Books & DVDs

Unfortunately, there are many people who do not enjoy good health and often find themselves visiting the G.P. surgery for help and treatment. In the U.K. we have an excellent, largely free Health Service and it is bulging at the seams with sick patients.

The thing about hospitals is that they are the almost the place of last resort and if they can't fix you, probably nobody can. Having said that however, there are always alternative ways back to health but quite often this a longer difficult road, which a lot of people find too hard.

The fact is that quite often we become sick or ill because of self neglect. We take out bodies for granted and as long as we feed it and give it a reasonable amount of rest, we consider that is okay but of course it is not. We can put oil and water in our car but that is not enough to keep it running in the long term.

The important issue here is prevention. If we can live more healthier active lives and what is more happier lives, we will live a healty life. Ultimately our state of mind is the key to our overall health. If we live positive optimistic lives, we will let nothing overwhelm us and we will succeed in all we set out to achieve. We will become more phsysically healthier too because you can only get fit or stay on a diet if you have a positive attitude. Negativity not only saps energy but it makes you tired and lethargic, and it can lead to depression. Negativity saps the will and makes you fail.

We all can generate positivity if we work at it but it is like getting fit, it does not happen over night. It takes regular work in order to change our negative self defeating ways into positive healty ones. I definitely recommend BORN TO SUCCEED by Colin Turner. It is a wonderfully pratical, no nonsence book about getting yourself into a positive state of mind and a successful way of living. I have read the book three times now and will read it again. I thoroughly recommend it to you.

FEELING GOOD - David Burns M.D. REVIEW: Like the other reviewers, I cannot praise this book enough. The effect it's had on me - more specifically, my mood - feels miraculous. It's premise is based on the theory that depression is caused by distorted thinking and if my experience is anything to go by, this is totally accurate. The author emphasises writing your thoughts down and he's absolutely right to do so. When i translated my thoughts on to paper, it was amazing to see how utterly negative, and frankly ridiculous, they sounded. Using the techniques the author explains, the reader - and writer - is able to dissect the thoughts and so arrive at a more realistic, and calmer, frame of mind. - Reader review.


JAMIE AT HOME - Jamie Oliver
"This book is very close to my heart. It's about no-nonsense, simple cooking with great flavours all year round. When I began writing it, I didn't really know what recipes I would come up with, but something began to inspire me very quickly...my vegetable patch! I came to realise last year that it's not always about looking out at the wider world for inspiration. Being at home, feeling relaxed and open, can also offer this. I love to spend time at home in the village where I grew up, working with the boss, Mother Nature, in my garden and seeing all my beautiful veggies coming out of the ground. Inside, you'll find over 100 new recipes, plus some basic planting information and tips if you fancy having a go at getting your hands dirty as well!" Jamie

The thing is we need motivation and sometimes motivation wears thin on cold damp evenings when you are tired after work. Of course you know you will feel better after exercising but maybe not tonight!

In my experience (I won't see fifty again!), we tend to push ourselves too much regarding exercise regimes. We have such high expectations of what we should achieve and consequently often fail to get there. Often it is a case of the 'hare and the tortoise.' If we can build a little exercise into our daily routine and do it daily, something not too taxing like stretching, it becomes a habit and as you know, habits are hard to break; this is the tortoise way. However, if you set out to run marathons; you might well achieve this but will such training become a regular part of your life or will say "I've done it now..."? - this is the way of the hare. What is more, if you have not been used to such training, you could end up getting injured or aggrevating some older injury.

And also in my experience, do what you like doing and don't do what you don't like doing. This is feel is the surest way to maintain a good level of fitness. Yes, I know some people like eating and some like sleeping but we are talking about fitness here and there must be some way of keeping fit, you will enjoy? I joined the Viking Society and many weekends found myself, blunted sword in hand, re-enacting some Viking or Saxon battle - boy, that was a good incentive to get some level of fitness!

There is more to fitness than running and weights. What about sailing, horse-riding or ten-pin bowling? They are all ways of exercising your body and if you want to get good at these activities, you will be encouraged to take up other exercising.

So my last piece of advice is, exercise for the activity, not just for the sake of it. Unless you are one of these people who finds running or pumping iron great activies.

Actually that was my second to last piece of advice. Probably the most important is GET THE KIDS INTERESTED. If you start them off early, they will most likely continue the activity throughout their life but make sure it is something they enjoy and not forced on them. If the parents do the same thing as the kid, all the better.



BOOK REVIEW - INTERVAL TRAINING - Joseph & Kimberlie Nitti. This guide covers interval training workouts, XL workouts, and active rest days. The exercise programme helps to burn fat, requires no special equipment, and can be started straight away. It also covers warming up, cooling down and stretching, and nutrition.







KEEP FIT FOR KIDS - Carmen Himmerich. The number of postural defects among schoolchildren today is alarming. However, sports lessons in schools are continuously dropping in importance despite this fact. This book aims to offer assistance to all those people actively involved in putting a stop to postural deficiencies and defects among children and youths in three different steps. Starting off with an introduction into basic principles as well as a detailed discussion of the positive effects of gymnastic exercises specifically for children and adolescents, there follows a wide variety of easy-to-follow exercises, which are clearly explained and illustrated.

Attention should be paid to how you look but of course no matter how good you look, how you feel inside is of equal if not greater importance. What is required is a balance of looking and feeling good, and having confidence in yourself which will carry you through any situation. Those with the greatest confidence can make the greatest statements with what they wear and how they look. They are not afraid to be bold and set trends. Confidence is the key to real beauty and if you feel good on the inside, you will undoubtably want to look good too, even if it is just your own personal style. Sometimes how we look is also how we feel; our inside feelings radiate to the outside appearance but conversely, having a great pampering session at a spa will make us feel good on the inside.

My selection of books below reflects the desire to not only look good but feel good too.




BOOK REVIEW - CLEAR SKIN - Karen Jessett.
This book provides information on everything you need to achieve clear skin: Foods to help prevent acne Foods to avoid Probiotics and prebiotics The acid/alkaline balance Easy acne treatments Useful supplements Relaxation techniques The importance of sleep Exercise advice Personal testimonials Useful resources Also includes over 80 delicious clear skin recipes.




MAKING FACES - Kevyn Aucion - Make-up artist Kevyn Aucoin's faces appear in editorial features, fashion shows, music videos and advertising campaigns as well as on the covers of virtually every major magazine. In this follow up to the highly successful MAKING FACES, he once again astonishes with his incredible transformations of famous and ordinary people and demonstrates how anyone can have a variety of different 'faces'. Working with a whole new cast of famous faces, he turns Celine Dion, Julianne Moore, Sharon Stone, Susan Sarandon, Jennifer Lopez and many others into their most beautiful, glamorous, and intriguing selves. He applies his make-up magic to non-celebrities, and for each of them comes up with two or three new looks. For each and every face, both famous and not, he provides step-by-step instructions and illustrations. With this gorgeous and practical book, anyone can 'face forward' with confidence and style.