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Salvation of the Professing Christians

2008-02-28T00:06:00.000-08:00

The way of salvation that professing Christians, like Born Again Christians, knew is too easy to do. According to them, by just accepting Christ as personal savior is enough for us to be saved on Judgment Day. This pronouncement is backed them up with the John 3:16 verse of the Bible which says:

16"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16, NIV)

But, is it really true that by merely believing Christ, you will be saved or will receive eternal life?

It is true that according to the verse quoted above, those who will believe Christ will have eternal life. However, is it enough to believe Christ and we have nothing to do for our faith? Apostle James has this question too:

14What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? (James 2:14, ibid)

It is actually obvious that faith alone can't save us, because faith are justified by works.

24 You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only. (James 2:24, NKJV)

If you have faith alone in Christ but you did nothing to prove your faith, then your faith is dead.

26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. (James 2:26, ibid)

In other words, if you believe in Christ, then you should follow His command, isn't it? And according to Christ Himself, what should a man do for him to be saved? Christ said, those who will enter by Him will be saved.

9 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. (John 10:9, ibid)

And those who enter Christ became parts of His body.

4 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. (Romans 12:4-5, ibid)

The body of Christ is the church.

18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. (Colossians 1:18, ibid)

However, this church is not just any churches. It is the church that Christ built by Himself and claimed it as His own.

18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. (Matthew 16:18, ibid)

It is not the Catholi Church, nor the Protestant Churches nor any Christian Ministries, but it is the Church of Christ:

16 Greet one another with a holy kiss. The churches of Christ greet you. (Romans 16:16, ibid)

In other words, faith alone in Christ is useless. If you want to be saved on the day of God's wrath, your faith must have works. To believe in Christ is to follow his command, that is, to become part of his body the church.

But why should we need to become members of the Church of Christ for us to be saved? It is because, Christ will saved His Church.

23 For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. (Ephesians 5:23, ibid)

And outside the Church of Christ is God's judgment.

13 But those who are outside God judges. Therefore put away from yourselves the evil person. (I Corinthians 5:13, ibid)

Sustines E. Laplana (SELaplana: http://www.selaplana.com ) is the first Pinoy Blogger and EMarketer in Southern Leyte, Philippines who blogs on Technology, Society and Reviews/Promotions of products and owns the Cellphones For Sale blog ( http://cellphones-for-sale.blogspot.com ). Writing articles is his passion. And writing religious articles is his love, so that everyone will learn the truth taught by the Bible.

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Redefining The Meaning Of Life, Part 1

2008-02-26T08:11:00.000-08:00

Whenever good or bad fortune strikes, most of us spend some time pondering why it happened. We do this because the conditioned mind reasons there must be some meaning to it, just as it seeks to find meaning behind all of life's events. The mind always looks for meaning in everything.

In fact, it is not the event itself, but the meaning that the mind attaches to an event, that brings either pleasure or suffering. The event may also be thought to reflect either God's favor or disfavor, which further divides our thinking into a sense of pride or of guilt.

However, the meaning that we attach to a situation is by no means an indication of its true content. We see this principle perhaps most clearly demonstrated at a sports event where the winning team's fans respond to the score with loud cheers, while the supporters of the losing team respond to the same score with alarm, anger, or frustration. Same score, different responses based on the meaning attached to it by the spectators.

The meaning that we attach to events also brings a value judgment into the picture. No longer do we see the game score simply as a score; we now look for why it happened. Sports commentators spend hours discussing the game to determine who did what to whom. "Whose fault was it that the Lakers lost?," we ask. "Is that good or bad?"

By labeling what has happened, we think that we can deal with it better: it will justify our becoming defensive, or angry, or hurt, or victimized. So it is the meaning that we attach to the passing parade of life's events that pulls us into emotional turbulence.

It drives us toward separation, from where we no longer respond to the event, but we react to the meaning we have attached to the event. No longer is it just another event; it now becomes personalized as a me and a you; a winner and a loser; a victimizer and a victim; my suffering because of your actions.

And because we have attached a value judgment to the event, we now feel justified to react to it. This is the classic cycle of duality that leads to ever more suffering, anger and despair.

Meaning is a product of dualistic existence. The human ego does not like feeling that it has no control and will look for anything to give it a sense of power. When something happens, then, our minds attempt to attach some meaning to it in order to feel some sense of control. In fact, the entire self-help industry is fueled by that desire for personal power and our aversion to suffering. To summarize, we suffer because not everything goes our way. We suffer because we dread doing the things we don't want to do but have to do. And we suffer because we can't have or do the things we want to have or do. We see ourselves as individual personalities with desires that conflict with our circumstances and responsibilities, causing untold pain and suffering.

How do we turn this around? Spiritual practice is the ancient, proven way to undo the conditioning of the mind and align with higher Truth. We'll address that in part 2 of this article.

Ada Porat is a holistic health practitioner and life balance coach with extensive international teaching and clinical experience. She uses body/mind/spirit techniques to help clients find wholeness and meaning in life. For more information, visit http://www.AdaPorat.com or call (602) 283-4628 MST.

