Free Raleigh, NC Getaway

I am ready for a vacation. My family usually takes a vacation in the fall and I cannot wait. We are thinking about a Fall Getaway to Raleigh, NC. Raleigh has big-city entertainment but with hassle-free small town southern charm. They have lots of things to see and do plus it is affordable and not far away. Raleigh is best known for its world-class museums, best of Broadway shows and live concerts, capital area historic sites, professional and amateur sporting events and shopping mecca status with nine major retail areas. There are some pretty cool things planned for this fall as well such as NC Theatre's production of Man of La Mancha, the North Carolina State Fair, Mystery of the Lost Colony of Roanoke Museum Exhibition, and concerts featuring the Dave Matthews Band and Trace Adkins.

Also, if you are interested you can register to win a FREE Raleigh Getaway. It includes
-One night accommodations for two at the Courtyard by Marriott Raleigh Crabtree Valley
-$25 gift certificate to Bloomsbury Bistro
-Free VIP admission for two to Rum Runners
-2 tickets to the North Carolina Theatre
-2 tickets to the N.C. Museum of Art’s Landscapes from the Age of Impressionism
-2 tickets to Dinosaurs: Ancient Fossils, New Discoveries at the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences

I am excited about our fall vacation and hope we get to go to Raleigh and explore its many cultural aspects.

Don't overdo it...

In the past, I've been guilty of trying to lift too much. Recently, I tried one too many times, and I tweaked my hamstring. It's not real bad, but it has definitely taught me a lesson. Strenght is not worth ruining your health over. Strength has its benefits, but work slowly. Don't overdo it.

Home Insurance

If you are a home owner, then you know the security and confidence you feel when your home is insured with a reliable company. Good home insurance is what CIS offers.

CIS has been in existence since 1867, and they are the only co-operative insurance company in the United Kingdom. They have about 4.7 million customers and currently administer more than £20 billion of their money.

CIS not only off great home insurance, they also have motor insurance, pensions, with-profits bonds, critical illness products, unit trusts and ISAs.

The following is a list of a few of their home insurance key benefits:
- up to £500,000 rebuilding costs cover as standard under Buildings
- 7.5% discount when Buildings and Contents are bought together
- separate generous No Claim Discount scales of up to 40% for buildings and contents
plus the option to protect once the full entitlement has been earned
- HomeRescue Plus for just 12p for the first year
- pay monthly by Direct Debit or annually by debit/credit card
- free Legal Expenses Insurance, up to £50,000
- free Legal Advice Helpline
- free HomeRescue Emergency Helpline
- free Pre-Travel Advice and Emergency Travel Assistance Helplines (with the Travel
option only)
The previous details are correct at the date of publishing. If you sign up online, you also get a %10 discount. You should really check it out.

10 Healthy Foods

After some reading, I've put together a list of 10 healthy foods and reasons why they are healthy:
- Apples
- Almonds
- Blueberries
- Broccoli
- Red Beans
- Salmon
- Spinach
- Sweet Potatoes
- Vegetable Juice
- Wheat Germ
These 10 health foods are some of the healthiest because they meet at least three of the following criteria:
- Are a good or excellent source of fiber, vitamins, minerals and other nutrients
- Are high in phytonutrients and antioxidant compounds, such as vitamins A and E and
beta carotene
- May help reduce the risk of heart disease and other health conditions
- Are low in calorie density, meaning you get a larger portion size with a fewer
number of calories
- Are readily available

Lap Band Surgery

I am normally not a big fan of surgery for weight loss purposes, but there are instances (the morbidly obese for example) when the health benefits of surgery can outweigh the risks. One of these types of surgery is called lapband or Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Banding. Basically, during the procedure a band is laparoscpically placed around the upper stomach creating a new smaller stomach pouch. The new smaller pouch can hold less food; therefore, one feels full and satisfied faster while actually eating less and losing weight. So if you are considering surgery in order to lose weight, do not forget to research extensively the benefits and risks of weight loss surgery.

Colon Cleansing

Colon cleansing is a subject we sometimes avoid talking about; however, a healthy colon is essential to good health, which makes colon cleansing a must. Everything we eat ends up in our bowels as toxins. As these toxins build up, we end up with various diseases, such as being overweight, constipation and candida. Unfortunately there aren't many colon cleansing resources on the web, and I'm not making any suggestions. Just know that colon cleansing is important. Research products and find the best one for you. This is just a helpful tip and reminder.

