Understanding insomnia and how to solve it

Understanding insomnia and how to solve it 

Insomnia is the inability to get the amount of sleep you need to wake up feeling rested and refreshed. Because different people need different amounts of sleep, insomnia is defined by the quality of your sleep and how you feel after sleeping—not the number of hours you sleep or how quickly you doze off. Even if you’re spending eight hours a night in bed, if you feel drowsy and fatigued during the day, you may be experiencing insomnia.

Although insomnia is the most common sleep complaint, it is not a single sleep disorder. It’s more accurate to think of insomnia as a symptom of another problem. The problem causing the insomnia differs from person to person. It could be something as simple as drinking too much caffeine during the day or a more complex issue like an underlying medical condition or feeling overloaded with responsibilities.

The good news is that most cases of insomnia can be cured with changes you can make on your own—without relying on sleep specialists or turning to prescription or over-the-counter sleeping pills.

Causes of insomnia: Figuring out why you can’t sleep

In order to properly treat and cure your insomnia, you need to become a sleep detective. Emotional issues such as stress, anxiety, and depression cause half of all insomnia cases. But your daytime habits, sleep routine, and physical health may also play a role. Try to identify all possible causes of your insomnia. Once you figure out the root cause, you can tailor treatment accordingly.

Are you under a lot of stress?
Are you depressed? Do you feel emotionally flat or hopeless?
Do you struggle with chronic feelings of anxiety or worry?
Have you recently gone through a traumatic experience?
Are you taking any medications that might be affecting your sleep?
Do you have any health problems that may be interfering with sleep?
Is your sleep environment quiet and comfortable?
Are you spending enough time in sunlight during the day and in darkness at night?
Do you try to go to bed and get up around the same time every day?

-Common mental and physical causes of insomnia:

Sometimes, insomnia only lasts a few days and goes away on its own, especially when the insomnia is tied to an obvious temporary cause, such as stress over an upcoming presentation, a painful breakup, or jet lag. Other times, insomnia is stubbornly persistent. Chronic insomnia is usually tied to an underlying mental or physical issue

-Psychological problems that can cause insomnia: depression, anxiety, chronic stress, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder.
-Medications that can cause insomnia: antidepressants: cold and flu medications that contain alcohol; pain relievers that contain caffeine (Midol, Excedrin); diuretics, corticosteroids, thyroid hormone, high blood pressure medications.
-Medical problems that can cause insomnia: asthma, allergies, Parkinson’s disease, hyperthyroidism, acid reflux, kidney disease, cancer, or chronic pain.
-Sleep disorders that can cause insomnia: sleep apnea, narcolepsy, restless legs syndrome.




Insomnia cures and treatments: Changing habits that disrupt sleep

While treating underlying physical and mental issues is a good first step, it may not be enough to cure your insomnia. You also need to look at your daily habits. Some of the things you’re doing to cope with insomnia may actually be making the problem worse.

For example, maybe you’re using sleeping pills or alcohol to fall asleep, which disrupts sleep even more over the long-term. Or maybe you drink excessive amounts of coffee during the day, making it harder to fall asleep later. Oftentimes, changing the habits that are reinforcing sleeplessness is enough to overcome the insomnia altogether. It may take a few days for your body to get used to the change, but once you do, you will sleep better.





Insomnia cures and treatments: Neutralizing anxiety when you can’t sleep

The more trouble you have with sleep, the more it starts to invade your thoughts. You may dread going to sleep because you just know that you’re going to toss and turn for hours or be up at 2 a.m. again. Or maybe you’re worried because you have a big day tomorrow, and if you don’t get a solid 8 hours, you’re sure you’ll blow it. But agonizing and expecting sleep difficulties only makes insomnia worse. Worrying about getting to sleep or how tired you’re going to be floods your body with adrenaline, and before you know it, you’re wide-awake.



-Learning to associate your bed with sleeping, not sleeplessness


If sleep worries are getting in the way of your ability to unwind at night, the following strategies may help. The goal is to train your body to associate the bed with sleep and nothing else—especially not frustration and anxiety.

