The Natural Sleep Aid Blog

One of the common mistakes that people commit during exercise is incorrect breathing procedures or not breathing at all. Breathing incorrectly during exercise can be the source of fatigue and over exertion. Incorrect breathing patterns during exercise can also cause high blood pressure while working-out. The following tips can help you to get the most out of your workout through proper breathing techniques.

1. Breathe on the exertion part of the exercise. For example when you are doing a sit-up, breathing out when lifting the body from the floor is the proper breathing technique. This will benefit you the most when conducting an exercise.
2. Never hold your breath during an exercise! This is extremely important because as mentioned before holding your breath can lead to high blood pressure, dizziness and fatigue. When you exercise it is extremely important to get as much oxygen as possible to the muscles.
3. Breathe! While it is important to have good technique, if it is more comfortable to breath on the rest portion of an exercise, by all means do it. Breathing is important no matter how it is done. With this in mind, more vigorous exercises should have faster paced breathing rhythms; where as controlled exercises such as Pilates and Yoga have slower, fuller breaths.

As can be seen it is extremely important to breathe while exercising, this will make the exercise feel less strenuous and more likely to be done again. In conjunction to exercising, it is important to watch what you eat. Lifestyle in conjunction with the diet is very important to lose weight. This means cutting out sugars and refined starches in the diet and incorporating more fruits, vegetables, grains, and protein shakes into food choices.  

It is reported that as many as 73 million Americans suffer from high blood pressure or hypertension. High blood pressure can start an onset of health problems, and as with other medical conditions, the best way to lower blood pressure is to participate in exercise and watch the diet.

Blood pressure is a two part number, often written like a fraction that measures in millimeters of mercury the pressure of blood flow on the arteries when the heart is pumping and when it is at rest. The first number, measures systolic pressure, or pressure when the heart pumps blood through the arteries, and the second number, the diastolic reading, is the measure of blood pressure on the arteries when the heart is at rest. A normal reading for these measures is 120/80. This however can vary from person to person and even from area to area in the body.

Untreated high blood pressure can cause heart and kidney problems as well as problems with the eyes. Because there are not often signs for high blood pressure, it is often called the silent killer. Some people are often more at risk than others. These people include people who are overweight, over age 55, those who have a history of the disease, and black women. Additionally, those people who smoke, drink excessive amounts of alcohol and take certain medications are also at an increased risk.

Studies have shown that people who lose weight through diet and exercise greatly reduce the risk of high blood pressure. For some people an additional boost towards weight loss can be achieved with the use of a diet pill. Some research done by certain cereal companies also shows that diets high in whole grains, such as oatmeal, are also effective in lowering blood pressure.

Cushing Syndrome is a rare disease that is caused by the presence of too much cortisol in the blood. Cortisol is a hormone that is triggered as a response to stress. Cortisol is made in the adrenal gland and is responsible for the elevation of blood pressure as well as the elevation of blood sugar.

Symptoms of too much exposure to cortisol commonly results in weight gain in the face and upper body area in both men and women. In women, male facial –patterned hair growth in also common. Factors that contribute to increased levels of cortisol include the use of steroids to treat other ailments such as asthma and arthritis. Other factors that contribute to increased levels of cortisol in the body are pregnancy, alcoholism, and depression.  

While this syndrome is rare, increasing the chance of suffering from Cushing’s syndrome can be attributed to obesity as well as diabetes.  Since obesity and diabetes are often linked to the diet, controlling the diet and achieving quick weight loss, is one factor that can prevent the onset of Cushing’s.

There are no known herbal remedies that can cure Cushing’s Syndrome. Treatment often requires changing medications that one is currently on, surgery, or radiation, or chemotherapy. The method that is selected is dependent upon how and where the exact cause of the syndrome is located.

Sticking to a weight loss program during the holiday season can be as stressful as trying to pick out the perfect gift for everyone on your gift list, but it doesn’t have to be.  

Sticking to an exercise plan as well as eating healthy will help you feel great as well give you enough energy to check tasks off your list.

Looking out for high calorie and sugar foods containing lots of fat like eggnog, should be kept in moderation as they can ruin the diet.  Tasty cookies and meals can also be the source of unwanted pounds. Stuffing for example can be full of carbohydrates, butter and pack in an astonishing amount of calories, upwards of 500 per serving.  It is overeating these foods at holiday time that have people look for a diet pill online come January.

While it is hard to get outside and exercise, the mall is a great place to get in a workout. An added plus is that most malls are open late during the holidays and provide more opportunity to get in a good walk. Some malls even have mileage marked every so often to help you gauge your distance and pace. Carrying full bags also adds to the workout.

Getting enough sleep will also keep starchy and high carb food cravings under control. If you are having trouble getting enough z’s natural sleep aids can do the trick.

Taking extra measures to notice health habits is the best prevention to keep weight off this holiday season.