Bad Credit Offers

Do you have bad credit? If so, you are not the only one and there are lots of people and companies that want to take advantage of you. That is where a website like Bad Credit Offers comes in handy. It is the user's guide to bad credit. The site monitors the market and helps consumers sort through all the "bad credit" offers available to find the best product to fit their financial needs and circumstances. They rate the markets best bad credit loans whether it is a home loan, auto loan, or personal loan. They also compare credit card offers for people with bad credit and credit counseling services that offer credit repair, debt settlement, and debt consolidation. So, if you have bad credit I suggest you check out Bad Credit Offers to make sure no one is taking advantage of your situation and that you are getting the right product for your needs.

Vacation Planning

I know you guys remember me posting about my dream vacation to Australia. Well, I have found another good travel website to help me daydream and plan my dream vacation. The website is called realtravel.com. What is unique about it is that it is powered by real people like you and me that travel alot. They let ordinary folks blog about their travel experiences and collect them all in one place to help others to have the perfect trip. They have a free trip planner where you can create a trip plan with personalized itineraries, maps, guides, blogs, reviews and more. You can add any number of destinations to your itinerary and see each one on a dynamic route map. Then for each stop you can get travel guide information and insights from the real travelers who have been there before. They also have very detailed travel guides with everything you need to know to plan a trip. The guides include information such as things to do and see, when to go, how to get there, suggested itineraries, where to eat, where to stay, and beautiful pictures all by regular folks who have taken the trip before. The site also has a tool that will search multiple sites for the best rates on flights, hotels, rental cars, and travel packages. What I really like about the site is I can search for practically any destination and then read about other people's trips there. I can find out what they liked best and least about that destination. I can read about where they stayed and ate, and what they wished they had done differently on their trip. All this inside information can make your trip that much more enjoyable. I have already read up on the Australia section of realtravel.com and will continue to do so as I dream about my perfect vacation there.

ED Treatment

You can hardly watch television or read a magazine these days without seeing an advertisement for some form of erectile dysfunction treatment. For those suffering from this condition it can be a daunting task to sort through all the ads to find what is best for your situation. Luckily there is a new website called Man of People that has lots of information about the different treatment methods for erectile dysfunction. It tells you the difference between viagra pills and cialis. The site goes over the pros and cons of brand names versus generic drugs and the side effects of each treatment. It also tells the best online pharmacies to buy from and even gives price comparisons. The site also discusses other ED treatments such as penile implants, sex therapy, and vacuum devices. So if you need help sorting through all the different treatment for erectile dysfunction check out Man of People.

Dell Printers

Obviously, if you are reading this blog, you have a computer. Any computer needs a good, reliable printer. Dell makes one of best quality printers on the market. I have one of the Dell inkjet printers, and I love it. I am actually looking into getting one of the Dell printer scanner copiers. These are really nice and extremely handy if you are into things such as myspace, facebook, etc.

Now, I have had several printers in the past, and I can say from experience that Dell makes some of the best quality printers on the market. I recommend that, if you are in the market for a new printer, you seriously consider a Dell printer.

This is a sponsored post.

Fun, Fun...

I forgot totyell you guys about my paintball war this past weekend. We had a blast, but, for the ones who have never played, it hurts. I had a first, though. A ball actually hit me near my forearm, and busted my arm open. It wasn't too big - about the size of a quarter - but it was really deep. That was the first time I've ever seen that happen from a paintball fight. The good thing was that the ball didn't bust, so no paint got in the open wound. I probably should have had a couple of stitches, but who needs stitches with neosporine.

Lasik & Lebron

If you live in the United States, chances are that you have heard of Cleveland Cavaliers' star, Lebron James. News is out that he just had Lasik with a doctor evaluated and certifed by the Council for Refractive Surgery Quality Assurance (USAEyes). USAEyes is a nonprofit Lasik patient advocacy that certifies Lasik doctors and provides objective information about Lasik and similar vision correction surgery. USAEyes has been praised by the New York Times, US News & World Report, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, CNN, NPR, CBS News, Oprah, Ocular Surgery News, Ophthalmology Management, and others.
Lasik doctor selection is very important. The Congressional Reportalso recommends USAEyes. If you're considering Lasiks, you really need to visit USAEyes.


This is a sponsored post.

How do you lose fat?