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What Television Shoppers Need to Know

2008-02-24T21:37:00.000-08:00

With all the changes in technology and program content, buying a tv set is not as simple as it once was. While it is easy to be tempted to buy the one that looks prettiest in the advertisement or on the showroom floor, it's not always the best fit for your circumstances. The following will help you make a better informed decision, and using Myshopping.com.au you can make detailed comparisons between set sizes, different technology, brands and vendors.

TVMeasure where you will be watching.

It's important that the set you buy will fit in the space where you want to put it, and that it's visible from where you want to sit. Therefore, it makes good sense to measure the space where the set will go. You need to measure the width, the height and the depth of the space, so that you can choose a set that will sit comfortably in that space, with sufficient ventilation and edge space for installation and cleaning. You should also measure the distance to your cable socket if you have an external aerial, and be sure to allow sufficient space for rear panel audio and video cable connections so that they can be easily connected and disconnected.

Getting the right sized screen is a balance between the dimensions of the room and your viewing habits, and your choice of technology. A regular tv has a screen aspect ration of 4:3, (that is, the dimensions are four units wide by three units high) and its size is given as a diagonal measure across the screen. The most comfortable viewing range for a regular tv is to be a distance away from the screen that is three to six times its given size. For example, a 48cm regular tv is best viewed further away than 116 cm and closer than 232 cm.

Watching high-resolution DVD and digital TV on a wide screen set however, provides much sharper images than regular sets, and this means you can sit closer and experience a more immersive, theatre-like picture. With a wide-screen tv, you can sit as close as 1.5 times the screen's diagonal measurement and not notice any loss in quality. Sitting farther away than three times the screen however, means you're likely to miss out on the immersive 'theatre' feel, even though image-wise, the sharper pictures will be clearer from a greater distance. Conversely, what this means, is that for the same given room space, you can install a significantly larger tv if it's wide screen. So in today's market, you are faced with one major deciding factor:

Regular TV or Wide Screen

While the regular tv dimensions are 4:3 (see above), a wide-screen set has an aspect ratio of 16:9 (16 units wide, 9 units high) and this is the same shape as many cinema screens and movies. Wide-screen sets are more expensive per square cm of screen than a regular tv, and more regular TV is watched than DVDs and movies, so 4:3 sets continue to be a popular choice. However standards a re changing rapidly and almost all digital, flat-panel and rear-projection tvs are wide screen. While television stations frequently broadcast many movies in digital/wide screen format, a large amount of station-produced content is in regular format, but this too is changing. So it makes some sense to seriously consider wide screen.

Either way, there is some compromise to consider because one rectangle doesn't fit exactly into another. Wide-screen program shown on a standard tv has black bars, known as letterbox bars, above and below the wide-screen image. The alternative to this is to sacrifice some of the picture at each edge of the screen, and get the full depth of the picture. When you watch a program formatted for regular tv on a wide screen, black bars, known as windowbox bars, appear on either side of the picture. One alternative to this is to lose some picture at the top and bottom of the screen.

But one of the features of a wide-screen tv, is the ability to stretch, crop, or zoom the regular 4:3 image so that it fills the screen, ultimately distorting the image or losing some of its content.

Picture Quality, Audio Quality, Connectivity

Using an online shopping comparison such as Myshopping.com.au doesn't give you the personal feel of looking at the tv set on the showroom floor. However, once you've narrowed down your choices according to size and manufacturer specification, it may pay to look at some sets so you can judge picture quality for yourself.

So what makes a good picture? One of the first considerations is contrast: in order to have clear sharp and bright pictures, the screen itself must be dark. Screens that are two 'green' or 'grey' will not produce high definition images. Do this with any surrounding televisions turned off and an even light in the room.

A second consideration is the flatness of the picture tube. If you are looking at an LCD or Plasma screen, this is already flat, but with picture tube technology, flatter tubes result in less glare from windows and lamps, and less shape distortion. A flat tube screen will give you a better viewing experience.

If a tv doesn't have a comb filter, its resolution will be limited to about half the full potential of a DVD. While comb filters affect only composite-video or RF connections, sets with a comb filter can usually provide all of the resolution of DVD and will not have distracting 'rainbow' images where highly contrasting colours coincide. Comb filters include glass, digital, and 3DY, and different types provide different levels of quality, but ultimately, it's better to have one than not.

Digital and High Definition TV means that the ability for a tv to display a progressive scan image is also factor that affects picture quality. A progressive scan image is a feature of digital tv broadcasting and DVD imaging with a more film-like look to it than normal video.

For optimum television watching, you need to consider the quality of the sound too. It is now quite common for people to integrate tv and hi-fi equipment into a more complete home entertainment system, giving a more dynamic home theatre experience. Digital and High Definition tv and DVD, sound quality is similar to that of CDs, so it makes sense that audio connectivity allows you to connect into surround sound or other hi quality sound systems. It's worthwhile to check to see that the tv has a least one set of stereo audio inputs and one set of stereo audio outputs, as well as video input and output connectors. On the input side, check for RCA-composite, S-Video, and component video inputs. You can frequently find an additional set of audio and video inputs and/or outputs on the front or at the side of the tv, a very convenient location for more temporary connections, such as game consoles, web tv or video camera equipment. It can be terribly inconvenient if you are limited to only connections at the rear of the set, or only one set of inputs and outputs, which can often mean unplugging and reconnecting permanently installed equipment.

