I believe that keeping ones mind active is very important not only in keeping the brain from loosing its ability to function properly but learning new things can also give us great pleasure.
I enjoy reading non-fiction books as I strongly believe that educating ones self is the best thing we can do. We are never to old to learn something new. The book I am now reading was recommended by my 102 year old cousin. Yes that is correct, 102 years young! He recommended two books by the same author, The Hidden Life of Trees and The Inner Life of Animals, written by Peter Wohllenben. I am about three quarters of the way through The Hidden Life of Trees which is the first book and I have learned quite a lot of how trees can protect themselves by creating chemicals that can be emitted into the air to warn of other like trees of danger and produce another chemical to make their leaves bitter so as to stop an animal from eating the leaves.
The other is how underground there is quite a network of fungi and other micro organisms that work together and with the trees permission they feed off of the trees sugar but at the same time they help the tree. Trees do better when there are several near one another as they can support one of the trees if it is in distress in lacking enough water, nutrients, and the like. Unfortunately if it is very ill it might be to much for the surrounding trees to support and it then it dies. Lots of interesting information about the growing habits of different trees. A good read if you are looking to learn something new.
Another book I have been using a lot is The World's Healthiest Foods, by George Mateljan. Second edition. Since I keep a food diary I use the nutrition panels everyday. It gives the serving size and then all of the nutrients that are contained in that serving. The book also discusses each food item, how to store, prepare and cook. They also include a couple of short recipes for each. In the back there is a section on vitamins that we need in our diet and how they help our bodies. There is also a section on herbs and so much more. It was well worth the $40.00 as I now have something at my figure tips that can give me information right away on any food I have a question about. I have to keep my fat and cholesterol down low and this tells me everything I need to know. Our local library had a copy of the first edition and I took the book out to see how helpful it would be and I liked it greatly. In checking online I saw there was a newer edition available to I went to Barnes and Noble, had to drive an hour or so to get there, and they had a copy but it was damaged so I had them order me the book and it was shipped to my home.
This week I have been able to get to the gym three days. I still have today which I have already put in an hour of home exercising and tomorrow. Then sometime next week we have to have our body comps done. I am not sure how well I will do this time as I wasn't able to exercise for a week and a half because of pain in my low back and legs, but I am putting my all into this week and as many days up to when they let me know when I need to come in for the body comp. They will weigh us, measure and check to see what percentage of fat we have lost and how much muscle was gained. I did well the last time so no matter what I have gained some good ground in getting healthier. The real trick after this coming week will be keeping the momentum rolling. I might ask what they charge to do a periodic comp check. It would be worth paying a little for it as I am sure like with everything else, it isn't free. We shall see. Hopefully by next Saturday I will have my final numbers to share.
Have a great week and remember that reading and learning something new is important for keeping the brain active and it gives a person something new to talk about!
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