My name is Mildred Shears. I’m retired and I live in the Minnesota Northwoods with my husband, George, our German Shorthair, Bodhi, and our senior citizen cat, Cinnamon.

A Sudden Transition from Health to Helplessness

On a hot summer day in 1983, I had a very sudden attack of extreme dizziness. For the next two years, I was in bed or a wheel chair and could only walk with assistance. Doctors had nothing to help me. I took a lot of supplements and tried many forms of alternative healing.

19 Years of Daily Adjustment to Unpredictable Health

I gradually got so I could walk again, but I continued to suffer from extreme fatigue and heat sensitivity. Due to inactivity, I gained a lot of weight and was sick most of the time.

Every day was a struggle to do any normal task or activity. As a mother I could not participate in actively spending time with my teen-age daughter because I did not have the energy. I could never predict when I would collapse and have to stop and rest. Planning ahead for working, shopping, preparing meals, doing housework or just visiting was impossible.

Besides being limited to doing only one major activity in a day, I needed to sleep at least 16 hours, take naps and I still felt tired most of the time.

A Welcome Invitation to Restored Health

In September, 2002, an old friend told me about glyconutrition. After thoroughly researching this revolutionary new nutritional supplement, I decided to try it. In less than 6 months, both my fatigue and sensitivity to heat had disappeared. Since then, I’ve been filled with boundless energy and vitality and can do all the things that I missed out on for all those years. I’ve also lost around 55 lbs. and I’m vibrantly healthy. For the past 18 months, I’ve seen my doctor only for routine check-ups.

A New Life of Vitality and Wellness

Over the past two years, I’ve heard several hundred stories very similar to mine from people who’ve used these amazing supplements. I’m fully convinced at this point that anyone who takes enough of them for a long enough period of time (several months for some people) will enjoy a marked improvement in their level of health and wellness. I will continue to take these supplements daily to preserve and maintain my health and wellness.

How to Share in this Gift of Wellness

Now, I wonder whether you–or anyone you know–might be interested in learning more about these glyconutritional products. If you’re like me (and most people I know), you’re probably thinking “this sounds way too good to be true.” Well, I can tell you for sure that, for me, it has turned out, instead, to be something “much too good to miss.”

I believe strongly that anyone who does a thorough investigation of these products, along with their scientific underpinnings, will recognize that they are entirely different from any other type of nutritional supplement. Further–for whatever it’s worth–I believe that if you give them an honest try, your health and your life–like mine–will be changed in some very wonderful ways. I predict, further, that–just like me–you’ll want to share this wondrous gift with everyone who will listen. For me, this has become a new and very satisfying life mission.

If you’d like to learn more, I invite you to click on the URL below, where you will be able to get a free, 35-page e-book entitled “The Ten Deadly Health Myths of the 21st Century.” This highly informative book provides a great deal of additional information about glyconutrition and wellness in general. You will also be able to learn about a number of different glyconutritional products.

If you accept my invitation, I hope that your healing journey will be as exciting and as fulfilling as mine has been.

Mildred Shears
218-482-5287
mshears@hcctel.net
http://mshears.myglycostore.com/goland1ezinems
(NOTE TO EDITORS: This article may be edited for publication in your newsletter or on your website but must include the author’s name and a live link.)

During a catalogue search at my local library, I came
across this title: “Fitness without Exercise - The
Scientifically Proven Strategy for Achieving Maximum Health
with Minimum Effort.” This book by Bryant Stamford and
Porter Shimer really misses the point. After all, fitness
is more of an attitude than a destination.

I found another title for a book that is a better concept
and is one with which I completely agree. “Walking: the
Pleasure Exercise,” a book by Mort Malkin. Actually,
during my research at the library, more than 20 per cent of
the items had *walking* in their titles when I used
*fitness* as the search-word. Makes sense, doesn’t it?

