"There is no doubt that we love our celebrities.
Just look at the number of tabloids at the checkout line of any market.
Consider the entertainment magazines available including People, Us Weekly, Entertainment Weekly, Star Magazine, and so many more.
Entertainment TV shows include E! Entertainment Television, Entertainment Tonight, and others.
Then you have shows all about the Kardashians and similar ""celebrity"" oriented programs.
We seem to love watching ""stars"" shine and stumble with shows like Dancing With The Stars.
The list seems never-ending.
And, if you still have doubts about how much we love - even idolize - celebrities, consider how much you're willing to shell out for tickets for live performances or even just to go a movie these days. To do what? Watch celebrities.
What Do You Have In Common With Celebrity Dieters?
What on Earth do you think you have in common with those celebrities?
How do they go about losing weight?
Are you really the same as the them when it comes to health and nutrition and dieting?
Are they good role models for your weight loss efforts?
Here are just a couple of differences between you dieting in real life and them dieting as ""spokesdieters"" for mega million dollar dieting programs.
I suppose the biggest difference between your real life and their celebrity life is that they have entourages and staffs and chefs and personal trainers at their beck and call to help and support them to stick to their diets and exercise programs.
You, on the other hand, have yourself. OK, maybe, if you're lucky, you may have one or two family members supporting you, and maybe a friend or two. But your supporters are not being paid by you, are not there for you 24/7, and let's face it, at the end of the day, they aren't truly invested in your success.
In reality, the celebrities are surrounded with support and encouragement and you are pretty much alone.
The second huge difference between you and your favorite spokesdieter is that the famous celebrity is getting paid handsomely not just to endorse the diet, but also to try to convince you it actually works - their ""job"" is to lose weight.
You, on the other hand - unless you are incredibly unusual - don't have a soul on Earth who's going to pay you millions to lose a few pounds.
The celebrities have a huge incentive to stick to the diet beyond good looks and good health. An incentive that you'll never have. A massive financial incentive.
We could go on with this list of differences between you and the celebrities endorsing diets, but I think you get the idea.
But one truth to take away is that they have a level of support and a huge financial incentive that you'll never have.
What You Can Do
There are 2 big things you can do - as a mere mortal not a celebrity - to help yourself in your weight loss efforts.
First, don't delude yourself. Of course you're exactly like the celebrity spokesdieters in the sense that you're human and so are they.
But just because they can make a diet work with all the paid support they get and all the pay they receive for doing it, doesn't mean it's actually any easier for them than it is for you. That's a good truth to keep in mind.
And, another important truth is that even with the paid support and the pay they receive, even they can't or don't always make it work.
Case in point: Kirstie Ally as the celebrity spokesdieter for Jenny Craig a few years back.
If you remember, Ms. Ally lost something like 80 pounds right before our very eyes on television.
And then, after quitting Jenny, every one of us saw her all over the tabloids, entertainment magazines, and entertainment television shows 80 or more pounds heavier within about a year.
The truth and the lesson is that celebrities are human, too. And, if you don't stick with your diet and healthy eating, of course it's not going to do you a bit of good any more than it will do them a bit of good if they don't stick with it.
Sticking to it. That's the key. That's the truth.
Which brings us to the second big thing you can do for yourself. Follow these 6 simple Guidelines to help you stick to your diet, weight loss, and healthy living plan.
6 Guidelines
1. The More Natural The Better.
When I say ""more natural"" it's about 2 things.
First, what you eat and drink.
Simply knowing that the more fruits and vegetables as opposed to packaged goods and salty snacks, the better. The more water as opposed to sodas, beer, wine, or anything else, the better. The more ""healthy"" oils/fats (olive, canola, salmon, avocado, nuts) and the less trans fats (shortening and margarine) and saturated fats (red meat and high fat dairy) the better.
It's pretty simple when you break it down and become just a little bit conscious and aware of what you're doing. You don't need to become a health food fanatic. Just a health minded eater.
The second thing I have in mind when I say ""more natural"" is YOU. You being more natural. You following your natural tendencies more.
We'll look more in detail about this as we go along, but for now, just keep in mind and that you are not Valerie Bertinelli, Carrie Fisher, Sara Rue, or Jason Alexander on Jenny Craig's payroll. You are not Jennifer Hudson or Charles Barkley being paid by Weight Watchers. You aren't Marie Osmond, Dan Marino, Janet Jackson, or Terry Bradshaw raking in a bundle to endorse Nutrisystem.
The truth is that you are you. The more you get tuned in to your personal strengths, weaknesses, preferences, likes, and priorities, and the more you diet in ways that are comfortable for your natural self, the better.
2. Listen.
Listen to you. It's not about listening to what others have to say, certainly not the celebrity spokesdieters with whom you have almost nothing in common except being human. It's not about listening to the advice of others who don't know or ""get"" the real, natural you. It's certainly not about listening to the criticism of others. And naturally it's not about listening to the marketing hype that surrounds the entire weight loss industry.
The point here is to listen to yourself.
Listen to you when you are feeling good about how you're managing your weight loss and health goals. Listen to your natural personality. The truth is that it will tell you how you should go about doing what you're doing to manage your weight and health and looks and lifestyle in ways that will help you accomplish your goals.
At the end of the day, you are your own weight loss guru and it is your responsibility to listen to yourself if you want to be effective. And, if you listen to yourself, any diet can and will work for you just fine.
3. Eating Is Complex.
We Americans have many, varied, and complex reasons to eat what we eat. And way too many choices.
Here are a few reasons that you may have to choose to eat a particular food:
Curiosity - you just want to know what that huge piece of Aunt Sue's homemade chocolate pie tastes like.
Emotions - we've all experienced emotional eating whether it's to sooth hurt feelings, work ourselves out of depression, or celebrate a nice promotion at work.
Pleasure - you just feel like treating yourself to something sweet and gooey - to spoil yourself - for the sheer pleasure of it.
Nutrition - this is where you make the choice to eat something more nutritious and healthy in order to lose some fat or maintain a healthy weight, improve your energy, enhance your long term health, look better, feel better, and live longer.
As you are getting ready to make a food or drink choice (and remember, it's always a choice) just take a split second to ask yourself if you're going to choose out of curiosity, to soothe some emotional turmoil or to reward yourself for some emotional victory, just for the pleasure of it, or are you going to choose something to promote your health and good looks?
By the way, these food choice motivations are not mutually exclusive.
As you do this on a conscious basis for a little while, and if you're serious about losing weight, you'll notice that you will automatically start making choices that are more oriented toward good nutrition. It just happens naturally. Your body wants to be healthy if you just get out of its way and let it.
This as a another example of being your own weight loss guru - first asking yourself what you're doing and then giving yourself the right answers. The truth is that you know the answers. Sometimes you just get distracted from them.
4. It's Your Life & Your Personality.
The truth is that there is no diet on Earth, no matter which celebrity is acting as it's spokesdieter, that is going to fit you perfectly.
Diets are designed in general. None is designed exactly for you. None is personalized precisely to match your unique personality, temperament, and behavioral preferences.
The problem most people have when trying to lose weight is an inability to stick with the diet long enough to achieve their goals.
Why don't people stick with their diets? Why don't you stick with yours?
Because you try to change yourself to fit the diet. That puts the diet, which was not designed specifically for you in the first place, in charge of you. And it gives you a ton of dieting related stress. Who wants that?
The solution is simple. Personalize the diet to fit you. Instead of changing your natural self to fit the diet, change the diet to fit your natural self. Personalize it.
That doesn't mean you should change the diet fundamentally. It encourages you to use the diet as guidelines rather than a set of laws that you have to follow perfectly or you'll be arrested and go to jail or something.
Here's another truth. No matter what you are doing in life, including dieting, the more you do it in ways that are consistent and compatible with your own unique personality and behavioral preferences, the easier those things are for you to accomplish, the more fun they are for you, and the more successful you will be at them. It's a law of nature. You do best at what you like best. You like best those things that are most natural for you.
5. Moderation.
Moderation is interesting.
Mark Twain said, ""...it has always been my role never to smoke when asleep, and never to refrain from smoking when awake.""
And for many of us it seems we have the same philosophy when it comes to food...we never eat when asleep and never refrain from eating when awake.
If you're overweight now, as 70% of Americans are so you're certainly not alone, one thing you're not used to is eating in moderation.
I suggest you go back for a moment and review our 3rd Guideline - Eating Is Complex.
If you become aware - consciously at first evolving into automatically - of what the purpose of your food choices are with an emphasis on nutrition whenever possible, you'll automatically develop the moderation habit without having to use a lot of will power. It will lead you, without a lot of conscious effort or stress, to your weight loss and fitness goals.
6. Reasonableness - Common Sense.
Going hand-in-hand with the idea of moderation, is your desire and ability to face the reality that you are not going to be a super model and are not likely to ever become a highly paid celebrity spokesdieter for any diet program.
That does not mean that you cannot easily be as slim, trim, fit, healthy, and active as you want to be.
You can be. You have a right to be. And you deserve to be as healthy and as happy as you want at any healthy weight without ever appearing on national television, without ever adorning a magazine cover, without enviable, photogenic six pack abs, without bulging biceps, and without ever fitting into your skinniest ever jeans.
