Its been a while since I last blogged but I haven’t been wasting my time.

Some time ago Barry and I decided that we wanted to make some major life changes – basically, to cut back on work, downsize, explore a bit more of the world and also examine what improvements we could make to our health and lifestyle.

So, we  tidied up some loose ends and set off to San Diego, USA for three months to escape the British winter. Our aim: to relax,think about our plans for the next two years and beyond and to investigate raw food.

So, we’re here, we’ve been in our rental apartment on the beach for a month now and we are certainly chilled, but what of our lifestyle changes?

Perhaps now I should explain that we’ve always espoused a healthy lifestyle, but nobody is perfect, bad habits creep in – working crazy hours, eating on the run, late nights, early mornings, too little fresh air or sun. Do I need to go on? I’m sure you’ve fallen into at least some of these traps.

So, raw food, Well, we said we’d be flexible in our plans and, having researched extensively and finally found an holistic nutritionist, we arrived on her doorstep, jetlagged and exhausted and were told in no uncertain terms that neither of us should even consider a raw diet.

I still love the idea but, as I suspected, our health issues and the fact that we live in a cold climate are against us.

Our nutritionist looks the absolute picture of health so we decided to take her advice for the time being.  Despite being part of a wellbeing cooperative that has a complete service of consultants, testing and therapists, she suggested that we keep our costs down as much as possible and start out by following a “Clean Eating” plan.

So off we went with a couple of bottles of pills (more about this later), a tub of protein shake and a list of instructions to follow.

So, how did we get on?   Be patient and I’ll tell you in a few days.

Lorraine Terry

Back in the day, when I was at school, I never  (and I mean really never) liked to do anything even vaguely sporty and knew every trick in the book to avoid games lessons.

I even took up the Violin. You have no idea how many ways you can use a violin to avoid sports – practice, lessons, performances, rehearsals, orchestra and courses – I did them all.

It was only in my teens when I realised that girls liked the jocks that I started to experiments with sport: tennis, the gym, volleyball… I was useless at all of them.

I took up Judo.  Big mistake.  Within months I had sustained a bad enough injury on my skinny body to stop that.  Thing was, I actually quite enjoyed it so I went back for more and did ok, but the shorter blockier people had the Judo thing completely sewn up.

I decided to go to the gym on a regular basis and that was ok as I could just go on auto pilot do my workout and go home.

At least going to the gym and also using the pool there helped to repair my Judo injuries although no matter how hard I worked my skinny frame remained skinny.

As the years passed nothing much changed – until the car accident.

I was sitting in my car waiting for the light to turn green when suddenly my body jerks back while my car seems to be flying forward.

My foot’s pressing on the brake but nothing’s happening. I remember my head being flung back and then banging against the

steering wheel.

How did this happen?

The occupant of the car behind lost control of her car and ploughed into the back of my car at speed. Seemingly seconds later the ambulance guy came over and asked me if I was OK, apart from being shaken I felt fine so I went home and left them to care for the woman who had suffered a brain haemorrhage.

In the days that followed a strange thing started to happen I could not hold my head up. It kept lolling to one side and started to hurt – a lot.

After numerous doctor visits, X-rays, painkillers etc. I finally found myself being thrown around the room like a rag doll by an osteopath.  I came out feeling great but a few hours later ……… not so great.

I suffered several visits before deciding it was doing more harm than good.  Eventually, as the pain lessened, I found my way back to the gym and asked my trainer what I could do.

He told me not do a thing! Seriously, this blunt, tough East End ex boxer and all round geezer told me my gym days were over and added:

“The only thing you can do is take up Tai Chi … but I don’t think you’ll be any good!”

Why did he think that?

Well, he’d had already given me the award for the least athletic and inflexible man he had ever met so I guess I wasn’t too surprised.

I still today have no idea why he said that I would not be any good but I think it was the fact that my poor coordination and rubbish flexibility were my greatest talents – not much of a recommendation.

Maybe the fact that I’d already told him I thought Tai Chi was rubbish didn’t help. I had seen this stuff before a real silly load of people waving their hands about randomly. Tai Chi and Chi Gung were for old people and nutters! Not for me.

But my gym teacher wasn’t old (or a nuttier!) he was a straight forward Londoner. He made it all make sense – all the strange sounding names and odd moves had a reason.  It was a real martial art and I was soon hooked.

This was interesting. It didn’t hurt my neck although I could still hear a crunching noise as I tuned my head.