If you are intending to use a set-top digital receiver, make sure the tv has the correct connections, and that they are compatible with the receiver equipment. Using Myshopping.com.au you can search through a great number of brands for the correct specifications. Ideally such connections should be made with Fire Wire, DVI-D with HDCP or HDMI connectors.

Plasma or LCD

While there are still quality CRT televisions (tube style) being manufactured, the current television technology being pursued by manufacturers is Plasma High Definition or LCD (Liquid Crystal Display). The main advantages these two technologies offer includes the smaller space taken up (mostly in depth) for a bigger picture, less heat (and therefore less electricity consumed) generated for a bigger picture and the appearance of compactness through digital technology. But what are the differences?

In the Plasma tv over a million tiny glass cells are charged with a mixture of neon and xenon, behind which are coloured phosphors that emit light when energized. Each cell has a red, blue and green phosphor. When Plasma cells are charged, they emit invisible UV light. that strikes the red, green and blue phosphors on the back of the display, creating the pixels that form the image you see on the screen. LCD however, is a suspended liquid between two transparent panels that, when activated by voltage, re-position themselves so that they either allow the light to pass through the panel and or block the light, a similar process to turning on and off millions of light bulbs. The light source is provided by fluorescent tubes behind the panels. Both the lit and unlit crystals create visible pixels composing the image on the screen.

Many independent reviewers believe that manufacture's specifications of Plasma tv is not accurately portrayed. LCD appears to be both brighter and offer more contrast, whereas Plasma appears to have higher definition colour, superior viewing angles and faster response time providing crisper screen movement. Plasma uses more power than LCD, but may provide a more theatre-like viewing experience. Use Myshopping.com.au to compare the latest brands of Plasma and LCD televisions.

Remote Controllers and Accessories

All tv sets come with remote controls. Some come with what's known as the Universal remote control, a remote control that can control all of your media hardware. The remote control should be easy to use and it should address all of the tv set's functions. Many sets do not have function controls on the tv itself, which could cause problems if the remote controller is lost. Also, not every universal remote can control everything. Most are pre-programmed with a set list of codes, and if the codes don't match your older or off-brand gear, then you're out of luck. A few are learning models that can accept the IR codes from your other remotes and, thus, control any kind of gear.

A number of other features can be taken into account when considering your tv purchase. These might include picture-in-picture (PIP), or picture-outside-picture (POP), commercial skip timers, channel blocking (called the V-Chip), and tuner extras to make channel selection and switching easier. Additional accessories that you might need include additional cables, a good power surge protector and a stand. Service may also be a consideration and in some circumstances, an extended warranty or service package may be a good investment.

Search Myshopping.com.au for the different specifications and price ranges of the latest tv technology, where you not only compare the world's leading brands, but also the service and support of the people who sell them.

Andrew Gates is a writer for Australian comparison shopping site - http://www.myshopping.com.au , MyShopping.com.au helps you compare television (TV) - http://www.myshopping.com.au/PT--99_Television_TV and buy online from top-rated online stores. You can also read television (TV) reviews - http://www.myshopping.com.au/PT--99_Television_TV and specifications.

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Sanford and Son (Season 4) DVD Review

2008-02-23T13:10:00.000-08:00

Nominated for six Golden Globes and seven Emmys, including Outstanding Series - Comedy, Sanford & Son became one of the first shows in television history to be almost entirely centered around African-American characters. Modeled after the British TV show Steptoe & Son, the series showcased the underappreciated talents of comic genius Redd Foxx (whose skin color and bad language prevented him from becoming a superstar decades earlier). The brainchild of All In The Family creator Norman Lear, Sanford & Son signaled the beginning of a decade of sitcom classics for the prolific 1970's TV writer - Maude (1972), Good Times (1974), and The Jeffersons (1975) being the others. Wrought with memorable one-liners and well-timed humor, Sanford & Son was a Top 10 Nielsen rated show every year in which it aired except for its final season (ranking a respectable #27)

Sanford & Son, set in the Watts district of Los Angeles, follows the life of Fred Sanford (Redd Foxx), a 65-year-old African-American junk dealer who shares his business with his 34-year-old son Lamont (Demond Wilson). With Fred's wife Elizabeth having passed away twenty years earlier, he often evokes Lamont's sympathy by clutching his heart and proclaiming, "Oh, I'm coming to join you Elizabeth!" But Fred always survives those near fatal heart attacks, continuing to disperse sarcastic putdowns (often directed at his sister-in-law Esther) and racist stereotypical remarks aimed against whites and Hispanics (especially Lamont's friend Julio). Using guilt to manipulate his ambitious son into staying and helping run the salvage shop instead of pursuing other endeavors, Fred Sanford spends most of his days lounging around the house (his junk store and home are one and the same) and hanging out with his friends - Grady, Melvin, and Bubba Well-written and hilarious, Sanford & Son is comedian Redd Foxx at his absolute best

