Mindfulness, all year round

After a long week, it's time for a dip in the sea, a road trip or a hike up a mountain. Done with friends and family; outdoor activities are memorable. It's an excellent way to unwind and recharge for the days ahead. Outdoor activities allow you to have a balanced, healthy lifestyle.   Why outdoor activities?   With so many outdoor activities to choose from, it’s easy to find something for your next hobby or vacation. Consider hiking the park, playing sports with friends, or enjoying a walk in the sun.   Regular exercise reduces the risk for several chronic diseases. Exercise can help improve your self-esteem and lower your stress levels. Spending time outdoors is an excellent way to nurture and protect the planet we live on and enjoy life. Plus, you’ll get fit, too! If you haven’t appreciated outdoor activities as much as you thought you should, now is the time to start!   Hiking   Hiking is one of the best ways to discover new places, exercise, and meet new pe...

73.6 % of Americans are overweight , and over 70% of those being obese. Studies state that a BMI of 28 increases the risk of developing erectile dysfunction by 90%. Obesity in men causes a low frequency of sexual intercourse. Obese women report lower scores for sexual arousal, lubrication, orgasm, and sexual satisfaction. Overweight people are more likely to die from infectious diseases like Covid-19. Obesity increases the risk of serious chronic diseases and severe illness from COVID-19. To live a healthy life, you must manage your weight. BMI is the best indicator of how healthy you are. Here are 5 simple steps to lose weight.  Cut Sugar Quit taking sugar and cakes, claiming you have a sweet tooth. Excess sugar impairs cognitive skills and self-control. The sad part is that sugar has drug-like effects in the reward center of the brain. Eating sugar releases opioids and dopamine in the bloodstream, thereby causing addictive behavior. Eat More Proteins, Especially Animal Protein Ta...

Human beings are creatures of habit. Your habits determine your outcomes, behaviors, personality, and choices. We could live fulfilling lives if we adopted healthier and more constructive habits.   You can do it Habit formation involves a process through which habits become automatic. You can cultivate new habits and eliminates unwanted ones. Habits get ingrained, despite their harm to the individual. It makes it hard to breaks terrible habits.   Our habits dictate our behavior by causing your mind to act on autopilot.  The brain releases dopamine when you indulge in your habits. Dopamine release feels good, and the brain and body seek more reward and pleasure. The dopamine effect makes the negative habit patterns to be more ingrained and thus difficult to break.   As a cue, smokers reach out for a cigarette when they wake up. Imagine if that person reached out for running shoes, a cup of healthy drink, water, or grapes. The person would be fitter and wouldn’t waste ...

When was the last time you saw any of your friends and family, away from your drinking/gossip buddies and coworkers? I went visiting with a relative of mine the other day. They lived in a posh and spacious bungalow, with the grounds covered by cute trees and shrubs. A swimming pool would have made their home picturesque.  In the dynamic and fast world, we live in, getting an ideal home is almost impossible for the majority of the population. The family earnings, costs, convenience, and family demands all put a toll on seeking an ideal home. A home is a place we go to after a long day of work, study, or leisure. It is the abode we escape, albeit momentarily the craziness of life. Sadly for some, the home is the source of anxieties, abuse, toxicity and endless drama. Fortunately, for a majority, the home is the place of refuge.  I grew up in the countryside, our home nestled between two hills, thus the duration of sunlight was slightly limited. However, the forest cover then w...

  We all desire the Disney version of romance and love, right? Yet it seems at every turn, we stumble, self-sabotage or get it completely wrong. We admire beautiful couples in our foes, friends, strangers and family. From our childhood sweethearts to current persons, most people seem to either run into amazing humans at the wrong moment or pick the wrong persons. This is however too simplistic a view. Could we be part or wholly the problem? Walk with me. As a young man, I had dreamy aspirations of romance. Through adulating, my cynicism has ballooned sadly. On introspecting however, I realize others aren’t entirely the problem. They say, like attracts like. Do you agree? Look back at your bad and good choices in partners. Did you deserve the angels or devils that they were? In a way you did. However, this doesn’t discount bad luck, poor timing and unfortunate meeting with broken and toxic humans. While we might wallow in pity, we should seek for better through self-development ...

  I remember countless times I would doze off in several economics classes. However, I remember this lecturer who would use history and politics to make the laws of demand and supply and the graphs thereof, more relatable. Economics is a social science concerned with production, distribution, and consumption of both goods and services. Application of economics involves allocation of scarce resources by individuals, firms, government and societies.  Economics is the way we live and how our brains are wired to make the most optimal decisions. Economics explains how we seek the most optimal utility in all the decision we make. However, our brains are also wired to make the easiest of choices and take shortcuts. That would explain why most people resort to addictive habits and substances to get temporary thrills instead of seeking their dopamine rush from work, adventure, seeking new lovers, and pursuit of dreams. Probably fear is an economics function that seeks to reduce resou...

Life can really screw you. Or it might turn out like a Disney story.  I met Kev along the streets of Nairobi a few weeks back. He still had his wide grin and bubbly personality that could keep a whole village warm during a winter night. Kev is a kind-hearted human being, generous and an agreeable fellow to a fault. He also had such great footballing skills, I always envisaged him playing for the great Manchester United. He actually had a stint playing for a local Premier league, albeit on a trial basis. As he had no money to bribe some connected individuals, his spot was taken by a lesser talent who sadly had more well-oiled hands than him. So up in flames, went his footballing dream. While he still looked for his 40 years, his eyes looked hollow and haunted. He had the look of a war veteran, like a person who had seen too much suffering, death and had had his soul wrung dry. I was excited to reconnect with by childhood friend and I had some time to idle away, I suggested we find a...