I was hooked and I was rubbish! Or was I?

We worked to a very high standard and even today I still go to his classes at least once a week and continue to learn as an Advanced Practitioner.

How is my neck ? Pretty good. Thirty years later my flexibility has improved so instead of getting older and less flexible I am getting older,stronger and more flexible.

Did I do Tai Chi because of some higher calling? No

Because I wanted to feel my chi? No

I was interested in finding out about Chinese Culture and martial arts? No ( I am now!)

The only reason I wanted to get involved was because I could not do anything else!

As time passed I became more and more interested and thirty years later I am still learning. Perhaps the most important thing I learnt is that 

Being a teacher means recognising the difficulties and blockages that students may have. I was not the best student so it took me time, but my teacher persevered with me and taught me to be a good teacher too.

Was it worth it? Absolutely 100%. It has transformed my health and my life and that’s why I now love to write, teach, and do Tai Chi and Chi Gung.

No this is  not a picture of me (its got too much Hair on it )

Anyway Swing Arms – You know these random looking exercises are really amazing and 
they all have a very good  reason to be here.

http://www.wakeupandbreathe.com/go

or join my blog on http://www.wakeupandbreathe.com/blog

Well!

I can talk for hours on the benefits of this dvd but its pretty important that you actually witness the quality and the ease of use this dvd has.

Its really difficult for anybody who has not been involved in Tai Chi or Chi Gung to appreciate the benefits. 
People who have done this on a regular basis really find this beneficial and it does not matter about your age or your ability it just works!

So all the talking about it has now finished please enjoy the preview and please send me some feedback.

I do hope you enjoy the DVD itself has 3 sections so you can choose the level and method that suits you to 
work on  these exercises.

1. Exercise by Exercise

2. Intermediate with voiceover instructions 

3. Advanced just doing it along to the DVD

To find out more

http://www.wakeupandbreathe.com/go

Check it out on You Tube too 

Barry

Direction

This is the name of the game!

Change direction and you change the way you exercise. On the previous blog we discussed about swing arms 
This creates a circular motion and exercises the waist and hips.

Drop arms improves the circulation and helps warm up the body without any damage to joints or ligaments its all so gentle.

Pressure on the feet strengthen the legs and allow the feet to push into the ground creating stability. If you do sports or martial arts or just have trouble walking this is essential.

The Chinese call it downward jing. The downward force is good and the pressure underneath the feet increases the circulation by massaging the soles of the feet as the arms swing down to create the massaging motion.

Those of you that have tense shoulders must concentrate on relaxing them and anybody with joint problems will find this incredibly easy and beneficial.

If you want to improve your over all health this is great.

If you have any questions on this please do email me at info@wakeupandbreathe.com or go to http://www.wakeupandbreathe/go

Download now or watch on posterous

drop_arms.m4v (5666 KB)

Anyway here is the extract from our DVD I look forward to keeping in touch 

http://www.wakeupandbreathe/go

There’s no doubt that what we commonly call high cholesterol—a higher than acceptable overall level of a combination of LDL and HDL cholesterol (“good cholesterol”) or an imbalance between the two tilted toward LDL, if untreated does lead to heart disease. Lipoprotein A, related to LDL cholesterol, adheres to damaged blood vessels and forms plaque in the vessels. Fried and processed foods tend to contain oxidized cholesterol, which is a very common cause for increased deposits of plaque on blood vessel walls.

Men older than 45 and women older than 55 tend to get atherosclerosis more than younger people. A family history of heart disease is a presupposing factor as is diabetes. Smoking is a serious risk factor, and so are diabetes and high blood pressure.

Some natural remedies are known to be effective in the treatment of high cholesterol. For example:

Vitamin B3 (Niacin)
This one seems to lower the bad stuff and increase the good. It also seems to bring down levels of Lipoprotein A, another risk factor for atherosclerosis. You can get a prescription form or you will find it under dietary supplements. It does have some side effects, most objectionable of which is skin flushing or hot flashes. Taking it with meals helps.

Artichoke Leaf
There has been some research that indicates that this natural remedy may help. It has been shown, for example, to limit the synthesis of cholesterol and to increase bile production in the liver. Cholesterol excretion is increased by this speedier flow of bile from the gallbladder.