Don't get me wrong.
I am an advocate of lofty goals.
I am also an advocate of realistic goals.
I am an even bigger advocate of using common sense in all things, especially in how you manage your weight which is directly related to how you manage your health which is directly related to how you look and feel.
The Bottom Line
So yes, we Americans love our celebrities. But let's not give them god-like status. They are just people. If they do not stick to their diets, they will get fat just like you and me.
The truth is that Valerie Bertinelli, Jennifer Hudson, Marie Osmond, and all of the others smile their celebrity smiles and in 60 second spots make it seems like it's easy. But they have to work at their diets like you and I do.
However, they have staffs that are paid handsomely to help and support them and they are being paid ridiculous sums to stick to their diets.
If you are serious about losing weight, you have to do the same thing as the celebrities. Stick to your diet. Unfortunately, you have to do it more on your own than they do and without making millions in the process.
Instead of having a cash payment from a big diet company as an incentive to stick with it, your main incentive is to look in your mirror and feel proud of yourself. It's to look your best, feel your best, and be your best as you accomplish your goals, achieve a healthy weight, and maintain that healthy weight and lifestyle forever. No cash. Just a sense of accomplishment.
Use the 6 Guidelines outlined above and you'll find that your weight loss success will be easier and more successful than you have ever experienced before.
Whether you like Valerie Bertinelly, Jennifer Hudson, Marie Osmond, or one of the celebrity spokesdieters, you are not them. You will not diet like them. You will not lose weight like them.
Luckily for you, you are you. You are unique. You have an individual personality, strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes, and behavioral preferences. The more you use those traits and characteristics to your advantage to personalize any diet you choose, the more successful you will be at weight loss and long term weight and lifestyle management.
The way you attack your diet plan, your weight loss efforts, and your long term weight management is up to you and you alone.
No matter what diet you choose and no matter what celebrity may currently be endorsing that diet, the truth is that that celebrity's job is to try to get you to buy their diet instead of a different one. Period. He or she is not going to jump out of the TV or off the magazine page to actually help you lose even a pound in your real life.
Whether or not you actually lose weight, personalize your diet, and stick with it is entirely up to you.
The better you get at being natural, listening to yourself, sorting through the complexity of food choice motives, using your own natural personality, relying on your own common sense, and having realistic goals, the more likely you are to get exactly what you want from your weight loss efforts.
With zero help from any celebrity spokesdieter."
Saturday, 5 May 2018
Ella (Chapter 5)
"The house had concrete walls, stone floors and a butterfly roof line that comprised two linked pavilions with living spaces. Usually, houses have temperaments, vices and virtues. They look upon the world with almost human faces. With one storey above and a basement, Ella's and Alexander's house had a vaulted roof making a parabolic arch.
At right wing was the dining room, the first bathroom and the garden. The dining room was located at the front of the house having at the bottom, a vertical window, offering a real view of the mountain peaks. The windows were cut out of the form contradicting the conservatory atmosphere created by the people living in that place and, for this reason, generating controversy. The other wing had the living room, a little bedroom and a little kitchen. The living and dining rooms were filled with beautiful antique furniture, dried flowers in vases and ornaments providing a cozy atmosphere. The meals were served in the dining room at a charming mahogany table which was able to seat either ten or twelve people. Both rooms were decorated in a blend of medieval and renaissance styles. They had a few remarkable wall paintings. The wall shelves also blended nicely with the furniture. The little garden was situated inside the house near the dining room having some exotic shrubs and fruit trees making the atmosphere to be calm and fresh.
Alexander and Ella thought that the garden was very important because they lived near the town and they needed to compensate for the adverse effects of smoke emitted by cars and factories. Raising fruit trees, shrubs and vines in containers was a great gardening adventure. Bringing a miniature exotic garden right into the house helped them to create an indoor serenity garden room where they wanted to escape for some quiet. The living room was very important because it was where they watched their television programs,listened to their music and entertained their friends. The bright kitchen had walls of pastel shades and a tiled floor. The living room opened outside to a little stone terrace and a small pool. The little bedroom, exclusively for Alexander and Ella, was decorated in shades of beige and peach.
The indoor materials used, including wood, bamboo and glass made the home to have a good lighting, insulation and plumbing, as well as a passive cooling design. The house had another bedroom, a second bathroom, the storage room and the laundry room at the upper level. The laundry room with a counter, a sink, a big fully automatic washing machine with plastic drum and a lot of washing utensils was perfectly situated near the bathroom. This bedroom was created for the guests coming from a long distance. The elegant lines of the house exuded a silent grace. Each pavilion contained a central core made of corrugated steel and concrete masonry concentrating most of the plumbing, heating, cooling and electrical systems inside it. The house architecture was designed to handle the wind and snow.
He came out of the darkness. His eyes were the eyes of a feline in the night. He came holding a black leather briefcase. The darkness seemed to envelop him in mystery. She opened the door and let him enter.
''What are you doing here?''
''Nora asked me to leave our home. She couldn't deal with her jealousy. Where is Alexander?''
''His mother is very ill and he went to the hospital to help her. He will be back in the morning.''
''Yeah,actually I knew but I quarreled stupidly with my wife and I forgot. Give me something to eat.''
Ella gave him venison to eat and after that she gave him to drink a cup of red wine to drink. There was a sofa in the living room and she invited him to sleep there. Then she opened the window. It was raining outside but she didn't feel the raindrops. She was worried about Alexander expecting him to come home. She turned on the radio. A singer sang his love. It seemed to be an old love. She crouched in a corner and began to cry. Michael came slowly near her and started caressing her shoulders.
''Why do you cry, Ella? Do you know how to cry, little baby?''
''I feel it is not good at all. Alexander's mother needs surgery and he is exhausted. He comes home in the morning to sleep and I must go to the hospital.''
''Let's talk a little about us. ''Michael tried to catch her attention.'' Let's talk about my daughter.''
''It is always the same problem with your stepdaughter. I think that, assuming your relationship with your stepdaughter is otherwise healthy. You must talk with her openly and honestly about all the problems you have in common You must help her to understand what's going on with you.''
''She simply cannot understand that another one can have a different opinion than she has on certain subjects. Mary may interact more positively with me only by asking me or maybe figuring out what I need to express.'' Michael replied:
''Some persons ramp up their behavior when they feel insecure about something and specifically they ramp it up when they feel insecure because the person they are talking to is withdrawing or having a negative reaction.''
''She has a very strong personality. But she is stubborn''
Michael looked into her beautiful eyes. When she looked into his eyes she felt the same strange sensations as usual.
''The fact that she wants to involve you in her life is very important.''
Ella tried to excuse Mary. She called Alexander to tell him that Michael is there.
''She's waiting for you to react to something that she says, maybe she's looking for the validation from an adult to all she needs to say.'' Michael closed his eyes.
''What did you say?'' I called Alexander.
''Great! I think that it is very important to have a frank conversation with her, as you said a few minutes ago..''
''Do you need some coffee?''
''Yes.''
''You must help her to understand your behavior and your thinking.''
Ella tried to continue her idea.
''Do you have daughters?'' Michael asked her smiling.
''No, do you really have one?''
''I love Nora.''
Michael kissed Ella on the cheek.
''There must be somewhere a journal where she writes about her thoughts. Try to find it. You will understand her better than before.' '
Ella told him becoming suddenly very confused.
''It's so disappointing when a negative reaction can be the only reaction someone ever provides. Don't you think so?''
He came closer to her, few inches away from her face. She felt nervous. He touched her skin gently.
''It sounds like you don't like her. Maybe that's not true, but if these kind of feelings can make living together a challenge she can pick up on your weakness saying: 'I can't stay any longer in this situation.' You had married her mother and you came into her home and into her life. Maybe she really wants you to like her exactly how she is. ''Ella became slowly insistent.
Michael held her hand until her sorrow went away. After a few minutes he released her hand. The way he looked at her was very strange. It was like a connection.
''It's possible that her friends do not really understand her like her family does.'' Ella continued but he didn't seem to pay any attention. She wanted to understand his mind,especially when he hid himself behind his own words. Yet, she continued:
''You 're not a stranger. Imagine that you're her step-father.But she needs a real dad..She might try to change you when she connects with you. I promise to talk with her.''
''Thank you'' Michael became completely absent.
In that moment Alexander came into the house. He looked very exhausted but Ella felt that his love was very strong.
''How are you,my love?'' Ella embraced him strongly. ''I will go to the hospital. Michael is here with you. Go to sleep, my love.''
''Aren't you afraid of the consequences when you write some articles,Ella?''
''I believe in this necessary suffering for the cause of freedom and justice, Michael.''
''It must be always a balance between the security of the people and their fundamental rights.''
''The preservation of the rights and freedoms of the individual are very important. Think a little bit to our ancestors who died for our freedom and our nation.'' said Alexander.
''We need democracy and freedom and this is why the words are sometimes very important.'' said Ella.