The Sanford & Son (Season 4) DVD features a number of hilarious episodes including the season premiere "The Surprise Party" in which Fred returns home following an extended stay in St. Louis (i.e. contract negotiations with the network). Everyone plans a surprise party for Fred, but the celebration goes awry when Fred and Esther pick up where they left off (with their constant fighting). Meanwhile, when Fred eavesdrops on Lamont and Grady, the situation only gets worse Other notable episodes from Season 4 include "Going Out of Business" in which an accounting error leads to Fred and Lamont owing the government more money than they have, and "The Stand-In" in which Fred and Lamont are forced to stand-in for Fred's musician friend Bowlegs when a member of his band gets injured

Below is a list of episodes included on the Sanford & Son (Season 4) DVD:

Episode 63 (The Surprise Party) Air Date: 09-13-1974
Episode 64 (Matchmaker, Matchmaker) Air Date: 09-20-1974
Episode 65 (Ol' Brown Eyes) Air Date: 09-27-1974
Episode 66 (Grady and His Lady) Air Date: 10-04-1974
Episode 67 (There'll Be Some Changes Made) Air Date: 10-11-1974
Episode 68 (Going Out of Business) Air Date: 10-18-1974
Episode 69 (Home Sweet Home) Air Date: 10-25-1974
Episode 70 (My Kingdom for a Horse) Air Date: 11-01-1974
Episode 71 (Sanford and Niece) Air Date: 11-08-1974
Episode 72 (Julio and Sister and Nephew) Air Date: 11-15-1974
Episode 73 (Fred's Treasure Garden) Air Date: 11-29-1974
Episode 74 (Tower Power) Air Date: 12-06-1974
Episode 75 (A Little Extra Security) Air Date: 12-13-1974
Episode 76 (The Merger) Air Date: 12-20-1974
Episode 77 (Once a Thief) Air Date: 12-27-1974
Episode 78 (The Stand-In) Air Date: 01-17-1975
Episode 79 (Strange Bedfellows) Air Date: 01-24-1975
Episode 80 (The Masquerade Party) Air Date: 01-31-1975
Episode 81 (Golden Boy) Air Date: 02-07-1975
Episode 82 (My Brother-In-Law's Keeper) Air Date: 02-14-1975
Episode 83 (The Headache) Air Date: 02-21-1975
Episode 84 (The Stung) Air Date: 02-28-1975
Episode 85 (The Older Woman) Air Date: 03-07-1975
Episode 86 (The Over-the-Hill Gag) Air Date: 03-14-1975
Episode 87 (The Family Man) Air Date: 04-25-1975

Britt Gillette is author of The DVD Report, a blog where you can find where you can find more reviews of movies and TV series. Source: http://thedvdreport.blogspot.com/2006/02/sanford-and-son-season-4-dvd.html.

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Jogging And Running

2008-02-21T18:53:00.000-08:00

Jogging is a mode of running in which a person moves the body at a constant, relaxed pace for a certain distance. Physical and physiological capabilities determine the exact pace and distance he or she jogs on an outing. Nevertheless, medical experts advise that the pace should be one at which a jogger can talk without becoming winded; panting and gasping for air, and the distance should be one that will not bring about bodily injury.

To distinguish runners from joggers, authorities on the subject say that runners run a mile in seven minutes or less, train and look for competitive events to race in, or run solely for the sheer enjoyment of running; whereas joggers, who on average run 10 to 15 minutes a mile, are not as interested in competing against others as they are in improving their health and fitness.

From the middle 1960s to the present, millions of people in the United States and abroad incorporated jogging into their lifestyles. Their participation in this sporting as well as recreational activity is indicative of the ever rising importance the general public throughout the world has placed on working out and getting in shape.

In the U.S. alone, a Gallup Poll released in the late 1970s reported that approximately 11% of the adult population named jogging as their main form of exercise. This amounted to more than 15-million joggers, contrasted with 6.5 million reported by a poll released three years earlier. By 1982, studies indicated that some 25 million men and women were running or jogging a minimum of 10 miles a week. And in 1988, a poll conducted by the National Sporting Goods Association reported that people from all age groups and income levels participated in jogging.

Recently, there has been a drop in the number of people who jog or run. To a large extent, this is due to a slump in amateur athletic involvement as a whole. But it's also because there are so many other ways for a person to spend recreational dollars in order to obtain a trim and muscular physique as well as a robust heart and lungs. For instance, there now exists a plethora of sports equipment manufacturers who have devised training apparatus (e.g., Schwinn Airdyne and NordicTrack) that can heighten aerobic performance and develop strength in the same workout session. This notwithstanding, jogging still boasts millions of adherents and remains near the top of the list as one of the favorite means of exercise.