Walking is naturally one of the best places to start
creating a Fitness Attitude. For one thing, it gets you
outdoors, and that’s good for the fitness of your head! In
addition, it uses all the large muscles in your body, it’s
low-impact, and it doesn’t require any special equipment.
It is something you are already expert at doing, and your
body is perfectly designed for it. Hooray! You’ve got an
awesome place to begin on your way to having a Fitness
Attitude: Go for a walk every day.

Now, I’m going to make a confession. Even though I place a
high value on health and nutrition and fitness in general,
I sometimes have to really make an effort to get out the
door with my walking shoes on. Today, for example, it was
rainy and cold. I had a back-log of emails to answer, and
had eaten a heavy lunch. It would have been really easy to
make a very good case for staying indoors by the woodstove
with my computer screen glowing away.

At a time like this, momentum helps. I feel weird when I
have to miss my daily walk because over time it’s become a
part of my life. It easier to walk consistently when you
make it a routine, or you have a ritual to help you get out
the door. A routine will also to carry you along. Decide
on a length of time for your walk, rather than setting a
distance. Then, go! Some routes will become your
standards, and then you won’t have to plan - which is one
of the benefits of a routine. Used appropriately, routines
free your thoughts, so you can contemplate topics more
interesting than whether to make a right or left turn at
the corner.

Good for you, if you use a treadmill, gym, or other
walking strategy such as mall walks. Still, if you can
possibly make arrangements, spend at least some of your
walking time outside. Time in the open air is part of
fitness as an attitude.

Which brings up the question of food as it relates to the
attitude of fitness. Generally, when you are eating foods
that have a good natural basis, (like salads that aren’t
drowning in some oily vinegar dressing, or a vegetable stir-
fry that isn’t heavily glazed with high-sugar sauce), you
don’t crave garbage non-foods like my personal favorite:
red licorice. Still, the packaging of ’snack foods’ and
the ease and portability they afford in our frenetically
paced culture means that sometimes, you’re going to eat
junk. Once you’ve established your Fitness Attitude,
though, processed ‘foods’ stop being a staple in your diet,
and that’s a better fit.

As you put attention on fitness, your life will soon
include the pleasure of walking daily and a natural hunger
for whole foods that are nourishing to you. A Fitness
Attitude isn’t complicated, and you’ll feel better. You
simply will.

Ahh the holidays - time for family, good cheer and of course, those not-so-good, pesky extra pounds. Naturally exercise equipment becomes a hot item as the year draws to a close, and many will give it as a gift for Christmas, anticipating the recipient’s need for it in the New Year. Although it’s highly recommended to use a little tact when presenting fitness equipment as a Christmas gift to your spouse or significant other, this article provides other essential information that will help you in choosing quality products that will save you money while sparing your ego.

Tips for buying home treadmills

Treadmills are perennial favorites when it comes to cardio equipment. The benefits they offer include improved cardiovascular fitness, movement and function. The disadvantages may be that they can be difficult to get used to initially and can be high impact for grossly overweight individuals or those with joint or bone pain.

• Go with a brand name you have heard of like Smooth, Keys, Nordic Track, Reebok or similar.

• Quite often with cardio equipment you “get what you pay for” so be willing to spend about $1000.00 + dollars for a lifelong fitness investment.

• Check the warrantee - most quality manufacturers should offer a lifetime warrantee on the frame, (up to) 10 years on the motor, 1 year on the parts and 90 days on the labor.

• Check the motor, aim for at least a continuous duty 1.5 HP or higher motor - a continuous duty motor ensures that regardless of pace, the output remains the same.

• Consider the space you have available - most treadmills intended for home use fold up but some do not, check before you buy.

• Consider the running surface area you will need too: if you are tall or some of the intended users are tall, then their stride length will be longer and you will need a longer belt (56 “).

• Check the options you want like pre-programmed workouts like interval training, hills, fat burn etc. and for heart rate monitor compatibility if you plan on using one.

Tips for buying elliptical trainers

Elliptical trainers have become very popular lately and for good reason. Ellipticals offer a zero impact, full body cardio workout and are very user friendly too.

• As for treadmills, aim for a well-known brand with a good warrantee (lifetime frame, 2-3 years parts and 1 year labor).

