Mingalarbar (Welcome)

Everything in life is temporary.
So if things are going good,
enjoy it because it won’t last forever.
And if things are going bad,
don’t worry because it won’t last forever either.
If you could not add years to your life
Add life to your years

Posted by Anne Kreamer

One of my fears about getting older is that I’ll quit taking risks – both emotionally and physically. I’d say learning to converse with you here online, this large and diverse group of interested strangers, has taken care of the emotional side of the risk-taking equation for a while, but it’s been sometime since I’d pushed myself physically.

That is until this week, when I started six hours of trapeze instruction with a friend about my age. She and I had independently driven by the tent of a local school here in New York City and seen the students and had each fantasized about what it would feel like to be “one of them” up in the air, swinging and flying. 

After about a year of discussing it, we decided to enroll. Our fellow students were all a good 20 or 30 years younger than we. It was a sobering start. But at the first two-hour class we gamely did all of the things (if not as lithely) as our fellow classmates and left feeling happy that we’d taken on an entirely new, scary challenge.

The morning after class when I woke up feeling like a steamroller had flattened me, my first thought was “what had I been thinking?” I had bruises on my midriff from the cinched trapeze belt, more bruises behind my knees, on my kneecaps, and for some reason I cannot figure out, under my armpits.

My shoulders felt like they’d been attached to my body by rivets and my abs screamed when I breathed. But in spite of (or maybe even because of) the physical reminders of my body’s limitations, I feel good that I forced myself to try something new.

It’s no giant revelation, but as we get older, our skin thins and we bruise more easily. Our muscles atrophy in ways we aren’t aware of – and just as powerfully, I think our minds limit the things we think we can do.  

If you think your life could use a bit of a shake-up, try these:

• Think of a new way to push outside of your comfort zone on a weekly basis – talk to new person, go to a lecture at your local museum, bake something ambitious. 
• Explore classes and clubs that will expose you to new experiences – tango school, fencing, life drawing.
• Plan an adventure trip – kayaking down the Colorado River, exploring the rain forests of Costa Rica.
• Read any of the National Geographic Adventure Classics about: Charles Darwin, Jack London, Lewis and Clark, Amelia Earhart, or Theodore Roosevelt

Source:http://health.yahoo.com/experts/drmao/3375/exercises-to-add-on-years
Post by: Dr. Maoshing Ni

Activate Your Health with Exercise
Yes, exercise will give you a fit physique, but the benefits of daily exercise are much more. Regular exercise can help promote physiological wellbeing, strengthen the immune system, maintain joint mobility, increase energy – the list goes on and on.

In fact, research with humans has confirmed that the more active you are, the longer you will live. In one study, the group that burned more than 3,500 calories a week lived the longest. Then it should come as no surprise that caged animals have more health problems and live a shorter life than free-range animals. So get out there and get active – your body will thank you for years to come!

Aerobics for a Healthy Heart
Your heart is a muscular organ that is responsible for pumping the blood’s nutrients and oxygen throughout your body, while simultaneously transporting waste products for elimination. The stronger your heart, the more tolerance you will have for stress and strain.

Strengthen your heart muscle by increasing your pulse rate to between 60 and 80 percent of your maximum heart rate (MHR) when you exercise. (Hint: you can find your MHR by subtracting your age from 220. For example, if you are 40, your MHR is 180 beats per minute.

Your optimal range of 60 to 80 percent would be calculated as 108 to 144 beats per minute.) Practice an aerobic activity at this rate for 30 minutes a day, three to four times a week to keep your heart pumping strong.

Aerobic exercises that focus on increasing cardiovascular endurance include bicycling, lap swimming, walking, and running. Frequent and consistent aerobic exercise has been found helpful in preventing or treating such serious conditions as high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, type 2 diabetes, insomnia, and depression.

Build Your Bones
As we age, osteoporosis sets in and our bones begin losing calcium and become brittle. This condition affects the majority of the world’s population over age 70. No amount of calcium and vitamin D supplements will cure the condition; we must engage in exercise that exerts weight on the bones.

Look, for instance, at the experience of the astronauts. When astronauts were subjected to weightlessness in space, they underwent much more rapid bone loss than they would have on earth because there was no gravity to put weight on their bones.

A good way to help restore calcium to the bones is with moderate load-bearing exercises – but don’t worry about becoming a professional weight lifter! Even walking will have you bearing a moderate amount of weight and increasing bone density.

I hope this article finds you feeling fit and healthy throughout your days! I invite you to visit often and share your own personal health and longevity tips with me.

May you live long, live strong, and live happy!

-Dr. Mao

Congratulation ! She got 387/400 marks at JLPT-3(Japanese Language Proficiency Test Level 3). I wish your dreams do come true.

Source : a friend

A wonderful story about LOVE

 A woman came out of her house and saw 3 old men with long white beards
sitting in her front yard. She did not recognize them. She said “I don’t
think I know you, but you must be hungry. Please come in and have something
to eat.”

“Is the man of the house home?”, they asked.
“No”, she replied. “He’s out.”

“Then we cannot come in”, they replied.

In the evening when her husband came home, she told him what had happened.

“Go tell them I am home and invite them in!”

The woman went out and invited the men in”

“We do not go into a House together,” they replied.
“Why is that?” she asked.
One of the old men explained: “His name is Wealth,” he said pointing to one
of his friends, and said pointing to another one, “He is Success, and I am
Love.” Then he added, “Now go in and discuss with your husband which one of
us you want in your home.”
The woman went in and told her husband what was said. Her husband was
overjoyed. “How nice!!”, he said. “Since that is the case, let us invite
Wealth. Let him come and fill our home with wealth!”

His wife disagreed. “My dear, why don’t we invite Success?”

Their daughter-in-law was listening from the other corner of the house. She
jumped in with her own suggestion: “Would it not be better to invite Love?
Our home will then be filled with love!”

“Let us heed our daughter-in-law’s advice,” said the husband to his wife.

“Go out and invite Love to be our guest.”

The woman went out and asked the 3 old men, “Which one of you is Love?
Please come in and be our guest.”

Love got up and started walking toward the house. The other 2 also got up
and followed him. Surprised, the lady asked Wealth and Success: “I only
invited Love, Why are you coming in?”

The old men replied together: “If you had invited Wealth or Success, the
other two of us would’ve stayed out, but since you invited Love, wherever He
goes, we go with him. Wherever there is Love, there is also Wealth and
Success!!!!!!”

MY WISH FOR YOU…
-Where there is pain, I wish you peace and mercy.
-Where there is self-doubting, I wish you a renewed confidence in your
ability to work through it.
-Where there is tiredness, or exhaustion, I wish you understanding,
patience, and renewed strength.
-Where there is fear, I wish you love, and courage.