Jogging's longstanding popularity stems from a variety of practical reasons. One of these reasons is its diverse health benefits, particularly its ability to aid in the prevention and cure of cardiovascular irregularities.

Other reasons are that it is convenient and inexpensive. Unlike so many athletic endeavors, such as swimming and tennis, jogging requires no specific setting or time, no partners, no special equipment (the only gear needed is comfortable-fitting clothes plus a good pair of running shoes) and in most cases just occasional medical attention.

To elaborate on the latter, jogging does have an element or two of risk associated with it. Because of repeated shocks to the body as the feet pound against the ground at three to five times the jogger's body weight, assorted afflictions to the ankles, knees, hips, and lower back are not uncommon. And some joggers have discovered - at times tragically - previously undetected cardiac disorders.

Yet you can reduce the odds of these kinds of problems from occurring by having a thorough medical checkup to assess your body's overall state before embarking on a jogging program, by purchasing shoes that cushion the feet, are flexible and fit properly, and by progressing from short- to long-distance runs cautiously.

In fact, most beginners probably should start out by walking at a brisk pace for 20 to 30 minutes, three to five days a week rather than jog. At this stage, they are wise to apply themselves to doing nothing more than getting their legs accustomed to carrying their bodies around for extended periods of time. After a few weeks, they can alternately walk and jog, progressively increasing their jogging time until they are able to jog 20 minutes without stopping. This schedule ought to be maintained for about 10 weeks. Then, they should build up to the point where they're jogging at least three jogs of two miles or more a week.

Several authorities say that along with putting in the aforesaid mileage per week, the most beneficial way to jog is to pace yourself so that your pulse rate stays below a maximum equal to 220 minus your age - and preferably not exceeding 70% to 80% of this maximum. To illustrate, if you're 40 years old, you would subtract 40 from 220 and find your maximum pulse rate is 180. You would then multiply 180 by .70 and get the number 126.00. Hence, you should be jogging at a pace that will cause your heart to beat at a rate of 126 to 135 beats a minute. (For a person having difficulty taking his or her exercising heart rate, the simplest places to count it are the radial artery on the wrist and the carotid artery on the side of the neck. Use the first and second fingers of the hand and place them on the thumb side of your wrist or place these same two fingers on the opposite side of your neck. Take your pulse for 15 seconds, then multiply by four.)

When compared to other exercises or sports, jogging is one of the easiest and safest fitness activities; and it provides its participants with a productive workout in a relatively short period of time. For example, the energy used by average-weight men and women while jogging burns calories at a rate of roughly 100 per mile (a pound of fat contains 3,500 calories), which plays a primary role in the regulation of body weight (i.e., weight control or reduction). Furthermore, jogging decreases the body's excess fat content, lowers blood pressure, pulse rate and cholesterol level, and increases stamina and endurance.

More important, jogging elevates and sustains physical wellbeing by improving the performance of the heart, lungs, respiratory and circulatory systems, and in many instances by reversing the harmful effects of coronary disease.

Jogging also strengthens the muscles of the calves, thighs and buttocks. Numerous joggers feel that jogging has psychological benefits, too. They say that it helps them relieve anxiety and tension, and enables them to deal with stress and everyday pressures in a calm, rational manner. Moreover, jogging offers its participants the opportunity to experience, through their outdoor runs, the world in which they live.

There currently is a huge collection of books and magazines on the market published especially for joggers. These publications give advice on how to run properly, how to pick a jogging program, how to train for anything from a 5K race to a 26.2 mile marathon, offer suggestions on how to combat fatigue and injury, test and rate jogging shoes, suggest seasonal running attire, and publish upcoming running events from Honolulu, Hawaii, to Los Angeles, California, to Chicago, Illinois, to New York City, New York, to London, England, to...I think you get the picture.

Nonetheless, to get you started on the right foot (so to speak), here are a few basic tips; if you jog in warm weather, wear lightweight clothing. In the heat, you want to keep the body cool and ventilated. Additionally, to keep from becoming dehydrated, drink an adequate amount of liquids; water and sports drinks are excellent for replenishing lost body fluids. It is crucial to drink before, during and after your jogs. While jogging, many authorities recommend drinking eight to 10 ounces of liquids every 20 minutes.

If you jog in cold weather, dress in layers of clothing in order to trap body heat. Wear fabrics that are good insulators against nippy temperatures. Particularly cover your head (where up to 40% of body heat escapes), hands and feet. Nowadays, a host of well-made running suits, undergarments, hats, gloves, and socks are available to joggers at department stores and at sporting-goods shops.

As mentioned earlier, it is very important that a jogger purchase a good pair of running shoes. These shoes should have enough cushioning in them to absorb the shock of jarring foot strikes; should be flexible at the forefoot to ward off painful shin splints; should have a well-constructed heel at the rearfoot to keep the Achilles' tendon protected from injury, as well as to ensure that the foot remains stable on impact. And, of course, they should fit snugly on your feet.

To further aid in preventing injuries to the legs and feet, it also is very important to warm up before jogging and cool down afterward. Most authorities advise devoting no less than 10 minutes to stretching and strengthening exercises. (Explanations and illustrations of these exercises can be found in manuals written for joggers.)