• Be prepared to spend about the same for a good elliptical as you would for a comparable quality treadmill.

• Test it out if possible, an elliptical needs to feel “right” - does it suit your stride length, is the movement smooth and not jerky, is it easy to mount and dismount and will it fit in your allotted space?

• Take into consideration that handles requiring you to push and pull will greatly increase caloric expenditure - so if you plan to use the elliptical machine to lose weight or get fit faster, this an important option.

• Consider other options like: adjustable incline, pre-programmed workouts and heart rate monitoring.

Tips for buying home strength training equipment

While in the past it may have been standard advice when purchasing home strength training equipment to buy a multi-station gym, the latest concept in the fitness industry however is functional training and functional training equipment.

Functional training is a method of exercising that when it is performed results in increased human function. For example, performing squats with a pair of dumbbells in each hand will transfer and benefit functional activities and make activities such as getting out of a chair or car and lifting objects easier.

Functional training equipment is hot stuff and includes items like adjustable cable columns, exercise/stability balls, medicine balls, adjustable dumbbells, rubber tubing and balance training products. All these products are extremely versatile and fun to use, making them an even greater value for money.

• A stability ball is possibly one of the best and least expensive fitness gifts to give this season since they’re so versatile (use them as an exercise bench or chair) and also help to strengthen your core muscles, which are essential for improving posture and stabilizing your low back to prevent and permanently treat pain.

• Adjustable dumbbells have become very popular too; their use for home strength training is limited only by your imagination; plus depending on your choice of model, allow you to select a weight anywhere from 5 to 50 pounds with the turn of a dial or a flip of a switch.

• Balance training products are forecast to be the best sellers of all functional training equipment - items like foam balance pads, beams and rollers, wobble boards, inflatable discs and BOSU balls are fun to use and allow you to train your sense of balance and core muscles in functional positions like standing and lunging.

• Medicine balls are a great value too - like dumbbells their use for strength and core training is limited only by your imagination but are also ideal for increasing sports specific power for the golfer or young athlete in the family. Some medicine balls bounce like a basketball while others have molded handles and even ropes attached to them making them even more fun and challenging.

• Rubber bands and tubing are excellent for the budget-minded gift giver, since they are a portable source of resistance, incredibly versatile and simultaneously train core and limb strength.

• Adjustable cable columns are a little expensive ($ 1 100 +) but are well worth the investment. The compact design and adjustable pulley allow for limitless sport-specific and functional exercises using “real weight” (not “bending rods”) that normally would be impossible with traditional home exercise equipment.

If after reading this article you still feel more comfortable purchasing a multi-gym type piece of equipment, then keep in mind the following tips:

• Aim for a quality brand name and check the warrantee - remember, “You get what you pay for”.

• Test it out first if possible for user friendliness and movement feel - a quality piece of weight stack/cable equipment will feel comfortable and have a smooth and consistent resistance throughout - not jerky or stiff.

• Consider purchasing a multi-gym piece that has a high and a low cable pulley, as this will allow for more exercise variety and enable some functional standing exercises like those available on the cable column.

• Consider purchasing exercise equipment that uses your own body weight moving on a slide (e.g. Total Gym).

Be leery of the “As Seen on TV” products

While some products promoted in infomercials are effective and a good value (e.g. Total Gym), be cautious of purchasing products that seem “too good to be true”, make exercise “a breeze” or that you only have to do 2 minutes a day to experience “huge” results.

A classic example is abdominal exercise equipment. Everyone wants the sleek, sexy six-pack abs for the summer but don’t want to work for it - so savvy marketers (most who haven’t the vaguest idea about exercise anyway) think up clever ways for you to part with your hard-earned money to buy an essentially “useless” product.

No ab roller, electric muscle stimulator, ab lounger chair or rubber band crunch board will ever provide the abdominals you desire - in fact using them exclusively may make any posture and back problems even worse. Nothing works more effectively to strengthen the abdominals than a sit-up or crunch performed with good technique. It may be that you already have a defined six pack concealed under several pounds of fat. The key is to lose the fat covering your six-pack to ‘reveal” your abdominals.