''I think we should do the things we love even if it is very hard to do this. It is very important to love what you do and to have a motivated passion for doing it. In a society where we spend more time at work than at home we must be content with our jobs. ''said Alexander. ''Are you going or not to the hospital?''
He looked at Ella with kindness but he was very irritated and very tired.
''I go now, bye!'' said Ella closing the door behind her.
''Let's go to sleep, Michael,I'm very tired.''
''Me,too. Can you talk with my wife? She's going crazy sometimes.''
''Didn't she call?''
''Not yet.''
''Don't be so worried.She will call tomorrow. Have a good night!'
''You,too.''
In this perfect school there were sixteen kids in every class. This way the teachers could give each kid an individual education. A strong teaching environment was really needed for this perfect school. The materials that had to be absorbed over a year should be planned out into equal shares. By the end of the year, the students comprehended the bare basics of each section of the subjects learned in their class. That way, the lessons could never be forgotten. The teachers encouraged the ideas of the children. Sometimes, for some reasons, teachers blew off the kids' ideas, even they might be right. This perfect school had younger teachers because they understood what was going on in a teenager's world.
Mary looked like a primary schoolgirl and she used to stay up all night studying. She needed some color to her skin because she was very pale but her black eyes and her black hair made her to look very beautiful. Her hair was always like she touched an electric fence but it smelled like lily.
Susan, Mary's friend,told her:
''What's the problem with your stepfather?''
Susan looked like a boy because she didn't wear jewelry or earrings. She had green eyes and a blond short hair. She was poorly dressed but she carefully chose her colors.
''There are some few feelings worse than the feeling you have sometimes when your parent is not interested in you or what you have to say. And I have that stupid feeling when everything I say is less important.'' said Mary.
''Everything you think is very important. Something strange happens here because I have new ideas but the people at school don't want to talk with me and don't want to share my new ideas.''
''They base their beliefs on their own personal experiences which can be completely opposite of what you experienced or what you believe.'' said Mary.
''You're like me, and I know that you want to share these exciting new things. I feel stuck in this school with no other friends except you and all these evil teachers. If love can awaken love, then love can awaken goodness.''
'' The goodness may awaken the love, but it may also awaken the resentments. Sometimes,Susan, I don't know why I like so much to be alone.More exactly,I need to feel my loneliness. I like to peer into my inner world, thinking about myself, about life,and about others. I like to understand myself.''
''I don't see anything wrong in this.'' said Susan
''I am a person, after all. I earn in a school attempting to get my exams. That's more tailored to my personality, I think. I don't know why most people are shocked when they actually get to know me or my situation.'' said Mary.
''You are so funny, I didn't know you were like that. Who told you this? It's not true. And try to think a little,we all have strengths and weaknesses, no one is perfect. We may like some people because they are good or we may dislike this persons because they present a contrast to our being. We need to love people around us and we need to accept them such as they are. And this love can become our resurrection.''said Susan.
''Buddha promised Nirvana to those who could abolish the hate. Christ promised the kingdom of heaven to those who could be completely full of love for the mankind. The religious freedom is necessary for the peace and stability.I don't know why some people are afraid of solitude. But I'm not. The solitude is for meditation.'' said Mary.
''Some people are afraid to be alone with themselves. Therefore,they need to be involved in many activities.''
''Sometimes I need to be a different person more thoughtful, more empathetic, and more compassionate than before. I don't know why I have these feelings sometimes.'' said Mary.
''I want to be extremely beautiful and extremely insightful. I don't know why I can't always get what I want.''
''Well, I think you should ask yourself about this. Trust your judgment more often. You are intelligent. You need a preparation to self-improvement. Self-confidence is extremely important in every aspect of our lives, yet so many people struggle to find it.''
''Self-confident people inspire confidence in people around them. You're right. ""said Susan.
""I just want to get past this overwhelming attitude of struggling with all through my life.I am thinking of my stepfather,too."" replied Mary.
''If there is a problem, then there is always a solution to it. Generally,the problems are not permanent. Why don't you call him Michael?''continued Susan.
''I simply cannot. I don't like him at all. I still don't understand how my mom can love such a guy.
He's a manic-depressive person who loves himself. Imagine a guy like him. His teeth are sharp and so horrible that they're like a shark's set of teeth. His lips are coffee-black. How can she kiss him and make love with him?''
''I think that you feel hurt because you love him a little and you think that he doesn't love you, but you must begin to love yourself, and take care of yourself more than usual. It's important to have your own standards and self respect. So, even if you think that the problem is about getting self-esteem, the most important thing is to have self-value. You are who you are,Mary, and what you need to do with yourself is to nurture that person within you.''
''Maybe you're right,Susan. He doesn't let me say what I think. There is no freedom of thought until thought is revealed as speech. I feel imprisoned.I need a relative equality between me and him but he doesn't seem to understand this.''
''Yes,my dear,I know.We need first of all freedom.And why do we need this? Because freedom is necessary for the evolution. Dan is still your boyfriend?''
''No,we're not together any longer. Now I believe in sexual freedom. Why do you ask me?''said Mary.
''I was just curious. I skipped History. Tell me what do we have to learn for tomorrow?''
''Let me think a little.'' She opened her book. After that she said: ''Look, we have to learn about the goals of the liberation struggle and the effects of the war on individuals.''
''It will be interesting to read.'' said Mary.
''I think so. But I am a peaceful person. I don't like the war.''
''Tell me, do you still love Tom?''
''Yes, I do, why do you ask me?'' said Susan.
''Just because I want to know why do you love him.''
''I cannot find the right words to express what I feel for him. I love him because he's the most amazing friend I have ever known. He's charming, smart and he has a great sense of humor. I feel so happy by being with him. He made it through my wall and he threw my mask out. He accepts my imperfections and appreciates me for who I am.''
''He's a great guy. See you tomorrow.''
''Bye.''
Susan went right to the poor households where the families were living in an atmosphere of hurt and tears. There she really experienced what is called four walls, more exactly, her room. All the poor households in this part of the town depended heavily on wood and other biomass fuels for cooking. These families had the stoves and used clean fuels because the prices are relatively low.
The poor parents had a smaller choice of primary schools for their children.The poorest pupils are likely to be accepted by the local schools. The women usually had four children. So they had more mouths to feed than usual. For the impoverished families, having a secure and comfortable home to raise their families meant to find the best way to bridge the gap from poverty to a normal life.
In the working poor families the lack the earnings necessary to meet their basic needs made life to be a struggle exacerbated by soaring prices for food, gas, health and education. These working families were forced to spend more than half of their income on housing, and nearly thirty percent for health insurance. One in four families was headed by a lone parent and they lived in poverty or below the poverty level. Lone mothers frequently borrowed money. Usually, families and their consumption decisions were neglected and they relied on money help from the others, Susan was a poor girl belonging to a poor family.
She knew that the poor people had small pockets and big hearts.She tried to understand the rich people who could be so selfish sometime, thinking of exploiting the poor families, without realizing that they destroy lives. The poor persons were those who battled to survive among the rich and lived their lives to help others who needed help and hope. Sometimes they were not able to rise out of poverty all their lives. And there were some people climbing out of welfare, drug addiction and homelessness. No one really knew them and for the most part didn't care.
Her brother, Sam, never was at high school, he washed cars but did not own one. Their father was not in their life because he was an alcoholic and a drug user. He didn't have a job and he didn't have a steady place to live. Their mother forced him to leave the home because she didn't want a bad influence around her kids."
At right wing was the dining room, the first bathroom and the garden. The dining room was located at the front of the house having at the bottom, a vertical window, offering a real view of the mountain peaks. The windows were cut out of the form contradicting the conservatory atmosphere created by the people living in that place and, for this reason, generating controversy. The other wing had the living room, a little bedroom and a little kitchen. The living and dining rooms were filled with beautiful antique furniture, dried flowers in vases and ornaments providing a cozy atmosphere. The meals were served in the dining room at a charming mahogany table which was able to seat either ten or twelve people. Both rooms were decorated in a blend of medieval and renaissance styles. They had a few remarkable wall paintings. The wall shelves also blended nicely with the furniture. The little garden was situated inside the house near the dining room having some exotic shrubs and fruit trees making the atmosphere to be calm and fresh.
Alexander and Ella thought that the garden was very important because they lived near the town and they needed to compensate for the adverse effects of smoke emitted by cars and factories. Raising fruit trees, shrubs and vines in containers was a great gardening adventure. Bringing a miniature exotic garden right into the house helped them to create an indoor serenity garden room where they wanted to escape for some quiet. The living room was very important because it was where they watched their television programs,listened to their music and entertained their friends. The bright kitchen had walls of pastel shades and a tiled floor. The living room opened outside to a little stone terrace and a small pool. The little bedroom, exclusively for Alexander and Ella, was decorated in shades of beige and peach.
The indoor materials used, including wood, bamboo and glass made the home to have a good lighting, insulation and plumbing, as well as a passive cooling design. The house had another bedroom, a second bathroom, the storage room and the laundry room at the upper level. The laundry room with a counter, a sink, a big fully automatic washing machine with plastic drum and a lot of washing utensils was perfectly situated near the bathroom. This bedroom was created for the guests coming from a long distance. The elegant lines of the house exuded a silent grace. Each pavilion contained a central core made of corrugated steel and concrete masonry concentrating most of the plumbing, heating, cooling and electrical systems inside it. The house architecture was designed to handle the wind and snow.
