Healthy Living: Nature's Natural Energy Booster

I don't know about you but sometimes I feel like there just aren't enough hours in the day for me to get everything done. I get up early and then spend the rest of the day rushing to meet commitments and obligations. Awhile back there were days when I would feel utterly drained and it's all I could do to keep my weary head up and eyes open!

Being so busy, my diet consisted of little more than sugary snacks, processed foods and energy drinks.

Thankfully, I discovered a way to maximize my energy levels naturally and now I feel I can cope with just about anything. I'm happier, feel more confident and have so much energy my friends often ask me "just what are you on!?" as I storm through my day being more productive than ever before.

The answer to THAT particular question is quite surprising...

Need more energy? Caffeine is not the answer!

If stress is leaving you sleep-deprived and lacking energy, you probably kick start your day with a big jolt of coffee and keep on downing more caffeine throughout the day just so you can keep going.

The problem is, the more you rely on caffeine to prop up your dwindling energy levels, the more immune you become to its effect and the more you'll need. Before you know it, that one cup of coffee three times a day becomes six double espressos and you STILL feel tired.

Needless to say, so much caffeine can have an adverse affect on many aspects of your health including driving your blood pressure up to stratospheric levels.

It's not that I'm anti-caffeine by the way, simply that I have found that there is such a thing as too much of a good thing and an over reliance on caffeine means you are simply putting off an inevitable crash.

Thankfully for us health-conscious go-getters there is an alternative to coffee and caffeine for raising your energy levels - a super food called maca.

What is maca?

When I first came across maca, it was as an ingredient in a facial moisturizer. Needless to say I was more than a little surprised to later discover that maca is also a genuine superfood!

Maca, or maca root as it is sometimes known, is a Peruvian plant indigenous to the Andes which grows at heights of around 10,000 feet above sea level. It has been used for centuries in Peru as a herbal cure-all used to treat everything from colds to impotence!

Maca is very nutrient dense and contains large amounts of essential vitamins and minerals, amino acids and fiber and is especially rich in iron and calcium but it's greatest benefit is as an energizer.

Maca - the energizer

Where coffee boosts your energy by speeding up your metabolism and acting as a stimulant, maca works though an entirely different mechanism. Described as an adaptogen, maca is said to help balance your hormone levels so your body is better able to produce energy and deal with the daily stresses that life throws at you.

Hormones are chemical messengers that tell the organs of your body how to function. Some hormones are catabolic and are responsible for breaking your body down while others are anabolic which are responsible for building your body back up.

Too much stress, a poor diet and too much exposure to environmental pollutants can lead to a hormonal imbalance - normally in favor of the catabolic hormones. This means your body is constantly being broken down as opposed to being built back up. No wonder many of us feel tired and "beaten up" all the time!

Maca, because of its hormone balancing ability, puts the breaks on breakdown and tilts your hormonal balance back towards anabolism and recovery. This means your body is much more fatigue resistant and better able to cope with the stresses of modern daily life. In short, your energy levels increase because life is less likely to get you down.

Maca - an alternative to hormone replacement?

Unlike traditional medical hormone replacement therapies, maca does not work on individual organs but instead affects the whole organism - in other words, YOU! And because maca merely balances your natural hormone levels, there is little or no chance of any kind of unpleasant side affect which is not always the case with medical hormone replacement therapy.

In addition to balancing hormones and providing a healthy hit of vitamins and minerals, maca is also a powerful antioxidant which can literally help to reverse some of the signs of aging. It's no accident that Peruvian natives, who consume maca on a regular basis, live long and healthy lives and are active right up to the end.

Forms of Maca

Maca is available in a number of forms so you can choose how you want to take this miracle super food...

• Capsules are convenient but may prove expensive if you need to take a larger quantity of maca.

• Powder is another option as it can easily be mixed with water, a smoothie or juice but some people find the taste a little off-putting at first.

• Pressed maca tablets offer the convenience of capsules combined with the purity and concentration of loose powder.

• Maca liquid, extracted directly from the maca root, provides a very concentrated hit of maca goodness and is another option worth considering.

Whichever form of maca you decide on, it is important to buy organic maca preparations that originate from Peru.

Is Maca safe for everyone?

Peruvians have been using maca for over 3,000 years so it's safe to assume that in general, maca is suitable for most people. If you are using maca to treat a specific disease such as hypothyroidism or diabetes, I strongly suggest you discuss your intention with your doctor.

It's never a good idea to self-prescribe even the safest herb or superfood to treat medical conditions (it better to find the cause and not just treat the effect) so make sure you explain what you are taking and why with your doctor. This goes double if you are pregnant or breast feeding.

As maca is a 100% natural substance and is in fact a form of food rather than medication, there is no real reason why you shouldn't take maca but because it can have such a profound effect on hormone levels, it is always better to be safe than sorry.

Now that you understand how maca is a powerful energy booster. But what drains your energy in the first place? The answer is stress and poor sleep!

Healthy Living For a Healthy Life

Having a healthy living is the most important factor in our life. Most of us know that living with a healthy body is the best path to live happy, to feel better, and to look better. Healthy living will lead us to the point where we can enjoy life to the fullest until we grow old and will never experience anything that might harm us or give us pain.

In this article, we will take you in the world of healthy living and healthy lifestyle. It is very simple and yet it provides you the easiest way on how to develop yourself up for a better and healthy person. In addition, we will provide you essential information that can be incorporated to your everyday life.

