Planning Ahead While Pregnant

Planning ahead when it comes to food could mean the difference between making wise choices and making irrational choices. It helps us learn how to undo our bad habits and being pregnant is a great time to try and change any bad habits you may have. The best way to break bad habits and to form new ones is to constantly plan ahead.

You want to plan for snack attacks especially if you are not going to be home. You want to make sure you take some healthy food with you, so that you can resist the temptation of going to the vending machine and taking out that candy bar. Throw some nuts into your pocketbook or some cheese sticks in case of any hunger that might hit you through out the day.

Plan your food shopping list. Some people find that when they go to the supermarket with just a rough idea of what they need they usually wind up forgetting something important or they wind up buying half of the food store. Take a few minutes to plan your meals for the week and buy what you need to go with it.

Speaking of planning meals, that is a excellent idea. Plan for meals you can realistically prepare. Do not plan for meals that you do not have the time to prepare. You are only going to stress yourself out. Look for recipes that are easy and quick to make. Do not try to make something where you can’t pronounce half of the ingredients and need to shop at a gourmet cooking store. Chances are you are still working and the last thing you want to do is come home after a long day and then slave over a complicated recipe.

Also, planning your meals out for the week tends to help you be a little more organized for the week. It is no secret that pregnant women tend to forget things and this is due to their changing hormone level. By taking out the time to sit and plan your meals for the week will help you stay a little organized and save you a lot of time. If you already know what you are making for dinner, you do not have to worry about coming home after a long day and standing in front of the fridge trying to decide what to make.

You also want to make sure that get yourself in the habit of using vegetables are your main dish. Instead of doing chicken breast with a side salad, make your salad your main dish and the chicken breast a side one. You also want to buy your vegetables as fresh as possible, even if that means making two trips to the grocery store through out the week. The fresher the vegetable, the better they are for you and your baby. The same holds true for fruit also. Keep plenty of fruit on hand, especially if you tend to crave sweet stuff through out your pregnancy. Instead of reaching for a candy bar, you can reach for a piece of fruit dipped in cool whip

By planning ahead for the week or even month to come will help you stay on track with your eating and decrease the risk of you making the wrong choice if a craving should hit you.

Seven Steps to Thinking Better: Your Brain Power Boost

Most people, especially those who are not as intelligent as Einstein, would want to have a boost of their brain power. If you are one of those people who want to think better, your brain power boost might be just a few steps away.

These seven steps might help you in your quest to keep your brain working perfectly fine.

1. Engage yourself in a Regular Exercise

Do simple exercises like a simple walk or jog. It may not be as intense as a full-blown work-out. You just have to keep your body physically fit and active.

Simple work-outs may trigger the release of neurochemicals known as endorphins. These chemicals are responsible for making us feel happy and by feeling happier, a more positive effect on the brain can be observed.

2. Supplement your Diet

Natural supplements are believed to have a good effect on the brain. These supplements not only keep your body healthier, they also maintain the fitness of your brain; thus resulting to better brain power! These supplements are so popular that they can be found anywhere, from your local health and food store up to the web pages of the internet.

3. Use your Brain

If you are to exercise your body, you should exercise your brain as well. Use your brain muscles more often think and learn. You may read, talk with other people or even play educational games. Any activity that can keep your brain working effectively may be tried out.

4. Play Games

Choose games that will definitely have a good effect on your brain. Refrain from playing games which are no-brainer. Nowadays, most computer games are designed to exercise your brain, so all you have to do is to choose well the games that you will play. Gaming consoles are also following the fad into increasing brain function. So, do your part in boosting your brain power, play games that will increase your brain power.

5. Enjoy an Educational Hobby

Choose a hobby that will give you some lessons at the end of the activity. This will not be such a difficult task since most of the time, we learn something from our experiences. Just be sure to do things that are not monotonous. Your hobby should be something that will help you learn new things every time you perform it. This way, you will be able to use some parts of your brain which are left unused before.

6. Sleep Well

Sleeping is the time when your body rebuilds and recharges itself. Most professionals believe that you should sleep for at least six to eight hours a day. Aside from these hours, you should also try to take ten-minute power naps. After these refreshing sleeps and naps, you will surely feel energized to take on more activities for the day. Do not deprive yourself of sleep, and you will then realize that your brain will function better with more hours of sleep.

7. Relax

Because of the complexities of our society today, your brain is exhausted just as much as your body. Thus, you should take the time to relax and cleanse your mind of the worries and stresses that might overwhelm your thoughts. You may want to try on spas or meditations to give your mind a break from all the hassle. After the relaxation, you will feel that you are prepared to take on another complex day! This is how you make better your brains health and performance.