streamlined access to all things wellness related, including fitness and health club listings, personal coaches, massage practitioners, yoga and Pilates studios and more. The Wellness Window also offers members health and wellness related articles and content including daily fitness tips, healthy recipes, motivational insight, fitness tools, health and wellness calculators and more.
“Today is a new day, a new beginning. It has been given to me as a new gift. I can either use it or throw it away. What I do today will affect me tomorrow. I cannot blame anyone but myself if I do not succeed. I promise to use this day to the fullest by giving my best, realizing it can never come back again. This is my life and I choose to make it a success.” (Pledge of Success)
Get Out of a Rut: Are you finding yourself going to work the same route, eating at the same restaurants, and watching the same television shows? If so you may be stuck in your comfort zone. Yep, the comfort zone is comfortable, but nothing new happens here. No new learning, no new ideas, and no new adventures. As human beings, our brains are actually programmed to do things the same way over and over again to keep us safe. However, if you're stuck in a rut and craving some spontaneity, try doing things differently. Like a great explorer, I invite you to experiment this month with new ways to travel to work, different cuisine, and who knows what could happen if you turn off the television and even venture outdoors. Get out of the rut and into the nut of living. (Brought to you by Jason
Stein Coaching)
Cycling: Biking is an activity that's low-impact, burns many calories, strengthens your heart, tightens and tones your legs, hips and glutes, builds endurance and transports you where you want to go quickly and efficiently. The search for a "human-powered" vehicle was first described by French mathematician Jacques Ozanam in his 1696 publication Recreations Mathematiques et Physiques, in which he describes the advantages of "a device in which one can drive oneself wherever one pleases, without horses." His publication featured a design by Dr. Elie Richard for a massive four-wheeled carriage which could be steered in front by the driver and pedaled in the back by a servant who stepped up and down to drive the axel. This predecessor of the modern bicycle lasted for more than 100 years without significant modification despite many attempts to do so. It wasn't until 1813 when Karl von Drais, a German baron, built a four-wheeled vehicle that carried two to four passengers in which one or more riders worked a crank with their legs while another steered the device with a tiller. This didn't exactly catch on, and so in 1817, von Drais introduced what became known as a draisine or velocipede (from the Latin words meaning fast foot). It was a slender vehicle made almost entirely of wood except for the iron tires which were positioned in a straight line. The rider sat almost completely erect and drove the device forward by pushing off the ground with one foot. Over the next century, the velocipede underwent many modifications as technology improved. In the 1860s the term bicycle was introduced. By the early 1890s, bicycling had caught on. Bicycles were safer, air-filled tires made bicycles faster, and more than 150,000 bicycles had been sold in the United States alone. The improvement in speed naturally sparked road races, and thus long and short distance races sprouted up all over Europe and the United States. Racetracks and cycling clubs grew in popularity and by the end of the 1800s, bicycling was a common method for recreation and commuting to work. By the mid-1930s, European bicycle manufacturers were building lightweight bicycles made of alloy materials (most bikes weighed more than 50 pounds up until then), the geometry of bicycles was changing to create more comfortable and faster bicycles, and gears were introduced to make the riding easier and faster. Ten-speed derailleur bikes became very popular in the 1970s, although they had been invented before the turn of the century in Europe. By the 1980s, high-tech and lightweight frames were made of titanium, alloys of aluminum, and finally carbon fiber (the frame of a road model used by Lance Armstrong weighed only 2.5 pounds). Today more than 15-20 million new bicycles are sold each year in the United States. You're in for a shock if it has been years since you've shopped for a bicycle.
For a complete listing of cycling related providers, please visit the LifeBalance Cycling pages. Don't forget your helmet!
Alaska | Idaho | Montana | Oregon | Utah | Washington
Act Out Your Confidence: Want to feel really great about yourself? Want to add some powerful energy to your life today? Then do something that demonstrates your confidence in yourself. Take on a challenging project, knowing full well that you can apply your time, energy, knowledge and effort to it and get it done. Make a commitment to achieve something you've always wanted to achieve, and then take the bold first step toward making it a reality. You can tell yourself and you can tell others that you have confidence in yourself. But the way to really experience the power of that confidence, and the good things it can bring, is to live it with your actions. Put yourself on the line, because you know you can come through with flying colors. The more confidently you act; the more genuine confidence you'll have. Give energy and positive focus to your actions by taking them boldly and confidently. Act out your confidence in yourself, watch that confidence grow even stronger, and enjoy all the magnificent things your focused and committed efforts can bring. (Daily Motivator)
The Beauty of Time Off: Walk down an Italian street in the month of August and you will hear English, German, French, Chinese; everything but Italian! Windows are shuttered and hotels are lightly staffed. Where is everyone? On vacation of course; taking advantage of their annual allotment of 42 days off from work. Europeans take their vacations seriously. The European Union mandates a minimum of four weeks paid vacation for all employees. Laws mandate a minimum of two weeks vacation in Canada and Japan. The United States is one of the only modern countries without vacation-time minimums mandated by law. We are taking less time off than ever. Studies report that the average number of annual vacation days granted to American employees is a mere 12.4, three fewer days than that of the average medieval peasant. When we have earned vacation, we struggle to use it. Collectively, American workers give 1.6 million years' worth of unused vacation time back to their employers every year. More than one third of Americans don’t use all of their vacation each year. Of those that do take their vacations, 50% are surreptitiously checking their email, voicemail or calling the office to check in. Disconnecting is not something we are doing well. Many employees spend the first day of their vacation tying up loose ends and return from their vacation early to get a jump start on the transition back to work. Studies show that the pressures on workers not to take time off are usually self-imposed. Employers and employees are both beginning to realize the toll vacation deprivation is taking on the workforce. Increased levels of stress and anxiety, rising absenteeism and growing dissatisfaction with work are natural outcomes of too much time at work and not enough play. Some employers are requiring their employees to take at least one to two weeks of time off each year. It may be a stretch of the imagination to envision August in New York ten years from now, quiet and still. We have to start somewhere, and the Grand Canyon does have Wi-Fi. (Brought to you by Xenium)
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For
a complete overview of the LifeBalance Program website,
visit the About LifeBalance section of the site and take a guided tour.
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