We’re used to living our lives at a million miles per hour, and we expect results quickly. This applies to everything from finding a product online and ordering a coffee to go to losing weight. The trouble with rapid weight loss is that it’s often unsustainable. While fad diets may seem like the solution if you’ve over-indulged over the festive season, there are alternatives that are much more likely to help you achieve your long-term goals.
Fad diets have become incredibly popular, and this is largely due to the fact that they promise swift results. Fad diets usually contribute to rapid weight loss, and this often involves restricting calorie intake, cutting out food groups and dropping pounds without having to exercise. On the surface, fad diets like the Keto and Paleo diets may seem like a great idea, but it’s wise to proceed with caution. Eliminating food groups can contribute to nutrient deficiencies and make you crave foods you enjoy, and drastically reducing calorie intake can leave you hungry and increase the risk of sudden weight gain once you come off the plan. Ninety-five percent of people who lose weight on fad diets regain those pounds within 5 years.
Rather than resorting to fed diets, which can impact your mood, your health and your bank balance, it’s a good idea to take the advice shared in this infographic on board. Aim for a nutritious, balanced diet, which champions fresh produce, whole grains and vitamin-laden fruit and vegetables. Plans like the Mediterranean diet are proven to help weight loss and improve health at the same time and they produce sustainable results. People who live in Mediterranean countries are less likely to develop life-threatening diseases.
Before you reach for a diet book or think about giving up all your favorite foods for good, why not take a closer look at the infographic below?
When we consider the ways of keeping our kids healthy, it’s not just about the obvious things like eating right and exercising but it’s about encouraging healthy habits in life. We can look back and realize that we made certain mistakes or instilled unhealthy habits because we do them ourselves. A very good example is television. The latest Infinity Dish statistics show how television plays a role in almost everyone’s life. Perhaps there were a few times when you needed a break so you put your children in front of the television but this has now spiraled out of control and now you’ve got couch potatoes for kids! But when we look at the idea of watching television there are ways for us to encourage some healthy habits.
Being Aware Of Questionable YouTube Content
It’s something that we think is pretty harmless, especially for toddlers. When we put on a kids YouTube channel that plays nursery rhymes we may not realize that there is a lot of unhealthy and questionable content out there that individuals are trying to sneak into the videos. We should monitor our children’s living habits but we should also think about the streaming services we use. If you have a Firestick it’s so easy to install apps that have various questionable shows and cedars. A VPN (Virtual Private Network) is something that might help and if you’re wondering why would you use a VPN for Firestick it is a good way to keep yourself anonymous so you’re not easily targeted with specific content. Using a VPN can also be useful when travelling abroad, as some of your child’s favourite shows may be blocked by the local internet. For this reason, if you’re traveling to a foreign country like China, make sure to have a reliable service like ExpressVPN China at hand to ensure a fast and secure connection without encountering any common restrictions. Whether you are at home or abroad, once we get into certain viewing habits the algorithm kicks in and so we are suggested more and more questionable content, so having a degree of privacy can be important.
Turn The Television Off
It sounds obvious, but the television becomes a background to our lives. Turning the television off when visitors come by, eating meals, or doing other tasks means that you don’t rely on the television to become a babysitter of sorts. Our children can easily become distracted by what is on television and when our children are young, this is the perfect opportunity to make sure they don’t rely on this for the rest of their lives. This can mean a lot of harsh lessons for ourselves when we are used to watching television. But when you live by the rules yourself it’s far easier to enforce them. It’s a good idea to impose certain time limits. For example, if your children have started school, two hours should be the maximum. And when you start to schedule their day after school it gives you an opportunity to incorporate other important skills.
Choosing Educational Content
This is such a difficult topic to get our heads around. It’s easier when your children are preschoolers because there’s a lot of shows out there about counting and giving your children certain nuggets of knowledge. But as your children get older it can be harder to monitor this. Not allowing your children to plan their own weekly viewing schedule can seem a little bit on the harsh side but when you allow a certain time limit consider incorporating things that you think are educational into their TV watching time.
Television can be a good thing, just as long as we approach it with the right balance.
Are
you planning to build the floors of your warehouse or factory from
scratch? Or, have you been thinking of restoring or rebuilding your
existing floors lately? In all likelihood, you are looking for the
most durable flooring solutions for these high-traffic and much-used
commercial spaces. Polished concrete floors are a good choice because
of the many benefits they provide. More and more facility owners are
choosing concrete polished flooring over other options to get better
returns for their investments. Keep reading to understand the
efficacy of polished concrete floors and why they are making a buzz
in today’s time.
Top
Reasons for Selecting Polished Concrete Floors
Be it for residential or commercial applications, polished concrete flooring are undoubtedly the most effective solutions according to contractors. Along with being slip-resistant and durable, these floors reflect an ample quantity of natural/ artificial light to look alluring and beautiful. This preferred alternative is fast trending because of the advantages offered by polished concrete surfaces. So, what exactly is polished concrete?
