7 Simple Exercises You Can Do While At Work

If you’re lacking the time it takes to have a regular fitness regimen because of work, kids, or life in general then simple exercises you can do while at work could be just what you need. These 7 simple exercises and tips you can do while at work are fast and easy. You can still have a great work out without the need for a gym.



1. Instead of using a desk chair, sit on a large exercise ball. The balance required for sitting on the ball is a great core stabilizer. You’ll be toning and strengthening your ab muscles without even realizing you’re doing it. It takes very little to no concentration, which can leave your brain power for your work.



2. Resistance bands are great for your toning legs and arms. You can hook the bands to the legs of your desk or chair and do arm or leg reps while you’re sitting at your desk. If you are on the phone, switch hands as you do the reps. If you’re typing at your computer, work your legs with the bands.



3. Walk. During breaks walk as much as possible around the office. If you have ankle weights, then strap those on while you’re walking for an added boost.



4. Leave the elevator behind and take the stairs. Even if you’re on the 14th floor, walk up two to three flights and then catch the elevator the rest of the way. Doing just this one thing alone gets your heart pumping, and releases endorphins. It provides a great start to the day which both your body and brain will thank you.



5. Parking. You may not think that your parking spot has anything to do with your fitness level, but parking further away can actually provide a mini cardio session. Make sure to leave extra time so you aren’t late, and park in the furthest parking spot you can find. Strap on those ankle weights and either walk, run, or march up to the building. Don’t worry about how you will look doing it because the body you’ll gain from it will look and make you feel even better.



6. Stretching is always important. Sitting at a desk for 8-9 hours a day can lead to muscle stiffness, loss of flexibility, back and neck pain, restless legs, blood clots, and stiff joints. Of the things you can do for the health of your body, stretching is the most important. You should be getting up every hour to stretch.



7. Easy stretches you can do at your desk can be anything from reaching up to the ceiling with both arms, to touching your toes, to ballet plies. Make sure to give your back a good twist from side to side to stretch both your spine and your abs. Writer’s belly happens when the ligaments in your abs shorten because of sitting for long periods of time resulting in a “pot belly”, so make sure you’re stretching those abs to keep them long and lean.



Finding time to work out and keeping fit can be challenging, but implementing just a few simple things throughout your work day can really make a difference.

Dining in Southampton

The largest city of Hampshire County, Southampton is mainly known for its port activities, many tourists being drawn to the idea of visiting the famous harbour that was the origin point of Titanic. However, the city has many wonderful places to see and explore, such as the Mayflower Theatre, Hythe Pier, the Royal Victoria Country Park or the Southampton City Art Gallery. As far as entertainment and going out is concerned, the Hampshire city presents numerous places of interest as well, especially when it comes to cuisine. Dining in Southampton can be a unique experience, as there is a marvellous combination of cuisines available, numerous restaurants with different specialties, just waiting to be tasted and enjoyed. From seafood restaurants in Southampton to Italian, Japanese or International cuisine, you have plenty to choose from and all promise to delight your taste buds. As far as decor goes, you can also enjoy wide variety, some places presenting a chic, familiar decor, while others are pretty fancy and elegant. Furthermore, many of them offer takeaway, so if you don't feel like going out, but still want to enjoy your favorite dish from your favorite restaurant, you can simply order takeaways online.

If you are in for an authentic Italian taste, then you should definitely try Piccolo Mondo or Milan Italian Restaurant, while if you want to try some of the best British cuisine, you should most certainly try The Cottage Inn, as well as Blue Island, a very affordable restaurant that offers a combination of English and Greek dishes. There are many restaurants in Southampton that specialist in Indian cuisine, Kohinoor of Kerala being one of the most popular. Basmati Nepalese is another great choice, also offering Asian and Nepali food.

