Greetings,

It has been said that failure and success lie on the same road. Success just lies a bit further up ahead. Whether you're looking to lose weight or just get in better shape, it can be a bumpy and frustrating road to travel. This e-zine as well as my website,aflatbelly.com, is dedicated to ensuring you a successful and smooth journey.

I will offer you tips and advice on nutrition, exercise, motivation and lifestyle changes based on my over 12 years of experience as a professional fitness trainer, competitive bodybuilder, sports nutrition specialist, wellness and motivational speaker.

Improving your health and even losing body fat can actually be a positive experience with many valuable lessons learned along the way. If you are ready to hit the road towards better health, jump in let’s get going.

I’m looking forward to our trip together.

Zo Carroll

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Issue #5 October 2008

Table of Contents

10 STRESS BUSTING TIPS TO GET YOU THROUGH TODAY'S HARD TIMES

It seems that everyone’s talking about the economy these days. How can you not when it’s the #1 topic on t.v., radio and in newspapers. Heck, it’ll probably determine who wins this year’s presidential election. News of rising home foreclosures, high gas prices (thankfully they’re coming down now), business closures, layoffs, a down stock market, tight credit markets and rising food prices are causing people to freak out. Boy oh boy, the health of our wallets is taking a big hit these days and so too is the health of our minds and bodies, if we stress out too much over what’s going on. We all know that too much stress can lead to serious health problems like heart disease and an accumulation of unhealthy belly fat. So, let’s try and get through things with our health intact.

If you’re like most Americans you’re looking for ways to cut living costs and still have an enjoyable and healthy lifestyle. I’m right there with you. Question is, where to cut back and how? As you make those decisions I actually want to encourage you to make a greater investment in your health. The healthier you are, you’re better able to handle these stressful days.

Making a larger investment in your health just means TAKING BETTER CARE OF YOU. Not taking care of yourself is extremely costly.

• According to a study in 2005 conducted by the California Health Care Foundation, it was found that health care spending is 4.3 times the amount spent on national defense!

• If you are an employer, you know that health insurance expenses are the fastest growing cost component for yo u., The McKinsey Quarterly Chart Focus Newsletter, “Will Health Benefit Costs Eclipse Profits, 2004”, estimates that health insurance costs will exceed profits by 2008 if something drastic is not done to prevent it.

• In a 2007 Wall Street Journal-NBC Survey almost 50 percent of the American public say the cost of health care is their #1 economic concern.

• If you’re at retirement age, look out. Retiring elderly couples will need $200,000 in savings just to pay for the most basic medical coverage. This statement comes from Fidelity Investments from March 2006. This figure may be too conservative some experts believe. They feel that a figure of $300,000 is more accurate!

What really amazes me is that most people fully expect to fall apart as they age. The medical profession and Wall Street are banking on it. Whereas aging is inevitable, we don’t have to become old and decrepit! As for me I’m hoping to live a long healthy life and end up a good looking corpse. Since run away stress can absolutely kill your health, here are a few tips to help keep it in check.

10 stress busting survival tips

1. Clear your head of negative clutter. It’s pretty hard to get away from all the negative news these days. My suggestion: turn off the tube, disconnect the radio and read something uplifting. Watch a “feel good” movie. Heck, just go around smiling while thinking happy thoughts. If folks think you’re nuts so what?! Who the hell cares what they think anyway.

2. Focus on what’s really important. A buddy of mine and I were talking about some serious health problems his daughter has been experiencing. He said that if had not been for family and friends he doesn’t know how his family would have coped. What really matters in your life? Bet'cha it isn’t all this bad economic news.

3. Lay your head down and get some sleep. Lots of people I know have big problem with not getting enough sleep. Some just get to bed too late and get up too early. Others wake up in the middle of the night and cannot go back to sleep. They spend the rest of the day walking around like the living dead.

It’s easy to get dependent on sleeping pills when you’re not getting restorative sleep. Not a good idea. Turn your bedroom into the most restful room in your home. No t.v., no computer. Try light exercising before going to bed-just enough to help you relax but not enough to rev your body up. Try stretching. Reading before going to bed is a great way to unwind. This doesn’t mean reading carry home work stuff nor anything that stimulates your mind too much. Some people swear by a warm glass of milk.