He came out of the darkness. His eyes were the eyes of a feline in the night. He came holding a black leather briefcase. The darkness seemed to envelop him in mystery. She opened the door and let him enter.
''What are you doing here?''
''Nora asked me to leave our home. She couldn't deal with her jealousy. Where is Alexander?''
''His mother is very ill and he went to the hospital to help her. He will be back in the morning.''
''Yeah,actually I knew but I quarreled stupidly with my wife and I forgot. Give me something to eat.''
Ella gave him venison to eat and after that she gave him to drink a cup of red wine to drink. There was a sofa in the living room and she invited him to sleep there. Then she opened the window. It was raining outside but she didn't feel the raindrops. She was worried about Alexander expecting him to come home. She turned on the radio. A singer sang his love. It seemed to be an old love. She crouched in a corner and began to cry. Michael came slowly near her and started caressing her shoulders.
''Why do you cry, Ella? Do you know how to cry, little baby?''
''I feel it is not good at all. Alexander's mother needs surgery and he is exhausted. He comes home in the morning to sleep and I must go to the hospital.''
''Let's talk a little about us. ''Michael tried to catch her attention.'' Let's talk about my daughter.''
''It is always the same problem with your stepdaughter. I think that, assuming your relationship with your stepdaughter is otherwise healthy. You must talk with her openly and honestly about all the problems you have in common You must help her to understand what's going on with you.''
''She simply cannot understand that another one can have a different opinion than she has on certain subjects. Mary may interact more positively with me only by asking me or maybe figuring out what I need to express.'' Michael replied:
''Some persons ramp up their behavior when they feel insecure about something and specifically they ramp it up when they feel insecure because the person they are talking to is withdrawing or having a negative reaction.''
''She has a very strong personality. But she is stubborn''
Michael looked into her beautiful eyes. When she looked into his eyes she felt the same strange sensations as usual.
''The fact that she wants to involve you in her life is very important.''
Ella tried to excuse Mary. She called Alexander to tell him that Michael is there.
''She's waiting for you to react to something that she says, maybe she's looking for the validation from an adult to all she needs to say.'' Michael closed his eyes.
''What did you say?'' I called Alexander.
''Great! I think that it is very important to have a frank conversation with her, as you said a few minutes ago..''
''Do you need some coffee?''
''Yes.''
''You must help her to understand your behavior and your thinking.''
Ella tried to continue her idea.
''Do you have daughters?'' Michael asked her smiling.
''No, do you really have one?''
''I love Nora.''
Michael kissed Ella on the cheek.
''There must be somewhere a journal where she writes about her thoughts. Try to find it. You will understand her better than before.' '
Ella told him becoming suddenly very confused.
''It's so disappointing when a negative reaction can be the only reaction someone ever provides. Don't you think so?''
He came closer to her, few inches away from her face. She felt nervous. He touched her skin gently.
''It sounds like you don't like her. Maybe that's not true, but if these kind of feelings can make living together a challenge she can pick up on your weakness saying: 'I can't stay any longer in this situation.' You had married her mother and you came into her home and into her life. Maybe she really wants you to like her exactly how she is. ''Ella became slowly insistent.
Michael held her hand until her sorrow went away. After a few minutes he released her hand. The way he looked at her was very strange. It was like a connection.
''It's possible that her friends do not really understand her like her family does.'' Ella continued but he didn't seem to pay any attention. She wanted to understand his mind,especially when he hid himself behind his own words. Yet, she continued:
''You 're not a stranger. Imagine that you're her step-father.But she needs a real dad..She might try to change you when she connects with you. I promise to talk with her.''
''Thank you'' Michael became completely absent.
In that moment Alexander came into the house. He looked very exhausted but Ella felt that his love was very strong.
''How are you,my love?'' Ella embraced him strongly. ''I will go to the hospital. Michael is here with you. Go to sleep, my love.''
''Aren't you afraid of the consequences when you write some articles,Ella?''
''I believe in this necessary suffering for the cause of freedom and justice, Michael.''
''It must be always a balance between the security of the people and their fundamental rights.''
''The preservation of the rights and freedoms of the individual are very important. Think a little bit to our ancestors who died for our freedom and our nation.'' said Alexander.
''We need democracy and freedom and this is why the words are sometimes very important.'' said Ella.
''I think we should do the things we love even if it is very hard to do this. It is very important to love what you do and to have a motivated passion for doing it. In a society where we spend more time at work than at home we must be content with our jobs. ''said Alexander. ''Are you going or not to the hospital?''
He looked at Ella with kindness but he was very irritated and very tired.
''I go now, bye!'' said Ella closing the door behind her.
''Let's go to sleep, Michael,I'm very tired.''
''Me,too. Can you talk with my wife? She's going crazy sometimes.''
''Didn't she call?''
''Not yet.''
''Don't be so worried.She will call tomorrow. Have a good night!'
''You,too.''
In this perfect school there were sixteen kids in every class. This way the teachers could give each kid an individual education. A strong teaching environment was really needed for this perfect school. The materials that had to be absorbed over a year should be planned out into equal shares. By the end of the year, the students comprehended the bare basics of each section of the subjects learned in their class. That way, the lessons could never be forgotten. The teachers encouraged the ideas of the children. Sometimes, for some reasons, teachers blew off the kids' ideas, even they might be right. This perfect school had younger teachers because they understood what was going on in a teenager's world.
Mary looked like a primary schoolgirl and she used to stay up all night studying. She needed some color to her skin because she was very pale but her black eyes and her black hair made her to look very beautiful. Her hair was always like she touched an electric fence but it smelled like lily.
Susan, Mary's friend,told her:
''What's the problem with your stepfather?''
Susan looked like a boy because she didn't wear jewelry or earrings. She had green eyes and a blond short hair. She was poorly dressed but she carefully chose her colors.
''There are some few feelings worse than the feeling you have sometimes when your parent is not interested in you or what you have to say. And I have that stupid feeling when everything I say is less important.'' said Mary.
''Everything you think is very important. Something strange happens here because I have new ideas but the people at school don't want to talk with me and don't want to share my new ideas.''
''They base their beliefs on their own personal experiences which can be completely opposite of what you experienced or what you believe.'' said Mary.
''You're like me, and I know that you want to share these exciting new things. I feel stuck in this school with no other friends except you and all these evil teachers. If love can awaken love, then love can awaken goodness.''
'' The goodness may awaken the love, but it may also awaken the resentments. Sometimes,Susan, I don't know why I like so much to be alone.More exactly,I need to feel my loneliness. I like to peer into my inner world, thinking about myself, about life,and about others. I like to understand myself.''
''I don't see anything wrong in this.'' said Susan
''I am a person, after all. I earn in a school attempting to get my exams. That's more tailored to my personality, I think. I don't know why most people are shocked when they actually get to know me or my situation.'' said Mary.
''You are so funny, I didn't know you were like that. Who told you this? It's not true. And try to think a little,we all have strengths and weaknesses, no one is perfect. We may like some people because they are good or we may dislike this persons because they present a contrast to our being. We need to love people around us and we need to accept them such as they are. And this love can become our resurrection.''said Susan.
''Buddha promised Nirvana to those who could abolish the hate. Christ promised the kingdom of heaven to those who could be completely full of love for the mankind. The religious freedom is necessary for the peace and stability.I don't know why some people are afraid of solitude. But I'm not. The solitude is for meditation.'' said Mary.
''Some people are afraid to be alone with themselves. Therefore,they need to be involved in many activities.''
''Sometimes I need to be a different person more thoughtful, more empathetic, and more compassionate than before. I don't know why I have these feelings sometimes.'' said Mary.
''I want to be extremely beautiful and extremely insightful. I don't know why I can't always get what I want.''
''Well, I think you should ask yourself about this. Trust your judgment more often. You are intelligent. You need a preparation to self-improvement. Self-confidence is extremely important in every aspect of our lives, yet so many people struggle to find it.''
''Self-confident people inspire confidence in people around them. You're right. ""said Susan.
""I just want to get past this overwhelming attitude of struggling with all through my life.I am thinking of my stepfather,too."" replied Mary.
''If there is a problem, then there is always a solution to it. Generally,the problems are not permanent. Why don't you call him Michael?''continued Susan.
''I simply cannot. I don't like him at all. I still don't understand how my mom can love such a guy.
He's a manic-depressive person who loves himself. Imagine a guy like him. His teeth are sharp and so horrible that they're like a shark's set of teeth. His lips are coffee-black. How can she kiss him and make love with him?''
''I think that you feel hurt because you love him a little and you think that he doesn't love you, but you must begin to love yourself, and take care of yourself more than usual. It's important to have your own standards and self respect. So, even if you think that the problem is about getting self-esteem, the most important thing is to have self-value. You are who you are,Mary, and what you need to do with yourself is to nurture that person within you.''
