Bottled water is one the fastest growing beverage industries in the world. In the U.S. alone, people go through over 2.5 million plastic bottles every hour of the day!

Bottled Water is Big Business.

But with that growth, has come tremendous criticism.

Is bottled water really better?

Well, in July of this year the Government Accountability Office issued a report stating that bottled water, which is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, receives less stringent safety oversight than tap water.

And we’re spending a dollar for something that could be more dangerous
than what comes out of our faucet.

So, why is bottled water so dangerous…

1. The Natural Resources Defense Counsil conducted a study of 103 different brands of bottled water (over 1,000 bottles tested total) and found that une-third of them contained synthetic organic chemicals and bacteria. They also found traces of arsenic and E. coli.

2. City tap water undergoes has higher purity standards than bottled water.

3. the NRDC and Consumer Reports have also found that some bottled water is simply tap water, bottled up in a nice package with flowing springs and mountains.

For example, the Aquafina brand, is drawn from the municipal water supplies
of Detroit, Frenso, and other cities.

4. Plus, if you didn’t already know, Coke and Pepsi are the main producers of bottled water (under different brand names of course), and they also use tap, not spring water.

5. The environmental toll is HUGE! Bottled water is typically made of plastic polyethylene terephthalate. The manufacturing of thest bottles can release phathalates (toxins) into the environment, which have been found to cause birth defects in animals.

6. 90% of those bottles end up in the trash, quickly filling up our landfills.

7. The longer these bottles sit on the shelf, in the sunlight, or at room temperature, the more chemicals and bacteria that seep into the water.

Fortunately, the customers are becoming much more educated about their purchasing habits and the truth behind all marketing facade.

Want to run a 5k this summer?

This article will show you how to conquer the 3-mile race in just one month…

1. Get some good running shoes.

When it comes to sports, running is about the best deal around when it comes to how much money you need to get started. But one thing you do need are a good pair of running shoes. It doesn’t matter if your clothes are tattered and your running half-naked, but you DO need good shoes.

Go to a specialty running store, one that’s actually going to look at your feet and suggest a shoe based on your foot type. I can not even begin to stress to you how important this is. Without the right shoe, you can easily injure yourself, especially if you have flat feet.

2. Write Down Your Goals

Not only will this help you reflect on your goals, but writing it down almost garuantees your success. I read a statistic recently that said 95 percent of the people in the world who do not have written goals fail, whilte the 5 percent in the world who do have written goals succeed.

Most people never even commit their goals to paper, and therefore they fail. Writing it down creates a very powerful psychological shift in the brain that instantly moves you closer to that goal. Seeing your goals in written form makes them instantly more real, more tangible, and forces you to form an emotional attachment to them.

3. Write down a detailed plan.

If you want to run the 5k, you’ll need a specific training regimen to get there. The first and most important thing to do is build up a base of miles that will form the foundation and give you the endurance needed to run the 5k.

Here are some links to help you form a startup plan:

http://shepherdweb.com/lab/2007/Couch-to-5K/Couch-to-5K.html
http://www.jeffgalloway.com/training/5k.html

4. Get Started.

Getting started is one of the hardest parts.

So I actually use a trick to get myself going!

Instead of dedicating myself to 30 minutes of exercise every day. I commit to 1 minute per day…

And of course, I end up doing 30-40 minutes. Because I’ve already got that momentum going. I know this little mind trick probably sounds kind of corny, but it works!

Getting started is the hardest part. So if you just commit to 1 minute, then it’s not so daunting, and then once you’ve started, it’s much easier to just keep
going.

5. Start Slow.

Once you get out there to conquer the pavement or the trail, make sure you take it easy. Especially during those first two weeks. Let your body and your
muscles adjust to the new exercise. Stretch often.

And if something starts to get sore: ice it.

When I first started running, I was derailed within the first couple months because I pushed too hard and ended up getting shin splints. It was definitely
no fun sitting on the sidelines watching the rest of my team run.

So make sure you build up slowly. And be sure to stretch before and after ou
run.

6. Fuel Your Running.

When you start running, your appetite will probably increase. You’ll want to
make sure you’re fueling your runs with plenty of good protein and complex carbs. I would suggest centering each of your meals around 60% protein, 30% carbs and 10% fats.

Some good options include:

Protein:

Chicken Breast
Turkey Breast
Orange Roughy
Salmon
Tuna
Crab
Lobster
Egg Whites

Carbohydrates:

Brown Rice
Sweet Potato
Yam
Oatmeal
Strawberries
Apple

Vegetables:

Lettuce
Broccoli
Carrots
Green Beans
tomato
Peas
Green Peppers
Cucumber

7. Have Fun!

Running is an excellent sport. You can run on trails, in the park, or just around the neighborhood. And in just one month, you could be running your first 5k!
You’ll find the running community to be very encouraging with lots of camraderie. So go ahead and get signed up for your first 5k and put on those running shoes!

