Monday, January 31, 2011

Health Tip: Week of Jan 24, 2011

GIVE YOURSELF A BREAK SOMETIMES
With the flu and cold season in the air, it's become almost inevitable that you will most likely end up being sick for a few days. When you're under the weather, the last thing on your mind is diet and exercise right? Feel guilty? I hope your answer is NO! Always remember that sometimes, things happen that put an obstacle in your exercising schedule and diet plan. It is important to cut yourself some slack and rest if you are sick. By pushing your body during this time, it will only prolong your body from healing and may potentially make you more sick. But once you do get better near the end of the week, re-align your original schedule and you will be more motivated than ever to follow your plan and stick to your goals!

Do you have any remedies to get better from a cold? I'd love to hear from you! Here are some sites that helped me this past week with natural remedies that really work: http://www.home-remedies-for-you.com/remedy/Common-Cold.htmlhttp://altmedicine.about.com/od/treatmentsfromatod/a/colds_flu.htm and http://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/9-tips-to-treat-colds-and-flu-the-natural-way.

Happy week ahead!

Sunday, January 30, 2011

What Is My Social Media Personality?

This week, I'd like to take the opportunity and talk about what Social Media Personality is. For my blog, I aim to have a charismatic social media personality. (If you want more details of what being charismatic is all about, read this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charisma) 

I chose this personality because I want to post tips for everyone reading my blog to follow. There is nothing more rewarding that being a healthy person and with my recent weight loss, if I am able to help others do what I did, I'll know it is worth it. The main traits that best describes my charismatic social media personality are:
  • Personable: try to make it easy for almost anyone to follow the tips and explain each tip in a simple manner
  • Advisor: my goal is to help others get in shape along-side my path to a healthier lifestyle
  • Motivator: diet and exercise are easier said than done. I really want to motivate my blog followers to be persistent and never give up on their weight-lose goals
  • Energetic: I try to be upbeat and full of energy in my posts because that's the best way to engage with others online!
My personality is related to the health and fitness industry because this is a service industry and the more charismatic you are in a service business, the higher the chance for success in it. Being able to help others meet their health and fitness goals is what this industry is all about, because when these individuals meet their goals, it means they have succeeded, or on the path to succeeding. The more successful stories a health and fitness organization has, the more new customers they have potential for. 


One company in the same industry that does an AMAZING job at being charismatic online is Lululemon. There team is really display all the traits I hope to through my blog. See their social media personality shine through at www.lululemon.com, www.lululemon.com/community/blog, www.twitter.com/lululemon,  www.facebook.com/lululemon and www.flickr.com/photos/lululemonathletica.

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Why Be Transparent?

With social media becoming part of the majority of companies Integrated Marketing Communications Plans, it is important to always keep one important point in mind: Be Transparent! 


What does being transparent mean? I discovered the blog post http://www.proactivereport.com/c/pr/trust-and-transparencyimportant-to-corporate-reputation/ by Social Media Strategist, Sally Falkow, highlighting the fact that trust and transparency are equivalent to a company's reputation.

Sally mentions that the credibility of television and radio news is dropping so what does this mean for companies and corporations? This means that these companies and corporations have the opportunity to gain credibility directly. With a carefully planned and social media campaign, companies can use channels such as Facebook.com, Twitter.com and YouTube.com to engage in conversations with their past, current and future customers, they can answer questions and concerns immediately, they can allow customers to be involved in new product brainstorming, they can have contests and award prizes online, etc. The main point is: they can be transparent. If you are real, honest, reactive and engaged with your customers, you already has a strong competitive edge before doing anything else.

It is important to note that sometimes it is risky to be too transparent. One example is that if a company like Tylenol has to do a drug recall, it is vital this is posted on the website, but not opened as a topic for discussion with Tylenol's social media efforts. Of course, if someone asks, the representatives at Tylenol should address their concerns, but this would be an example with transparency should be limited.

So on that note, this week's tip of the day is:

DRINK AT LEAST 8 GLASSES OF WATER EVERYDAY.

Heard that one like a billion times before? Are you really drinking 8 glasses of water a day then? The easiest way I found to make sure this happens is I always try to think about what happens to a plant if you forget to water it. Notice how it becomes weak, droopy and in desperate need of nourishment? Well, that happens to your body too. If you do a quick search of what percentage of blood is made up of water, the answer is 82%! Now imagine that you decided to nourish your bloodstream with sugar-infused soft drinks or high-fructose juices instead of fresh, natural water? Drinking enough water is one the easiest, most accessible and beneficial health tip out there. I hope you encourage yourself to drink up!

Need more reasons? Other benefits of water that I found at http://www.mangosteen-natural-remedies.com/benefits-of-drinking-water.html:
  1. Lose weight
  2. Natural Remedy for Headache
  3. Look Younger with Healthier Skin
  4. Better Productivity at Work
  5. Better Exercise
  6. Helps in Digestion and Constipation
  7. Less Cramps and Sprains
  8. Less Likely to Get Sick and Feel Healthy
  9. Relieves Fatigue
  10. Good Mood
  11. Reduce the Risk of Cancer
Do you drink 8 glasses of water a day? If so, what are tricks you have to make sure you do? If not, what is holding you back? Share your thoughts, I would love to hear!

A New 2011 - For All Of Us!

Welcome to my "Health Tip of the Week" blog! I have started this blog because I've become more passionate about diet and exercise and would like to urge others to do so as well.

Being healthy is more than eating an apple a day or going for a 20 jog everyday. Being healthy is about changing your way of life; not a huge change instantly, but small changes everyday. I will be looking for practical and fun tips to pass on. Feel free to give me ideas too!

Enjoy learning how become a new you this year, I certainly will!