''Maybe you're right,Susan. He doesn't let me say what I think. There is no freedom of thought until thought is revealed as speech. I feel imprisoned.I need a relative equality between me and him but he doesn't seem to understand this.''
''Yes,my dear,I know.We need first of all freedom.And why do we need this? Because freedom is necessary for the evolution. Dan is still your boyfriend?''
''No,we're not together any longer. Now I believe in sexual freedom. Why do you ask me?''said Mary.
''I was just curious. I skipped History. Tell me what do we have to learn for tomorrow?''
''Let me think a little.'' She opened her book. After that she said: ''Look, we have to learn about the goals of the liberation struggle and the effects of the war on individuals.''
''It will be interesting to read.'' said Mary.
''I think so. But I am a peaceful person. I don't like the war.''
''Tell me, do you still love Tom?''
''Yes, I do, why do you ask me?'' said Susan.
''Just because I want to know why do you love him.''
''I cannot find the right words to express what I feel for him. I love him because he's the most amazing friend I have ever known. He's charming, smart and he has a great sense of humor. I feel so happy by being with him. He made it through my wall and he threw my mask out. He accepts my imperfections and appreciates me for who I am.''
''He's a great guy. See you tomorrow.''
''Bye.''
Susan went right to the poor households where the families were living in an atmosphere of hurt and tears. There she really experienced what is called four walls, more exactly, her room. All the poor households in this part of the town depended heavily on wood and other biomass fuels for cooking. These families had the stoves and used clean fuels because the prices are relatively low.
The poor parents had a smaller choice of primary schools for their children.The poorest pupils are likely to be accepted by the local schools. The women usually had four children. So they had more mouths to feed than usual. For the impoverished families, having a secure and comfortable home to raise their families meant to find the best way to bridge the gap from poverty to a normal life.
In the working poor families the lack the earnings necessary to meet their basic needs made life to be a struggle exacerbated by soaring prices for food, gas, health and education. These working families were forced to spend more than half of their income on housing, and nearly thirty percent for health insurance. One in four families was headed by a lone parent and they lived in poverty or below the poverty level. Lone mothers frequently borrowed money. Usually, families and their consumption decisions were neglected and they relied on money help from the others, Susan was a poor girl belonging to a poor family.
She knew that the poor people had small pockets and big hearts.She tried to understand the rich people who could be so selfish sometime, thinking of exploiting the poor families, without realizing that they destroy lives. The poor persons were those who battled to survive among the rich and lived their lives to help others who needed help and hope. Sometimes they were not able to rise out of poverty all their lives. And there were some people climbing out of welfare, drug addiction and homelessness. No one really knew them and for the most part didn't care.
Her brother, Sam, never was at high school, he washed cars but did not own one. Their father was not in their life because he was an alcoholic and a drug user. He didn't have a job and he didn't have a steady place to live. Their mother forced him to leave the home because she didn't want a bad influence around her kids."
Contents of Education
"An Islamic Perspective towards Philosophy of Education
Introduction
Philosophy is the study of realities, pursuit of wisdom, and commentary on general principles of life. It is concerned with a search of eternal truth, both conceptual as well as practical. It has five areas of search - Epistemology, Metaphysics, Aesthetics, Ethics and History. The instrument used by philosophy to unearth realities or to discover truth is logic, both inductive as well deductive. Educational philosophy is a branch of general philosophy, it gains strength from epistemology. It formulates the aims and objectives or contents of education that, in turn, influence the whole learning environment, society, and future generations.
Philosophy of education is based on general principles of psychology, sociology, politics, economics, history, science, and religion. Education is dualistic phenomenon; it is static as well as dynamic. The major portion is dynamic or provisional and adjusts with the change and growth in knowledge, social structure, and civilization, while the minor but vital portion is static or eternal. We proposed that the contents of education are eternal while the application and explanation of these contents, a major portion, is dynamic. We assumed multi-disciplinary approach towards contents of education. The analysis accommodates the needs of individuals, society, and time and encompasses the cultural, social, and vocational aims of education.
Education may be formal as well as informal. The formal education is given in schools or colleges or universities, on the other hand informal education is obtained and absorbed from society and environment. Education, formal & informal, is developed and internalized in one's personality through reflection and experience. It means all of us are learners during our lifetime. However, we are going to analyze the philosophy (aims & objectives) of formal education. Moreover, education has three levels - primary, secondary, and higher. Primary education deals with infants of 3 to 11 years old, secondary education covers teenagers of 12 to 18 years, and higher education shapes young learners of above 18 years. A distinctive approach is required for each level of education.
The contents of education vary from community to community. A secular society would have a different approach towards contents as compare to some ideological society. Moreover, the explanation or implementation of contents would be different in different societies. Our analysis is ideological and dominantly based on Islamic view towards education.
Terminology
The term ""education"" has been derived from the Latin words Educare, Educatum, or Educere. Educatum and educare mean to train and to nourish, while educere mean to lead out. The former implies that education is something external; to be imposed or put in from outside, it means the external environment plays a decisive role in learning process. The latter indicate growth from within; it means internal potentialities of an individual are decisive in learning process, the external environment has secondary role in educational process. Naturalists / Psychologists gave more importance to internal dispositions of learning process while the social philosophers put major stress on external demands of educational process. We assumed a mixed and balanced approach towards role and importance of internal-external environment of learning process.
Definition
Aristotle defined education as process necessary for the creation of a sound mind in a sound body, according to him, the aim & objective of education is to create good and virtuous citizens. Ibne Khaldun, in fourteenth century, expresses the view that education consists off intellectual, social, and moral training through which hidden potentialities are developed, traits of character are built and culture of the people is conveyed to the coming generations. Dewey, in twentieth century, defined education in these words: ""Education is a process of living through a continuous reconstruction of experiences. It is development of all those capacities in the individual that will enable him to control his environment and fulfill his possibilities."" We may define education as, Education is the mean whereby adults pass on and inculcates to children their knowledge, thought-pattern, and behavior pattern and develop their genetic potential to manage existing and future challenges.
Aims & Objectives - Islamic View
Islam is Divine religion. It is based on revealed book, Quran, and prophetic commentary, Hadith. The foremost responsibility and ultimate purpose of prophets and Revealed Books are to educate the mankind for better, happy, and purposeful life. They specify the purpose of life, outline the procedure to actualize it, and present a practical example of purposeful life. Thus, the aims and objectives of education or contents of education can be understood from the last Revealed Book, Al-Quran. We quote a verse of Al-Quran,
""Undoubtedly Allah did confer a great favor on the Muslims when He raised an Apostle from among themselves, who recites to them the Revelations of Allah, and causeth them to grow, and teacheth them the Scripture and Wisdom whereas they were in manifest error before."" (Al-Quran)
The verse identifies aims and objectives of education. These are:
Faith Plantation
Knowledge Advancement
Wisdom Enhancement
Manner Development
A. FAITH
The word faith has various meanings and uses, however, the central meaning is similar to ""conviction"", ""belief"", ""trust"" or ""confidence"", but unlike these terms, ""faith"" tends to imply a submissive and transpersonal relationship with God or with someone having superior powers. Faith is founded on certain beliefs; beliefs' indispensability to faith is just like seeds' inevitability to plants. A belief system has certain perceptual ingredients with practical implications. A living faith must fulfill two conditions, the necessary condition is logical reasoning and sufficient condition is practical fruits for believers / mankind. A living faith gives stability to the believer, creates dynamism in one's personality, brings fruits in one's life, promotes cohesiveness among the believers, and assigns a specific shape to a group with peculiar traits.
We mention a few verses of the Holy Quran to outline and explain the basic elements of Islamic Faith.
""A Glorious Book this! Which has nothing of doubt in it; it is guidance for the God-conscious who fear Allah. Those who believe in the Unseen and establish prayer and spend in Our way out of what We have provided them. And those who believe in that which has been sent down to you (O My Apostle) and in that which was sent down before you, and they also have faith in the August Day of Judgment. They are the ones who are rightly guided, and verily it is they who are successful in both the worlds."" (Al-Quran)
The first thing that the Quran does it removes the element of doubt, which is the foremost requisite of modern philosophy by introducing the faith as a fundamental factor behind reality. Doubt is a negative factor that hinders the exact understanding of reality; curiosity is far better alternate to doubt for knowledge development or to unearth realities. The faith concomitantly presupposes some obligatory beliefs - Unity of God, Unseen System (Angels, Heaven, Hell, etc.), Revealed Books, Institution of Prophets, Day of Judgment, Fate, and Life after Death. In addition, it imposes some obligations on believers - Kalimah (a confession of faith), prayer, fasting, alms giving, and pilgrimage. It is noteworthy that the idea of Unity of God must create the belief of mankind's unity.
The Islamic approach towards faith is that it is revealed, explained, and planted through reverent personalities, i.e., prophets; a faith based on personal reasoning is not acceptable in Islam, the finality of prophets' wording about faith elements is also essential. In addition, a loving and trustful posture towards prophets is fundamental for complete faith, without it faith is incomplete or objectionable. The very foundation of faith is thus love and submission to a reverent personality or a prophet. Simply, faith can be defined as accepting something true which has been told by someone who is believed to be trustworthy / praiseworthy.
