Archives for 2009

10 Steps to a Healthy Diet Plan

November 7, 2009 By Sherry Tingley

Eating a healthy meal once a day is not a difficult task. In fact eating healthy meals all your life is easy. Here are a few tips on how to keep from eating unhealthy food and binge eating:

1. Set a goal – If there is a need for you to lose some weight through eating healthy, set a goal for yourself on how much weight you aim to lose in a month’s time. Of course, you would need the assistance of your doctor to determine the numbers that won’t be a health risk.

2. Commit to your eating plan – If you are doing it just because your doctor told you to, it won’t work. You have to be committed to eating healthy and you have to know that doing this will do your body a lot of good.

3. Plan a Menu – Plan a menu that suits your diet. If you cook it yourself, it’s better so you know what’s in the food you eat. Research online for easy to cook recipes that you can try. This way you won’t have to stick to eating carrots or celery or any of those boring and bland food.

4. Do Not Eat Fast Food – Do not order from any fast food chain. You have to think that this will not only ruin your diet but will also defeat the fact that you have a healthy diet plan.

5. Reflect – Before you give yourself a fresh start on your eating plan, reflect first on why you are sticking to your diet. Reflect on why you are doing it and once you know the importance of your diet plan you’re good to go.

6. Recognize that people around you are not on the same diet plan – With other people in your workplace eating burgers and other greasy types of food, temptation to eat fast food is everywhere. With this in mind, you can tell your colleagues or the people around you that you are trying something new so you’d have to say no to that pizza they are offering you.

7. Support System – A support system plays a huge part in staying on your healthy eating plan. Tell your family or your friends what you need to do and make them understand why you are doing this. With a good support system, by the time you feel like stopping your eating plan altogether, they will be the ones who will encourage you to continue with your diet.

8. Learn to Say No – Let’s face it, not many people will understand why you no longer eat what you used to eat. If some of the people you know keep on nagging you to eat something that is not included in your eating plan, just say “No”.

9. Live and Let Live – Accept the fact that your family or your friends may not join you in your diet. Do not feel alone at all just because of your diet. Let them enjoy what they eat while you enjoy yours.

10. Give Yourself a Holiday – You can take a break on Sundays and then go right back to your diet plan on Monday. Giving yourself a holiday is a good idea so that you won’t get tired of your eating plan.

How to improve your credit rating

November 3, 2009 By Sherry Tingley

Keeping your credit rating in good standing is essential especially if you have a business or you want to buy big ticket purchases such as a car or a house for example. Bank loans are easy to acquire if you have a good credit rating to show. This is one of their main criteria in order to accept or reject your loan or to give you high or low interest rates. If you are in a bad period and you need your credit rating to improve, here are some sure ways you can do.

From this time forward, you have to instill in your mind that you can never put off a credit payment ever again. Paying on time will certainly increase your credit rating. Make this a long term agreement to yourself. Now in order to do this, you should only purchase items that are essential and that you know you can pay off at the end of the month. This means living within your means.

Another thing you can do is to get a copy of your credit rating from multiple credit agencies. Check for discrepancies that need immediate correction. It is a good idea to keep all your receipts from your past purchases so this process will be easier. Identity theft is a big problem today so report all incorrect data that you may find in your credit report.

Look into your credit card debt. Look into each item and find a way to reduce these items each month. The lower your debt, the less you have to pay during the end of the month. Here is a good tip, if you have a lot of credit cards, make sure that you don’t use more than fifty percent of your credit limit. This will help your credit score remain high.

Start paying off your credit cards. From your list of debts, take a look at the ones that have the highest interest rates and then pay them off first. You would like to get the high interest rates out of the way first to save yourself some money.

If you have extra money to spare, try to make extra payments on your credit cards and your other loans such as student loans and auto loans for this will make a big impact in your credit rating in the end. This shows that you are willing to lessen your debt and you are capable of paying off more than the minimum required amount.