After you've completed the warm-up routine, begin your jog at a relaxed, uniform pace, breathing deeply with your mouth open. Once you've loosened up and started to sweat, which generally occurs somewhere around the one-mile mark, gradually pick up the pace.

Following a big meal, wait one hour before jogging to ward off a "stitch," or pain in the side. But if you contract a stitch, you can ease this sudden and sharp pain by using proper breathing techniques: deep inhalations, pushing the air downward past the navel; and complete exhalations, forcing the air upward out of the abdominal area and ultimately out of the body.

An incorrect stride is yet another cause of injury to your legs and feet. Keep your body erect while jogging, with your head high and your arms swinging at hip level. Specifically, you should bend your elbows at 90-degree angles and hold them out an inch or so from your sides, with your arms moving naturally from front to back. Each foot should land under your torso, almost flat and toward your heel, and there should be a slight bend in your knee. A short stride is preferable for jogging; to get more speed, though, you will find it necessary to lengthen your stride.

The surface you jog on is important, too. Jog either on a track or other soft, padded surfaces such as gravel trails or grass, trying as much as possible to avoid sidewalks made of unyielding concrete. (With regard to exercise intensity and caloric burn, jogging on gravel trails or grass, or up and down hills, is physically tougher and burns more calories than jogging on a track.)

If you jog on gravel trails, however, the grade may still be taxing to your legs. Conversely, grass is less taxing than gravel trails but may be uneven. Clearly, you will have to do some experimenting to find out which one is appropriate for your structural make up. Nevertheless, don't forget about variety as a way of easing stress on overworked, weakened muscle groups, and as a way of keeping your jogs from becoming a mundane task to be performed.

Also, it's perfectly all right for you to slow down to a fast walk while jogging. You must erase the erroneous notion from your head that to slow down to a walk during a jog is to be a failure. No one is a failure who jogs smart, who listens to his or her body and does what he or she is realistically capable of doing. You don't prove anything worthwhile by being obsessed with completing a jog at an uncomfortable pace. So jog until you begin to get tired; walk fast until you've regained your strength, then, if possible, continue jogging. Remember that you're jogging to elevate your health and fitness levels, not to deplete them.

And be careful that you don't "stop dead in your tracks." Abruptly stopping and terminating a jog could lead to serious - if not disastrous - consequences. All the blood could be trapped in the muscles that have suddenly stopped working. As a result, an insufficient amount of blood flows to the brain or the heart or the intestine, and related symptoms arise. That is, dizziness when there is not enough blood flowing to the brain, accelerated heart beat when there is not enough blood returning to the heart muscle, or nausea and vomiting if the intestine isn't receiving enough blood.

Thus, when you've made up your mind to conclude your jog, it is very important to come to a halt gradually, allowing enough time for the heart, lungs, and other body systems and processes to recover and resume their normal resting functions.

Lastly, when you work out on a regular basis and engage in a prolonged, strenuous activity like jogging, take carbohydrates into the body before exercising to provide the stamina and strength you need to get through your workout session. After you've finished working out, you ought to take more carbohydrates into the body to keep from becoming weak and tired.

Carbohydrates change into glycogen easier than do either proteins or fats. And what your muscles need when they've been exercised by demanding, long-drawn-out motion is glycogen.

The carbohydrates that are beneficial to eat at a post-exercise meal can be simple carbohydrates such as candy or plain white sugar, however, it is better to get your sugar by eating fresh fruit. Or, you can eat complex carbohydrates, starchy foods such as breads, unsweetened cereals, potatoes, brown rice and beans.

But eating solely simple carbohydrates low in fiber and vitamins can produce a physiological imbalance that will invariably lead to a physical breakdown. It is to your advantage, therefore, to eat a broad assortment of nutritious foods from the four basic food groups.

Yet, you need not be overly concerned with consuming enough protein. To be frank, the majority of us eat more than our bodies require. Somewhere around 50 grams a day is sufficient for most people.

© La Rue Briggs - All Rights Reserved.

Avoiding Undesired Hassles In Satellite TV Offers

2008-02-20T06:22:00.000-08:00

There are tons of scams in satellite TV online business. To avoid these nightmares, satellite TV shoppers should always order Dish Network or DirecTV deals from the right satellite TV dealers and avoid ordering programming channels that you do not need.

The right satellite TV dealers

A reliable satellite TV dealer is most crucial in getting a good satellite TV deal. Picking up the right dealer can earn you a bargain in the deal; however bumping into an inexperience dealer or scammers will definitely bring nightmares to you.

Often, satellite TV scammers claim that they offer the best satellite dish deals and promotions. They might offer fake promise on their deals, extremely low monthly subscription rates, next-day installation, and unlimited number of free satellite systems to lure satellite TV shoppers. But once customers signed up, they find hidden activation fees, high shipping costs for free extras, installation dates continuously missed or pushed back, as well as outrageous cancellation fees.

