Suck It In!

One of the most effective things I’ve done in recent months to “work my abs” is to contract my abs, or feel like I’m ’tightening’ them while doing regular daily activities. I just take a deep breath, then contract my abs as I exhale. I hold it for several seconds, just taking small breaths while I’m holding it. (It’s the abdominal vacuum exercise, if you've ever seen that referred to elsewhere. I just can't get down on all 4's to do it the 'official' way all the time, so I apply the same principles in other ways.)

Sounds simple, but I’ve definitely seen a visible difference in my abdominal muscle tone and definition in the last couple of months since I consciously started doing this. When I think of it, I’ll just tighten my abs… might be while I’m doing dishes, driving, folding laundry, or sitting at the computer for hours writing a highly informative and entertaining entry for a website! My favorite one is to tighten while I’m going up the stairs… makes me feel like I’ve really accomplished something! (yes, I should probably get out more!)

To see if you’re doing it ‘right’ or effectively, put your hands on your abdomen while you do this. You should feel tightening or hardening of the area. Depending on how much insulation (fat) you have covering up your abdominal muscles, you might even be able to see those little puppies ‘flexing’ in the mirror! Go ahead, look!

If you really couldn’t care less about ever seeing your abdominal muscles ever again, remember that your core strength and tone is about much more important things than just vanity! A strong, lean core will improve your posture, protect your spine, make you less prone to injuries, improve your balance, endurance and all-around performance, decrease chronic pain, attribute to higher self-esteem and confidence… and drastically lower your risk for each and every leading cause of preventable death (a.k.a. “the diseases of lifestyle”: cancer, diabetes, heart disease, mental imbalances, obesity, arthritis, stroke, etc.) How’s that for a reason to suck it in?!

I have to warn you… there are some definite side effects. Your pants may unexpectedly fall down. Bam! Right out of nowhere! Also, perfect strangers may whistle at you. Your spouse may become nicer to you… he or she may act suspiciously like you’re dating again. Your offspring my want to test the strength of your new-found washboard abs by walloping you right in the stomach. And everybody, absolutely everybody you know will stop and ask you “What’s different about you? You look great! What have you been doing? What diet are you on? Did you get a haircut… you look so different! I can’t quite tell what it is...” It will get highly annoying to face this daily interrogation, so you’ll probably have to wear a sign on your forehead that asks everyone to kindly refrain from asking so many questions because you’re very busy flexing your abs right now!!

Have fun flexing, you lean things, you!

p.s. Laughter is a great abdominal contraction!

Is There Only ONE Cookbook?

Today's entry is borrowed from another site I have called http://www.daughtersofbreastcancer.blogspot.com/. I was ranting a bit (!) about the state of medicine in general, and specifically when it comes to cancer. I take it personally... nobody messes with my mama!

Mom has been living with breast cancer that has metastasized to her bone marrow and possibly some other areas. She has literally been wasting away while the "specialists" have been shaking their heads, patting her on the back, telling her she's doing great, ordering more tests and prescribing more drugs. Doing "great????" What the ---??!! I scream like a lunatic in my head at these people when they utter insane things like that.

Last week mom was rushed to the hospital after passing out in a grocery store (she was sitting, not shopping). She was released a few hours later and told "everything's normal". Again I scream, "what the ----???!!!" Normal! She has become skin and bones and you call that "normal"??? I think not, my superior specialists.

Mom is in a state of cachexia. The cancer is now eating her healthy tissue to survive. What good will another test do? How is the hormone therapy helping with that? Nobody in the esteemed cancer clinic has even mentioned anything about this... ever. Once this final stage of cancer happens, the focus turns from investigation (more and more tests) and treatment of potential spread (hormones) to KEEPING THE PATIENT ALIVE long enough to treat anything!

This just all proves that orthodox medicine doesn't even come CLOSE to having all the answers, as they'd have us believe. Hey, I'm totally OK with a profession that is only able to handle some of the health/sickness problems that people face... that actually makes more sense anyway. Nobody can possibly know everything.

BUT that profession should announce its limitations loud and clear!!! They can't fix everything, and in fact can make many things worse. They don't know everything about everything. I don't think that the 'not knowing everything' and 'not fixing everything' are even remotely dangerous. What I KNOW is dangerous leading innocent people to believe they know everything, can fix everything... AND nobody else could possibly know anything!!! No wonder the practice of medicine is now officially the #1 cause of all preventable deaths in the U.S. You know the saying... Jack of all trades, master of NONE!

I firmly believe that every person who is "in" medicine (doctors, nurses, etc.) chose the profession because they truly thought it was the best way to help their fellow humans. I believe they are good people - great people. (maybe they are, maybe they aren't... I choose to believe thay ARE so I can sleep at night!) I just know that their "cookbook for health" has very few recipes... and they're all very similar recipes, with similar ingredients! And once you've tried all those recipes, that's it! There's no more food for you... you can't be served by the cook anymore!

It's pretty ignorant AND arrogant AND ridiculous AND CRIMINAL to think that you would have the one and only cookbook on the planet that people should be allowed to use in order to create their meals!!! There are wonderful, delicious, healthy, satisfying and safe flavors from all over the world that anyone has the right to consume!

I suppose the fear is that we just might like those other recipes better... and realize that they tasted better, made us feel better and cost less!! OUCH!

So back to my mom. She'll begin a natural treatment for cachexia (that I found on www.CancerTutor.com) this week. Will it work? Only God knows. I just think we should have been given the opportunity by the 'gatekeepers of health' a LONG time ago. Health and life should always be about the people... not egos and arrogance.