For your credit cards with high interest rate, talk to a bank representative and ask them if they can lower it. Some will be reluctant to do so but others are willing enough to give you a break. With the proper discipline and state of mind, you can improve your credit rating in a span of six short months.

Some of the best things you can show creditors is stability in your living conditions such as where you live and where you work as well as how long you have worked at your job. Keeping your credit score high isn’t difficult, it just requires paying attention to making your payments on time and honoring your committments.

How to Have Beautiful Skin and Hair

November 3, 2009 By Sherry Tingley

Who wouldn’t want healthy looking skin and beautiful, shiny hair? There’s no need to break the bank to have beautiful skin and hair. Here’s how:

Water, water, water

Drink water. Being hydrated all the time hydrates the skin and the hair as well, making you look healthier and more beautiful.

Healthy Diet

Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. A healthy diet does not only make you feel good, it will also make you look good and that includes your hair and your skin. It may be a cliché but you are what you eat. If your hair and your skin do not look healthy then you may not be eating right.Beauty is not just skin deep, it comes from within.

Oil Treatments

For unmanageable and frizzy hair, use virgin coconut oil and leave it over night. You can apply coconut oil on your body as well to add moisture to the skin. Olive oil for the skin is good as well.

Protection

Protect your hair and your skin from harmful elements. There are conditioners available in the market that can protect your hair from UV rays. For the skin, you can use a sun block.

Super Meals

Omega 3 and 6 are good for the skin. Salmon, tuna, walnuts and sardines frees skin cells from toxins. For your hair eat red meat twice a week, the protein content in meat, with vitamin B, iron and zinc will make your hair look healthier and shiner than ever.

The Don’ts in Hair Care

Do not wash your hair with warm water, it makes it dry. Dry hair is hard to manage and it doesn’t look nice. If you are fond of using warm water however get a conditioner and moisturize daily. Apart from moisturizing your hair, a good organic conditioner like those made of aloe vera or fruit extract without chemical ingredients will keep your hair healthy and protect it from the elements.

Do not fail to cut the tips of your hair at least once every two months. Getting a trim will enhance hair growth and will remove split ends.
Do not use hair care products with too many chemicals on. it may make your hair look shiny and pretty the first few times but in the long term, it brings considerable damage to hair follicles.

The Don’ts in Skin Care

Do not go out without sunscreen even if you are not going to the beach. The sun’s UV rays damage the skin and may even cause skin cancer. Do not use tanning beds. A good tan may look nice on you but you are burning your skin, there is no such thing as safe tanning especially when tanning salons are concerned. To tan naturally, go to the beach with enough sunscreen protection and lay there in the early morning until 9 am. Do not tan in the middle of the day, the sun’s rays are not healthy for your skin at those hours.

Do not fail to exfoliate. Removing dead skin cells makes your skin look healthy and a lot smoother than before. For a natural way to exfoliate, you can use rock salt.

5 Tips To Prevent Identity Theft

October 30, 2009 By Sherry Tingley

In 2003 over 14 million Americans were victimized by scammers. A few years later, identity theft has turned into a much bigger problem. Yes compared to 2003, today, more and more people are being victimized by others who steal people’s identities for a living.

Private individuals and business are all vulnerable to identity theft. In fact these scammers have gathered about $4 billion from stealing personal information alone.

How do you prevent yourself from being a victim of identity theft? Here are a few tips:

Tip 1: Never Share Information

Do not share your personal information such as your address, your full name, your age and your birth date with people you do not know. Do not share your credit card number or your PIN to other people as well. Whatever mode of communication these scammers use, whether it’s through messenger, email or over the phone, please do not believe them. Most of the time, they are not telling you the truth.

Tip 2: Think

If you suddenly won an online lottery you never really participated in, then you probably are being contacted by scammers. Most of the time, these people try to get your vital information by telling you that you need to provide credit card details or bank details so they can send you the money you won.