In a nutshell, it's a simple law of energy intake and expenditure. Eating more than you are using means you gain weight. Burning more than your eating means you lose weight... Unfortunately the real outworking of this is not so simple. Losing fat (for most people) is hard -- get used to the idea then you won't struggle so much with disappointment.
There are 5 principles to keep in mind - Diet (Nutrition), Cardio (Exercise), Dedication (Consistency), Goals, Weight training. It is possible to lose fat with correct diet alone (for some people) - but the best chance of success will be to apply all these principles. Even the perfect diet plan can fail if you cannot stick to it.

Bike Racks

I believe I've mentioned before how much I enjoy riding my bike for cardio exercise. It may be because it's faster, but it is by far my favorite cardio activity. It's also a great body workout also; however, owning a bike results in having to store it. That may not be a big problem for some of you, but for me and folks like me--people with little garage space--it can cause a clutter. I've recently looked into buying a bike rack. Carguygarage.com has a variety of bike racks from floor mounts to ceiling mounts. If you have a bike, check out this site.

This is a sponsored post.

Weight Management and Fitness Forum - 1st Edition

Welcome to the First Edition of the Weight Management and Fitness Forum. We received a lot of good articles and narrowed it down to these. We appreciate everyone's participation and are excited about the upcoming editions.

Fitness

Tupelo Kenyon presents 5 Tibetan Rites - Easy Yoga for Busy People posted at Tupelo Kenyon, saying, "Everywhere you look, people seem to be too busy . . . too busy to take care of themselves and exercise. Here's a quick solution that you won't have to force yourself to do. In only 10 or 15 minutes per day, you can stretch your whole body (all muscle groups) and even help rev up your charkas (if you subscribe to that sort of thing). It's fun, it makes you feel good and you can see the results."

Shane Magee presents Running a sub 3 hour marathon posted at Sri Chinmoy Races blog. Describes the training needed to run a marathon in less than three hours.

Zoe Anderson presents Pilates Exercise and Weight Loss posted at thinkpilates.com, saying, "An article answering the question: "Is pilates really a weight loss program?""

General Health

Big Cajun Man presents The High Cost of Healthy Kids? (part i) posted at Canadian Financial Stuff, saying, "The high price of raising healthy kids part 1 of a three part set of articles."

Nneka presents Feeling Full posted at Balanced Life Center. describes a struggle with overeating and weight loss.

Gal Josefsberg presents How to get healthy, in five easy steps. posted at 60 IN 3, saying, "I thought you might be interested in these steps to get healthy and fit. I wrote it due to my own experience in turning my health around. I think I would have had a far easier experience with this kind of plan."

Todd Goldfarb presents 7 Step Guide to an Effective Morning Routine posted at We The Change

FitBuff presents Lifeline Screening: 15 Types of Blood Tests and Checkups You Need posted at FitBuff.com's Total Mind and Body Fitness Blog, saying, "So, how do you make sure you are aware of your true overall health condition without becoming a paranoid hypochondriac? Below is a list of tests and screenings that should be included in your regular checkups..."

Nutrition

Dean presents Top Ten Fast Food Meals That Make You Fat posted at Mr. Cheap Stuff, saying, "A list of the worst fast food meals."

Sohail presents Sugar Beverages: Drinks of Mass Destruction? posted at The HealthBlogger

Stanimir Sotirov presents Fitness and weight loss:The importance of nutrient timing posted at All About Your Body And Spirit

Amanda Harris presents Trans Fat Labels posted at Pajama Mommy. Describes the difference between 0g Trans Fat vs. No Trans Fat.

Weight Loss

Tiffany Smith-Ramirez presents Lose Weight posted at Balanced Ideas For Health, Happiness, & Weight Loss, saying, "Balanced Ideas for weight loss, happiness, motivation and life balance."

Rob presents The Koda Kumi Diet; eating your way to weight-loss posted at Dusk and Dawn, saying, "This is a short article about a small change I've made in my life that has been having a continuous, positive effect on my health."

Becky Gillaspy presents Common Thought Traps posted at Weight Loss without Worry.

Jeremiah Reid presents Trash the Scale: How to Calculate Body Fat Percentage posted at I'm an Omnivore, saying, "Focus on losing fat instead of just losing weight."

That concludes this edition. Our second edition is scheduled to be published on October 1st. Submit your blog article to the next edition of Weight Management and Fitness Forum using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page. Thanks again for all your submissions.

Technorati tags:

weight management and fitness forum, blog carnival. weight loss. fitness. nutrition. diet.