Jewels and Bitterne Balti are other two Indian restaurants and if you want a taste of the best curry in Southampton, you should give Coriander Lounge a try. For pizza or Turkish food, Uni Kebab & Pizza House makes a great choice, while if you fancy some Mediterranean dishes, Sulas Greek Café should be among your top choices. Boulangerie Victor Hugo is a great looking restaurant that will provide you with an authentic French experience. These are just few of the many wonderful places you will be able to find in Southampton and if you want to enjoy delicious dishes in front of the TV, you can always order takeaways online.

All things considered, dining in Southampton can be a truly rewarding experience and whether a tourist or a local, you are encouraged to discover and experience all sorts of tastes and cuisines, restaurants in Southampton having something to offer to every gourmand. There are plenty of resources online about places to eat in the city, so if you want to read a bit on the most popular or the fanciest places in town, you will have numerous sources of information available. Other than that, you simply have to decide what you are craving for and get ready to be amazed with the most delicious dishes.

Intuiting Edible Messages From the Plant World

Plants have always inspired me. I grew up on a rural property in Southeastern Pennsylvania, just over the border from Delaware. My siblings and I spent countless hours outside, playing in trees and running in fields. My first encounter with a plant that really piqued my curiosity was the result of a middle school biology project: describe a plant and determine its family. I chose a plant in the Mint family (although I didn't know that when I chose it) called Heal-all, or Ajuga reptans. The reason I chose it was because it was completely symmetrical: it had opposite leaves that got smaller and alternated direction as you moved up the stem. The tiny blue flowers at the top of the stem were fascinating: they looked like little open mouths. And the stems were completely square! Little did I know, these are the defining characteristics of all plants in the Mint family. I also didn't realize at the time that plants are all created using mathematics and the phi principle, meaning that there is a specific order that the cells follow to form roots, leaves, stems, flowers and seeds. The structure of all life is built upon this same system.

Looking at the flowers, you can tell that bees and other pollinators extract the nectar from the base, all the while fertilizing the flower in a sacred kiss. Sex doesn't get much better than that!

From that day on, I was hooked. But not in the usual "knowledge-thirsty" way - I wanted to know what I could EAT. One summer I was hired by my neighbors, who lived in the woods, to pull out "weeds" from their property. As I was pulling these plants from the soft understory soil, I noticed a distinct Anise or Fennel-like odor emanating from the roots. I decided to take some of them home to make tea - but I chickened out once I'd made it, because I just wasn't exactly sure of what it was. It turns out; I could have drunk the tea, as the plant was Sweet Cicely, or Myrrhis odorata, which is a wonderful aromatic plant in the Carrot family. In this case, it was good to err on the side of caution, as there are several poisonous species in the Carrot family, one of which - Poison Hemlock, or Conium maculatum - is deadly. Only a very small portion - a few leaflets - is enough to kill an adult. Socrates' demise was brought about by forcing him to drink tea made from the leaves.

The following summer (I was sixteen and had just graduated from high school) I decided to take a trip to New England. I got a ride with my friend Ted, a graduate student at the University of Delaware who was doing research in botany. He was going to Boston to visit family and friends. At the tender age of sixteen, I was already somewhat of a traveler, and I had met and made friends with people older than me - several of them lived in New
England, and that's where I was headed. I had heard about the Morris Dance Guild from my friend Vic, who was a Morris dancer in Boston. I also wanted to visit Jon, who lived with his fiancé in Vermont, very near an entrance to the Long Trail of the White Mountains. My parents learned long ago that there was nothing they could do to change my mind, once I had decided to do something. Nothing. So they quietly waved good-bye as I drove out the driveway with Ted in his little car packed with tents, sleeping bags, camping gear, etc. They didn't know that I would be hitchhiking around New England - they might have tried to draw the line there, and I knew better than to tell them.

After visiting with Vic, he drove me to the Morris Dance Guild, which was a cool medieval festival, full of traditional English dance and music. From there I found a ride to a quaint little farm in New Hampshire where I stayed a few days, then headed to Vermont to see my friends. After several days there, I decided to make my way up to the Long Trail, high up in the White Mountains. It was cloudy when I started out, and then it began to rain. And it rained, and rained, and rained some more. I had my poncho covering my backpack, but some of my stuff still got wet. As I was climbing the steep, slippery slope, I slipped and fell, crushing my shinbone against a rock. It was bleeding quite a bit, but I just covered it with a leaf and moved on.

