He's playing badminton once again

I am talking about my boyfriend who is in the Philippines right now. He used to be a member of the Junior Philippine Badminton Association during his college days, but as he started to work as a sales agent, he stopped playing and he started to gain weight,:(

About 2 weeks ago, he confessed something to me that made me mad. He told be that he's been visiting the doctor more often because he collapsed one time at their house. He' also constantly feeling the pain at the back of his neck. He also told me that he was in the borderline of having a high sugar and high cholesterol level before. And the same results were given by the doctor on his latest check-up,:( The doctor gave him a prescription of health supplies to take and advised him to go back to playing badminton, to be active once again. I'm glad coz he obliged with the doctor's advice and he's very eager to go back to his old physique.

Good thing and they have a blood pressure monitor and a body fat monitor at home since his mother has also a history of hypertension and high cholesterol level. I hope that he's health will drastically improve by constantly playing badminton and I hope that he'll lose weight real soon too.

**Side note: Check out more health articles and health products at http://www.healthscape.co.uk**.

2 cups of tea

I consumed 2 cups of tea last night in my desperation of relieving the bloated feeling that I've been feeling since Friday night. And thanks God coz it worked. And I woke up this morning feeling lighter compared to the past days. After preparing myself for my duty, I ate a piece of banana for breakfast accompanied by a cup of tea. I got the idea from Ate Ging2x, though hers is banana and a glass of milk. She's getting even slimmer now and no more "bilbil" at all and she told me that it has been her secret, plus a lot of self-discipline when it comes to eating.

And I'm so glad today coz I was able to control myself over food,:) After my host family left, I went down to my apartment to check my email and I also had a cup of tea. Then I went back to work and for lunch, I ate a piece and a half of bread with cheese and a huge cup of tea,:) Then I had another cup of tea around 3pm as I was preparing dinner. And so glad coz I only nimble on the carrots and the cabbage while cooking. Not like before that I'll really try to look for candies of the children, so I'll have something to eat while cooking.

I'm now having another cup of tea,:)

I pigged out and still bloated

This post is supposed to be written last night, but I suddenly lost my internet connection and just got it back this morning.

In my last post, I was hoping not to pig out at Ate Minang's farewell party, but I failed. I gave in to the temptation as I saw the delicious Pinoy foods and the ever yummy "humba",grrrrrrrrrrrrr. Ate also made some good desserts and I was really very full last Friday. We also had a drinking session of Martini, we didn't passed out though,:)

Saturday, Ate Minang made "binignit" and we also ate "buwad" and "ginamos" during dinner. So I pigged out once again and I ended up having stomach ache on Sunday morning.:( I attended the HH at Mad's place and I also ate a lot there. And went home here in my apartment feeling sooo bloated. A bloating feeling since Friday night,grrrrrrrrrrrr. How disgusting of me! I soo loathe my greediness! grrrrrrrrrrrrr

Hoping not to pig-out

I'm here in my apartment and I'm going to Ate Bren's place tonight to attend the farewell party of one of our friends, Ate Minang. She's going to Denmark to work as an au pair since her contract here is already finished. I'm sure it will be a lot of fun, but I'm just hoping that I won't be pigging out tonight, or else, my tummy will be bulging once again. I so loathe the idea,:( I just hope it will inspire me to control my eating this weekend.

Have a nice weekend everyone and keep healthy!

**Side note: Check out commercial real estate**.

Give up diet soda

This is a healthy advice I just read from Yahoo Health and it's written by Lucy Danziger, the Editor-in-Chief of Self Magazine.

Though most of us prefer diet soda coz of it's low calorie or fat content. Diet Coke for example, has won the hearts of health conscious individuals all over the world. But a recent research shows that "artificial sweeteners in soda may interfere with your body’s ability to estimate how many calories you’ve ingested, so you eat more than you need". The research was also backed up by a new rat study and the result shows that animals that ate fake sugar consumed more calories overall and gained weight, compared to those that didn’t eat artificially sweetened treats.