Australian Dream Vacation

As you probably remember from one of my previous posts, I have been dreaming about a vacation to Australia. Well I have done some more research and thought I would share that with you. I would probably start my trip by staying in a Hotel in Sydney. Sydney has lots to do and see including the world's largest IMAX, the Sydney Aquarium,the Australian National Maritime Museum, clubs, casinos, and many places to dine and shop. Out of all the areas of Sydney, I would probably most like to visit Darling Harbour. Darling Harbour is a waterfront precinct of Sydney that has developed into one of the country's largest entertainment areas. From here you can take a cruise, ferry, or sailboat tour of the city. If you do not want to sight see by boat you can also take a monorail land tour from Darling Harbor. Also there is almost always free outdoor entertainment in the precinct to meet almost any one's taste.

After sometime in Sydney, I would probably then want to go stay at a Hotel in Melbourne. Melbourne is the city in Australia where a lot of different cultures meet and mix. It has some of the best dining in the world, and you guys know how I like to eat. They have a wide range of restaurants, bistros, and bars that serve classic quick meals to exotic spreads. The types of cuisine range from Spanish to Vietnamese to Italian to French.


Finally, I would probably like to end my vacation by staying at one of the Hotels in Brisbane. Brisbane has more rural outdoor and nature type activities. Some of its best attractions are the Mt Coot-tha Lookout, South Bank’s sandy beach and open grassy picnic spots, numerous botanical gardens, the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, Moreton Bay where you can feed wild dolphins, or just take a relaxing ferry trip down the river.

Well I'll continue to dream about vacations later but for now it is back to work.

Six tips for a healthy lifestyle...

1) Learn what to eat from each food group.
2) Focus on how much you eat. Watch your portion sizes!
3) Choose “nutrient-dense” forms of foods. These foods are packed with nutrients,
but low in “extras” that just add calories.
4) Get moving! Physical activity can help you reach and keep a healthier weight.
5) Follow your progress by tracking your food intake and physical activity. Check
your weight weekly.
6) Visit health sites for advice.

Enjoy Poker?

OK guys. Confession Time. I am a poker junkie. I love watching the World Championship of Poker on TV, and sometimes I can not stop playing online poker. It is one of my biggest impediments to exercising. However, I feel that it doesn't hurt to have a little fun sometimes. So if you like playing poker as well, I have found a great site that you might want to check out: http://www.macpokeronline.com/

http://www.macpokeronline.com/ has a links list of lots of good websites where you can play poker online with a macintosh. Some of them are for money and some are just for fun. I only play for fun. Some of them have software to download and some you can just play online. This is good because it can be hard to find good poker websites that support macintosh. Its front page also has news articles that concern the poker world such as different legislation and updates on the poker all stars. However, what I like best about the site is its poker rules and strategy tips page. It has the rules to all the different types of poker games, which really helps when there is at least a dozen variations of poker games. The strategy tips are good too. They have tips for novices as well as experts.

Maybe this won't make you all stray too much from your exercise routines. But I find it helps me to unwind and relax after a long day or a strenous workout. But if you like playing poker or watching it on TV, check out http://www.macpokeronline.com/ and play online.

Be Positive

Whether you are trying to be more active, eat healthy or stop smoking, a positive attitude can help. Negative thoughts or self-defeating attitudes may not only be detrimental to our health, but can also sabotage efforts to make positive lifestyle changes.

Inspiration

I believe a major part of staying healthy both mentally and physically is being inspired. Speaking from personal experience, there are times in my life I feel like I can hardly make it; during these times, I need some kind of inspiration. I came across Karl's blog, which is written by Karl Moore. This is an inspirational blog, and I not only enjoyed reading it, but I also found his suggestion very helpful. Karl includes many ideas, tips and words that encourage, help and inspire. I strongly suggest and recommend anyone visit Karl's blog for help and inspiration. In case anyone is wondering, below is a picture of Karl.

Good Diet vs "Fad" Diet

Fad Diet: The diet that promotes a restricted eating-plan or certain liquid foods lacking sufficient food value is termed as Fad Diet. The fad diets are very low in calories so they cause quite fast weight loss. However, quick weight loss may not be healthy and - in most cases - is not fat loss. It is actually water-loss which is quickly regained when the dieter resumes normal eating. The fad diets can cause weight cycling, so fad dieting is also dubbed as ‘Yo-Yo dieting’, which means a continuing pattern of gaining and losing weight. The fad diets are considered unhealthy. The common examples of Fad diets include the Cabbage Soup Diet and the Grapefruit Diet.