The object behind development of faith is to make stable and balance psycho-spiritual formation of human personality. The prophets are sent as practical role modals and revealed books are accompanied as permanent working manual for guideline. The ultimate aim of developing faith elements is to equip the individual with necessary working tools to manage and tackle the conceptual or practical issues of life, either, big or small, simple or complex, independent or interlinked, a few or many, with fortitude and firmness. Thus, determination is necessary outcome of faith, no determination, than no faith.
Islam vehemently put forward two aspects of faith - human and transcendental. The human aspects propose the concept of unity of mankind, while the transcendental aspects propose the idea of Unity of God. Faith is incomplete if one aspect is ignored or not forcefully defined. In addition, the ignorance of one aspect makes the human personality lopsided and unstable. The repercussions of wrong belief about unity of mankind and Unity of God are manifold and penetrating to each and every aspect of human society. It can lead the nations into some kind of continuous strife and belligerent attitude towards each other. Moreover, the effects of wrong belief go beyond the present generations' outlook and disturb the peace and tranquility of future generations, as well.
B. KNOWLEDGE
It is the understanding of the factual/declarative, procedural and conceptual aspects of something that a person acquires through education, observation and experience. Acquisition of knowledge is basic demand of human nature. It plays vital role in growth and development of a person or a nation.
1. Bases of Human Knowledge: -Let us quote some verses of the Quran on the subject:
And recall when your Lord said to the angels: ""I am going to appoint a vice-regent in the earth."" They said: ""Will You set in the earth such as will make mischief and cause bloodshed, whereas we celebrate Your praise and glorify You."" Allah said:"" Surely I know that which you know not.""And Allah taught Adam the names of all things. Then He set them before the angels saying: ""Tell Me the names of these if you are really truthful (in your opinion)"" They said: ""Glory to You! We have no knowledge what You have taught us. In truth, You alone are the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.""
Allah said:' O Adam! Tell them the names of these things."" Then Adam had told the angels the names of those things, Allah said: ""Did I not tell you that I know full well all the hidden mysteries of the heavens and the earth and I know whatever you disclose and whatever you have been concealing?
The verses manifest that the human nature has been made inherently fit and capable of receptivity and absorption of Divine Knowledge. Moreover, Adam's knowledge has ability to conceptualize the things in nature. Thirdly, man has ability to develop language because Adam assigned names to items without prior formal training. These verses also show that the first man of the earth came down fully abreast of scientific knowledge, in full monopoly to develop it for natural conquest. According to Quran, than the program of human activity should proceed hand in hand with the divine cooperation and blessing, before the plan was being carried on unilaterally in which God has no vice-regent. The verses also indicate that a man has free will to choose right or wrong path of life. There is no external compulsion on his free choice. The verses also indicate that the mankind has strong tendency towards injustice and strife, however, it can be managed through human knowledge and is restrained by the Will of God.
2. Types of knowledge: -Knowledge can be classified into following groups:
Natural Sciences: -Natural sciences deals with inanimate objects of universe. The major branches are physics, chemistry, and astronomy.
Biological Sciences: -Biological Sciences deals with animate objects of universe. The major branches are zoology, botany, and psychology.
Social Sciences: -Social Sciences deals with collective life and relationship between individual and society. The major branches are sociology, political science, and economics.
Professional Sciences: -Professional Sciences deals with professions of individuals necessary for human survival / quality of life. The major branches are medicine, engineering, and commerce.
Islam accepts the scientific classification of knowledge, however, it proposed a broader taxonomy of knowledge for mankind:-
First, Absolute verses Dubious Knowledge. The absolute knowledge is based on some scientific facts or given through some reverent personality (i.e., prophets) in a shape of Revealed Book (e.g., Quran). The dubious knowledge is based on subjective analysis (e.g., the theory of psycho-analysis proposed by Freud.). Second, Fruitful verses Fruitless Knowledge. The fruitful knowledge gives benefit to mankind (e.g., natural sciences, biological sciences, social sciences, and, professional sciences.) while the fruitless knowledge is of no use for mankind (e.g., occult sciences).
3. Aspects of Knowledge: -A peace of knowledge can be broken into three categories or has three aspects - Declarative, Procedural & Conceptual.
Declarative Knowledge: -It is knowledge about something, e.g., structure of body, structure of computer, format of earth, and parts of speech. It deals with WHAT type of questions.
Procedural Knowledge: -It is knowledge about the procedures and sequences. It narrates and explains procedures & sequences of any compiled information or data, that is, it deals with HOW & WHEN type of questions. For example, HOW computer is manufactured or used, WHEN computer is ready to use or sale.
Conceptual Knowledge: -It is knowledge of concepts working behind the declarative and procedural knowledge. It is abstract aspect of knowledge. In conceptual knowledge, the relationship among concepts is also discussed. It deals with WHY type of questions. For example, the mathematical concepts and their relationship with each other that provide basis to the working of computer hardware or software.
C. WISDOM
Knowledge enables us to understand the realties of things (i.e., Divine Scheme of Creation, Natural System of Growth, natural forces, and history) and wisdom equip us with abilities to utilize the realities for the benefit of self and others. According to Islam, wisdom is higher level attribute, it comes after knowledge. Wisdom is bestowed when will of man is replaced by Will of God and human understanding is fully exploited, thus, wisdom is based on knowledge and intellect. Let us quote a verse to make it clear:
""He bestows wisdom upon whom He will, and whosoever is granted wisdom he is indeed granted abundant good and none accepts admonition except men of understanding.""
(Al-Quran)
Islam proposed two diagonally opposites aspects of wisdom - Divine Wisdom and devil wisdom. The Divine Wisdom is based on right faith and fruitful knowledge and produce good results for self and mankind, materially as well as spiritually, while the devil wisdom is based on wrong faith and fruitless knowledge and leads the mankind towards only worldly or material benefits, completely ignoring the benefits of others and spiritual benefits. The devil wisdom guides for self benefits at the cost of others, however, the devil / worldly wisdom is short-lived and weak, ultimately fails to materialize her lopsided designs.
Character-Sketch of a Wise Person
Wisdom is personalized, established, and manifested through struggle. A person fully involved in chores of life would qualify for wisdom. Seclusion or solitude is very negation of wisdom, while the participation is very basis of wisdom. A wise person pursue his goals/responds the problems of life with certain characteristics. These characteristics are essential working tools of a wise individual that give him/her edges over non-wise. The prominent attributes of a wise person are - Effective Communication, Enthusiasm, Discipline or Rigor, Decision Power, Sense of Responsibility, Moderate Behavior, Self-Confidence or High Morale or Courage, and Appropriate Appearance.
D. BEST MANNERS
Manners are countless, structurally, and diverse, practically. However, the essence of good manners is constant for all and sundry, it is humility. Humility is unique positive attribute of human personality; it is an attribute as well as essence of every positive attribute. Absence of humility makes the existence of all manners a soul-less ritual unable to produce fruitful results for self and others. A proud person is ill-mannered and creates problems for self and others.
Manners have two aspects - inner and outer. Inwardly, manners are shaped by dynamic organization of all the perceptions, intentions, and emotions of an individual and the behavior that results from the organization of these aspects, while, outwardly; they are shaped by social acceptance of behavior. Simply,conformity to some rationally defined and morally established interactive standards is considered best manners. Manners are developed under the guidance of intellect, knowledge, wisdom, social norms, and religion. They are time-honored phenomena. The reasonably/indisputably evolved set of manners creates order, consistency and continuity in one's life and gives beautiful look to an individual or society. Manners are forerunner of culture and give longevity to civilizations. A society of ill-mannered persons will not be able to survive, at least with respect and recognition.
Bases of Best Manners
Man is combination of three basic realities, i.e., body, mind, and soul. Body has certain physical needs for survival or continuation of life such as food, water, and sleep, mind has some instinctual desires for interactive life such as parental instinct, gregarious instinct, learning instinct, and sex instinct, and soul has some ingrained urges towards moral excellence. Body needs are fulfilled by physical powers, psychological instincts are satisfied by mind powers such as will-power, decision-power, and emotional-power, soul urges are calmed by spiritual powers such as insight and intuition. A sustained manifestation of countless human efforts to satisfy body needs, psychological instincts, and soul urges shapes human personality. In addition, physical balance or health depends on diet, leisure time, proper sleep, and constructive physical activities. Mind normality or peace of mind hinges on positive approach towards intentions, perceptions and emotions. Soul is satisfied by rationally-intuitively defined belief system. A balanced approach towards physical health, mental satisfaction, and spiritual contentment give shape to mannered personality. Moreover, a mannered life is formed and improved through several group interactions such as social relations, economic dealings, political contacts, and customary connections.
Concluding Remarks
The aforementioned elaboration about contents of education - faith, knowledge, wisdom & personality traits or manners - manifests that educational institutions should have a comprehensive approach towards learning. They plant FAITH, give KNOWLEDGE, equip with WISDOM and develop PERSONALITY / MANNERS to face existing and upcoming challenges of life. Each aspect has its own importance and indispensability, one cannot be left at the expense of other, and all is needed. It is noteworthy that only a content-based educational system can produce fruits for society, coming generations and concerned individuals. On the bases of whole analysis, we propose two sample Mission Statements of educational institutions.