Here's an info given by Lucy to help us decide in giving up diet soda: For every diet soda you sip daily, your risk of becoming overweight can rise by 37 percent, according to researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio.

You can read the entire Skip the Diet Soda article at Yahoo Health.

After effect of all the sleepless nights

As the holy week started, I've been sleeping irregularly. The day before my host family left for the mountains to ski, I slept at 5 in the morning coz of my blogging and net addiction,:( And then on Thursday, I went to my friend's place and spend days until Monday with friends and from that time on, we've been sleeping so late or early in the morning,:) And just yesterday, I've been suffering from the effects of all the sleepless nights, nothing else but the yucky pimples. Argggggg! I really hate to have pimples. Though I'm having some every month before my period, but they're not noticeable though. But this time is different, I got some in the space between my eyebrows and some in my forehead. Nahhhh, so disgusting.

I hope it will be gone very soon coz I don't want it to get worse and resort to acne treatment. Can't imagine the possibility. :(

Getting naughty

I was indeed guilty for being naughty during the holy week,:( We stayed most of the time at Ate Bren's place and we had a lot of chitchat sessions and you know, when girls talk, naughty topics are always present.:) And one of our topics were women's lingerie coz we have a friend whose bf is coming here in a few months time to work too. So we were teasing her to buy sexy lingerie for the bf, hehehe. We really went crazy a lot of time during the holy week and I was really guilty,:(

Happy Easter everyone!

Glitter Graphics - GlitterLive.com
I'm finally back here in my apartment from my easter vacation and sorry for this late greetings. Got no chance to blog here to greet you a Happy Easter yesterday coz I was busy chitchatting with my cousins and friends during our Easter dinner last night at Ate Bren's place.

Have a blessed Holy Week!

I'll be leaving my apartment shortly and I'll be having a short hiatus in commemorating the sufferings and death of Our Savior, Jesus, this Holy Week. And I just want to wish you all a blessed holy week!

See you again after easter.

March is Rabies Awareness Month

March is Rabies Awareness Month in the Philippines, I don't know in other countries though. But this coming September 28 will be World Rabies Day accoring to DOH (Depeartment og Health).

DOH says, "Rabies is 100% fatal viral disease affecting the nervous system of humans and animals. It remains a serious public health problem in the country which causes the death of between 200 - 500 Filipinos annually, and the Philippines ranked No. 6 among the countries with the highest incidence of rabies in the world. A three-pronged approach – dog immunization, responsible pet ownership and dog-bite victim immunization – is still recommended for all government units to control rabies in their areas of responsibility. The rabies prevention and control program received its needed boost when President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo signed into law the Republic Act No. 9482 (An Act Providing for the Control and Elimination of Human and Animal Rabies, Prescribing Penalties for Violation Thereof and Appropriating Funds Therefore) on May 27, 2007. This next three years, the Department of Health, Department of Agriculture – Bureau of Animal Industry, local government units and partner agencies will advocate for the full implementation of the law nationwide. The battlecry is “SUMUNOD SA BATAS RABIES”. Meanwhile, the said agencies are also gearing up their efforts towards the goal of declaring the Philippines as Rabies-Free by the 2020."

Source: DOH

Dinner for a week

Here's a list of suggested healthy dinner for a week from Yahoo Food:

• Monday Peanut Noodles w/ Chicken & Vegetables
• Tuesday Quick-Fix Cheeseburger Meatloaf
• Wednesday Spicy Caribbean Pork Chops
• Thursday Fried Fish Tacos
• Friday Pizza With Bacon & Swiss Chard
• Saturday Golden Chicken With Spicy Refried Beans
• Sunday Maple Mustard Grilled Lamb

Just click the names to be directed to the procedure and ingredients of making them. Enjoy!

I'll sleep a little bit late

I chatted with my brother and at 10pm, I told him that I'm signing off coz I'll sleep early for the work tomorrow. I'm preparing to doze off when I received a message from my hostfamily informing me that I don't have to start working before 9am coz the kids are not there. So I don't have to make their lunch boxes. Yeheyyy,:) So, I changed my mind and decided to sleep a little bit late tonight coz I can sleep til 8am tomorrow.

