Managing Your Health

A core workout is an essential part of a fitness routine, but sticking with any exercise program isn't always easy. Success is more likely to be yours if you set goals and follow a few tips to boost flagging motivation. If you're spending more time making excuses than doing those planks and bridges, we can help you identify - and smooth out -- common bumps in the road. Motivate yourself You do your best work when motivated, right? That extends to exercise, too. It's not uncommon to launch a new exercise program raring to go, only to wind up back on the couch with your feet propped up just a few weeks later. If your will wavers, the following tips may help. Refresh your memory. Remind yourself how the exercises will help you by reading your goals again. Emphasize the positive aspects. Rather than sternly saying, I should do my core exercises," try saying aloud "My back feels better when I do my gentle core exercises and stretches" or "My balan...

Without knowing it, you may be encouraging neck pain by the way you perform everyday activities. How you carry yourself can invite neck pain or help keep it at bay. In general, try to keep your head balanced directly over your spine, so it is not leaning forward or cocked to one side. That's because your neck's principal job is to support your head, and your head weighs a lot - about 10 to 12 pounds. Here are some hints for achieving a healthy neck posture in common activities. At the computer or desk When working at your computer or at a desk, keep your head balanced directly over your spine as much as possible. That means setting your chair height so both your feet can rest on the ground, and sitting with your buttocks far back in your chair, using a small pillow to support your lower back if needed. Properly adjusting the keyboard and monitor may be difficult or impossible with a laptop, notebook, or tablet computer. You can plug in a separate, full-size keyboard to...

Just as there are "good carbs" and "bad carbs," there are good fats and bad fats. Mediterranean-style diets emphasize healthy fats and healthy carbs. Saturated fat, trans fat, and cholesterol are the bad guys. Good fats are monounsaturated (found in olive oil, for example) and polyunsaturated (found in such foods as fish, canola oil, and walnuts). The Mediterranean diet advocated by Mollie Katzen has a moderate amount of fat, but much of it comes from healthful monounsaturated fats and unsaturated omega-3 fats. It is high in carbohydrates, but most of the carbs come from unrefined, fiber-rich foods. It is also high in fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds, and fish, with only modest amounts of meat and cheese. People living in Mediterranean countries have a lower-than-expected rate of heart disease. But the traditional lifestyle in the region also includes lots of physical activity, regular meal patterns, wine, and good social support. It's hard to know wh...

Lasting, healthy weight loss demands that you transform your eating and exercise habits. But many other choices you make each day, such as how much time you spend sleeping or surfing the Internet, can also make a difference. The habits described here can help you move toward your healthy weight-loss goal. Set small, specific, and realistic goals Perhaps you'd like to be the same size you were in high school or when you got married, but that would mean dropping more than 50 pounds. Don't go there - not yet, at least. Set a more realistic goal of losing 5% to 10% of your weight, and give yourself plenty of time and some flexibility to reach that goal, keeping in mind that most people take at least six months to achieve that degree of health weight loss. Also try to avoid generalized goals, such as "I should eat less at dinner and exercise more." Instead, set specific and short-term (that is, daily or weekly) goals, such as these: I will choose a few dinner ...

Most people take bladder control for granted - until the unintended loss of urine interrupts the ability to carry on an ordinary social and work life. Often, the causes of incontinence are, out of a person's control. For example, in women, incontinence is a common side effect of childbirth. For men, it's most often a side effect of treatment for prostate problems. Although it may not be possible to avoid incontinence, you can take steps to lower the chances that you will develop this distressing problem. 1. Watch your weight. Excess weight and incontinence can go hand in hand, particularly for women. One theory is that extra abdominal fat can weaken the pelvic floor muscles and lead to stress incontinence (leaking when coughing, laughing, sneezing, etc.). In some cases, simply losing weight can improve incontinence. 2. Don't smoke.   Smoking threatens your health in many ways. It also doubles the likelihood that a woman will develop stress incontinence. Nicotine...