Tag: Exercise

Book review: ‘The Modern-Day Guide to Science-Backed Herbal Remedies’ by Dr. Jane Willow PhD

Unlock the healing power of nature with ‘The Modern-Day Guide to Science-Backed Herbal Remedies.’ Photo: Amazon

Dr. Janet Willow, MD, PhD is an award-winning clinical psychologist specializing in the psychological treatment of anxiety, ADHD, depression and other mental health conditions. With decades of experience, she is a leader in her field and widely recognized for her passion to help clients achieve optimal mental health. Her approach to therapy focuses on not just eliminating symptoms but also helping clients understand how they relate to their environment, making lasting changes that can improve overall life satisfaction. Her new book “The Modern-Day Guide to Science-Backed Herbal Remedies” is an essential guide to help readers discover the healing power of nature. (Amazon, 2024)

“The Modern-Day Guide to Science-Backed Herbal Remedies” – discover the fascinating world of herbal medicine and harness the therapeutic potential of plants with this groundbreaking book. It bridges the gap between ancient wisdom and cutting-edge science, providing readers with a comprehensive and accessible guide to natural healing.

The material discussed includes an in-depth exploration of the historical and cultural significance of herbal medicine, the science behind the healing properties of plants, detailed profiles of over 50 medicinal herbs, including their therapeutic uses and preparation methods, step-by-step instructions for crafting your own herbal remedies, from teas and essences to salves and syrups, practical advice on incorporating herbs into your daily wellness routine, and an extensive reference section with the latest research and clinical studies on herbal medicine.

This book contains everything you ever wanted to know about herbal remedies. In Chapter 1: Introduction to Herbal Medicine, the author explains how she became interested in the healing power of plants when as a child, she watched her grandmother enjoy a cup of chamomile and mint tea. Even after she got her scientific education, her fascination with herbal remedies lingered and she was determined to find a connection between both of them. In Chapter 2: The Science Behind Herbal Medicine, she takes readers on a journey to discover the science behind herbal remedies, while Chapter 3: History of Herbal Medicine gives the history of herbal medicine that proves that humans have always had a connection to the natural world.

The rest of the book is divided as follows:

Chapter 4 Ethical Sourcing and Sustainability – Honoring the Earth, Ensuring the Future
Chapter 5 Safety First: Understanding Herbal Contraindications
Chapter 6 The Herbal Apothecary
Chapter 7 Herbal Remedies for Digestive Health
Chapter 8 Herbal Remedies for Muscle Pain
Chapter 9 Herbal Remedies for Respiratory Illness
Chapter 10 Herbal Remedies for Cuts and Bruises
Chapter 11 Herbal Remedies for Mood Enhancement
Chapter 12 Herbal Remedies to Strengthen Immunity
Chapter 13 Herbal Remedies to Improve Sleep
Conclusion

From the science behind herbal medicine, to tips on setting up your own apothecary and herbal remedies for different types of ailments, there is so much useful information for readers of all levels. Whether you are just interested in the history portion or are looking for specific remedies, this is a must-read book. It is well researched and put together and is easy to understand without using complicated medical terms. Readers interested in wellness and herbal remedies should definitely add it to their reading list.

*The author received a copy of this book for an honest review. The views and opinions expressed here belong solely to her.

Rating: 4 out of 5.
Photo: Amazon

Book of the week: ‘Fitness Planner: for beginners’ by Stefan Bercea

‘Fitness Planner: for beginners’ is an essential guide to reaching your fitness goals. Photo: Amazon

The year is winding down and it is time to start making resolutions for the new year. If your goal for the coming year is to get in shape and live a healthier life, it is always best to consider where you are in your journey, what your goals are, and how you want to achieve them. Fitness planners are an excellent way to do this. One such planner is Stefan Bercea’s “Fitness Planner: for beginners.” It is designed to give support and guidance for three types of people: beginners, those who want to return to the gym, and people who are recovering from an accident and planning to return to the gym soon. Start the year right and pick up your copy today; it is available on Amazon UK and Amazon US.

Stefan Bercea has a Master’s degree in Criminology, specializing in Crime and Victimization which brings a unique perspective to his writing. The threads of his academic journey are woven into the narratives, adding depth and insight to the stories he shares. Beyond the pages, his driving force is a genuine passion for helping others. Each tale is a vessel for empathy, understanding, and a shared journey through the tapestry of human experiences. His books are a reflection of his diverse interests—whether it’s exploring the realms of comics, delving into the world of sports, pondering the intricacies of philosophy, or unraveling social sciences. His new book “Fitness Planner: for beginners” offers support and guidance for beginners, people wanting to return to training in the gym, and people recovering from an accident.” (Stefan Bercea, 2023)

“Fitness Planner: for beginners” – This planner focuses specifically on the motivation/reason for which an individual should train and defines it as a goal to be achieved. It then progresses into offering information and recommendations on how training should be approached, depending on the chosen goal, by giving examples and beginner training routines. The planner then discusses the idea of “dieting” and prompts readers towards a healthy challenge encouraging them to adopt a lifestyle and abandon the idea of dieting. It then concludes by prompting readers to create a visual representation of their goal, training, and eating lifestyle as a motivational tool for their fitness journey.