On a totally unrelated subject, I'm about to check what digital signage means. I can relate well with the word digital, but signage intrigues me, so I'll be googling it after this post.:)

Love yourself

As the song goes : "The greatest love of all is learning to love yourself" and that's true with the article written by Aymee Coget and featured at Yahoo Health.

According to Aymee, At some point in our lives, we have to come to the decision to love ourselves, for our personal benefit and for the benefit of those who love us. A lack of self-love will ultimately turn an optimistic relationship into an unhappy one because neither person will be able to express unconditional love.

I totally agree with her coz we can't really love someone unconditionally without loving ourselves unconditionally first. And here are some basic tips given by Aymee towards self-love:

1. ACKNOWLEDGE that you have to love yourself unconditionally before you can love anyone else.

2. ACCEPT that your self-love can only come from you.

3. TURN YOUR ARROWS AROUND & POINT TO YOURSELF. You have to stop looking to others for love.

4. START NURTURING YOURSELF like you were a baby. Treat yourself to a solo dinner, go to the spa by yourself, tell yourself that you are beautiful.

5. DISCOVER ALL THE THINGS THERE ARE TO LOVE ABOUT YOU. Take the strengths survey at www.authentichappiness.com to see what your strengths are, and build your life around them.

Source: Yahoo Health

The downside of having a car

I just come to a conclusion that cars and other mode of transportation make people lazy and fat.:) Well, that's just my opinion and I'm not generalizing though. Instead of walking to the nearest store, office or school, most people will choose to drive their cars for convenience, depriving their bodies of some exercise. But there are a lot of people though who try to balance exercising and driving. They see to it that they still exercise after many hours of driving.

On a little bit related subject, my brother is planning to buy a car or a van after his contract in Denmark. And my Mama also likes the idea coz she said that she's tired of riding the motorcycle and she told us that she's old for it. She needs a more comfy mode transportation where she can relax while traveling.:) Hmmm, it seems that my brother will be pressured to really buy one,hehehe. I told my brother though to plan carefully and to make research on the car or van that he's planning to buy and the car insurance. I even suggested for him to try looking for car insurance online and try to compare if it's better with traditional car insurance.

Surfing the wave of difficulty

The picture in the left is that of Micaela. I just read her story and how she lost 50 pounds through surfing. In 2006, Micaela embarked on a 50-pound weight loss journey and lifestyle change. She's currently maintaining that weight loss and makes it a point to be the best person that she can be every day. In her spare time she enjoys hiking, running, people watching, time with family and friends, reading and giving back to her community.

Go and read the entire inspiring story of her weight loss and lifestyle change.

Source: Yahoo Health

Drug rehabilitation

I'm just here in my apartment and spending the weekend alone. This afternoon, I watched the February and March episodes of GMA's Wish Ka Lang. I'm a Kapamilya fan, but I love watching WKL,hehehe.

The stories featured were really inspiring and the faith and trust of the people to God is what truly touched me. There were also a Philippine actor and actresses featured in some of the episodes. They've been famous in the movie industry in during their time, but their lives were destroyed by one common thing : drugs. They've been with the influence of drugs for years and it brought downfall to their shining acting careers. The 2 actresses were already living simple lives, but they are still happy and contented. The actor is back in the movie industry with a new attitude. All of the 3 have changed lives now and they are totally drug-free already and they're very thankful to the people who helped them to undergo drug rehab. Their experiences in the rehabilitation center is really the key to their new lives.

Drug rehab is indeed very important to save loves from falling apart.

I'm a strawberry ice cream

You Are Strawberry Ice Cream

A bit shy and sensitive, you are sweet to the core. You often find yourself on the outside looking in. Insightful and pensive, you really understand how the world works. You are most compatible with chocolate chip ice cream.

What Flavor Ice Cream Are You?