In order to avoid such hassles, I suggest shoppers to shop only from reliable satellite TV dealers.

But, how can you know its a reliable dealer?

The Internet gives us the convenience to research about the satellite TV dealers. Learn about the background of those dealers before you key in your credit card info: Are they an authorized dealer? Are they in business for long enough? Are they offering secure order page if they offer online purchase? How is the customer feedback on their services? Do they provide customer services via phone calls? Is the order 100% guaranteed with full refunds?

The right programming package

If you are going after Dish Network, standard programming packages are Americans Top 60, 120, 180, and Everything Pak, price ranged from around $30 to $90; DirecTV standard programming packages are DirecTV Total Choice standard, Plus, and Premier, price ranged from around $40 to $90. If you are not sure on which programming package to go for, I suggest you to compare them by visiting satellite TV consumer website at http://www.satellitetvissue.com.

What should be in your mind when selecting satellite TV programs is that you should select the programming package that is suitable for you, not the programming packages that given with freebies. Do not blind by retailer's promotional words and order things that you do not need.

Conclusion: Don't get satellite TV!

Yes, dont get satellite TV, if you do not need TV that much. (Perhaps this is the best way to avoid satellite TV scams.)

Without a doubt satellite TV deals are quite a bargain when compare to the cables. The free satellite systems sounds very good bargains; the low price 250+ programming packages sounds unbelievable cheap; the live sport events heat up your sport-nerves. But, do you need TV that much? Or you are actually good enough with the local channels? I think satellite TV deals are very good bargains, I recommend you to switch to satellite TV if you have other paid TV services, but I also strongly suggest that you spend wisely and get only what you need.

Teddy Low, expert writter on consumer products reviews. Check out his latest satellite TV related website and get recommendations on free Dish Network deals at http://www.satellitetvissue.com/.Broadgreen Hospital Liverpool Royal University

How To Create Custom Buttons With Word

2008-02-17T02:49:00.000-08:00

Since I am currently working on a new site and have been creating menu buttons I'd like share the method I'm using.

Below are the 38 steps to creating custom buttons using my word processor. Don't be intimidated by the number of steps because they're all easy and once you've done them a couple of times they become almost automatic.

I should also mention that while the instructions are written for MS Word they can be easily adapted to MS FrontPage.

And for those who use another word processor or html editor, you may be able to adapt these steps to the 1 you're using. In case your word processor doesn't provide drawing tools or you don't have a word processor, you can get a free 1 called OpenOffice at:
http://www.openoffice.org/index.html. Open Office works slightly different but does provide drawing tools so you can use it to create the buttons.

To find the Drawing tools available in Word and OpenOffice you can go to the 'View' menu item. Highlight 'Toolbars' and select 'Drawing'.

38 Steps To Create Custom Buttons Using MS Word

1) Open a new document in Word

2) Select Autoshapes located at the bottom

3) Select Basic Shapes from the menu

4) Select the rounded brackets and click the left mouse button

5) Create a rounded bracket shape in the Draw Box

6) Select Fill Color located at the bottom.

7) Select Fill Effects from the menu.

8) Select the Gradient Tab.

9) To get blended colors select Two Colors or Preset.

10) Pick the colors you want and click OK.

11) Select Line Color located at the bottom.

12) From the menu select No Line.

13) Open a Text Box.

14) Type the text you want i.e. Home, Main, etc.

15) Highlight the text and select the font size, color and bold you want.

16) Using the Fill Color and Fill Effects buttons at the bottom, select No Fill and No Line Color for the text box.

17) Drag the text box and place it over the rounded bracket image.

18) You may have to resize you image if its too large or too small for your text.

19) To keep the rounded corner effect of you picture you need to set the image on a background that is the same color as the background where the button will be placed on your web site.

20) Select Format located at the top.

21) Select Background from the menu.

22) Select your background color.

23) Select Print Preview. You can use either a button or the menu item found under File.

24) Open Irfanview.

25) Turn on Screen Capture.

26) Have the Print Preview of your Word document on your monitor screen.

27) Do a screen capture (Cntrl + F11).

28) An Irfanview window will popup where you draw a box around your button image.

29) Select Crop from the Edit menu located at the top.

30) Select Image from the top menu items.

31) Select Resize/Resample to set the size of your button.

32) Select File from the top menu items.

33) Select Save as.

34) Go to the folder you want to save the image.

35) Type in a file name.

36) Save as either a GIF or JPG file type. (I use GIF).

37) Open your html editor and Insert the button image you created where you want it.

38) You can then give this image a hyperlink to the web page you want your visitors to be sent when they click it.

By using the above method you will no longer be restricted to creating 1 color square buttons. You will not be able to create more attactive and colorful button images to fit the style of your site.