But you always have time for a workout quickie! Often times, 10 minutes is all you need to knockout a quick workout that burns 100 calories.

Here are 23 activities that burn 100 calories…

1. Jog around the neighborhood for 10 minutes.
2. Jump rope for 10 minutes.
3. Climb up and down the stairs for 15 minutes
4. Go roller-skating for 20 minutes.
5. Ride a bicycle for 10 minute (power style!)
6. Skip for 15 minutes (You’re never too old to skip!)
7. 20 minutes of Housework
8. Paint a room in your home for 30 minutes. (Pain 5 Rooms and you’ll burn 500 calories
9. Turn up the music and dance for 20 minutes
10. Pedal on a stationary bike for 14 minutes
11. 30 minutes of vacuuming
12. Mow the lawn for 30 minutes (push-style!)
13. 15 minutes of relaxed swimming.
14. Play hide-and-seek with the kids for 20 minutes.
15. Play soccer with the kids for 20 minutes.
16. Wash Windows for 20 minutes.
17.   20 minutes of golf
18. Run a mile
19. Lift weights for 20 minutes
20. Shoot some hoops for 20 minutes
21. Belly dancing for 20 minutes
22. Get on the rowing machine for 15 minutes
23. Ice-skate for 20 minutes.

When you think about eating from the garden, you probably think about fresh tomatoes, lettuce, and cucumbers.

However, you might not realize how healthy (and tasty!) the flower blossoms can be. But people have been eating flowers for centuries, tracing back to Roman times, and also to the Chinese, Middle Eastern, and Indian cultures.

But before you start randomly eating flowers from your garden, you’ll need to do a bit of research first. You don’t want to go eating the wrong ones – some are deadly poisonous!

Flowers you grow yourself are probably the best. That way you know the source and can ensure that they don’t contain pesticides.

Some of the best edible flowers include:

Bee balm
Calendula
Daylilies
Hollyhocks
Lavender
Marigolds
Nasturtiums
Pansies
Roses
Scarlet runner bean
Sunflowers
Squash blossoms
Violets

Flowers can be a delicious treat.

But keep in mind that you should introduce flowers into your diet in small quantities, one species at a time. Just like when babies introduce new foods into their diet at a young age, you’ll want to do the same for a new food like edible flowers.

For a list of edible flower recipes, go to:

http://www.sheknows.com/articles/804900.htm
http://homecooking.about.com/library/archive/blflowerindex.htm
http://homecooking.about.com/od/specificfoo1/a/flowertips.htm
http://oldfashionedliving.com/edibleflowers.html
50 Best Edible Flower Recipes

With his latest 100m victory of just 9.58 seconds, one can only wonder what lies ahead for Usain Bolt. But behind his trademark bow-and-arrow pose, one might also wonder what kind of life he leads on a day-to-day basis…the training, the diet, the workout.

So in this article, we’re going to explore what a typical day might look like for Usain Bolt…

As you can imagine, sprints are a huge part of Usain Bolt’s workout regiment. Bolt uses a combination of both plyometric training and weight training in such a manner that the improvements in strength directly enhance his performance.

His core exercises include:

* weighted lunges with heavy dumbells
* weighted squats
* bunny hops / box jumps
* frog leaps

The lunges and squats build strength while the bunny hops and frog leaps build the explosive strength needed for the 100m and 200m dash… a inning combination of speed and endurance.

In addition to this core strength training, flexibility training and sprint drills also play a large part. Bolt trains for about 3 hours a day. Intense, focused training that’s followed by rest, massage and relaxation.

So, how does Bolt fuel these kind of workouts?

Well, on the nutrition side of things, it gets even more interesting. Bolt is one of the few professional athletes who does not take supplements. He admits to taking vitamin C, but nothing else.

Instead, he opts for a high-energy, high-protien diet with each of his meals containing 60% protein, 30% carbs and 10% fats. He consumes  approximately 196 grams of muscle-building protein per day. This is spread out over 6 meals to maintain his energy throughout the day.

After the race in Beijing, Bolt gave credit to his incrediblestamina being plenty of chicken nuggets.

However, in preperation to beat the world record in the 100m record, Usain Bolt publicly announced that he was giving up chicken nuggets, saying…

“My coach decided that I should stop eating nuggets for a while.”