I finally made it to a shelter built just off the trail on a steep and rocky slope, about halfway up the mountain. Good Capricorn that I am, I decided it would be wisest to just spend the rest of the day and the night there, and I would move on in the morning - no use in killing myself on the wet, slippery trail. Little did I know what kind of night was in store for me!

The shelter was quite big - it could have easily housed 15 or 20 people. That night I was alone. And I was lonely, and a little scared. In spite of all my "big girl" traipsing around the country on my own, I was still just a frightened sixteen-year old, wishing I were home in my own bed! As night fell, I climbed into my sleeping bag after having some dried fruit and nuts for dinner. There were the usual early summer night-time sounds - crickets chirping, tree frogs peeping - but as the night drew on I started to notice another, more worrisome sound. Scratch, scratch, scratch... Holy moly, that sounds like something big! A bear!! Is it going to break through the door and come kill me?? Oh my God! My mind was racing between picturing my half-eaten carcass found by some hikers a few days from now, and seeing myself fleeing the scene, tripping down the mountain and ending up at the bottom of a ravine somewhere. The first scenario seemed somehow more attractive... or maybe less insane than the second. So I stayed put, paralyzed, listening to the ominous scratch, scratch, scratch of the bear, or whatever it was. It had to be - whatever it was, it was BIG!
I felt like I was 9 years old again, when I would lay paralyzed in my bed, waiting for the werewolf to come crashing through the window at the slightest movement of a finger or a toe. Dark Shadows was a TV show that aired back in the late 60's and early 70's. My youngest brother, Kenny and I would get home from school and turn on the tube to watch our favorite show. It was my favorite show anyway, in spite of the terror it instilled in me.

Barnabus and Angelique, the vampires, were scary enough. But the werewolf... for a full year, I was petrified to go to bed, just knowing that he was lurking outside my window, ready to pounce at any moment, at the slightest stirring of my covers. That's when I learned how to fall sleep without moving. Those of you whose tender years were not emblazoned by this traumatic psychodrama were spared this particular lesson. I'm grateful, though - in my case it was only imaginary. Some people have to deal with real werewolves, sometimes disguised as humans.

At any rate, the night passed, morning came, and I was still alive and well. I wanted to see if I could find evidence of the HUGE animal it must have been, so I looked at the outside of the door where I heard the scratching coming from. There were definitely no big bear claw marks anywhere to be seen. There were, however, some tiny little scrapes and scratch marks that could have been made by a raccoon. Big deal - what a tizzy I had put myself into for nothing! But by that time, I had already made my decision: after that night, I just wanted one thing - go back down the mountain and try my luck with a far more dangerous species: humans.

Backpack hoisted and ready to go, I set down the trail, light-hearted about my decision. It was no longer raining, but the clouds were still low and I was in no mood to dictate to the sky how I thought it should be behaving. I was going to hitch a ride south towards Boston, where I would meet Ted and drive back home with him. The humans I got a ride from were probably less civilized than bears, although they seemed pleasant enough. I realized after a while that I was likely sitting in a stolen car. Judging from their drinking and conversation, they were on the run from somewhere or running to somewhere, and I didn't want to know anything more or have anything to do with it. So I asked them to drop me off up a ways, and they complied without a hitch. And I thanked my lucky stars, as I do very often, to be alive and well.

