Posted on

Self Defense – Health – Ovarian Cancer Awareness

I was at a meeting yesterday when I learned some things about women’s health that I believe is important to share with everyone I know and hopefully you will share it with all of the women in your life too.

ovariancancerOvarian Cancer Awareness

Every year over 20,000 women will get ovarian cancer. Ovarian cancer is NOT detected by a PAP Smear. Here though are four symptoms that if you have almost daily for a few weeks you need to see your GYN.

  • Bloating that is persistent
  • Eating less and feeling fuller
  • Abdominal pain
  • Trouble with your bladder

There may be other symptoms too. Check out SHOUT against the whisper on Facebook

This is Self Defense – Protecting Your Health

Posted on

Charity (giving) begins by learning to give at home

child_helping_The idea of giving to others who are in need is not about feeling sorry for them or feeling  good about ourselves.  When we see that another person has a need, it is just the right thing to do,  to find a way to help them fill that need or find a way to fill their own needs.  In my mind a need does not have to be just physical needs.

Physical needs are many times very obvious.  It may be a need for clothing, food or shelter.  It may be toiletries or school supplies.  There are times when those needs are not readily seen or they may be disguised.  A child may not come to school because of not having the supplies they need.  Most of the time the physical needs are far easier to see than other needs.

All humans have a need for significance, love and connection.  Even when we come from a great circumstance physically, we have these basic needs. One of the ways we can give this to another is with our talents and time.

Posted on

Healthy Choices: Sugary Drinks Affect Toddlers

soft-drink_500The consumption of empty calories by children is having the effect of greater increase in their (BMI) Body Mass Index by the age of 5.   In a study just published in the journal Pediatrics, those children who consumed sugary drinks at younger ages like 2 years old, had increased their BMI in the next 2 years at ages 4 and 5 at a higher rate than those who did not consume them. 

r454143_2216475

While it makes no sense for government officials to set policy, certainly this study and others shows the need for parents to set policy in their own home and schools about beverage choices.  I am not sure how all of the different studies relate to each other, but it has also been found that those children who had 8 oz. of sugary drinks per day also were more likely to watch more than 2 hours of television daily.  Is that a parenting issue or are the two related in some other way?

Nonetheless all of this adds up to higher rates of obesity in our young people.  It is interesting too that increase of exercise in many children increases their ability to learn and focus.

The Balanced Life Skills Way

  1. Exercise regularly
  2. Reduce or eliminate the sugary drinks.  Check the labels to see what your child is taking into their body.
  3. Parental modeling of good habits – regular exercise routine, drink lots of water.

Healthy choices is one of our main headings of instruction for our students.  Healthy choices includes eating, exercise, friendships, and staying away from drugs.   Check out our most nutritious food chart at our studio.

Primary source: Pediatrics    Source reference: DeBoer MD, et al. “Sugar-sweetened beverages and weight gain in 2- to 5-year-old children” Pediatrics 2013; DOI: 10.1542/peds.2013-0570.

http://www.medpagetoday.com/Pediatrics/Parenting/39915

Posted on

Life Skills – Charity: The Definition

Teaching Children Life Skills

Each month we will discuss a life skill with all of our students.  This month the word is Charity.  This word will be defined in the following ways for our students.

 

 

Young students:  Charity: “I give to those in need!”

Older students:  Charity means:  ”Giving to those in need without expecting anything in return.”

Each age group has a worksheet that parents can use to continue the discussion at home with their children, and one for adults to allow them to think more deeply about the skill and how it applies to them.  Would you like to receive the worksheet?  Stop by our studio at 133 Gibralter Avenue in Annapolis, MD and tell us the age of your child.  We will give you a worksheet and invite you to watch Mr. Joe discuss the word with the students in class.  You can also follow our discussions here on this website.

If you would like to become a member of Balanced Life Skills, come TRY CLASSES FOR FREE.   We are not your typical martial arts school, in fact we are an education center, working with our students on physical skills along with empowering families with compassion, awareness and respect.  We believe in every child and build their confidence in themselves.  Balanced Life Skills takes part in community service and encourages each student to do the same.  You are welcomed to come in and talk to the parents that are here and watch the class for the age group you are interested in.

Posted on

Bamboo Bikes Made in Greensboro, Alabama

Every year in April a group of martial artist from around the country assemble in Greensboro, Alabama for a different kind of convention.  This convention is about doing good for others, a time to put into practice what we talk about all year.  It is also about learning from each other and those around us.

In the last couple of years we have learned from this group who are building bamboo bicycles.  Can you imagine people from the community learning to build a bike with local, recoverable resources.  Here is a little video about their work and is a part of a campaign to raise money.  I am not asking you to contribute unless you are moved to do so.  I am asking you to look at this example and for all of us to ask ourselves if we are contributing to our community in the best way that we can.   Here is their video.

Posted on

How Determination Grows Confidence

confidence-2If there is one universal quality that all parents want their children to have as they go into the world, it would be confidence. While confidence is a very complex subject it is interesting to see how determination plays a role in gaining confidence and confidence in determination.

Confidence requires that we try new skills and have the determination to stick with it till we have the skill. Imagine saying that we want to learn to play the piano, we will not have the confidence to play at a recital if we have not practiced. Practice requires determination to stay focused on our goal of learning our music and performing well.

Confidence requires that we do hard things. If we only take part in activities that come easily to us we will never work the muscles to make us feel confident. When we attempt a new activity that is hard for us to do, we need determination to stick with it until it is complete. We also learn to ask for help when required, but we are determined not to give up.

Confidence is easier when we are healthy physically which leads to good mental health too. If our bodies feel good and we know we are taking care of ourselves, our mind will tell us we can do things that may seem impossible if we are not making healthy choices. This is true of kids and adults.

Confidence grows when we are contributing to the good of others. When we take our mind off of ourselves and appreciate the good in others, our confidence feels much stronger. All humans have a need to do good for others and our determination to do so contributes to our confidence.

Confidence / Determination or Determination / Confidence. I am not sure which one comes first but they certainly compliment each other as we grow in our life.