This is very short article to check you are drinking enough, especially now we are into the summer and people are jetting off to hot climates.  The human body is made up of about 60-70% water, and to remain healthy you must keep this balance.  An average person needs to drink 1.5 – 2 litres a day to reamin in balance.

Your body is very clever at telling you are dehydrated by using colour.  Using the chart below have a look at your urine next time you go to the toilet.  If it is a similar colour to the top 3 circles you are hydrated and doing fine, if it is similar colour to the bottom 3 circles you are de-hydrated and need more water!  Remember such drinks as Tea and Cola are Diuretics and will force excretion of liquid from the body.  If your urine is any other colour such as red then seek medical advice…

Loud snoring is actually quite common and affects large numbers of men and women.  45% of adults snore occasionally, while 25% are considered habitual snorers.  Medically snoring is the noise created by the walls of the throat vibrating during breathing.  This usually caused by the airway being partly obstructed due to one of the following:

Excessive muscle relaxation in throat.   One of the largest causes is alcohol as it is a muscle relaxant, also some sleeping pills may cause this too.  The aging process does take it’s toll on muscles too.

Excessive throat tissue.  A common area for fat build up on people who are overweight is around the throat area, this can restrict the airway causing snoring.

Nasal Airways obstructed.  People with colds, sinus infections or allergy sufferers can all have obstructed airways.  Nasal polyps can also be present and your GP can deal with these.

Best way to help snoring is, moderate your alcohol intake especially before bed, loose weight and if you are still getting problems consult with your GP (and buy your partner some ear plugs or sleep on the couch, or even the garage if it’s that loud!).

About 15 million people each year in the UK are affected by colds or flu. Often people make unnecessary trips to their GP when they should be resting at home.  It is important to remember though that flu can be a serious condition for some people with underlying health issues, or those of certain age groups, so it’s important to get a flu jab if you fall into these catorgries.

• 65 years or over
• Older than 6 months with an existing condition that increases your risk,  These conditions include, Serious heart problems, such as heart failure, Serious asthma, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), Long term liver or kidney disease, Diabetes, A weakened immune system as a result of a condition such as HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) or AIDS, or due to treatments such as chemotherapy.
• Living in a long term care home
• A health or social care worker
• A poultry worker

People with the flu are advised to get plenty of rest, drink plenty of liquids, avoid using alcohol and tobacco and, if necessary, take medications such as paracetamol to relieve the fever and muscle aches associated with the flu. Children and teenagers with flu symptoms (particularly fever) should avoid taking aspirin during an influenza infection, as doing so can lead to Reye’s syndrome, a rare but potentially fatal disease of the liver. Since influenza is caused by a virus, antibiotics have no effect on the infection; unless prescribed for secondary infections such as bacterial pneumonia. Antiviral medication can be effective, but some strains of influenza can show resistance to the standard antiviral drugs.

Swine flu is a current concern and the World Health Organisation (WHO) has raised the level of alert for swine flu to phase 6.  This reflects the increasing number of localised cases in the UK and worldwide.  If you are worried about Swine Flu please visit NHS Direct and go through their sympton checker.

If you went out and asked 100 men what part of their bodies they would most like to change, I can guarantee the majority will say their Ab’s.  Men obsess about having the perfect six pack rather like woman obsess over having the perfect pert bum and breasts.

The problem is most men get upset when they spend the majority of their gym workouts on the abs believing they will have a rippling toned midriff after five weeks of 1000 sit-ups a day.  The actual result is they still have a spare tire round their waist.  Sit-ups alone are not going to give you the perfect six pack.  In fact you may already have a decent six pack, you just can’t see it!

There are three important things you must do in order to achieve a toned and muscular abdominal area:

1. Eat Healthy- A well balanced diet cutting out “bad fat” and alcohol, and reducing your calorie intake.  The steps below will be wasted if you are eat excess calories that will just be stored as fat!
2. Burn Fat- You are going to have to work hard, I mean aerobic workouts three to five times a week.  Ride the exercise bike like you are on the Tour De France, Run like your doing the 4000 meters and row like your Steve Redgrave.  If you are not hot, sweaty and out of breath you are not working harder enough.
3. Work those Abdominal muscles and supporting muscles – The idea is to work all these areas to build a muscle tube round the waist area.  This will define the six pack look.  When working on these muscle groups you must control speed and technique otherwise all your efforts will be wasted.  For example you would need to aiming for around 3-4 seconds per rep on sit-ups.  So 30 sit-ups should take you about 1.5 minutes to complete.

The routine that follows gives you seven exercises to complete.  Repeat the entire routine twice every time you work out.

CRUNCHES - Lie flat on you back, put your knees at 90 degrees and place your feet on a chair.  Place your hands by your ears and curl your shoulders forwards whilst your lower back remains on the floor.  Tense the abdominal’s, breathing in as you lift and breathing out as you lower.  Keep a space of tennis ball under your chin, this is to ensure your head stays in line with your spine.  Each rep should take 3-5 seconds.  Do 40 reps.

REVERSE CURLS – Once again lying on your back, put your legs straight up pointing them towards the ceiling.  Roll your bottom up off the floor in a controlled manner, trying not to swing your legs too much.  Then return your bottom to the floor whilst keeping your legs straight.  Do 30 reps.

STATIC BRIDGE- Lie face down on the floor, toes touching the ground and elbows positioned below your shoulders.  Raise yourself up, keeping a straight line from your shoulders to your ankles so that your elbows and toes support your body.  Use your abdominal’s to maintain the position and make sure you don’t stick your bottom in the air.  If you feel tension in your lower back area, raise your hips a little higher.  When you can no longer control your torso, relax and lower your knees to the ground.  Hold for 60 Seconds.

TWO-POSITION BRIDGE – Using the same technique as described above in the Static Bridge, hold a straight position for 15 seconds, then raise your hips and bottom by about 10cm.  Stay there for 15 seconds.  You want to aim for 2 holds in each position totalling 60 seconds.

OBLIQUE CRUNCHES- Laying on your back with your knees bent, place one foot across the opposite knee and place your hands by your ears.  Curl your shoulders forward and twist towards the raised knee.  Tense the abdominal’s, breathing in as you lift and breathing out as you lower.  Keep a space of tennis ball under your chin, this is to ensure your head stays in line with your spine.  Each rep should take 4 seconds.  Do 30reps.

STATIC OBLIQUE BRIDGE -  Lay on your side and place your bottom elbow directly under your shoulder to support your body.  Rest your free hand on your stomach.  Place one foot on top of the other, then raise your self up keeping a straight line from your head to your toes.  Use your obliques on the side nearest to the ground to hold the position for 60seconds.  Repeat on your other side totalling 4 reps.

HYPEREXTENSION – Lay face down flat on the floor.  Place your hands under your chin but off the floor, and whilst keeping toes fixed to the floor raise your torso off the ground.  Keep your neck relaxed and your head in line with your back.  Keep the movement controlled.  Finish the movement slowly lowering the torso to the floor.  Do 5 reps, but hold the 5th rep for 5 seconds.  Repeat for a total of 25 reps.