If you are looking into starting or restarting your fitness journey and need a little bit of support in organizing it, then this planner will provide you with some serious advice which you should consider through your journey. It includes three beginner workouts and teaches you how to train, even with only one day available from the entire week. It also teaches you to optimize your training sets and repetitions according to your output. This planner offers you a health challenge in order for you to learn about your body and discover a healthy lifestyle.

The main sections are Find Your Motivation, How to Train, and What to Eat.

Find Your Motivation – this section helps you decide what your fitness goals are: building Muscle, being Athletic, or becoming more Powerful; in other words: M.A.P. Of course, you don’t have to choose just one, but you will achieve your goal faster by focusing on just one. Everyone’s journey is unique and should be personalized. The author does an excellent job of giving detailed steps to help readers narrow down what their goal should be.

How to Train –  This section focuses on finding a training split, the right amount of sets and repetitions for each exercise, finding the best exercise, and the different types of exercise (arms, legs, abdomen).

What to Eat – Far from dictating specifically what to eat, he proposes that you test yourself by eliminating certain foods to find out what works best for your body. This includes sugar, milk, gluten, and processed foods. His biggest advice is to stay away from fad diets and instead create an eating plan to get the most out of the foods you eat.

At the end, he provides a layout for readers to use as a visual board to create their fitness goal plans. Overall, it may be a small book, but “Fitness Planner: for beginners” is an extremely useful reference guide for optimizing your fitness goals. The best part is that he emphasizes the need to personalize your training plan to suit your needs and according to what works best for your body. It is recommended for readers interested in fitness, exercise, and healthy living.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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The importance of making your health a priority

It is time to stop pushing your health to the back of the queue. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

It is time to stop pushing your health to the back of the queue in your life. We know that you have a lot to do, and we understand that this can be difficult to manage at times, but this does not mean that you can treat your health like it does not matter, because it does. In this article, we are going to be taking a look at some of the things that you should be doing in your everyday life to take care of your health, and ensure that it is not the last thing on your to-do list. Keep reading if you would like to find out more about this.

Charities like The Dwoskin Family Foundation help fund research related to many of these areas. It’s worth finding out more about what you can do. 

Eat Healthy Foods That You Enjoy
First on the list, you need to be eating healthy foods that you enjoy on a regular basis. Of course, every now and then you are going to want to indulge yourself in some of the foods that are less than healthy, and that is completely okay. There is nothing wrong with this, you just need to make sure that it is not a regular occurrence and that the majority of the time, you are eating your vegetables. You can look up a range of different recipes such as this super easy bacon wrapped shrimp which can be used for your treat days, or even as part of a balanced diet if you are careful with what else you are eating.

Make Time For Exercise
It is also essential that you are making time for exercise. One of the things that people often forget is that exercise is about more than looking good, it is about keeping your insides healthy. Health experts are not telling you that you need to complete a regular level of activity because it helps you to look your best, they are telling you because it ensures that you are able to keep your muscles healthy. It helps your body stay strong and in shape, able to complete the processes that it needs to, and fight off infections when they occur.

We are not suggesting that you head to the gym every day of the week and complete a high intensity workout, so if this is what you have got in mind then you need to shut this down fast. Instead, you can do things like go for walks in the morning, or go to the gym a few times per week. Do not hurt yourself exercising, but make sure that you are doing enough.

Mental Health Is Essential Too
Your physical health is not the only thing that you should be fighting to take care of, your mental health is just as important. You need to be doing the things that take care of you mentally like giving yourself a break, acknowledging and speaking about your emotions and whatever else you can think of. There are professionals available to help if you need them, or you might be able to manage your mental health on your own. Whatever you decide to do, just ensure that you seek professional assistance if things get too much.

Get Enough Sleep At Night
Finally, when it comes to your health, you need to ensure you are getting enough sleep. This is not just about how long you are sleeping for but also the quality of the sleep you are getting. As an adult you should be aiming for around six to nine hours of undisturbed sleep each night. If you are regularly missing out on vital hours of sleep or you find yourself tossing and turning all night then you will wake up feeling exhausted.

Why is sleep important for your health? Well, when you sleep your body is busy repairing itself from any issues that cropped up the previous day. It also helps with your mood and therefore your mental health. Not getting enough sleep each night will result in your feeling grouchy and snapping at people when they annoy you.

If you are regularly waking up with various aches and pains that are disturbing your sleep then it may be time to look into why this is happening. It may be that your mattress is old, lumpy, and uncomfortable. These should be changed every eight to ten years to improve the quality of sleep.

Hopefully, you have found this article helpful, and now see some of the things that you should do to ensure that you are no longer pushing your health to the back of the queue. There are so many different things that you can do here, but these are just some of the ones that we have come up with off the tops of our heads. We wish you the very best of luck, and hope that you make some of these positive changes in your life, ensuring that your health becomes a priority in future, and not just an afterthought.

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