But before my encounter with the "less-civilized-than-bears" humans, on my way down the trail before reaching the road, I had a very interesting experience with a plant. The trail had leveled out a bit, and it was much easier to walk. I spotted several gorgeous orange flowers that looked like Lilies, hanging down from narrow, almost transparent stems. Next to the flowers were leaves that were the most stunning leaves I had ever seen. They were simple, smooth-edged, wide-ish blades, but not grasses. They were remarkable by their sheen and by the brownish mottling that characterizes the leaves of Trout Lilies, or Erythronium americanum. As I approached the plants, I had to stop dead in my tracks to take it all in. It was surreal, because this was obviously the first time I had ever seen these plants, and yet I knew that I knew them. And I also knew that I could eat them. This knowing seemed to come from another time, another place, perhaps. But I was absolutely certain that I knew this plant and that I could eat it. So I did - I plucked a leaf and ate it. It was the most divine thing I had ever tasted. I knew I had taken the cake, just because it was the sweetest, freshest taste my palate had ever experienced. That was even better than making it to the top of the mountain... and, I lived to tell the story!

I also lived to tell the story of the misguided souls who picked me up, and I gained a valuable lesson from that experience: never get into a car unless it feels completely right and safe. That lesson served me for many years after that, and I don't regret it. Instead of basing my actions on fear, I learned to discriminate by using my intuitive guidance. This has been the story of my life: trusting that I know, and marveling at the serendipity of circumstance. I am so blessed and fortunate to be connected to so many wondrous souls, whether humans, plants, animals or stones, incarnate or not, who have helped me to negotiate the intricate web of this human, earthly and wildly sensorial existence - including the bears and the werewolves!

What Is The Best Steak At A Prime Steakhouse?

First of all, when you visit a Prime Steakhouse you are guaranteed that all steaks on the menu will be top of the line. Only those fine dining restaurants that claim to serve prime steaks are actually serving USDA Prime Beef which is only the top 2% of the country's total beef production. This isn't to say that the other 98% is bad. Far from it. What is being said that only the very best meat that can be purchased will be sold at a prime steakhouse.

At the very top of the beef pyramid is the filet. You may see it advertised as a filet, filet mignon or tenderloin. It is comes from the short loin section of the cow and is indeed the most tender of all the cuts. Because the area itself is non-weight bearing, it is not toughened by exercise. Many prime steakhouses offer a petite filet and then a larger selection. For some, a 6-ounce portion is sufficient whereas others will have a heartier appetite and want a larger cut. The good news for a filet connoisseur, it is surprisingly low in calories and fat content as compared to other cuts of beef. And for the carb-conscious, without condiments, there are no carbs. Some of the better prime steakhouses sell filets of different sizes and also with and without bone.

It may be that the T-bone steak is next in the hierarchy because it has two different cuts of meat from the most tender part of the short loin. On the larger meat side will be a cut called a 'strip' and the other side will be a small filet. T-bone steaks are generally considered one of the highest quality steaks ranking just below the single filet. Those that really love their steak enjoy the T-bone because it can come in a very thick and hardy cut. There is plenty of meat for the carnivore.

Most of your better prime steakhouses will trim excess fat from their ribeye steaks. These are also called boneless prime rib. Interesting, while this steak is not quite as tender as the filet, it has more taste. Some individuals want a huge cut of ribeye that can weigh almost an entire pound. That is a lot of mouth-watering goodness for the steak aficionado.

What about the Kansas City Strip steak? This cut is well-marbled and is from the larger end of short loin. It is a very flavorful piece of meat. Kansas City has always been known for great beef and is one of the states that provide the authentic USDA Prime Beef. Gourmet Sleuth's Guide to Beef Cuts says that a strip steak can be either bone-in or boneless. On the other hand, the Cook's Thesaurus singles out the shell steak as being the boneless version (implying that the KC strips are bone-in).

No matter the cut of meat, if it's a prime cut of meat, rest assured knowing that your dining on the best. So, next time you go out to a steak restaurant, live a little and be sure to go to a prime steakhouse. Your taste buds will thank you.

Living the Juicy Fruit Life

Spirituality is more than mere feel-good philosophy. It is practical. When Jesus warned his disciples about false prophets, he said, "Ye will know them by their fruits." A spiritual tree (life rooted and grounded in God's allness) bears spiritual fruit. In other words, without you saying one word, your spirituality shows forth in all that you do, all that you say, and by the quality of your living.