Soluble Fibre
Soluble fibre also seems to limit the absorption of cholesterol in the intestines. Some sources:

 Psyllium powder
 Oats, barley, and rye
 Legumes
 Some fruits
 Some vegetables (carrots, brussel sprouts, broccoli, and yams, for example)

Plant Sterols and Stanols
Some plants contain these substances. They may also be found in dietary supplements or added to margarine and orange juice. Because the structure of these substances is similar to cholesterol, they seem to block its absorption. Besides reducing total cholesterol, they seem to work hand-in-hand with other remedies.

Red Yeast Rice
This Chinese remedy is produced by fermenting red yeast over rice. Used in many Chinese dishes, it also contains Lovastatin, believed to inhibit an enzyme involved in the production of cholesterol. Red yeast products are becoming available; however, because they contain a substance found in prescription drugs, there is some controversy over whether its sale should be restricted. Before you decide to use this as a cure for high cholesterol, you should make certain that it does, in fact, contain Lovastatin. This ingredient, by the way, is used in prescription drugs such as Mevacor. Because of certain by-products of the fermentation process, pregnant or nursing women and children are warned not to ingest red yeast rice.

Well!

I can talk for hours on the benefits of this dvd but its pretty important that you actually witness the quality and the ease of use this dvd has.

Its really difficult for anybody who has not been involved in Tai Chi or Chi Gung to appreciate the benefits. 
People who have done this on a regular basis really find this beneficial and it does not matter about your age or your ability it just works!

So all the talking about it has now finished please enjoy the preview and please send me some feedback.

I do hope you enjoy the DVD itself has 3 sections so you can choose the level and method that suits you to 
work on  these exercises.

1.Federal tax refund calculator2011 federal tax refund calculator2012 federal tax refund calculatorFederal tax refund calculator 2011Federal tax refund calculator 2012free tax return calculator 2011free tax return calculator 2012estimate tax refund 2011estimate tax refund 2012quick tax refund calculator 2011quick tax refund calculator 2012income tax refund estimator 2011income tax refund estimator 2012calculate tax refund 2011calculate tax refund 2012income tax refund calculator 20122012 refund estimator Exercise by Exercise

2. Intermediate with voiceover instructions 

3. Advanced just doing it along to the DVD

Download now or watch on posterous

Trailer_for_wub.mov (74496 KB)

To find out more

http://www.wakeupandbreathe.com/go

Barry

Handle your sickness and do not let it handle you.
Chronic disorders and illnesses often demand a lot from patients in order for them to control the symptoms. However, the best course of action is to always take the upper hand in controlling the disorder. If you have spent months or years suffering from this syndrome, it is likely that you have developed a sense of helplessness and defeat against the disorder. But this must not be the case. Gain back control and know how to handle the disorder. Understandably, if you’ve been doing with CFS for sometime now this seems to be rather glib advice. But please do read on for some suggestions:

Look for simple but effective solutions
Not all CFS treatments may work for you. This is because while there is a general clinical definition of the disorder, there are various levels of severity whereby it occurs. So if you think your prescribed medications are not doing you much good, look elsewhere for symptom relief.

There is a host of treatment and therapies you can use which oftentimes go beyond conventional medicine.
Try to look for those. Consult herbalists and alternative medicine therapists. Ask your doctor about supplements instead of antibiotics and pain relievers. Go to a psychologist and ask whether there are therapies you can undergo to facilitate better coping with your illness. Don’t be limited by pharmacological treatments, experiment with various options and pick some that provide you with the most benefits.

Take lessons from each day
Take note of your symptoms and your responses to treatments and therapies. It is important to keep a journal of your daily experience as this can help guide you on how to better manage your disorder.

Take charge of your healthcare
Take an active role in facilitating the delivery of healthcare services for yourself. If what your doctor gives you does not work, find someone else. Doní’ be afraid to get second or third opinion from doctors who are experts in immune system dysfunction.

Move your body
For most patients, the idea of doing some physical activities is not only impossible but unthinkable. Nonetheless, recent studies have shown that minor physical activities pick up one’s energy and health so try undergoing exercise programs. Try graded exercise therapy, for example. According to recent studies, this therapy improves the physical energy and capacity of an individual with chronic fatigue syndrome. While it is of course hard for the first few months, first few years even, it is always worth the effort. Eventually, with a little activity done each day, the body will regain the strength and vigor that once were available prior to the onset of chronic fatigue.

To find out more how you can improve  your health with simple exercises go here http://www.wakeupandbreathe.com/go