Toning Your Back, B Vitamins, and Temps To Boost Appetite

Nutrition Corner

Healthy diet and organized sports linked to better reasoning skills in children

How Cold Temperatures Trigger the Brain to Boost Appetite

Recipe for The Day

Strawberry Clementine Smoothie: Whether you're feeling under the weather or are just looking to keep your immune system strong, getting some vitamin C into your system is always a good idea. This creamy strawberry clementine smoothie recipe provides a berry big blast of vitamin C.

Lifestyle & Fitness Focus

Five steps to achieve financial freedom

• Buy adequate life insurance cover: You can achieve all your life goals by working hard but what will happen to your family if you are not around? This is the biggest risk you have to secure your family against. Having a term life insurance cover can act as a safety net for your family in your absence.

• Do you have a health insurance coverage? No matter how hard you work and save, a major illness or hospitalisation can eat up all your savings in a jiffy, and even lead to big debt. Therefore, the second safety net that you need is health insurance.

• Emergency fund - A must: If you want to prepare for financial emergencies such as periods of income loss caused by illnesses, disability or job loss, you can start building an emergency fund.

• Fix a regular saving target as per your income: If you want to secure your future financially, you need to start saving money. And start saving early. Don't think that you don't earn enough to save. When it comes to saving, remember that every penny counts. And save regularly.

• A right asset mix: Diversifying your portfolio based on your asset allocation strategy is a must to achieve financial independence. For long-term life goals, the biggest allocation should go towards equity.

Retirement Tips: 4 Mistakes to Avoid, According to a Financial Planner

• Waiting until 65 to retire: There’s a widely held belief that you can’t retire until you’re 65. But … who made this rule? It’s not your employer or the government. In fact, you can start receiving some of your Social Security retirement benefits as early as age 62.

• Thinking you’re too young to worry about retirement: It’s a common saying in financial circles that the eighth wonder of the world is compounding interest. Basically, money invested over time will grow exponentially—yet too many people fail to understand exactly how much this can make their money grow.

• Not taking advantage of your job’s retirement benefits: Most full-time employees are eligible for a 401(k) retirement account through their employer’s benefits. But while nearly 70% of private employees have access to retirement benefits, only half actually use them, according to a 2022 survey done by the U.S. Department of Labor. This is a huge mistake, because you’re leaving free money on the table.

• Contributing less to your 401(k) than your company matches: Some employers offer to match the funds you contribute to your 401(k), up to a certain amount. The 401(k) contribution limit for 2023 is $22,500 for employee contributions and $66,000 for combined employee and employer contributions, or 100% of the employee’s compensation—whichever is less. This is literally free money. Many people mistakenly believe they can’t afford to save the maximum match amount. While you should never save more than you can afford, I’ve found that most people can probably budget to save more than they think they can.

6 Surprising Health Benefits of B Vitamins

• Vitamins B6, B9, and B12 May Lower Risk of Heart Disease and Stroke: Medical experts at Mt. Sinai say that B6, along with B12 and B9, may boost heart health. B vitamins help your body produce new red blood cells that deliver oxygen to your tissues and organs, benefiting your circulation.

• Avoid Anemia With B12: Vitamin B12 is essential for building blood cells and maintaining healthy nerve cells in the body. Without enough red blood cells, your tissues and organs don’t get enough oxygen, and your body just doesn’t work as well as it should.

• Upping Your Vitamin B1 Intake May Help Prevent Beriberi: Vitamin B1 plays a major role in metabolizing food into energy. B1 is found in whole-grain cereals, yeast, beans, nuts, and meats. As MedlinePlus notes, too little vitamin B1 causes beriberi, a disease affecting the heart, digestive system, and the nervous system.

• Give Your Immune System a Boost With Vitamin B2: Vitamin B2, also known as riboflavin, produces powerful antioxidant activity so the immune system can function properly.

• B2 May Reduce Migraine and Improve Vision: Beyond boosting the immune system, getting enough riboflavin may help prevent migraine headaches and cataracts.

• Not Enough B3 and B12 May Be Linked to Dementia: Not getting enough niacin in your diet causes a disorder known as pellagra. Pellagra is a systemic disease, affecting the body as a whole because cells are deprived of the energy they need to perform bodily functions. This will eventually affect the brain and nervous system. Symptoms of pellagra include both physical and mental difficulties, diarrhea, inflamed mucus membranes, and dementia.

Back Workouts For Women - 6 Best Exercises To Tone Your Back

• Alternating Front And Lateral Raise: Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold a dumbbell in each hand with your palms facing toward your thighs. Engage your core and retract the shoulders back as you lift both arms straight up until they are level with your chest. Keep a slight bend in your elbows. Lower the dumbbells back to the starting position. Raise both hands out to the sides until arms are parallel with shoulders, keeping palms facing down. Lower back to the starting position with control. That’s 1 rep. Complete 10. This combo exercise will target your shoulders (deltoid muscle group), trapezius, obliques, and transverse abdominis.

• Bent-Over Row: Start standing with hips pushed back so torso is tilted 45 degrees, arms extended toward floor, hands holding weights. Pull both hands up alongside rib cage. Then, lower them back down to start with control. That's 1 rep. Make it eccentric by lifting weights up in one count and lowering them down in three counts.

• Bird Dog: Start on all fours with wrists directly under shoulders and knees under hips. Keep back flat, abs engaged, and a slight bend in elbows. Extend left arm out in front at shoulder height and right leg straight behind at hip height. Bend leg and arm and bring to midline under torso until elbow and knee touch. That's 1 rep. Complete all reps then switch sides and repeat.

• Single-Arm Rear Delt Raise: Grab a dumbbell in left hand and bend forward at hips, resting right hand on thigh for stability. Let the dumbbell hang straight down from shoulder, palm facing forward. Without moving torso, raise arm straight back until it's a few inches above your body. Pause, then slowly return to the starting position. That's 1 rep. Complete all reps, then switch sides and repeat.

• Underhand Bent-Over Row: Start standing with hips pushed back so torso is either tilted 45 degrees or parallel to floor, arms extended toward floor. Hold dumbbells in hands with palms facing forward. Pull both hands up alongside rib cage. Lower them back down to start, keeping palms facing forward throughout. That's 1 rep.

• Superman Arm Extension: Start lying facedown on a mat, legs extended, arms tucked at sides. Lift legs and extend arms overhead simultaneously, engaging back, lats, glutes, and shoulders. Pause, then lower legs and bend arms to sides to return to starting position. That's 1 rep.