health and wellness Archives

November 26, 2015

Our Eight O’Clock Habit

They say it takes 21 days to form a new habit. It’s been more than a month now when the hubby and I started jogging for 5km at exactly 8PM during weekdays. Since I clock out from work at 6PM and we normally have dinner at around seven, we went for 8PM and not an earlier time.

The week before APEC, we were able to jog for five days straight! Our plan is to jog M-W-F. We’d do more if our schedule and energy permit. Our fastest 5-km jog so far is 44 minutes. Still slow, but we’re trying to do better. We sometimes alternate between jogging and brisk walking for a more fun experience.There are times also when Mame or my brother joins us. I say the more, the merrier.

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April 9, 2011

UST Hospital Doctors Directory

My ob-gyne is from the UST Hospital. I go there every April for annual check up. She’s kind and friendly. I think she’s in her late 50’s already. I like that she’s soft-spoken and explains complex medical terms to me in a smart manner. I can be a makulit patient at times. I ask a lot of questions and I’m happy she always answers them with a smile. I can even engage her in a little chitchat and our conversation can go from the best feminine wash to how small business phone systems here in Manila suck.

If UST is your choice of hospital for you and your family, getting the services of a doctor there is easy as ABC because their website has this directory of UST Hospital doctors that you could browse thru anytime. Each doctor has a brief profile and contact information there, including their clinic hours. Whenever I have to go back there, I always visit on a Saturday because that’s the time I don’t have work in the office.

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March 11, 2011

Dinner-less Tuesday

I was supposed to not have dinner last Tuesday but I ended up having a delicious plate of Tuscan Chicken meal (P199) from Figaro-Robinson’s Ermita Branch. It had a small serving of pasta in red sauce, chicken fillets with herbs and spices and some salad. It was light and flavorful and I loved it. I didn’t touch the iced tea that came with it, though, because I was limiting my caffeine intake. I was with Edwin and he gladly drank it instead.

Figaro’s Tuscan Chicken meal

So, why dinner-less Tuesday still? Well, I actually want to try doing it for a month. Like how I wanted to have a meatless day, a no-sweets day and a no-caffeine day before. This is my way of disciplining myself when it comes to food. I am a voracious eater, you know. Pigging out used to be my pastime until I learned to value my health. Now I watch what I eat and strive to balance the variety of food I consume.

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February 16, 2011

On Acne, Nuts and Pistacchio Ice Cream

Health benefits aside, I love how a wide variety of nuts is readily available in Manila. I practically grew up munching on peanuts and was glad my face didn’t suffer from acne. I just get to have a few pimples from time to time, but nothing too serious as to have me reading therapores review one after another to get help. You know how some people associate acne with a high-fat diet. Nuts are naturally rich in fatty acids, yes, but it doesn’t mean they cause acne. There are a lot of factors that trigger acne such as puberty or simply poor hygiene. That’s why I continue to enjoy nuts until now. My favorites are peanuts, walnuts, almonds and pistachio. Right now I’m craving for some pistachio ice cream. Yum!

Photo taken from here

Getting rid of acne is a different case altogether. Good thing we now have advance technology in skin care to treat it. I have friends who have suffered from acne in their youth and swear by the wonders of technology in helping them become acne-free. The treatments available today work like magic. I could hardly see the traces of acne on their faces. And just like me, they continue to eat nuts as part of a healthy diet.

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August 31, 2010

Health Benefits of Lemon Grass or Tanglad

My three siblings and I spent the long weekend with my parents in our Cavite home. It was one of the best weekends I’ve ever had. On Saturday evening, we chatted the night away while lying in bed. We took a trip down memory lane. Our room got filled with laughter and loud voices. Before we knew it, it was already 4:00 a.m. But I digress. What I really want to share are the health benefits of lemon grass or tanglad.

Aside from the distinct flavor it gives to Asian dishes, tanglad has many health benefits that only a few people know or cared to know. I only read about them online, and so when my mom complained of hip and back pains last weekend (which seemed to be a case of UTI to me), I did not hesitate to advise her to drink some fresh lemon grass tea. The next morning, the pains stopped.

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