No matter how many ab rolls/lounges and board crunches you do or how many electrical stimulations you use, you will never be able to “spot reduce” fat only off your stomach and hips. The myth of spot reduction is amazingly alive and well and marketed to the full extent when it is in fact, a physical impossibility.

The best advice when leaning towards TV advertised fitness products is to use some common sense and do some homework. There is no magic pill or exercise machine available that will provide results without some work and sacrifice. Also know that if these products were all they were cracked up to be the whole population would be beautiful and slender and not predominantly overweight.

So in closing, it is hoped that this article provided some basic pointers and tips when deciding on exercise equipment during the holidays or whenever. An informed and intelligent purchase of equipment that suits your needs can result in a lifelong investment in your health and wellness.

David Petersen is a Personal Trainer/Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist and Golf Biomechanic. He is the owner and founder of B.O.S.S. Fitness Inc. based in Oldsmar, Florida. More free articles and many of the products mentioned in this article can be found at http://www.bossfitness.com

NOTE: You’re free to republish this article on your website, in your newsletter, in your e-book or in other publications provided the article is reproduced in its entirety, including this note, author information and all LIVE website links as above.

Ahh the holidays - time for family, good cheer and of course, those not-so-good, pesky extra pounds. Naturally exercise equipment becomes a hot item as the year draws to a close, and many will give it as a gift for Christmas, anticipating the recipient’s need for it in the New Year. Although it’s highly recommended to use a little tact when presenting fitness equipment as a Christmas gift to your spouse or significant other, this article provides other essential information that will help you in choosing quality products that will save you money while sparing your ego.

Tips for buying home treadmills

Treadmills are perennial favorites when it comes to cardio equipment. The benefits they offer include improved cardiovascular fitness, movement and function. The disadvantages may be that they can be difficult to get used to initially and can be high impact for grossly overweight individuals or those with joint or bone pain.

• Go with a brand name you have heard of like Smooth, Keys, Nordic Track, Reebok or similar.

• Quite often with cardio equipment you “get what you pay for” so be willing to spend about $1000.00 + dollars for a lifelong fitness investment.

• Check the warrantee - most quality manufacturers should offer a lifetime warrantee on the frame, (up to) 10 years on the motor, 1 year on the parts and 90 days on the labor.

• Check the motor, aim for at least a continuous duty 1.5 HP or higher motor - a continuous duty motor ensures that regardless of pace, the output remains the same.

• Consider the space you have available - most treadmills intended for home use fold up but some do not, check before you buy.

• Consider the running surface area you will need too: if you are tall or some of the intended users are tall, then their stride length will be longer and you will need a longer belt (56 “).

• Check the options you want like pre-programmed workouts like interval training, hills, fat burn etc. and for heart rate monitor compatibility if you plan on using one.

Tips for buying elliptical trainers

Elliptical trainers have become very popular lately and for good reason. Ellipticals offer a zero impact, full body cardio workout and are very user friendly too.

• As for treadmills, aim for a well-known brand with a good warrantee (lifetime frame, 2-3 years parts and 1 year labor).

• Be prepared to spend about the same for a good elliptical as you would for a comparable quality treadmill.

• Test it out if possible, an elliptical needs to feel “right” - does it suit your stride length, is the movement smooth and not jerky, is it easy to mount and dismount and will it fit in your allotted space?

• Take into consideration that handles requiring you to push and pull will greatly increase caloric expenditure - so if you plan to use the elliptical machine to lose weight or get fit faster, this an important option.

• Consider other options like: adjustable incline, pre-programmed workouts and heart rate monitoring.

Tips for buying home strength training equipment

While in the past it may have been standard advice when purchasing home strength training equipment to buy a multi-station gym, the latest concept in the fitness industry however is functional training and functional training equipment.

Functional training is a method of exercising that when it is performed results in increased human function. For example, performing squats with a pair of dumbbells in each hand will transfer and benefit functional activities and make activities such as getting out of a chair or car and lifting objects easier.