We strive to develop among our students Individuality with Humanity, Independence with Inter-dependence, and Science with Technology.
We strive to develop among our students Personality with Patriotism, Faith with Manners, and Knowledge with Wisdom."
Introduction
Philosophy is the study of realities, pursuit of wisdom, and commentary on general principles of life. It is concerned with a search of eternal truth, both conceptual as well as practical. It has five areas of search - Epistemology, Metaphysics, Aesthetics, Ethics and History. The instrument used by philosophy to unearth realities or to discover truth is logic, both inductive as well deductive. Educational philosophy is a branch of general philosophy, it gains strength from epistemology. It formulates the aims and objectives or contents of education that, in turn, influence the whole learning environment, society, and future generations.
Philosophy of education is based on general principles of psychology, sociology, politics, economics, history, science, and religion. Education is dualistic phenomenon; it is static as well as dynamic. The major portion is dynamic or provisional and adjusts with the change and growth in knowledge, social structure, and civilization, while the minor but vital portion is static or eternal. We proposed that the contents of education are eternal while the application and explanation of these contents, a major portion, is dynamic. We assumed multi-disciplinary approach towards contents of education. The analysis accommodates the needs of individuals, society, and time and encompasses the cultural, social, and vocational aims of education.
Education may be formal as well as informal. The formal education is given in schools or colleges or universities, on the other hand informal education is obtained and absorbed from society and environment. Education, formal & informal, is developed and internalized in one's personality through reflection and experience. It means all of us are learners during our lifetime. However, we are going to analyze the philosophy (aims & objectives) of formal education. Moreover, education has three levels - primary, secondary, and higher. Primary education deals with infants of 3 to 11 years old, secondary education covers teenagers of 12 to 18 years, and higher education shapes young learners of above 18 years. A distinctive approach is required for each level of education.
The contents of education vary from community to community. A secular society would have a different approach towards contents as compare to some ideological society. Moreover, the explanation or implementation of contents would be different in different societies. Our analysis is ideological and dominantly based on Islamic view towards education.
Terminology
The term ""education"" has been derived from the Latin words Educare, Educatum, or Educere. Educatum and educare mean to train and to nourish, while educere mean to lead out. The former implies that education is something external; to be imposed or put in from outside, it means the external environment plays a decisive role in learning process. The latter indicate growth from within; it means internal potentialities of an individual are decisive in learning process, the external environment has secondary role in educational process. Naturalists / Psychologists gave more importance to internal dispositions of learning process while the social philosophers put major stress on external demands of educational process. We assumed a mixed and balanced approach towards role and importance of internal-external environment of learning process.
Definition
Aristotle defined education as process necessary for the creation of a sound mind in a sound body, according to him, the aim & objective of education is to create good and virtuous citizens. Ibne Khaldun, in fourteenth century, expresses the view that education consists off intellectual, social, and moral training through which hidden potentialities are developed, traits of character are built and culture of the people is conveyed to the coming generations. Dewey, in twentieth century, defined education in these words: ""Education is a process of living through a continuous reconstruction of experiences. It is development of all those capacities in the individual that will enable him to control his environment and fulfill his possibilities."" We may define education as, Education is the mean whereby adults pass on and inculcates to children their knowledge, thought-pattern, and behavior pattern and develop their genetic potential to manage existing and future challenges.
Aims & Objectives - Islamic View
Islam is Divine religion. It is based on revealed book, Quran, and prophetic commentary, Hadith. The foremost responsibility and ultimate purpose of prophets and Revealed Books are to educate the mankind for better, happy, and purposeful life. They specify the purpose of life, outline the procedure to actualize it, and present a practical example of purposeful life. Thus, the aims and objectives of education or contents of education can be understood from the last Revealed Book, Al-Quran. We quote a verse of Al-Quran,
""Undoubtedly Allah did confer a great favor on the Muslims when He raised an Apostle from among themselves, who recites to them the Revelations of Allah, and causeth them to grow, and teacheth them the Scripture and Wisdom whereas they were in manifest error before."" (Al-Quran)
The verse identifies aims and objectives of education. These are:
Faith Plantation
Knowledge Advancement
Wisdom Enhancement
Manner Development
A. FAITH
The word faith has various meanings and uses, however, the central meaning is similar to ""conviction"", ""belief"", ""trust"" or ""confidence"", but unlike these terms, ""faith"" tends to imply a submissive and transpersonal relationship with God or with someone having superior powers. Faith is founded on certain beliefs; beliefs' indispensability to faith is just like seeds' inevitability to plants. A belief system has certain perceptual ingredients with practical implications. A living faith must fulfill two conditions, the necessary condition is logical reasoning and sufficient condition is practical fruits for believers / mankind. A living faith gives stability to the believer, creates dynamism in one's personality, brings fruits in one's life, promotes cohesiveness among the believers, and assigns a specific shape to a group with peculiar traits.
We mention a few verses of the Holy Quran to outline and explain the basic elements of Islamic Faith.
""A Glorious Book this! Which has nothing of doubt in it; it is guidance for the God-conscious who fear Allah. Those who believe in the Unseen and establish prayer and spend in Our way out of what We have provided them. And those who believe in that which has been sent down to you (O My Apostle) and in that which was sent down before you, and they also have faith in the August Day of Judgment. They are the ones who are rightly guided, and verily it is they who are successful in both the worlds."" (Al-Quran)
The first thing that the Quran does it removes the element of doubt, which is the foremost requisite of modern philosophy by introducing the faith as a fundamental factor behind reality. Doubt is a negative factor that hinders the exact understanding of reality; curiosity is far better alternate to doubt for knowledge development or to unearth realities. The faith concomitantly presupposes some obligatory beliefs - Unity of God, Unseen System (Angels, Heaven, Hell, etc.), Revealed Books, Institution of Prophets, Day of Judgment, Fate, and Life after Death. In addition, it imposes some obligations on believers - Kalimah (a confession of faith), prayer, fasting, alms giving, and pilgrimage. It is noteworthy that the idea of Unity of God must create the belief of mankind's unity.
The Islamic approach towards faith is that it is revealed, explained, and planted through reverent personalities, i.e., prophets; a faith based on personal reasoning is not acceptable in Islam, the finality of prophets' wording about faith elements is also essential. In addition, a loving and trustful posture towards prophets is fundamental for complete faith, without it faith is incomplete or objectionable. The very foundation of faith is thus love and submission to a reverent personality or a prophet. Simply, faith can be defined as accepting something true which has been told by someone who is believed to be trustworthy / praiseworthy.
The object behind development of faith is to make stable and balance psycho-spiritual formation of human personality. The prophets are sent as practical role modals and revealed books are accompanied as permanent working manual for guideline. The ultimate aim of developing faith elements is to equip the individual with necessary working tools to manage and tackle the conceptual or practical issues of life, either, big or small, simple or complex, independent or interlinked, a few or many, with fortitude and firmness. Thus, determination is necessary outcome of faith, no determination, than no faith.
Islam vehemently put forward two aspects of faith - human and transcendental. The human aspects propose the concept of unity of mankind, while the transcendental aspects propose the idea of Unity of God. Faith is incomplete if one aspect is ignored or not forcefully defined. In addition, the ignorance of one aspect makes the human personality lopsided and unstable. The repercussions of wrong belief about unity of mankind and Unity of God are manifold and penetrating to each and every aspect of human society. It can lead the nations into some kind of continuous strife and belligerent attitude towards each other. Moreover, the effects of wrong belief go beyond the present generations' outlook and disturb the peace and tranquility of future generations, as well.
B. KNOWLEDGE
It is the understanding of the factual/declarative, procedural and conceptual aspects of something that a person acquires through education, observation and experience. Acquisition of knowledge is basic demand of human nature. It plays vital role in growth and development of a person or a nation.
1. Bases of Human Knowledge: -Let us quote some verses of the Quran on the subject:
And recall when your Lord said to the angels: ""I am going to appoint a vice-regent in the earth."" They said: ""Will You set in the earth such as will make mischief and cause bloodshed, whereas we celebrate Your praise and glorify You."" Allah said:"" Surely I know that which you know not.""And Allah taught Adam the names of all things. Then He set them before the angels saying: ""Tell Me the names of these if you are really truthful (in your opinion)"" They said: ""Glory to You! We have no knowledge what You have taught us. In truth, You alone are the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.""
Allah said:' O Adam! Tell them the names of these things."" Then Adam had told the angels the names of those things, Allah said: ""Did I not tell you that I know full well all the hidden mysteries of the heavens and the earth and I know whatever you disclose and whatever you have been concealing?
The verses manifest that the human nature has been made inherently fit and capable of receptivity and absorption of Divine Knowledge. Moreover, Adam's knowledge has ability to conceptualize the things in nature. Thirdly, man has ability to develop language because Adam assigned names to items without prior formal training. These verses also show that the first man of the earth came down fully abreast of scientific knowledge, in full monopoly to develop it for natural conquest. According to Quran, than the program of human activity should proceed hand in hand with the divine cooperation and blessing, before the plan was being carried on unilaterally in which God has no vice-regent. The verses also indicate that a man has free will to choose right or wrong path of life. There is no external compulsion on his free choice. The verses also indicate that the mankind has strong tendency towards injustice and strife, however, it can be managed through human knowledge and is restrained by the Will of God.