• One of the fruits or telltale signs of the spiritual life is LOVE. Without any effort at all, you find yourself engaged in a love affair with everything and everyone in the world. You LOVE, because you can't help loving. At some point you realize that YOU ARE LOVE IN ACTION.
• As LOVE, you will find that (1) unforgiving attitudes resulting from past hurts (2)harbored resentments (3) petty dislikes fall away as naturally as leaves fall from the trees in Winter. The beauty of this is you are not making an effort to rid yourself of these feelings. These leaves just don't grow on the spiritual tree.
• Another fruit of the spiritual life is JOY. Unconditional joy. No one gave you this joy, so they cannot take it away. No thing gave you this joy. It is generated from the I AM that YOU ARE. It out-pictures as genuine cheerfulness and a positive attitude. Bearing the fruit of joy, it is not possible for you to be bored.

These are just a few of the sweet and juicy fruits of the spiritual life--your life when it is rooted and grounded in the awareness of God as the only presence and only power.

Allen White is the author of God Is All, and the recently published Sounds Of The Trumpet.

6 Juicy Fruits to Help You Stay Healthy and Fit This Holiday Season

Are you worried that you could get fat and unhealthy this holiday season yet you don't want to miss the fun of the celebration, especially indulging in delicious treats? Be in control of your health and fitness with these highly nutritious yet low in calorie juicy fruits.

Oranges

Oranges are not only low in calories, but they also contain plentiful and diverse nutrients.

This no saturated fats snack is very rich in pectin, which is a dietary fiber that is very effective in individuals with extra body weight. And like any other citrus fruits, oranges are a great source of powerful natural antioxidant, the vitamin C, which helps the body generate resistance as protection from infectious agents and hunt and clean up damaging, pro-inflammatory free radicals from your blood. So before you go out with friends and family this holiday, be sure to keep a whole of this fruit in your bag and eat it an hour before you hit the table for the feast. It makes you feel full and satisfied, leading you to eat just the right amount of delicious holiday treats.

Strawberries

According to scientific studies, consuming strawberries will earn your body a protection from possible threats of cancer, inflammation, aging and neurological diseases. Strawberries are a good source of different health promoting vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients that are crucial for optimum health. The best part is this fruit is low in calories, meaning you can have as many as you want and acquire the necessary vitamins your body needs, like the B-complex group of vitamins, vitamins A and E, zeaxanthin, lutein and beta carotene. So why not take this sweet and juicy fruit as your snack before the feast. I personally enjoy it with breakfast cereal.

Tangerines

Looking for a portable version of the oranges? Well, tangerine is your best choice. This citrus fruit is one of the best shots to load your body with vitamins, like A and C, and minerals, such as phosphorus, calcium and potassium. But the bonus part, besides being low in calories, is that this juicy treat is rich in hemi-cellulose and pectin, which prevent cholesterol soaking up in the gut. Its ascorbic acid content helps in removing oxidant free radicals from your body, freeing you from illnesses like cold, arthritis and fever to name a few. So, instead of satisfying yourself with candies before the celebration, grab one or two with this fruit for a healthy taste bud stimulate.

Grapefruit

This is yet another great fruit to help boost your immune system. Its vitamin C is about 73.3% of the daily value ahead of vitamin A, which is also high at about 23.7%. This is your one great help if you are boosting your ascorbic acid intake to avoid experiencing or protect yourself from asthma, rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. Besides the nutrimental value, its calorie count is very low at 42 per 100 grams, not to mention its content also includes lycopene, xanthin, beta-carotene and lutein.

Apricots

If you don't want to have heart attack one of these days, especially during holidays, you should consume fruits that are rich in health promoting phyto-chemicals, like apricots. Like oranges, apricot is a great source of the natural anti-oxidant, vitamin C. It is also a sought-after fruit for its minerals, such as iron, calcium, zinc, manganese and potassium, which is a crucial component of cell and body fluids that help regulate blood pressure and heart rate. This low in calories snack is also rich in carotene, which helps protect the body from the unwanted types of diseases, such as lung and oral cavity cancers.