Functional training equipment is hot stuff and includes items like adjustable cable columns, exercise/stability balls, medicine balls, adjustable dumbbells, rubber tubing and balance training products. All these products are extremely versatile and fun to use, making them an even greater value for money.

• A stability ball is possibly one of the best and least expensive fitness gifts to give this season since they’re so versatile (use them as an exercise bench or chair) and also help to strengthen your core muscles, which are essential for improving posture and stabilizing your low back to prevent and permanently treat pain.

• Adjustable dumbbells have become very popular too; their use for home strength training is limited only by your imagination; plus depending on your choice of model, allow you to select a weight anywhere from 5 to 50 pounds with the turn of a dial or a flip of a switch.

• Balance training products are forecast to be the best sellers of all functional training equipment - items like foam balance pads, beams and rollers, wobble boards, inflatable discs and BOSU balls are fun to use and allow you to train your sense of balance and core muscles in functional positions like standing and lunging.

• Medicine balls are a great value too - like dumbbells their use for strength and core training is limited only by your imagination but are also ideal for increasing sports specific power for the golfer or young athlete in the family. Some medicine balls bounce like a basketball while others have molded handles and even ropes attached to them making them even more fun and challenging.

• Rubber bands and tubing are excellent for the budget-minded gift giver, since they are a portable source of resistance, incredibly versatile and simultaneously train core and limb strength.

• Adjustable cable columns are a little expensive ($ 1 100 +) but are well worth the investment. The compact design and adjustable pulley allow for limitless sport-specific and functional exercises using “real weight” (not “bending rods”) that normally would be impossible with traditional home exercise equipment.

If after reading this article you still feel more comfortable purchasing a multi-gym type piece of equipment, then keep in mind the following tips:

• Aim for a quality brand name and check the warrantee - remember, “You get what you pay for”.

• Test it out first if possible for user friendliness and movement feel - a quality piece of weight stack/cable equipment will feel comfortable and have a smooth and consistent resistance throughout - not jerky or stiff.

• Consider purchasing a multi-gym piece that has a high and a low cable pulley, as this will allow for more exercise variety and enable some functional standing exercises like those available on the cable column.

• Consider purchasing exercise equipment that uses your own body weight moving on a slide (e.g. Total Gym).

Be leery of the “As Seen on TV” products

While some products promoted in infomercials are effective and a good value (e.g. Total Gym), be cautious of purchasing products that seem “too good to be true”, make exercise “a breeze” or that you only have to do 2 minutes a day to experience “huge” results.

A classic example is abdominal exercise equipment. Everyone wants the sleek, sexy six-pack abs for the summer but don’t want to work for it - so savvy marketers (most who haven’t the vaguest idea about exercise anyway) think up clever ways for you to part with your hard-earned money to buy an essentially “useless” product.

No ab roller, electric muscle stimulator, ab lounger chair or rubber band crunch board will ever provide the abdominals you desire - in fact using them exclusively may make any posture and back problems even worse. Nothing works more effectively to strengthen the abdominals than a sit-up or crunch performed with good technique. It may be that you already have a defined six pack concealed under several pounds of fat. The key is to lose the fat covering your six-pack to ‘reveal” your abdominals.

No matter how many ab rolls/lounges and board crunches you do or how many electrical stimulations you use, you will never be able to “spot reduce” fat only off your stomach and hips. The myth of spot reduction is amazingly alive and well and marketed to the full extent when it is in fact, a physical impossibility.

The best advice when leaning towards TV advertised fitness products is to use some common sense and do some homework. There is no magic pill or exercise machine available that will provide results without some work and sacrifice. Also know that if these products were all they were cracked up to be the whole population would be beautiful and slender and not predominantly overweight.

So in closing, it is hoped that this article provided some basic pointers and tips when deciding on exercise equipment during the holidays or whenever. An informed and intelligent purchase of equipment that suits your needs can result in a lifelong investment in your health and wellness.