Tip 3: Beware of Nigerians

This is not a case of discrimination. If you think Nigerians can’t dupe you because they’re in Nigeria, think again. Nigerians have been singled out as scammers. They are usually the ones who send you messages that you won the lottery and by the time they have your information, they’d be using your credit card to make purchases online, get your money or use it for other scams. Their English is not very good and their syntax is rather different. Try to be more observant every time you receive an email or an instant message.

Tip 4: Beware of Phone Calls

Identity theft can happen on a regular phone call but most of the time Nigerian scammers use the relay service to call your home. The relay service is a US based phone call service for deaf people, it is provided for them by the government so that they are able to make regular phone calls through an interpreter. However, some Nigerian scammers have hacked the security of the service and use the interpreters to make calls to houses in the US.

They usually pretend that they are deaf and want to buy a puppy or whatever merchandise. They get your number through online ads. Even if the interpreter knows that she is facilitating a scam call, interpreters are not allowed to meddle with the calls due to FTC policies. So if you get a phone call from a supposed “deaf” person who asks you for your vital information, do not entertain the call. They will call you back but remember that the interpreter or the operator is not involved in this.

Tip 5: Shred, Shred, Shred

Shred certain items such as credit card bills you’ve already paid for. People can get your vital information from your trash or vital information in your computer. People may call the bank and pretend to be you and may even get to transfer money from your account to theirs.

Debit Cards

October 29, 2009 By Sherry Tingley

[ad#250×250]Debit cards are gaining popularity these days, primarily due to the recession. People are trying to make wiser choices on spending as there is a constant worry on losing existing jobs. The changing interest rates of credit cards have also pushed more people into using debit cards instead. With debit cards, cash is drawn out from the card holder’s account as compared to credit cards where money is borrowed and repaid with large interest rates. Using credit cards is compared to spending money that you do not really have.

The first debit card was first issued in the late 1970s by the First National Bank. These were primarily given to loyal account holders with good credit and acted similar to a guarantee card. Several years later, the initial debit system was implemented, utilizing the existing credit card and ATM systems. With the emergence of newer advancements in technology, debit card expenses were directly subtracted from a checking account. Symbols such as the Plus, Visa or Mastercard were seen on these cards. Over time, debit cards have outnumbered the use of checks and are frequently used to pay for food and other smaller transactions. It has been predicted that the use of debit cards is a step towards a cashless system.

Debit cards offer several advantages over other modes of payment. In comparison to cash and checks, debit cards are safer to carry when traveling. As a limited amount of cash is deposited into the account, it helps the cardholders control their spending. Similar to credit cards, debit cards can be used to pay for purchases and bills online but do not carry the same high interest rates. In contrast to credit cards, people can easily apply for a credit card even if they have bad credit.

There are number of options available in applying for a debit card, the most common of which is applying for a checking account which also offers a debit card. Some banks give the debit card on site or it can be mailed to the account holder’s address. Upon getting the debit card, it must first be activated through the ATM or through the bank’s online site. Prepaid debit cards are reloadable versions of the debit card can be applied for through PayPal or purchasing through Western Union. Transaction fees may be charged. A third option is having a portion of your salary deposited to a debit card. An initial fee is commonly charged upon the mailing of the card and can also carry a number of usage fees.

In comparison to credit cards, debit cards are known to have less security. When a debit card is stolen, it must be reported immediately and the card must not have been used in order to avoid charges. If reported within 48 hours of being stolen, a charge of up to $50 may be incurred. For notifications of beyond two days but less than 60 can incur larger fees. Beyond the 60 day limit, larger fees may be charged.

Any suspicious items on your financial statement must also be reported immediately. It is also advised to keep all receipts made with the use of a debit card. The account holder’s information can be easily obtained through looking at a receipt which may in turn be used to illegally purchase services or goods.

If the debit card comes with a PIN, it is best to memorize it. Avoid using birthdays as your PIN. Always keep track of your purchases and the amount remaining in your account. Some debit cards allow the account holder to use money reserved for other uses, such as clearing other debits.