Watermelon

Like the aforementioned fruits, watermelon is also a great source of the major natural anti-oxidant, vitamin C. In addition, this good tasting, watery treat is also rich in beta-carotene and vitamin A, which together helps prevent glaucoma and supports good eyesight. Besides being low in calories, which is a requirement to stay fit, the combination of vitamin C and beta carotene, as scientific studies suggested, has also indicated a tendency for defending against a variety of cancers and heart disease, not to mention relieving arthritic and asthma problems.

Feast and celebrations usually lead us to consuming unwanted food elements unconsciously. But that surely can be minimized if we know how to fool our hungry stomach and satisfy our taste buds. The above fruits not only can help us stay fit, and are loaded with nutrients necessary for us to stay healthy, but are also a great-tasting snack, enough to make feel full and satisfied just before we hit the table for the treats.

Low Fat Fallacy

I guess we all know that obesity is at epidemic levels. It's drummed into us from all angles.

Isn't it strange that we have the biggest range of low-fat foods available but we keep getting fatter?

Isn't somebody going to stand up and say "It hasn't worked"?
In the 70's and 80's we were told that fat was the enemy, and carbohydrates were good.

The USDA Healthy Food Pyramid had carbs as the base (6-11 servings per day). There was however, little mention of the quality of these carbohydrates.

Manufacturers were quick to respond, and began bringing out "Low Fat", "Fat-Free", and "Lite" versions of various food products. These are generally the biggest selling items, and have resulted in lot's of clever marketing tactics - in fact anything to make the consumer feel guilty, and look for the "Fat-Free" option.

Milk - Is Whole Milk Really That Bad?

Most of our modern milk undergoes the process of homogenisation. This process forces the fat globules into an atomiser (i.e. tiny holes) that will form tiny particles. These particles are then evenly dispersed throughout the milk, giving the milk a uniform appearance. Most of our low fat, trim, super-trim milks are created using this process.

However, recent research has shown that structural changes do occur in the homogenisation process. In unhomogenised milk, an enzyme called xanthine oxidase would pass throught the digestive system, and be secreted harmlessly through the bowel. The homogenisation process allows this enzyme to enter the bloodstream.

Some researchers are saying the enzyme attacks the issues of our heart and arteries, encouranging an increase in cholesterol levels!

Low Fat Hasn't Worked

The evidence of the last twenty years, is showing us that just choosing a low-fat version of a food is not helping us lose weight. In fact, we need to question, the processes that go on to make certain foods "low fat".

Many blame a high amount of refined carbohydrates (white flours, sugars) as having an impact on our weight problem.

Why Are We So Fat?

More and more evidence is showing that we eat too much, and exercise too little. Our lifestyles are very sedentary, and portion size has increased. The US Center for Disease

Control (CDC) has concluded that "we eat a lot - a whole lot more than we used to, and most of the increase comes from refined carbohydrates (sugar)."
In the 1970's the average person ate 136 pounds of flour and cereal products per year and now it's up to 200 pounds. The increase is almost all from processed, white flour, high sugar foods. In addition, everything has been super-sized. Example: 1955 McDonald's French fries - 2.4 ounces, 210 calories. 2004 Super size Fries - 7 ounces, 610 calories.

What's The Answer?

Don't get too hung up complex nutrient ratios told to you by the latest diet book. You need to find what works for you and your body. It's a process of trial and error. Start with a diet, then keep working at it until you find what is best for you and your health.

Try to eat whole unprocessed food where possible, and eat little and often to regulate your energy levels. Go easy on all the refined foods - it's hard - because everywhere you go - most of the food is made from cheap refined flours and base products.

Also try to get out and stretch your legs more often.

Here is a resource for everything concerning losing weight. Independent reviews of popular diets, free diet plans, and articles taking a serious look at the causes and solution of weight problems.