David Petersen is a Personal Trainer/Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist and Golf Biomechanic. He is the owner and founder of B.O.S.S. Fitness Inc. based in Oldsmar, Florida. More free articles and many of the products mentioned in this article can be found at http://www.bossfitness.com

NOTE: You’re free to republish this article on your website, in your newsletter, in your e-book or in other publications provided the article is reproduced in its entirety, including this note, author information and all LIVE website links as above.

Get SMART to Get Fit

I’m not sure who was creative enough to make the acronym work, but work it does and it can fit in quite nicely with your fitness goals.

If you want to succeed you need to get SMART about your goals.

SMART is a great way to help you stay on track and achieve
your goals.

The S stands for specific. Be specific about the goals you
want to achieve. Forget things like, “I want to get in shape”, “I want to add muscle”, or “I want to lose weight”, or “I want to increase my bench press.”

Instead try things like “I want to run a 6 minute mile”, “I want to add 10 pounds of muscle”, “I want to lose 20 pounds of fat, or “I want to add 40 pounds to my best bench press.”

The M stands for measurable. This ties in very well with specific. You can’t measure ‘getting in shape”, but you sure can measure ‘running a 6 minute mile’.

With a pair of trusty skin fold calipers, you can also measure pretty accurately adding 10 pounds of muscle or losing 20 pounds of fat.

And of course, you can easily measure the poundage increase on your best bench press.

The specific and measurable aspect can be broken down even more to bring you closer to achieving your goals. For example, if you want to add 10 pounds of muscle, what other specific and measurable things must you do to reach your goal?

One could be that you must eat 6 high protein meals a day.

A second could be that you must eat 3,500 calories and 300 grams of protein every day.

You must train with weights three days per week.

You must add weight to your exercises at least every other workout.

All of these are specific and measurable. The more specifics that you have, the more likely you will add your 10 pounds of muscle as quickly as possible.

You can make a list of your daily, weekly, and monthly goals that you must do in order to meet your top goal of adding 10 pounds of muscle.

Each day, place a check mark next to each measurable and specific goal you achieved that will help you conquer your top goal. Obviously, the more checks you have, the more likely that you will achieve your goal.

In addition to specific and measurable, your goals must be A, or attainable. The R stands for realisitic. As I’ve said before, it’s important to set challenging goals.

Challenging, but attainable, that is. A goal of a 50 pound increase on your bench press max in 12 weeks would be a challenging goal, but also one that is possible.

However, setting a goal of bench pressing 300 pounds in 4 weeks when you currently bench press 75 pounds will do nothing but set you up for failure and frustration.

Obviously, weight loss is on the minds of many people, which is why so many fall victim to promises like “lose 30 pounds in 30 days without getting hungry and without exercising.”

As a reader of this newsletter, you know that the above is neither timely nor realistic. But many people do fall for such things because they want results NOW! They are setting themselves up for failure. Please don’t join them.

The T stands for Timely. If you do everything previously mentioned, it’s still not enough. You must give yourself a deadline to achieve your goal. More importantly, if your goal is attainable and realistic, but also long term, break it up into smaller goals.

If you wish to lose 75 pounds, start with losing just 10 pounds in 2 months. Reaching that goal will motivate you further and before you know it, enough time has passed that you’ve lost the 75 pounds.

But if you focus solely on losing the 75 pounds, which could take a year or more to accomplish, your motivation and discipline could wane, and you could fail to follow through on what you need to do to make your goal a reality.

Making goals timely hold you accountable and creates a positive sense of urgency. You may think twice about eating that piece of cake when you know you are having a body composition test and pictures taken in 2 weeks.

In addition to getting smart, celebrate your successes. And I don’t mean that you should allow yourself to dust off a gallon of ice cream in one sitting because you lost 10 pounds. That would be self defeating.

But you could treat yourself to a movie, or a pair of jeans you’ve had your eye on, or an extra hour of sleeping in on the weekend. Don’t sabotage your wonderful efforts by giving yourself destructive rewards for accomplishing your goals.