-Use the bedroom only for sleeping and sex.
 Don’t work, read, watch TV, or use your computer in bed or the bedroom. The goal is to associate the bedroom with sleep alone, so that your brain and body get a strong signal that it’s time to nod off when you get in bed.
-Get out of bed when you can’t sleep.
Don’t try to force yourself to sleep. Tossing and turning only amps up the anxiety. Get up, leave the bedroom, and do something relaxing, such as reading, drinking a warm cup of caffeine-free tea, taking a bath, or listening to soothing music. When you’re sleepy, go back to bed.
-Move bedroom clocks out of view.
 Anxiously watching the minutes tick by when you can’t sleep—knowing that you’re going to be exhausted when the alarm goes off—is a surefire recipe for insomnia. You can use an alarm, but make sure you can’t see the time when you’re in bed.
It’s also helpful to challenge the negative attitudes about sleep and your insomnia problem that you’ve developed over time. The key is to recognize self-defeating thoughts and replace them with more realistic ones.

9 - Ways to get motivated for a morning workout

Ever notice that when you exercise in the morning, you feel more alert and productive all day? It’s no coincidence — a morning workout has several advantages for your body and your mind. First, exercise jump-starts your metabolism, and keeps you burning calories at a higher rate all day. Also, you get your exercise out of the way and don’t have to worry about not having time for your workout routine, should something unexpected come up during the day,

One recent study found that exercise before breakfast can counter the ill effects of overeating. The researchers compared groups of active young men who ran or biked before breakfast with those who didn’t exercise and with those who exercised after eating big meals. Only the group that exercised before eating gained little or no weight and showed no signs of insulin resistance. Science aside, if you find getting up and exercising in the a.m. is easier said than done, try these 10 tricks.

1 - Move your alarm clock

Instead of sleeping with the alarm next to your bed, move it to the other side of the room. That way, you’ll have to get up and get out of bed to shut it off. Once you’re up, it’s that much easier to stretch, don your workout clothes, and head out the door for a brisk walk around the neighborhood or to the gym for a morning workout routine. If you use an alarm that plays music, set it to a song from your workout playlist to help get you in the mood for exercise.

2 - Make a date

Having a workout routine buddy is a great motivator. Make plans to meet your exercise partner at the gym at 6 a.m. or on the tennis courts at 7 a.m. You’re less likely to poop out if you know someone is waiting for you. “You don’t want to be the one who overslept or was too lazy to get up and get moving

3 - Make friends at the Gym

If you don't have an exercise buddy yet, chances are you will make one after a few weeks of sticking to a morning workout routine at your gym. You'll become familiar with the regulars who also exercise there that time of day. “It does inspire you to get up and move because you know they’re there and will wonder where you are if you miss a day or two,"

4 - Have a set goal

Every Sunday night, create your workout schedule for the coming week. Tell yourself, for example, “This week, I’m getting up at 6 a.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, and running three miles before work.” Schedule your morning workout just as you would an appointment. You’re more likely to follow your morning workout routine if you write it down.

If you don’t make it, write a note in your calendar to explain why. Later, you can analyze your exercise excuses and look for ways to overcome them.

5 - Load Workout Music Onto Your iPod

Music is a good motivator in the morning,If you have a great playlist, it can be enough to get you out of bed in the morning. Having workout music works for me. Research has shown that listening to music when you exercise can produce positive thoughts and help offset fatigue.

6 - Prep the night before 

To follow through on a morning workout routine, it helps to lay out your exercise clothes and equipment the night before. That way you don’t waste any time getting dressed and ready for your workout. One possible disadvantage of exercise in the morning is that your time may be limited — overcome this limitation by having a set routine and not wasting time looking for your sneakers or your weights.

7 - Reward your efforts 

If you meet your exercise goals and get up early four out of five days to work out for an hour, do something nice for yourself at the end of the week, like getting a manicure, seeing a new movie with a friend, or going to a baseball game. Buy a new workout outfit, take a well-deserved soak, or cozy up to your eReader — find what motivates you, and use it to give you that push out of bed each morning for your workout routine.

8 - Tell the world about your plans

Thanks to Facebook and Twitter, you can tell everyone you know about your morning workout routine. Post your exercise plans on Facebook. Once you do so, it’s harder not to follow through with it.

You also can use social media to boast of your accomplishments — tell your friends that you swam 16 laps (about a mile) or ran three miles before work. They surely will be impressed, and it will motivate you to keep up your workout schedule.

9 - Too sleepy? give it time

At first it may be difficult not to turn off the alarm and go back to sleep, rather than jump out of bed to exercise at the gym or go on a 30-minute walk. But after about a week or two, your body will adjust to your early workout schedule and it will be easier to get up and out of the house and head for the gym, Here’s why: When you exercise regularly, you sleep better at night. When you sleep better at night, waking up to exercise is easier to do.

