CPMT Discount

Eating More for More Energy - Sleep Well Challenge

Trouble Staying Asleep? - Sleep Well Challenge

1.       Are you regularly (5 nights a week or more) getting in bed at or before 10pm?

2.       If not, will you commit to getting in bed by 10pm (or as close as possible) this week?

And since there was a problem with Tuesdays email (please let me know if you didn’t get it and I’ll resend it to you), I’m attaching the ways you can earn points from that email as well:

From TUESDAY:

1.        If you’ve gotten in bed earlier than usual or squeezed in extra minutes (or hours), email me and earn 10 points for EVERY DAY YOU DO THIS!  Or if you are already getting 8 hours, email me and earn points for every day you continue to do this.

2.       List one thing you can do differently this week to insure you get an extra 30 – 60 minutes.

Heartfelt Savings - Tips for a Healthy Heart

HEARTFELT SAVINGS
Use LifeBalance to Nurture Your Ticker

Here are a number of ways to help you be more heart-healthy and wise.

• Give your heart the proper fuel! Save on Nutrition / Supplements and Cooking.
• Be light-hearted and have some fun! Save on fun activities like Bowling / Mini Golf, Family Attractions / Amusements or Paintball / Laser Tag.
• Get your heart rate up! Try Cycling, Running / Jogging / Walking or join a Fitness / Health Club.
• Don't let stress take a toll on your heart! Slip into bliss with savings on Massage / Spa / Relaxation or slip away with savings on Travel / Tours.

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Fitness Facts
Cardio 101 [close]
Your cardio respiratory system is made up of your cardiovascular system and your respiratory system. Together they provide the body with oxygen and nutrients and remove unwanted waste products. Both systems are needed for aerobic activity... Cardiovascular activities are continuous rhythmic movements that assist in burning high amounts of calories and increase the strength of the heart and lungs. If you do nothing else, a regular cardio workout will do wonders for your overall health. Regular cardiovascular exercise has been shown to greatly reduce the risk of heart disease and a slew of other illnesses.
Remember, no matter what your fitness goals, your exercise plan should include both cardiovascular and strength-training workouts.
Basic Guidelines for Cardiovascular Exercise

• Type: To qualify as cardiovascular exercise, an activity should be continuous and rhythmic and should use large muscle groups.
• Frequency: 3 to 5 times per week.
• Duration: 20 to 60 minutes per workout.
• Intensity: For low to moderate intensity, exercise at 60 percent to 75 percent of your predicted maximum target heart rate. For high-intensity, go up to 80 percent to 90 percent.

If you're just starting out and can't do 20 minutes, work toward this goal gradually. If you ever experience chest pain, dizziness or light-headedness while exercising, stop immediately. If you are unsure whether certain cardio exercises are appropriate for you, consult your physician.
Heart Rate Monitoring and RPE The best way to keep track of the health of your heart while working out is to monitor your heart rate. How do you accomplish this? You can monitor your heart rate while exercising by either taking a pulse count or wearing a heart rate monitor.
Knowing your heart rate will help you determine progress, intensity and how your body is responding to particular exercises.
Perceived exertion, which is how hard you believe you are working your body, may seem a subjective way to measure the intensity of your physical activity. However, studies show that the rate of perceived exertion (RPE) can provide a close approximation of your actual heart rate during exercise.
While some people use an RPE scale that ranges from 1 to 10, it is the scale ranging from 6 to 20 (see below) that can correlate roughly with heart rate. By multiplying your RPE by 10, you may approximate your heart rate. For example, an estimated RPE of 13 would correlate with an approximate rate of 130.
Rate of Perceived Exertion Scale

• 6-7 = extremely light
• 9-10 = very light
• 11-12 = fairly light
• 13-14 = somewhat hard
• 15-16 = hard
• 17-18 = very hard
• 19-20 = extremely hard

Important caveat: Your heart rate can vary considerably from the RPE-based estimate, depending on your fitness level, age and other variables including medication and caffeine intake.
Make it Fun Ultimately, the best cardio routine is whichever one you enjoy most and look forward to undertaking. All effective cardio exercises will increase your heart rate, which helps your body burn more calories while strengthening your cardiovascular system. Try out new and different cardio activities such as:

• Tae Kwon Do
• Kickboxing
• Skiing
• Dance Classes
• Zumba
• Spin
• Step Aerobics

Your only hard part is picking the ones you enjoy most. Just keep going - your heart will thank you for it!