Polished
Concrete Floors – What are They?
In
general terms, polished concrete refers to the treatment of concrete
with specific types of concrete densifiers. These densifiers are
responsible for filling up the pores and cracks found on concrete
floors. Once the pores have been filled and sealed, they allow for
smoother aesthetics for concrete flooring. Various types of grinding
tools and polishing equipment are used by skilled craftsmen to impart
the effects of reflectivity and sheen. As there are plenty of options
to choose from, clients usually brainstorm with contractors to
determine the nature of the polish needed. In some cases, minimal
instances of polishing and re-polishing are advised to keep more
aggregate exposed. Shinier polishes are in vogue as well because they
look attractive and impart an exquisite finished look.
Why
are Contractors Recommending Polished Concrete Floors?
If you have been to factories, storehouses, warehouses, and other commercial spaces then you have probably noticed the dull grey concrete floors laid out in them. The top surface of concrete flooring solutions is often left untreated to save on costs. It’s also believed that they can withstand rough usage and high footfall more effectively in comparison to polished surfaces. According to experts in concrete flooring at concretefloorpolisher.co.uk, this is not true in today’s context. The advent of technology and the use of refined grinding and polishing equipment have brought about major transformations in the flooring industry. People are no longer leaving their concrete floors barren or unpolished. As concrete cannot be fully cured or treated by nature, various innovative ideas are popping up to create a difference in how these floors look and feel. Nowadays, wet and dry polishing of concrete are effective steps in getting durable and hardy floors.
Polished
Concrete Floors – Features and Benefits
Both
aesthetically beautiful and long-lasting, polished concrete has
plentiful benefits to their credit; these include:
Resistance
to abrasions
Enhanced
durability quotient
The
polished surface makes concrete dust-free
Polished
concrete can be easily maintained and cleaned
Environment-friendly
as there is no need for
polyurethane or costly epoxy coatings
Pleasing
to the eyes
Matches
all types of décor and architecture
Improves
the reflectivity powers of the floor
Shows
improved everyday performance metrics
Lang-lasting
life cycle
Cost-effective
alternative to installing tiles, carpets or stone layers on
concrete, and so forth.
High
Durability of Polished Concrete Flooring
There
are very few flooring solutions that can match the durability of
polished concrete. Extremely strong and hardy, polished concrete is
capable of withstanding the lugging of heavy trolley, high human
traffic, pushing around crates, etc. The most intriguing part about
these floors is that they fail to get spoiled easily. No scratches,
cracks or dents are in order as physical damage of polished concrete
floors is not really possible. Given the high levels of durability
that polished concrete floors enjoy, there’s little that can affect
their aesthetics.
Long-lasting
Polished Concrete Floor Solutions
Another
much-talked benefit of concrete polished floors lies in their long
life-cycle. If installed properly by skilled craftsmen, these floors
can last for decades in a row without showcasing any signs of wear
outs. Polished flooring in concrete requires low maintenance and can
last longer than wood laminates and carpeting in most cases.
An
Affordable Flooring Option
When
it comes to affordability and cost-effective flooring, there are very
few alternatives to polished concrete. The high affordability factors
of these floors have made them popular with clients from all walks of
life. Be it for commercial, industrial, residential or other places,
concrete polished floors are being spread out like never before.
However, there are different factors like the number of polishing
rounds, the extent of grinding, the size of the area to be floored,
etc. that determine the costs of placing concrete polished tiles.
Besides, the difficulty of polishing needs to be considered as well.
For instance, if you require only staining and finishing on your
existing concrete floors then the costs would be different.
Easy
and Less Expensive Maintenance
Sweeping and mopping on a regular basis is the only major maintenance requirement of polished concrete floors. This is essential to prevent the gathering of dust on the floors. Floors with a high-gloss finish require damp mopping to retain their sheen and attractiveness. Proper and timely maintenance, albeit at low costs, is necessary to retain the glossiness of concrete polished floors.
No
Hazardous Chemicals Used for Polishing Concrete Floors
These
eco-friendly flooring solutions are devoid of the use of harmful
adhesives, cleaners or any chemicals. The slurry created in the
process of wet and dry polishing can be disposed of in recommended
ways to eliminate any harm to nature or society at large.
Invest
in Polished Concrete Floors
When
you choose to park your money in polished concrete flooring, in
effect, you are ready to enjoy it for years in a row. These floors
are water-resistant when sealed with high-quality adhesives and
products. You can also enjoy the benefits of enhanced ambient
lighting and abrasion resistance once you opt for this flooring
solution. Go the full way with polished concrete, and at the
earliest!
An at-home dad on a mission to keep it real when it comes to food, fun, and raising a healthy, happy family.