Avoid drinking alcohol within 1 hour of bedtime. Alcohol may decrease the time it takes you to fall asleep but it can disrupt the second stage of sleep called REM (rapid eye movement). REM is the dream stage of sleep and is essential for health. In fact, when rats are deprived of REM sleep they die within a few weeks.

Ongoing consumption of alcohol within 1 hour of bedtime may reduce its sleep inducing effects while increasingly disrupting your sleep, leaving you tired and sleepy during waking hours.

4. Breathe deeply. What a simple way to relieve stress and energize your brain. In through the nose, out through the mouth, how much simpler can it get?

5. Get moving. Staying active is a sure fire way to staying healthy and reducing stress. The key is to find activities that you enjoy doing. If you enjoy doing them, chances are, you’ll keep doing them. Hit the gym, go for a walk, play with the kids, run, play sports, take a cardio class. My wife and I have become very actively involved in a dance called West Coast Swing. It’s a great way for us to do something together that we both love, hang out with fun people and get exercise at the same time.

6. Feed your body good stuff. As you know from checking out my website aflatbelly.com, good nutrition is the key to not only reducing belly fat but it is key to living a long healthy and happy life. If you’re not supplying your body with essential nutrients through your diet, you should at least be taking a high quality multi-vitamin/mineral supplement. Talk about cheap health assurance.

7. Laugh deep and laugh often. A real good laugh sure makes you feel better doesn’t it? Yeah, times are tough but you can always find something to laugh about. Don’t take life nor yourself too seriously. Throw your head back and let ‘er rip.

8. Have great sex. Sex is a great tension tamer and will help you live longer. Having great sex always puts a smile on your face!

9. Do a good deed for someone. Take the focus off of you and your troubles once in a while. What a great way to feel better about life. Little acts of kindness can go a long way towards making your world a really cool place to inhabit.

10. Remember that all things pass in time. Life is always in transition. Most things are out of our control and many times the only options left to us are how we choose to respond emotionally and physically. While keeping your body and mind strong, face up to life challenges knowing that nothing remains as it is forever.

Product Recommendation

Real Cheap Nutritional Assurance

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For less than 50 cents a day you can supply your body with 23 essential vitamins and minerals by using Shaklee’s Vita Lea. This is the top selling vitamin in North America and has been for decades. As you can see, protecting your health doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg.

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With a revolutionary, patent pending SMART delivery system, Vitalizer delivers the nutrients where they can give your body the most benefit. Vitalizer only has to be taken once daily and provides 12 hours of supercharged health protection. All of this for less than what you’d pay for a fancy cup of coffee!

It’s astounding the number of “health problems” that people suffer with that can be vanquished by simply taking a high quality multivitamin and mineral supplement every day.

To order Vita Lea or Vitalizer, click on the highlighted links above. Remember to sign up as a Shaklee member for only $19.95 and receive 15% off all your Shaklee orders. It’s a deal that can’t be beat!

Are you interested in making some awesome money working from home? Want to experience the power of residual income? Shaklee is looking for Global Distributors who would like to get paid to share the gift of health with others.

We are excited about opening for business in China on Dec 1, 2009! We are looking for distributors in China who would like to take advantage of the financial opportunities offered by Shaklee. Any referrals would be greatly appreciated.

Contact me at zo@aflatbelly.com for more info or call me toll free at 866-270-3449 with referrals and to find out how you can qualify for our global marketing team.

Usually Useless Notions For The Noggin

In 1945 a computer at Harvard malfunctioned and Grace Hopper, who was working on the computer, investigated, found a moth in one of the circuits and removed it. Ever since, when something goes wrong with a computer, it is said to have a bug in it.

More than 100 years ago, the felt hat makers of England used mercury to stabilize wool. Most of them eventually became poisoned by the fumes, as demonstrated by the Mad Hatter in Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland. Breathing mercury's fumes over a long period of time will cause erethism, a disorder characterized by nervousness, irritability, and strange personality changes.

Courtesy of www.corsinet.com/trivia

This ends another edition of A Flatbelly For Me. Thank you kindly for your time. I hope you found something of value in this issue.

Comments? Ideas? Feedback? I’d love to hear from you. Email me at zo@aflatbelly.com with any of your thoughts.

See ya next issue.
Zo Carroll

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