Sleep Well Challenge

    

Shave Calories all Day with Water - Hydration Challenge

Water and Weight Loss Facts - Hydration Challenge

Information on Flex Benny Cards

Employer Bulletin January 17, 2011 Good News on OTC Changes and the BennyTM Card   On Dec. 23, 2010, the Internal Revenue Service issued IRS Notice 2011-5 allowing the continued use of FSA and HRA debit cards to purchase over-the-counter (OTC) medicines and drugs. This does not change the fact that under the Affordable Care Act "only prescribed medicines or drugs...and insulin (even if purchased without a prescription) will be considered qualifying medical expenses and subject to preferred tax treatment" for FSAs, HRAs and HSAs. (Read the IRS FAQ for more details.) Effective Jan. 15, 2011, the use of FSA and HRA debit cards to purchase OTC medications must comply with procedures consistent with those that pharmacies follow when selling prescribed medicines or drugs.  A prescription for the OTC medicine or drug is presented to the pharmacist or other vendor. The OTC medicine or drug is dispensed in accordance with applicable law and regulations. An Rx number must be assigned. The pharmacy or other vendor retains a record of the prescription number, the name of the purchaser, and the date and amount of the purchase. All of these records are available to the employer or its agent on request. If all these requirements are met, the debit card transaction will be considered fully substantiated at the time and point of sale.  No further documentation will be required.  We have updated our published materials with this information:  OTC Flier OTC FAQ  Examples of Eligible Expenses Please encourage your employees to visit the Manley Services Web site, ManleyPlan.com, for additional information regarding this change. Questions? Feel free to contact your Client Service Representative directly or our Sales and Client Service Department at (541) 485-7488 or (800) 422-7038; clientservice@manleyserv.com. Are You Using the BennyTM Card? You Should Be! Why? Because the Benny Card allows your participants to access their FSA funds directly from their FSA account -- no need to pay for items or services out of pocket, file a reimbursement request, then wait for payment. With the Benny Card, there is no wait. Each transaction draws directly from the participants' stored FSA account. Plus, many transactions (like co-pays, OTC items, and Rx) are automatically substantiated, so there is no need to file a claim for reimbursement or provide supporting documentation. For more details, please see our Benny Card flier.  © Manley Services, 2011

Can Dehydration Cause Hair Loss? - Hydration Challenge

Can Dehydration Cause Hair Loss?

By Tiesha Whatley, eHow Contributor

What you put in your body is very important for the health of your hair. Hair is part of the integumentary system, along with skin and nails. This system requires proper nutrition in order to survive. Water is very beneficial for the body and for hair. Dehydration occurs when your body starts to lose more fluids than you take in. Normal bodily functions began to suffer because the body isn't getting enough water to carry them out. The body suffers in many ways during dehydration---one of them is hair loss.

About Hair Loss

1. To completely understand how dehydration causes hair loss, you must understand how hair loss happens. The integumentary system is constantly growing, and hair has a six-year life span. While hair is growing, it is also falling out. People experience hair loss in two different ways; shedding and breakage. Hair sheds from the roots and it breaks off anywhere along the hair strand. Dehydration can cause shedding and breakage, which can effect the length and thickness of the hair.

Hair and Water

2. Water is essential for the health of hair for a number of reasons. The hair is one quarter water. That fact alone should accentuate how important water is for the hair. Water also carries vital vitamins to the hair root and hydrates the entire hair strand from the inside. Water is the main source of energy for hair cells, including the cells that generate new hair growth. Water also clears the body from pollutants, which also cause hair loss. Without proper hydration, you will see dryness in your hair and skin that can only be restored by drinking 8 to 10 glasses of water a day.

Warning Signs of Dehydration

3. On an average day, a human body can loses two to three quarts of water a day. If that water is not replaced, the body starts to dehydrate. Some of the early warning signs of dehydration are dizziness, lightheadedness, dry mouth, muscle weakness, headaches and fatigue. As the conditions continues, the hair and skin will start to dry out and other, more serious health concerns develop.

Hair Problems from Dehydration

4. Hair loss is just one of the things that can result from dehydration. Experts believe that drinking the recommended amount of water can help other hair and scalp issues, such as hair thinning and dandruff. When a person is suffering from dehydration, hardly any of their water supply is getting to their hair. When the water supply is low, the body must ration out the water to vital parts of the body, such as the brain and heart. This leads to excessive shedding because the hair is practically dying from thirst and a slow down of hair growth because the roots aren't moisturized enough to stimulate new hair growth.

Hair Dehydration

5. Another form of dehydration is hair dehydration. Hair dehydration may happen before complete body dehydration because of the way the body rations out the water that you consume. The circulation of the scalp is decreased and hardly any water is able to seep into the hair roots. Even if the body starts to retain water to preserve the water supply, exposure to sun, chemicals and wind rob vital water from the hair. When the hair dries from the inside out, hair loss is sudden and drastic. This can lead to balding spots.