health posts

Cold weather. Dusk at 5pm. The constant search for your misplaced glove. This time of year there are almost more excuses to justify feeling grumpy than energetic and chipper. But if you can see past the bleak horizon and align yourself more with the arrival of spring -- a time of energy and renewal -- you may just find yourself in a better state of mind and consequently a more productive person. To get there, you don't need to go on an extravagant vacation or spend a lot of money on vitamin infusions. Try some of these simple steps to improve your state of mind for free.

1. Take a hike
Yes, it's (sort of) cold outside, but so what? Bundle up and get out there for a walk. It will elevate your senses on all levels, make you a fitter person if you do it regularly and you may even get some vitamin D the natural way if you leave some skin exposed between your hat and your scarf.

Getting in shape or setting a fitness goal doesn't have to be solitary. For added inspiration and motivation, the best answer may be hiring a personal trainer.

After figuring out what you need first (as shown in part one) - next you need to know how to find the right personal trainer for you.

Brent Bishop, a personal trainer and owner of Think Fitness Studios, advises that after you've made a commitment to work on your health, finding the right personal trainer is just as important as finding a physician or a dentist.

Bishop has several suggestions on what to ask and things to know about hiring a personal trainer.

Do you remember gym class?

Remember when your gym teacher forced everyone to climb the rope, run relay or learn to play tennis?

I certainly do, and although I whined and complained about spending an hour in a baggy t-shirt and sweatpants, I was grateful for the motivation to go outside and get moving.

As an adult, I can come with a million of excuses to not exercise.

Whether it's my old gym clothes (I really should head to LuluLemon) or the time (don't I need to reorganize my kitchen cupboard), there's always an excuse as to why I don't go to the gym.

So will a personal trainer be the answer to my endless ways to avoid working up a sweat?

Winter is upon all of us Canada - and what do we want to do? Fly south.

Whether its to Mexico, Caribbean, Florida or Las Vegas, Canadians are happy to figure out how to get on a plane and get away from snow, ice and cold temperatures.

According to Google Insights, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick residents are looking for the travel deals, closely followed by Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

If plans are to take the better half and the family to a tropical climate, remember to bring the bathing suit, sunscreen and make sure to visit the family doctor.

A new year has started. Are you ready to make a commitment to the bright, new, shiny year?

The annual tradition of making a new year resolution is common, but do people actually still do it? According to a Virgin Mobile Canada survey, the answer is no.

When it comes to New Year's resolutions, Canadians like to make 'em and break 'em! More than half (51%) of Canadians make News Year's resolutions, but most of us (52%) can't even last more than a month before we give in to temptation.

This means that right about now, all those resolutions that millions of well-intentioned Canadians made are on their way out the window.

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The next weeks are some of the most festive of the year - whether its work colleagues, family or friends, parties are de rigeur for the holiday season - in every direction, there's plenty of temptation.

For those of us who want to insure we don't over indulge, we need to keep an eye on everything we put in our mouth.

But how to figure out what will keep us nice or what will make us feel naughty?

Personal trainer and fitness expert Brent Bishop knows that no matter how committed an individual is to their personal health, the holidays provide a challenge.

Who doesn't want a butter tart, piece of shortbread or a couple of glasses of red wine? And what will it cost our health and our wallet?

When I was a kid I was signed up for so many different activities it's a wonder my homework ever got done. Whether it was making sure I wasn't "up to no good" or just a way of exhausting me so I was out of their hair at a reasonable hour, my parents were diligent in introducing me to sports and activities from a young age.

I want my kids to benefit from organized physical activity and the camaraderie that comes with being on a team or pursuing a sport. I am all-too-aware though that organized games for Johnny means less cash for Mommy so it is with this thought in mind I go searching for the best value in kids' sports.

Hockey
It's our national obsession and an integral part of the Canadian mythology but it's more expensive than heating your house in winter. Don't get me wrong, I love hockey and I know many of my kids' friends will play at least house league at some point in the next few years but with registration costs close to $500 a season and new equipment costing upwards of $1000, it's hard to argue that you'll get your money's worth. Plus, because it's a shift sport, they'll only see 15 minutes of the game a week. If they show a real interest in playing in a league I will oblige but until then I will be re-reading the kid's classic The Hockey Sweater to them, emphasizing the glory of the outdoor pond.
Value: Not great

Here go the boomers, setting that bar again. It's long been noticed that the whole "Freedom 55" notion is a bit of a joke or a dream, depending on who you ask, but the official numbers are out to confirm for the rest of us what Walmart HR departments probably know already: People are beginning to forgo or put off the traditional retirement so many dream about, to work longer and later into their lives.

Shocking, I know. If you want some official facts and figures about the phenomenon though, if you want to know how long you might be in the workforce for yourself, or if you just want to know more about who's likely be around to play with when you finally reach your prime golfing years in the future, this study on delayed retirement is a good place to start.

Recently, I was trying to plan a dinner/reunion with an old friend and our kids. Between all the emails flying back and forth, we both got the day confused and had to start planning all over again.

My friend blamed it on "baby brain" -- her life with a newborn. I linked my lapse with the fact that my toddler had been getting up at 5am for the day.

But what became apparent to me through our sincere attempts at planning and our inability to really nail it down is that life with a young family more often than not means pretty severe sleep deprivation. If you can't afford an army of nannies like Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie surely employ, it can be tough feeling normal let alone keeping a schedule.

And consistently losing out on sleep -- the average amount recommended by sleep experts is seven hours a night -- effects our ability to concentrate, compromises our immune systems, makes problem-solving a chore and can negatively impact a person's memory. (Luckily my friend and I we were only planning dinner and not our financial futures).