Nahh, a bit shy? I don't think so.heheh

Check it out

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Reasons of women's hair loss

I read an article at Yahoo Health a while go about the reasons of women's hair loss and I suddenly remember one of my closest friends here in Norway. She's been experiencing hair loss until now and it all started after she had a hair rebond during her vacation in the Philippines last December. There's even a portion of her hair that was cut very short and we thought that the medicine used in her rebonding was soo strong or too much. I really pity my friend.

Anyways, here are some of the reasons fro women's hair loss from Yahoo Health:

* Low iron levels: Iron deficiency, with or without anemia, can lead to hair loss. Do not simply start taking an iron supplement without having your iron checked by a physician because too much iron can also lead to health problems.

* Thyroid disorders: Both an overactive and an underactive thyroid can lead to hair loss.

* Low estrogen levels: Many women experience hair loss during and after menopause, when estrogen levels begin to drop. Other hormonal changes -- changes in oral contraceptive use, for example -- can also trigger hair loss.

* Post-pregnancy hormonal changes: Similarly, new moms may find that they're shedding a lot of hair in the first one to six months after delivery, when their estrogen levels return to normal. Actually, what seems like excessive hair loss is really hair's natural growth cycle regulating itself, as high hormone levels tend to keep women from losing normal amounts of hair during pregnancy.

* Telogen effluvium: This is the general term for sudden, temporary hair loss as a result of recent stress or surgery, which typically occurs around two months after the causative event or illness. (It may also be used to describe sudden hair loss as a result of other factors on this list, such as post-pregnancy hormonal changes.)

* Medications: Many medications may lead to hair loss. If this is a concern, talk to your doctor about potential alternatives

* High levels of vitamin A or selenium: There is rarely any reason to take more of these nutrients than you'd find in a good multivitamin.

No exercise today

I was off from work at 10am coz the eldest child is sick and the mother decided to stay home. But before I went down to my apartment, she confronted me about something. I accepted that it was my fault, but the only thing I don't like is because she already said a lot of things, just coz of 1 mistake. I was not able to speak a lot since I was crying due to anger. But I'll surely talk to them tomorrow to tell them what I truly feel.

I'm really feeling depressed right now and been sleeping most of the afternoon. How I wish that the windows here in my apartment have roller shades to shield me from the rays of the sun, especially now that it's already spring and the sun is shining most of the time.

Blogging and dancing

Yep!!it's true, I'm blogging and dancing inbetween...multi-tasking indeed,hehehe. Havn't dance for a long time now coz my butt has been glued to the chair in front of lappy.:Too bad, but it's the truth,:( I messed up with my exercise routine coz of blogging,huhuhuh.Blame it to my lack of self-discipline. So now, I'm trying to cover up for the many days that I havn't move my body at all. It feels good to be dancing again, I really love it.:)

I'm listening to Nelly Furtado's music and I'm gonna switch to Gwen Stefani's later on. Meanwhile, I'm about to check Briggs and Riley travelware coz the music right now is "I'm Like a Bird" and it's not danceable,:)I'll wait for "Give It To Me" and get back to dancing,:)

Chew some guns

I remember posting an article about chewing a gum as good in helping prevent cavities, reduce plaque acid and strengthen teeth. And last day, I read an article at Yahoo Health about the importance of gum, but this time, it's gum's relation to appetite control. The result of a recent research shows that participants who have chewed a piece of gum prior to a snack had less desire for a sweet snack and ultimately reduced snack consumption.