Well, chicken nuggets or not, the world is cheering for Usain Bolt. And no one is cheering harder than his mom and dad back home in the quiet village of Sherwood Content.

Coffee is one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world.

In fact, according to Wikipedia:

“Caffeine is the world’s most widely consumed psychoactive substance, but unlike most other psychoactive substances, it is legal and unregulated in nearly all jurisdictions. In North America, 90% of adults consume caffeine daily.” – Wikipedia

However, it’s also one of the most controversial among scientists and health experts, with over 19,000 studies done over recent decades examining coffee’s impact on health. The benefits and harmful side effects of coffee being debated for years. This article is going to serve up both sides of the story (double-shot style!)

Surprisingly, coffee is packed with antioxidants. Scientists have found that a typical serving of coffee contains more antioxidants than a typical serving of blueberries, grape juice, oranges, or raspberries. However, when combined with milk, the antioxidants become less effective in the body.

Other studies have shown that drinking coffee reduces risk of stroke, cancer and dementia. And multiple studies indicate that people who drink coffee on a regular basis are up to 80% less likely to develop Parkinson’s.

In fact, according to WebMD, coffee can dramatically reduce the risk of diabetes.

But at the same time, coffee also comes with a number of hidden dangers. When consumed heavily, coffee can send you on a rollercoaster ride of emotional highs and lows, which can cause a spike of adrenaline and energy followed by fatigue, irritability, mood swings, and sleep disturbance.

Just like a drug, you become more and more dependent on a “quick fix”. You start off with just one cup of coffee, but as your body develops a tolerance to it, you need more and more to feel the same effects.

So, what’s the final verdict on coffee?

Well, I’m not here to say whether someone should or shouldn’t drink coffee. I personally opt on the side of moderation.

But, I do have something that I think you’ll find quite interesting if you are a coffee drinker looking for healthier alternatives. I recently found a very innovative company called Healthy Coffee has actually created a new form of coffee that presents a much healthier alternative with the added benefits of Ginseng and Reishi. You can find out more about them at http://www.healthycoffee.com/

So when you’re in a rush, here are some healthy options you can grab on the go…

1. Subway is one of the most well-known when it comes to healthy fast food options. They have a number of choices that are under 300 calories, including the 6-inch Ham Sub, The Honey Mustard Turkey with Cucumber, Roast Beef, The Subway Club, Turkey Breast, and the Veggie Delight.

Just be careful when adding those toppings, that can really crank up
the calories if you’re not careful.

2. Chick-fil-A - America’s favorite chicken and waffle fries can also be the waistline’s biggest enemy. But we found that Chick-fil-A actually has quite a few healthy alternatives on their menu.

Some examples include the Chargrilled Chicken Sandwich, coming in at just 280 calories. The Chargrilled Chicken Club Sandwich with 360 calories. They also have a tasty Chargrilled Chicken Garden Salad with 180 calories, which you can top of with Fat Free Honey Mustard, Light Italian, or Reduced Fat Raspberry Vinaigrette.

And finally, Chick-fil-A also offers some healthy wraps on their menu. The Spicy Chicken Cool Wrap comes in at 390 calories along with the Chargrilled Chiken Cool Wrap.

3. McDonald’s - Although McDonald’s is often thought of as one of the biggest culprits of obesity, they also offer a wide variety of healthy choices to choose from. In the past few years they have made some big changes to their menu, offering up a number of healthy options.

Some of their healthy options include the Grilled Chicken Classic sandwich, their 260-270-calorie snack wraps, the salad with Paul Newman low-fat balsamic vinaigrette, and a tasty yogurt-and-granola parfait. The snack wraps make an excellent low-fat lunch! Choose the grilled chicken for extra protein without a lot of unwanted carbs.

Quick Tip: One simple tip that you can use to decreaes the amount of calories in any fast food meal is simply to drink water instead of soda. Soda is a HUGE source of hidden calories, often adding hundreds of extra calories to your meal. So making this one simple tweak will instantly make any meal healthier. For extra flavor, try adding a little lemon to your water or try some unsweetened iced tea.

You can find healthy options at almost any restaurant when you know how to make smart selections. When in doubt, always look for grilled chicken sandwiches, turkey, salads, and low-fat dressings.

Bolt responded “I was ready. I was feeling good after the semi-finals. I knew it was going to be a great race and I executed it. It’s a great time. I did well and I feel good. It was a big build-up. I have to rest up now and no partying for me and come back out Tuesday.”

Bolt approached the race very calm, confident and relaxed.

And he finished in Usain Bolt style!

After crossing the finish line he spread his arms as though soaring
like a bird and then did his trademark bow-and-arrow pose.

Bolt’s only competition these days is the clock itself.