the Click Factor

Have you been reading the recent and provocative scientific research on weight loss and obesity? Researchers have found that certain intestinal bacteria may contribute to being overweight, and that oral bacteria may either contribute to or be the result of weight gain. Expect to read lots more research in the upcoming months. Some of it will explain why some people can seemingly eat very little food and gain weight, while others can eat with abandon and never gain a pound.
It could be that different people metabolize calories differently, that lifestyle and biological factors are highly important in weight gain. Soon experts will find unique weight loss solutions that have little to do with calories. Until then, eat 0-5, exercise lavishly, and eat wholesome foods, avoiding processed foods as much as you can. I'm excited to learn more.
Below is an article I wrote for a local Salt Lake magazine, The Catalyst. I think you'll enjoy it.
Have you ever counted how many clicks you make in a day? For most of us, it could be thousands. Clicking. You need just one, claims Amazon.com to purchase your books, but you'll need many more clicks to do some research on Google, to check your email, or to send a text message. And beyond that, millions to develop a website, and millions more to maintain one.
Clicking is everywhere. It's moved beyond the privacy of your home or seclusion of your office to the TRAX, ballgames, the lunch counter, the car, and, oh, yes, public restrooms. It's amazing that in our super high-speed information age, the click drives commerce, communications, relationships, parenting, and booking a ticket on the airlines.
Clicking is far more than keying, although keying is included. It's using the "mouse" to navigate – around the world. It's become the sound of life, just like your heartbeat or breath.
After emailing in my manuscript in June to my editor in Indianapolis, I had click fatigue. I was weary of hearing clicks, of doing clicks, of all the sitting in front of a screen so I could click and click, and … click. No, I didn't have the desire to revert to snail mailing in "typed manuscripts"; I just wanted a week of no clicks, which I found is virtually impossible.
A week later on vacation in Paris, I found myself addicted to checking email and my iGoogle page. I didn't want to leave my iPhone in the apartment because its Maps feature is superb for walking directions. But, the urge to "check-in" a couple times a day was powerful. It was as if I had let clicking become part of my fun. It may have interfered a bit with my ability to experience the ambience of the food, the people, the cafes, and the stunning views.
Back home, I decided to find ways to decompress and detox from all the clicks. Don't laugh – the following activities work to balance your body, mind, and hunched shoulders from all those clicks. They soothe the click muscles, posture, eyestrain, and even mental or brain fatigue.
When working at the computer, look away every 15 minutes. Focus your eyes out the window or at something further away than the screen, preferably soothing or interesting. This reduces eyestrain.
Every half hour, take a stretch break. Stand up, wiggle, touch your toes, do side bends, twist to look over one shoulder then the other. Shrug your shoulders to loosen tight shoulders.
Do eye exercises. Circle your eyes several times in one direction, then in the other. Move your eyes far to the left, then the right. Focus on a close object, then one far away.
Do aerobic exercise or walking – sans texting – to balance all the sitting in front of the screen.
Get outside. Go for a walk, eat lunch in the park, or hike. You can also do some gardening, or housework like laundry and dusting.
Play games that are not computer games, such as bridge, or poker. The WiiFit is on a computer, but you get to move and laugh as you and your friends compete on the giant slalom or bowling.
Do other games, such as crosswords and Sudoku on real paper with a pencil, or a pen if you are daring.
Read a book the old-fashioned way – one that's printed on paper, where you physically turn the pages.
Pick up the phone and call someone in lieu of responding by email.
Take a drive on a country road or into a nature area.
Vacation where there's no cell phone coverage. You can find many such places in Southern Utah at the fabulous National Parks. Many of the hotels offer free wireless, but you'll seldom see someone texting as they take in the beauty of Zions National Park.
Notice I wrote this column by clicking. Clicking is here to stay. Too much clicking can interfere with your fun and wellness. To stay in balance, manage your clicking so you get the most benefit with the least stress and optimal wellness.
Have a great summer, Lucy at www.lucybeale.com.





Lucy Beale
Author, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Glycemic Index Weight Loss and
The Complete Idiot's Guide Glycemic Index Cookbook
www.Lucybeale.com, http://lucybeale-weight-loss.blogspot.com/
801-501-8240