Lose That Menopause Weight

It's no secret that gaining weight after fifty is easy to do.  Nor is it a surprise that losing weight after fifty seems difficult, if not downright impossible, for some. For women over 50, there is a particular challenge to successfully lose menopause pounds which are attributed to side effects of going through "the change."

Men, too, have difficulty losing weight after a certain age.  Consider actor Alex Baldwin, for example, who strutted a less-than svelte form in the film, "It's Complicated."  However, look at him now...his middle-age tummy has taken on a youthful look and his entire body appears transformed as well.  To what does Mr. Baldwin owe his success?  Possibly to his wife, Hilaria, who has a background as a Yoga instructor and more.

While it is obvious that Mr. Baldwin did not have to go through menopause, perhaps he went through "Manopause" and has transformed into a studly new man thanks to his interest in Yoga (and likely a dietary makeover.)

  YOGA AND PILATES can help you lose menopause pounds.  Here's how.

1. Yoga creates body self awareness.  It is a pretty crummy feeling to not be able to hold a certain yoga pose because your belly is in the way (we know this from experience).  Yoga poses require excellent posture and being aware of your own body (and it's weaknesses) actually encourages you to aim for correct posture, increasing body awareness as you work toward a stronger, more flexible body.

That belly will shrink as you work on yoga poses.  Remember the old story about the tortoise and the hare?  Slow and steady wins the race. Work at your own pace, and don't forget to breathe.

2. Pilates movements encourage a focus on the body's core, or torso.  The back must be kept absolutely flat while performing various floor movements and the effort to do so will reward you with a tighter tummy and a stronger lower back as well.

Pilates also increases flexibility and strength, which turns your body into a fat-burning machine even when you are not engaged in physical activity.  Pretty super, huh?

Take a yoga class once or twice a week and try a Pilates class once or twice a week as well.  Buy DVD's if going to a gym or studio is out of the question -- there are a lot of great Yoga and Pilates DVD's out there.  Throw in some walking or cardio a few times a week and see if you are able to lose menopause pounds.  Give it a minimum of 6 weeks and then do a body check...good news, right?

Read more about the benefits of Yoga and why Yoga exercise is good for you HERE.

Should You Write For Ozio Media?

   Ozio Media logo

If you have hit upon this blog entry, perhaps you have been wondering, "Should I write for Ozio Media?"  I have recent experience in this area and will share with you my venture writing for Ozio Media.  Please note: It wasn't pretty.

As you may know, Ozio Media serves as a subcontractor of sorts for businesses that need someone to do what is primarily Internet-based writing.  I was a writer looking to make a few bucks and decided to give Ozio Media a shot.

After submitting a writing sample, a representative for Ozio Media had me fill out employment forms, claiming I was now a contract employee.

For my first writing project with Ozio Media, I was given 6 titles of diabetic wound cleaning products and told to write informative copy for the products, such as you might find on a website selling such items.

Each write-up was to contain approximately 150 words and it was necessary to spend quite a bit of time doing research about the products in order to write intelligently about them.  THIS is where writing projects for Ozio Media can go bad due to spending too much time doing research. I earned $6 for that first job.

After my first 6 write-ups were approved, I was given more writing jobs. The entire time I wrote for Ozio Media (2 months), I was contacted on their behalf via email by someone named "Marissa."  "Marissa" gave the impression that she was not a native English-speaking person (not that there's anything wrong with that, to quote Seinfeld) but understanding her emailed explanations of writing projects was quite a challenge.

Marissa ended up getting bitter and snippy with me when I misunderstood one of her poorly worded missives which resulting in me researching and writing more articles than she apparently intended me to write.  After 2 days of back-and-forth emails between us, as I tried to clarify what Marissa wanted, I was abruptly locked out of accessing the Ozio Media contractor portal.  And she did not even say goodbye.  I ended up $34 richer for the 25 projects I completed.

Synopsis:  In regard to financial gain, it was not worth my time writing for Ozio Media. Additionally, you may noticed that this blog is about middle-aged women, a tribe to which I belong.  Middle-aged women simply do not put up with bad attitudes from people and, as a result, my relationship with Ozio Media was doomed from the moment "Marissa" contacted me.  It really is for the best.