However, the research still needs more studies to support the claim that chewing gum really helps in appetite control. Meanwhile, you can follow this tips in chewing gums from Yahoo Health, but originally from Wrigley :

* Chew gum to fight the impulse to snack as the result of stress or boredom
* Enjoy a low-calorie piece of gum instead of a high-calorie snack
* Chew new and different flavors of gum to fight the craving for a sweet snack
* Chew gum while cooking to avoid snacking on the meal you are preparing

The tips make sense, I better buy a sugar-free gum this week. And tip # really strikes me coz everytime I prepare dinner, I always eat some portion, so chewing agum will help me stop the habit,:)

Not healthy anymore

Nahhh!!I'm still awake and it's already 2:28 in the morning here. Though my eyes are already hurting a bit and my back is aching, but I'm still surfing a lot of things and blog hopping as well. But I know, what I'm doing is not healthy anymore.:( Been sleeping late lately and blame it to the world wide web...no, blame it to me for lacking self-control.:(

But before sleeping, let me share something to you. This blog is almost 1 year old and from now on, this blog will be blogging for Smorty and earn extra moolah by their advertise on blogs program for bloggers. It's really great earning bucks while blogging too. Blogging for Smorty is just easy. You just have to make an account and register your blog or blogs with them. And once approved, you can already start accepting tasks and blog about them. It's pretty simple coz you can write about their advertisers and their products easily coz you can relate it with your day to day activities.

For bloggers out there who havn't join Smorty yet and are still looking for ways to earn extra bucks, join Smorty now and start blogging for them. Blog with them and earn at the same time.

Got to really doze off now friends. Happy weekend!

Simple way to move our bodies

In my earlier post, I talked about the importance of increasing our body movement to help increase our metabolism and to help us to be more fit.

And now let me share to you some simple ways of moving our bodies as we start the process of weight loss. This list of simple ways is taken from About.com:

* Turn off the TV. Once a week, turn off the TV and do something a little more physical with your family. Play games, take a walk...almost anything will be more active than sitting on the couch.

* Walk more. Look for small ways to walk more. When you get the mail, take a walk around the block, take the dog for an extra outing each day or walk on your treadmill for 5 minutes before getting ready for work.

* Do some chores. Shoveling snow, working in the garden, raking leaves, sweeping the floor...these kinds of activities may not be 'vigorous' exercise, but they can keep you moving while getting your house in order.

* Pace while you talk. When you're on the phone, pace around or even do some cleaning while gabbing. This is a great way to stay moving while doing something you enjoy.

* Be aware. Make a list of all the physical activities you do on a typical day. If you find that the bulk of your time is spent sitting, make another list of all the ways you could move more--getting up each hour to stretch or walk, walk the stairs at work, etc.

Healthy travel tips

I really love travelling and I know most, if not all, love it too. It really feels great to experience and enjoy a new place or country. And it gives a sense of fulfillment and satisfaction. I'm so blessed to visit several countries already since working here in Europe like Turkey, Rome, France, Belgium and Sweden. And hopeful to travel more,:)

There are already a lot of cheap flights available this days and it's giving chance to people to afford the luxury of travelling. But in our travels, let's not only think of the fun and adventure. Let's also think about our health safety. Let's give importance to our health to be sure to come home happy and satisfied, instead of being sick due to carelessness.

Here is a Golden Rules of a healthy travel that I found from http://www.travellingwell.com.au:

1. Visit your Travel Doctor early - preferably 6-8 weeks before departure
2. Get all necessary vaccines, malaria pills
3. Prepare a Travellers Medical Kit
4. Photocopy your vaccination record book
5. Have a medical and dental checkup before departure
6. Take out travel insurance
7. Start malaria pills well before departure to check for side effects
8. Take malaria pills regularly with food
9. Avoid mosquitoes and other biting insects
10. Regularly apply repellants containing DEET
11. Sleep under a treated bednet or behind screens
12. Apply sunscreen regularly
13. Safe eating means Boil it, Cook it, Peel it or Forget it
14. Wash hands before eating
15. Practice Safe sex - always use a condom
16. Respect motor vehicles, observe speed limits, wear seat belts/helmets, and avoid night driving
17. Dont go near or touch local animals, and seek rabies vaccine immediately if bitten
18. Keep your shoes on when outside
19. Seek medical advice immediately if you develop a fever
20. Have a checkup on your return if you have been sick while away
21. Respect local customs

Let's practice a healthy travel everyone!