Good Weight Loss Diet: The diet that helps losing weight in a positive manner is a good Weight Loss Diet. It does not reduce the energy. A balanced low fat diet is considered as the best weight loss diet. A balanced low fat diet is high in healthy carbohydrates, low in fat and moderate in protein.

A good Weight Loss Diet should be rich in whole grains, fruits, and vegetables, which are specially recommended for weight control and preventing diseases such as cancer and heart disease.

Cellfish

If you are like me, you are always looking and interested in cool up-to-date websites that are not only easy to navigate, but help improve your site. There are many great sites online, but one that I would encourage all of you to check out is cellfish.com. This site allows you to access many helpful and cool tools. I not only encourage you to visit cellfish.com, but also to join it. As a member, of course, you have access to many more and better features.

Cellfish allows you to download ringtones, videos, audio, etc. It is so cool how you can download your image or video from your blog post to your phone. I mention how easy it is to navigate and figure out; well you can simply change your Cellfish locker's e-mail and text message notification settings by accessing the My Account link from any cellfish.com webpage and selecting the messages/alerts tab.

We all would be stretching the truth if we said we do not enjoy using our cell phones. We love ringtones and such. Well, with a Cellfish account, you can enjoy downloading Free Ringtones. How cool is that?

Below is just a silly, funny little video from cellfish.com.

Great Weekend

Opening weekend for the NFL. In case you didn't know, I'm a sports fanatic, and especially football. Both my college team, Georgia Bulldogs, and the the Falcons lost, but I still enjoyed a weekend of football. The Dawgs are young, but they'll learn; the Falcons, what can I say; they're the Falcons. Thank God football is back.

Sytropin

If you are having trouble with fatigue and performing up to par, you should maybe try Sytropin. It is a Human Growth Hormone which blends HGH, L-group amino acids and Growth Factors that help you look, feel and perform batter. It is taken orally with an active spray, so you don't have to worry about needles. Also, you can get it without a prescription, and it's a lot cheaper than injectable human growth hormones. If you're interest research it here.


This is a sponsored post.

Weight Training Twenty Minutes a Day

If you like working out but don't have much time, here is a suggestion.
In your weight training routine, you don't have to work all your target areas at once. Instead, work one area a day for about 20 minutes. For example, your program might look like this:

• Monday: Chest and Back Weight Training for 20 min.
• Tuesday: Shoulder Strength Exercise for 20 min.
• Wednesday: Abs Weight Training for 20 min.
• Thursday: Biceps and Triceps Strength Training for 20 min.
• Friday: Grab Bag/Wild Card for 20 min.
• Saturday: Hip and Thigh Weight Training for 20 min.
• Sunday: Chest and Shoulder Strength Training for 20 min.

Choose a set of exercises for each day and follow your weight training program. You can vary it, especially as you add more reps to your arm curls, incline chest presses, shoulder presses, and kickbacks. Remember, you don't have to devote countless hours to working out to look and feel good.

Labor Day

I hope everyone had a great Labor Day Weekend. I spent Monday at the Lake. I did get a great workout in Saturday, but all day skiing and knee boarding on the lake is better than a couple hour workout. I hope all of you guys will participate in our new fitness forum. I'm looking forward to reading some of your articles.

Weight Management and Fitness Forum

We are proud to announce a new feature here at Weight Master. It is called the Weight Management and Fitness Forum. Semi-monthly on the 1st and 15th of each month we will collect a group of articles pertaining to weight loss, fitness, or general health and post them here for everyone to view. We are looking for well-written good quality articles, and we would like to hear from everyone. If you would like to submit an article for submission to the forum please click here. We are excited about this newest feature to Weight Master, and you can look for the first edition of the Weight Management and Fitness Forum in the coming weeks.

Hotel and Travel Information

I have found another website to help with my dreaming about vacations. It is called easytobook.com. It has hotel listings and travel information for different European cities such as Barcelona, Prague, London, and many more. Each city has hotel listings categorized from one star to five star. You can receive discounts up to 75% and there is no booking fee. You can also download maps of where the hotels are located throughout the city. Each listing has a rating and a detailed review. There are also pictures of the rooms, and you can take a 360 degree virtual picture tour of most hotels. Travelers can also post their reviews of the hotels. There is also detailed travel information for each city including the history of the city, cultural highlights, things to do and see, and where to eat. So if you are dreaming about a vacation like me or actually going to take one, check out easytobook.com for good travel information and hotel booking.