Pay yourself first and be Happy

No matter how much you hate to admit it, money is important. It's important to sustain life. It buys you food, pays your bills, pays your rent or house loans and a whole lot of necessities in your life. So whether you like it or not, you need to be heathy financially. If not you'll have lots of trouble to cover for unforeseen circumstances and build your eggnest.

There was something I read long ago which I think most of us don't really do. It's a real simple concept really. It's call 'Paying yourself First' which put simply is keeping aside money in your bank account preferably a fixed deposit or insurance or any account that does not allow you to withdraw from the account very easily.

So at the end of the month when you get your pay, the first thing to do is put aside 10% or more of it into your fixed deposit account before you go on a shopping spree. Because whether you like it or not, it's human nature whenever there's money in your pocket you tend to spend it.

Another useful advice is to have only one credit card or better still a debit card to use. That way you avoid spending too much money because the credit limit is less and you would be more careful not to overspend and exceed the credit limit. If you pay only by cash then you'll learn to value your money more. Having charge cards only creates false idea that you have more money when infact it's only a credit facility given by the credit card company, at the end of the month you still have to pay the bank for the amount that you spend plus a high interest rate for any balance unpaid.

There are many who fall into this money trap and find it hard to pull themselves out of it. Anyway you look at it all these steps require some amount of discipline on our part. Face it, if you wanna be happy you gotta save some and control your spending, especially now when the whole world is facing economic crisis. Economists will probably disagree with me by saying these will only shrink our economy by kerbing spending. But at the end of the day, if you're in a rut and have financial problems, are these economists going to help us out. I think not.

In short, remember to pay yourself first when you get your pay at the end of the month and control your spending. If you have lots of credit cards, get rid of all of them if you can. If not, just keep one for convenience or emergencies but remember to use with caution. Be your own boss not a slave to the finance companies. Till next time, stay healthy physically, mentally and financially, keep fit, look great and be happy.

Alkaline Vs Acidic Diet

If you're like most people, then you're favorite food are mostly acid producing diet. Acid producing foods like meat, eggs, dairy products, sugar, processed foods. While alkaline foods are mostly from the fruits and vegetables like broccoli, celery, carrots, lettuce, dried figs, apples, lemon and dates. No wonder mothers are always telling you to eat your vegetables.

Human blood should be slightly alkaline ( ph of 7.35-7.45). A ph of 7.0 is neutral, so anything below 7.0 is acidic and anything above is alkaline. The higher the acidity levels the more the body is oxygen deprived while higher alkaline ph reading means the richer oxygen environment. Unfortunately both extremes leads to health problems and illnesses.

When the body is acidic it will :-

• reduce the body's ability to absorb minerals and other nutrients
• reduce the energy production in the cells
• decrease it's ability to repair damaged cells
• decrease it's ability to detoxify heavy metals
• make tumor cells thrive
• make the body more susceptible to fatigue and illness.

Toxic overload, emotional stress, and the body’s immune reaction to illness can cause an acid increase whereas exercise reduces it. Additionally, eating too much acid-producing foods put pressure on the body’s regulating systems to maintain pH neutrality. These demands tend to deplete the body of important minerals, such as sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium if they have to take them from organs or bones so the acid can be safely removed from the body. Over time this delicate balancing act may result in mineral depletion and severe damage. The damage may go undetected for years, and diseases such as osteoporosis, diabetes, immune problems, or cardiovascular disease are the result.

A diet should consist of 60% alkaline forming foods and 40% acid forming foods to maintain health. To restore health, the diet should consist of 80% alkaline forming foods and 20% acid forming foods.

Watch this video to discover the benefits of an alkaline diet. Till next time. Stay fit, look great and feel happy . Try out the alkaline diet, you've got nothing to lose by investing in your health.

A tribute to Mothers everywhere.

I know it's not mother's day today, but it is my mother's birthday today, so please allow me to stray a bit from my usual topic, to pay tribute to that special person I call mother. My mother who was there to witness my first steps, who taught me to read, nurse me when I'm ill, drove me to school, prepared my favorite meals and countless other things that mothers do. Through all those important moments in my life , the happy ones and the sad tough times, she has been there to provide support, help and guidence even now when I'm almost forty.

It takes a lot to be a mother. A lot of patience and a lot of sacrifice. Nursing their babies and waking up in the middle of the night, the diaper changes and all. Teaching them how to read and count. Dealing with teenage problems, the smoking, the girls, the boys, the drinking, the drug problems among others. Some even become nannies for their granchildren when their children are busy at work. Yes, it is a tall order, but a mother does it all for free without getting paid for her services, her time, her patience and sacrifice.

It is for this reason I believe, we are taught in muslim and asian culture that I grew up in, to respect our mothers and treat her with kindness and gentleness. The way she has treated us with love and tenderness when we were growing up. She could have spent her time doing what ever she like with her time, but most of the time her children was her top priority.

I'm not quite sure how it is in the west, but I believe mothers no matter where there are, whatever problems they may have. They maybe succesful businesswomen or drug addict, have drinking problems or have major problems in their life, deep in their hearts, I believe is a love for their children, a love that is timeless and borderless.

There is much to learn from our mothers. Her patience and persistence, teach us to never give up when the going gets tough and to keep striving step by step. Her gentleness and love teach us to treat others even the ones we despise with kindness. For it is unwise to fight fire with fire. Her dutiful manners teach us to be responsible people as all actions have their consequences.

So in view of the coming mothers day in the month May, let us treat our mothers with the love and kindness she has showered us with. A gift really doesn't do justice to a lifetime of time , patience and sacrifice she has given us. If possible, give her a call or pay her a visit to show her that you love her, not just on mother's day but every now and then. It's not too much for the one who has brought you in to this world putting her life on the line. So to my mother and all the other mothers everywhere, I'd like to wish Happy Mothers Day.