So clean and relaxing

I am referring to my apartment,:)It's really clean and relaxing just sitting here in front of lappy. After my work, I decided to clean my apartment. I arranged things, vacuumed, mopped the floor and clean the toilet. I'm really satisfied and felt so relax after the cleaning session. Days ago, I was pressured to clean, but due to laziness and my busy sched (in blogging,:)) so I was not able to clean. And finally, I got the urge to really clean today. Thanks, I'm really relieved and now I can breath freely once again,hehehe.

I'm here now in my bed, ready to sleep:) And after reading the facts about Soy Candles at caterpillarscandles.com, how I wish I have some lighted here in my apartment to make me more relax tonight. Soy candles are environmentally friendly candles with clean pure burning aroma. Hmmm this is really good, enjoying the scented candles and also saving mother Earth at the same time, cool! And the good things is that, you have the chance to keep a lot of stocks in your home buy buying wholesale soy candles.

Have a nice evening everyone!

The constipation is gone

Thanks GOD and Eric is doing fine already. As I've told in my earlier post, Eric, our adopted, was suffering from constipation. I told Mama to bring the boy the infirmary is he can't still defacate today. But good thing and my Mama sent me an SMS telling me that Eric has already defacated and was once again active playing and running with the other kids. I was really relieved!:)

By the way, Mama told me about a business idea that came into her mind. She want to start a PVC ID lamination business in our place. Since there's a high school in our place (she also works there as a teacher) and they still have to go to he City for the lamination of students' IDs. Hmmm, sounds like a good business proposal. But I told her that we still have to make a market research about the business. We still have to learn a lot of things like materials and equipments needed for the business, capital needed and other things related to it. I already started researching online and hope I'll be having good results.:)

The importance of medical insurance

Medical insurance is really important and every family member should be covered with it. The idea came into my mind this afternoon as my mother sent me an SMS, telling me that our adopted, Eric, is sick. His mouth was bleeding once again (he's been spitting blood before) and he's suffering from constipation too. He havn't defacate today and my mother has given him 2 spoons of vegetable oil for him to have a loose bowel movement, but there was no effect. And the poor boy don't want to sleep, he just want to stand the whole time coz his anus is soo painful. My mother says that his anus is always open even if he's not doing pooh, thus, the pain.:) I really pitty Eric. Medical exams are expensive in the Philippines and it's really a no no not to have a no medical exam life insurance.

I already told my Mother to bring Eric to the nearest infirmary for consultation if he'll still have the constipation tomorrow. Good thing and the bleeding has already stopped. My Mother says that it's really difficult to have no medical life insurance these days. My mother says that he's going to apply Eric for a medical insurance under the same company taking care of her medical insurance. She also told me that she's going to convince our relatives and neighbors who have no medical life insurance yet to get one for their own good.

I already have a medical insurance, but it's inactive as of this moment coz I opened it when I was still in the Philippines and I havn't paid the monthly fee since I left. So I have to inquire on what to do to activate it again.

Increase your movement

I read somewhere that we really have to increase our movements everyday and strive to be more active. Though we only move a little bit, but it really counts and it helps our body. According to www.exercise.about.com , "The trick to healthy living is making small changes...taking more steps, adding fruit to your cereal, having an extra glass of water...these are just a few ways you can start living healthy without drastic changes."

And here are he benefits you can gain by just adding a little movement to your everyday life:

* Reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke and diabetes
* Improve joint stability
* Increase and improve range of movement
* Help maintain flexibility as you age
* Maintain bone mass
* Prevent osteoporosis and fractures
* Improve mood and reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression
* Enhance self esteem
* Improve memory in elderly people
* Reduce stress

So let's increase our everday movement everyone!

health site for women

Been surfing a while ago and I stumbled into a site good for women who are conscious about their health. The site's subtitle says: The expert in women's health and it's ultraPMS.com. They have a lot of health informations for women and health topics divided into different categories such as fibrostol, pms, menopause, progesterone, vaginal dryness and breast enhancement. I already read some of their topics and they're really very informative. They also offer health products related to the categories I mentioned above. Visit them now and be informed about a lot of things about women's health, our health.