At present, most of the people in the world have fear of different diseases, and we are commonly looking for the best prevention. One of the best preventive measures to avoid disease is a healthy diet. Remember that prevention is better than cure; this famous line can be applied to anything in this world.

Eating healthy foods is a vital factor to be away from some immeasurable diseases and to have a good condition of our body. Each one of us knows that eating healthy and having a regular exercise will leads us to a healthy lifestyle. There are a lot of healthy recipes that can be seen in some health magazines.

These healthy living magazines can be purchased from any bookstore in your locality as well as healthy living catalogs where you also find the guidelines of the food pyramid.

Speaking of food pyramid, it is a group of food that tells the importance of eating a variety of food that we need every single day. It shows the food that we need to eat less, and those that should be eaten much too. To name one, carbohydrates is the most important food in the pyramid that we should take because it gives us more energy for our everyday tasks, next are the fruits and vegetables group which is high in protein.

However, bear in mind that too much is not good and will have a bad result. Eat only that is necessary and avoid eating food that is more in calories and less nutrients.

Cooking light is the most common way of losing weight. Many of us are suffering from obesity with the main problem of weight loss. In our present time, natural living is introduced and promoted, the natural holistic living. Life is full of challenges they say, but we can avoid too much trials, especially when it comes to our health if we are having a healthy living.

If you will notice the vegetarians, or the green living people, you will get to know that what they are practicing is something that is really amazing and fantastic-the organic living. However, the body still requires us to take proteins from various sources, such as eggs, meat, and other poultry products with only limited amount, just to sustain the food pyramid. Having all the things done appropriately, forever-young living will be achieved, slowly but surely.

Some of healthy living articles like this give healthy living tips which are very useful and helpful for everyone who wants to start and act now to gain a wonderful life today and for the next years of their lives. Here are some of the basic matters that we sometimes tend to overlook

Drink pure water for every 1/2 ounce of body weight. Determine if you are really starving or just dehydrated. Drink a glass of water before the meal but not more than a glass.
Eating healthy is taking in fresh fruits and vegetables. Instead of unhealthy snacks, replace them with fresh vegetables and fruits. Nutrition is found most on the darker ones.
Protein is muscle builder. Good source of protein are beans, fish, meat etc. Again, do not eat too much of it because to the kidney will overwork to filter them.
Starch should be avoided because they are sugar; among them are white bread, potatoes, French fries, and instant oatmeal. Instead, try the grains.
Practice a regular exercise. Make a plan that you can perform without missing even a single session because of laziness. This will increase the metabolism of your body.
Fasting is not a good idea. Instead of the three big meals, replace them with 5 smaller meals in a day.
Fiber is good because it controls the increasing rate of cholesterol within the body. You can find them in legumes, fibrous fruits like pineapple and whole grains.
Fatty acids are good to the body too. So, include them to your healthy living diet. They can make good nails, skin, and hair.

There are some simple yet essential ways to have a healthy living. You can practice them anytime to improve the overall health of your body. If the body is in good condition, the good metabolism will result to good digestion, will result to better flow of the blood, and will give us more energy to perform our daily tasks.

It is a chain of organs and system, and if they all work perfectly, the brain will work properly too, to help us think well of better ideas. You can look and feel better when you perform a healthy living.

Tips For Healthy Living

A lot of factors affect your health, such as your genetic makeup and age. If your family has a hereditary illness like diabetes or hypertension, most likely you would have it too. But living a healthy lifestyle can prevent this from occurring. You can reduce the risk for heart diseases, stroke, cancer or any serious illness by properly taking care of your body.

Eat the proper food.

If you are at high risk for diabetes, then avoid sweet foods. If you are anemic, eat iron rich foods. Remember, not all tasty and delicious foods are healthy. You must eat the foods that your body only needs. An excess or lack of any nutrient might place your body in bad shape. Limiting processed foods is a good start. These foods are high in sodium, saturated fat and other content which can harm your body. Try organic ones, go green, and eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. For snacks, you can substitute a chocolate bar with an apple. Or put some fruits in your oatmeal such as bananas. If you are a meat lover, you can cut those fat portions of the meat. Or try eating fish- low in fats but rich in protein. Actually, there are a lot of healthy yet yummy options, just use flair of creativity.

Quit smoking

Smoking is really, very dangerous to your health. The toxic ingredients of cigarette which are nicotine and carbon monoxide prevent the affected cells from obtaining the full percentage of oxygen needed for them to function well. These toxic ingredients are carcinogenic which is one of the main reasons why lung cancer is very common with people who smoke cigarettes. Smoking can result to atherosclerosis, chronic lung injury, common obstructive pulmonary disease and worse- the development of cancer.

Smile, be positive

Let the good vibes in. Think less of the worries; always look on the bright side of everything. Laugh and hang out sometime, unwind from the stress. Visit spas and resorts, have fun. According to studies, happiness affects almost every aspect of health. Besides from making you feel and look young, being positive and happy prolongs your lifespan.

Be Active

Don't be a potato couch, do some movement. Do some jogging, dancing, walking or gardening. Physical activity is very important for your health. Besides making you look good, exercising improves your total blood circulation and burns the fat off your body. Try weight lifting, this is very helpful if you want to maintain your weight while weight lifting for women who are near their menopausal stage is important for them to maintain their bone strength.