To Your Success,
Susan Carroll

Susan Carroll has been helping people with their online marketing for more than 3 years. You're invited to join her membership site at: http://www.friendswhocare.us/join.htm where she is giving away her report "CustomButtons". Inside the report she has these 38 steps grouped into a more manageable 13 steps plus she has included screen snapshots to make it easier to understand. She also includes a couple of hints she learned while using this method of button creation.Hiroshima Night Club

Hello From Orlando: Golf In Orlando - The Links-style International Course At Championsgate

2008-02-15T00:07:00.000-08:00

Several days after attending the Father-Son-Challenge at ChampionsGate we actually got out and played the International Course ourselves. It was an exciting experience to play a championship golf course just shortly after a major tournament, when it was still in tournament condition with just a few extra degrees of difficulty. The open wind-swept design features a multitude of bunkers and a variety of water hazards, and with a difficulty rating of 76.3, one of the highest ratings in the state, we were duly humbled by the challenges that this course threw at us.

ChampionsGate is an impressive facility with 36 holes designed by famous golf legend Greg Norman. What sets ChampionsGate apart is that its International layout and the National course have totally different designs. The hard, fast fairways of the International course are reminiscent of the great old Scottish and Irish links, while the more modern American-style National course winds through citrus groves and stands of pines, emphasizing challenging shot-making choices and a range of memorable par-3s.

Golfers who want to improve their game can do so at the world-famous David Leadbetter Golf Academy which offers two or three-day mini-schools or retreats, private sessions or David's "Beginner to Winner" program. David Leadbetter even offers video lessons via the Internet, providing access to his teaching expertise to golf students all over the world. The Callaway practice facility consists of an expansive practice area, putting green and short game area and is always complimentary with a round of golf.

As you come off exit 58 on the I-4, ChampionsGate greets you right away with imposing gates. The road takes you past the luxurious Omni Orlando Resort and Spa which has been welcoming resort golfers since 2004 in 730 premier rooms, including 25 guest suites. In conjunction with the Omni Resort, ChampionsGate now offers an upscale resort golf experience, complete with a European-style spa, state-of-the-art conference facilities and a 15-acre tropically landscaped recreational area featuring an 850 ft "lazy river". The Champions 9 Golf Experience, the resort's lighted 9-hole, par 3 golf course, adds to the recreational opportunities.

The resort will be complemented by a master-planned community including villas and condominiums. The 59-unit phase 1 of the Villas is set to open in the summer of 2006, which will be followed by groundbreaking for the 110 units of Phase 2.

The 30,000 square foot clubhouse at ChampionsGate with its enormous wrap-around veranda features a panoramic view of both golf courses and a unique menu that is split right down the middle, featuring international cuisine on the left, and American fare on the right. ChampionsGate specializes in hospitality and customer service, and last year the club hosted more than 340 business or charity outings. After our challenging round we enjoyed a tasty lunch and were joined by Alan Findley, the General Manager of ChampionsGate, who gave us a better overview of this facility.

Alan is particularly proud of hosting the Father-Son-Challenge, a nationally televised golf event that features many present and past legends of golf, including Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Vijay Singh, to mention just a few. The Father-Son-Challenge is a veritable "Walking Hall of Fame". What makes this tournament really special is its relaxed family atmosphere and the opportunity to see different generations of golf icons playing with their sons, daughters and even grandchildren. It's an opportunity to see these famous golf legends from a human side and we indeed enjoyed watching Vijay Singh relax with a cup of coffee on the 18th hole, awaiting the arrival of his son Qass, hoping for a great final score.

In our conversation Alan also indicated that at the David Leadbetter Academy you never know what golf celebrity you are going to run into. Michelle Wie is a famous Leadbetter student, Charles Howell III was practicing while we were there, and Greg Norman helicoptered in for a lesson last week. Alan also pointed out Michelle Wie's favourite spot in the clubhouse: the table right in front of the big screen TV.

Alan also made us aware of the unique wildlife inhabiting this golf course: two American bald eagles have made the course their permanent home, and on any given day you could see whooping cranes, gannets, alligators or armadillos. For a special glimpse of ChampionsGate's atmosphere come here at the end of the day, when you could see bald eagles perched on a tree in the sunset right in front of the clubhouse, while listening to a Scottish bagpiper, a feature Allen himself has introduced to the club.

Driving Directions:

ChampionsGate is located 10 Minutes from Disney World at Exit 58 on Interstate 4, just minutes away from International Drive and area attractions.

Statistics for ChampionsGate International
Par 72 Yards Rating Slope
Black 7363 76.8 143
Blue 6792 74.1 137
White (M) 6239 71.5 132
White (L) 6239 75.7 134

Statistics for ChampionsGate National
Par 72 Yards Rating Slope
Black 7128 75.2 138
Blue 6427 71.9 133
White (M) 5937 69.1 124
White (L) 5937 74.7 125

For more information please visit the ChampionsGate website or call them at (407) 787-GOLF (4653) or toll free at 1-888-558-9301.

This entire article including photos is located at http://www.travelandtransitions.com/stories_photos/orlando_champions_gate_golf.htm

Susanne Pacher is the publisher of http://www.travelandtransitions.com, a web portal for unconventional travel & cross-cultural connections. Check out our brand new http://www.travelandtransitions.com/ebooks.html FREE ebooks about travel.British Rail Ticket Booking