Swedish Beef Patties With Onions.

Cheap and easy Swedish Beef Patties recipe. This recipe is ideal for making multiple weekly servings.
Ingredients

What you need:
2 cold boiled potatoes
1 lb lean ground (minced) beef
Salt and white pepper
3 tbsp of water
2 tbsp butter or margarine
2 Large onions, sliced
Cooking Instructions

What you need to do: 
Mash the potatoes and mix with the ground beef, Add salt, pepper and water. work the meat mixture until smooth and shape into patties. Heat a skilet with 1 tbsp butter. Add the onions and cook over moderate heat until golden brown. Transfer the onions to a platter and keep it hot. Melt the remaining butter in the skillet and cook the patties over moderate heat untill brown on both sides and cooked thoughout. Serve patties with a sauteed onions and vegetables of your choice.

Serving Suggestions

Serve these Swedish Patties with the onions on top and the vegetables of your choice. In the sample picture I used corn, carrots, broccoli and pumpkin (note, my patties did not stick together properly - thats why it looks like a big pile!)

Nutrition Facts:
Calories: 300g
Protein: 16g
Carbs: 20g
Fat: 16.9g

Using your thoughts to better your reality


There's something to be said for focusing on the positive. Actually, metaphysicians and personal life coaches will tell you that focusing on the positive is everything. They'll tell you that and they'll tell you that your subconscious mind drives the reality around you. So if you're subconsciously, or consciously, focused on the negative, your subconscious mind will steer you right there.

Metaphysicians will also tell you that we create all, or most of the problems in our lives, just by this mis-thinking. Then they'll tell you that the Universe is programmed to give us exactly what our subconscious mind and our conscious thoughts and words request. So, if you repeat a negative thought over and over, even subconsciously, chances are you'll acquire it in the physical realm because you've manifested it. If you keep repeating a positive one, it works the same way.

When you start to see how this may be taking place in your life, it almost begs you to start watching your thoughts, even down to everyday little jokes.After all,why would we want to create the negative because we're merelythinking or talking it into being? Doesn't it make more sense to make some mental shifts and talk and think the positive into being? Personal coaches will tell you that the latter, plus the action to get there, will often get you to where you want to be.

Focusing on what you want, not what you don't

In some cases, it's the difference between focusing on what you do want and taking the action to get there, instead of focusing on what you don't want. Sometimes it takes some word twisting toget your thoughts into the right place once you become aware of your patterns of thought and realizethat they focus moreon the negative. But, hey, if we're not here on earth to learn and grow, what in the world are we here for?

In other cases, it seems hard to focus on the positive because we already see the negative manifestations in our lives. In these cases, it's best to use thoughts and words like, "I am manifesting abundance." Or, "I am intending vibrant health." Or on a global scale, "I am manifesting a peaceful world." Just insert whatever positive outcome you desire to come into being.

And while it's not a good idea to pretend that the bad isn't happening, it is a good idea to find the solutions to what you can do about a bad situation. Or just acknowledge that the bad is there and still focus on the positive.

When you understand that all we're seeing around us is a reflection of worldwide consciousness and what we've created and have allowed to be done to us, we start to see that elevating human consciousness is really our solution out of this mess. Because when millions of people around the world are radiating love energy at core level, we simply won't see all of the problems that we currently do. Most people currently radiate some level of fear.

Quite simply, when we are radiating love, we'll be manifesting a better reality just by being higher vibrational beings with higher vibrational thoughts and actions. Higher consciousness beings also wouldn't poison the society or the earth, as it's just contradictory in nature.

20 Muscle Building Tips.

1 - Compound exercises are your best tools for growth. Use them.

2 -  Eat your biggest meal of the day about 30 to 60 minutes after you lift weights.

3 - Get strong! There are no weak bodybuilders. You don't have to become a powerlifter, but you do need to dramatically improve your strength over what it is now.

4 -  Squats are king of the muscle builders, and they are not bad for your knees unless your form is horrible and/or you are half-squatting.

5 -  Deadlift. If squats are king, deadlifts are second in command. They are not bad for your back unless your form is horrible.

6 -  Learn proper form. Read every article, and watch every video you can on proper exercise form. There is no excuse for having sub-par squat and deadlift form.

7 -  Balance your upper body work. This means equal effort for chest, back and shoulders. Stop doing 7 exercises for chest and only lat pull downs for back. Balance will keep you healthy, strong and help to stave off shoulder issues.

8 - Beginners...stop training like advanced lifters, using advanced splits and training techniques. They are not needed. What you need is to get strong on the basic compound lifts more than anything.

9 - Beginners...stop adding training volume. Having 3 bicep days per week isn't going to help. You need to get strong right now, not fatigue yourself with endless sets.

10 - Stop believing that muscle building is rocket surgery. It isn't. Get stronger, eat enough food and stay persistence.

11 -  Stop missing workouts.

12 -  Stop complaining about muscle soreness. It's part of the game. Don't miss workouts because of it. No excuses - get to the gym.

13 - Stop complaining about every ache, pain or strain. Lifting weights is hard, and a man's game. You're going to feel off occasionally. No excuses - get to the gym.

14 -  Proper muscle building nutrition is much more than broccoli, rice and chicken breasts. Eat a variety of whole foods each week.

15  Eat more red meat.

16 - Eat more eggs, including the yolks. Egg yolks are nutritionally dense.

17 -  Drink plenty of water. Then drink more.

18 - Sleep at least 8 hours a night and take naps when possible.

19 - Learn to cook. Muscle building nutrition doesn't have to be bland.

20 - Having trouble reaching your calorie goals? Add butter or olive oil to your veggies.

Grilled Tuna Burgers.


Burgers don't have to be unhealthy! This grilled tuna burger is high in protein, low in fat and less than 200 calories.

What you need:
450 Grams of Tuna
40 Grams of chopped onion (1/2 small onion)
1 large carrot (shredded)
2 cloves of finely chopped garlic
4 egg whites
20 grams of chopped chives
40 grams of bread crumbs
Spices to taste
Cooking Instructions

What you need to do:
Mix all the ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. If you like spices you can chili or paprika here as well. I added chili to taste. Split ingredients into four patties.

Take a tray and cover with a non-stick piece of baking paper. Spray the paper lightly with low fat cooking spray. Grill patties on both side until brown.

Serving Suggestions

You can either serve the tuna patties in the traditional style with a roll and trimmings or with rice and vegetables. I had mine with a wholemeal roll, salad and chutney - very nice!

Nutrition Facts:

Calories: 200g
Protein: 35g
Carbs: 15g
Fat: 1.2g

How Much Weight Do I Want To Gain?


A beginning natural bodybuilder who is training hard and eating right should gain at least 10 to 16 pounds of muscle during his first year of hardcore training. An intermediate to advanced lifter will gain fewer pounds as the years progress. According to Casey Butt, this is the muscle progression that an average natural bodybuilder can expect:

Year 1 - 16 pounds of muscle.
Year 2 - 8 pounds of muscle.
Year 3 - 4 pounds of muscle.
Year 4 - 2 pounds of muscle.
Year 5 - 1 pound of muscle.
When bulking, you will also gain some fat. Some fat. Keep in mind that this bulking protocol will not turn you into a sumo wrestler, but you may add 5 to 10 pounds of fat during a given year. Some will gain slightly more, and some will gain slightly less fat. If you have fat fear and undereat, you will be limiting your gains. Bodybuilding requires building, or eating more. You simply can't maximize muscle mass by trying to eat less. There will be plenty of time to see your abs once you are a muscular beast!

Here are some general guidelines on how much weight gain you should aim for based on your training and muscle growth experience:

Beginners.
 Beginning lifters who have gained no prior muscle mass should set a goal to gain about 2 pounds a month over the course of their first training year. In a perfect world this would equate to 16 pounds of muscle and 8 pounds of fat.

Beginner to Intermediates. 
Second year lifters (or someone who has gained about 16 pounds of muscle mass) should set a goal to gain one pound per month over the course of the next year. In a perfect world this would equate to 8 pounds of muscle and 4 pounds of fat.

Intermediates. 
Third year lifters (or someone who has gained about 24 pounds of muscle mass) should set a goal to gain two pounds every 3 months over the course of the next year. In a perfect world this would equate to 4 pounds of muscle and 4 pounds of fat.
Intermediate to Advanced. Fourth year lifters (or someone who has gained about 28 pounds of muscle mass) should set a goal to gain one pound every 2 months over the course of the next year. In a perfect world this would equate to 2 pounds of muscle and 4 pounds of fat.

Advanced.
 Fifth year (plus) lifters (or someone who has gained about 30 pounds of muscle mass) should set a goal to gain one pound every 2 months over the course of the next year. In a perfect world this would equate to 1 pound of muscle and 5 pounds of fat.