2. Types of knowledge: -Knowledge can be classified into following groups:
Natural Sciences: -Natural sciences deals with inanimate objects of universe. The major branches are physics, chemistry, and astronomy.
Biological Sciences: -Biological Sciences deals with animate objects of universe. The major branches are zoology, botany, and psychology.
Social Sciences: -Social Sciences deals with collective life and relationship between individual and society. The major branches are sociology, political science, and economics.
Professional Sciences: -Professional Sciences deals with professions of individuals necessary for human survival / quality of life. The major branches are medicine, engineering, and commerce.
Islam accepts the scientific classification of knowledge, however, it proposed a broader taxonomy of knowledge for mankind:-
First, Absolute verses Dubious Knowledge. The absolute knowledge is based on some scientific facts or given through some reverent personality (i.e., prophets) in a shape of Revealed Book (e.g., Quran). The dubious knowledge is based on subjective analysis (e.g., the theory of psycho-analysis proposed by Freud.). Second, Fruitful verses Fruitless Knowledge. The fruitful knowledge gives benefit to mankind (e.g., natural sciences, biological sciences, social sciences, and, professional sciences.) while the fruitless knowledge is of no use for mankind (e.g., occult sciences).
3. Aspects of Knowledge: -A peace of knowledge can be broken into three categories or has three aspects - Declarative, Procedural & Conceptual.
Declarative Knowledge: -It is knowledge about something, e.g., structure of body, structure of computer, format of earth, and parts of speech. It deals with WHAT type of questions.
Procedural Knowledge: -It is knowledge about the procedures and sequences. It narrates and explains procedures & sequences of any compiled information or data, that is, it deals with HOW & WHEN type of questions. For example, HOW computer is manufactured or used, WHEN computer is ready to use or sale.
Conceptual Knowledge: -It is knowledge of concepts working behind the declarative and procedural knowledge. It is abstract aspect of knowledge. In conceptual knowledge, the relationship among concepts is also discussed. It deals with WHY type of questions. For example, the mathematical concepts and their relationship with each other that provide basis to the working of computer hardware or software.
C. WISDOM
Knowledge enables us to understand the realties of things (i.e., Divine Scheme of Creation, Natural System of Growth, natural forces, and history) and wisdom equip us with abilities to utilize the realities for the benefit of self and others. According to Islam, wisdom is higher level attribute, it comes after knowledge. Wisdom is bestowed when will of man is replaced by Will of God and human understanding is fully exploited, thus, wisdom is based on knowledge and intellect. Let us quote a verse to make it clear:
""He bestows wisdom upon whom He will, and whosoever is granted wisdom he is indeed granted abundant good and none accepts admonition except men of understanding.""
(Al-Quran)
Islam proposed two diagonally opposites aspects of wisdom - Divine Wisdom and devil wisdom. The Divine Wisdom is based on right faith and fruitful knowledge and produce good results for self and mankind, materially as well as spiritually, while the devil wisdom is based on wrong faith and fruitless knowledge and leads the mankind towards only worldly or material benefits, completely ignoring the benefits of others and spiritual benefits. The devil wisdom guides for self benefits at the cost of others, however, the devil / worldly wisdom is short-lived and weak, ultimately fails to materialize her lopsided designs.
Character-Sketch of a Wise Person
Wisdom is personalized, established, and manifested through struggle. A person fully involved in chores of life would qualify for wisdom. Seclusion or solitude is very negation of wisdom, while the participation is very basis of wisdom. A wise person pursue his goals/responds the problems of life with certain characteristics. These characteristics are essential working tools of a wise individual that give him/her edges over non-wise. The prominent attributes of a wise person are - Effective Communication, Enthusiasm, Discipline or Rigor, Decision Power, Sense of Responsibility, Moderate Behavior, Self-Confidence or High Morale or Courage, and Appropriate Appearance.
D. BEST MANNERS
Manners are countless, structurally, and diverse, practically. However, the essence of good manners is constant for all and sundry, it is humility. Humility is unique positive attribute of human personality; it is an attribute as well as essence of every positive attribute. Absence of humility makes the existence of all manners a soul-less ritual unable to produce fruitful results for self and others. A proud person is ill-mannered and creates problems for self and others.
Manners have two aspects - inner and outer. Inwardly, manners are shaped by dynamic organization of all the perceptions, intentions, and emotions of an individual and the behavior that results from the organization of these aspects, while, outwardly; they are shaped by social acceptance of behavior. Simply,conformity to some rationally defined and morally established interactive standards is considered best manners. Manners are developed under the guidance of intellect, knowledge, wisdom, social norms, and religion. They are time-honored phenomena. The reasonably/indisputably evolved set of manners creates order, consistency and continuity in one's life and gives beautiful look to an individual or society. Manners are forerunner of culture and give longevity to civilizations. A society of ill-mannered persons will not be able to survive, at least with respect and recognition.
Bases of Best Manners
Man is combination of three basic realities, i.e., body, mind, and soul. Body has certain physical needs for survival or continuation of life such as food, water, and sleep, mind has some instinctual desires for interactive life such as parental instinct, gregarious instinct, learning instinct, and sex instinct, and soul has some ingrained urges towards moral excellence. Body needs are fulfilled by physical powers, psychological instincts are satisfied by mind powers such as will-power, decision-power, and emotional-power, soul urges are calmed by spiritual powers such as insight and intuition. A sustained manifestation of countless human efforts to satisfy body needs, psychological instincts, and soul urges shapes human personality. In addition, physical balance or health depends on diet, leisure time, proper sleep, and constructive physical activities. Mind normality or peace of mind hinges on positive approach towards intentions, perceptions and emotions. Soul is satisfied by rationally-intuitively defined belief system. A balanced approach towards physical health, mental satisfaction, and spiritual contentment give shape to mannered personality. Moreover, a mannered life is formed and improved through several group interactions such as social relations, economic dealings, political contacts, and customary connections.
Concluding Remarks
The aforementioned elaboration about contents of education - faith, knowledge, wisdom & personality traits or manners - manifests that educational institutions should have a comprehensive approach towards learning. They plant FAITH, give KNOWLEDGE, equip with WISDOM and develop PERSONALITY / MANNERS to face existing and upcoming challenges of life. Each aspect has its own importance and indispensability, one cannot be left at the expense of other, and all is needed. It is noteworthy that only a content-based educational system can produce fruits for society, coming generations and concerned individuals. On the bases of whole analysis, we propose two sample Mission Statements of educational institutions.
We strive to develop among our students Individuality with Humanity, Independence with Inter-dependence, and Science with Technology.
We strive to develop among our students Personality with Patriotism, Faith with Manners, and Knowledge with Wisdom."
Myths About Weight Loss and Six Pack Abs
"Myth 1 - To get six pack abs you must do hundreds of crunches every day.
Or one of my favorites from an infomercial... ""you can now have rock hard sexy slim six pack abs in only 8 minutes a day! "" Yea, and I have a twelve inch... never mind. I've heard this one more times than I can remember. First let me tell you the one true secret to getting six-pack abs. Are you ready, because you only have to do two things! Here it is - eat less and exercise more! That's it. That's the BIG secret! 90% of getting those six pack abs is getting rid of body fat. You already have abs, you just can't see them because of the layer of goo that's covering them up! The other 10% is doing some ab exercises, such as crunches to help strengthen, and build ab muscles giving that nice rippled look.
Myth 2 - You have to go to a gym or buy expensive weight training systems at home to get fit and have a good workout.
Absolutely not. I do everything at home, except for most of my running of course, with a set of dumbbells, a basic weight bench and a pull up bar. Some people might also want to use a yoga mat if you don't have a nice rug, or carpeted floors for comfort. You may also prefer resistance bands to weights. I prefer the free weights. A weight bench is very handy but not necessary. Also, an extra chair or stool that you may have lying around will come in handy as well. So what does all of this mean? It means don't waste your money on stupid gimmicks, quick ab machines or pills that you see on TV! Save your money and buy some healthy food next time your at the grocery store instead.
Myth 3 - Spot fat removal.
I've been asked by many people what certain exercises just target the love handles, or abs, or my man boobs to get rid of that fat? The answer is, there's not. You can't spot fat remove. As you start losing fat your body will determine where the fat comes from. It may pull some chicken back fat off from your lat area, or some from under the arms. It might pull some thigh cheese from your legs or your ass. Maybe a little from your love handles or around your spare tire gut. So I'm sorry to have to say it, but you don't get a choice. You will notice that you are slimming and shaping up in multiple parts of your body at the same time. Now, in this regard, it is called ""stubborn belly fat"" for a reason. Typically, when your body stores fat the lower abdomen is the first place it gets stored, and again, typically, the last place from which it is removed.
Myth 4 - I saw Rocky eating raw eggs in that movie before he whipped Mr. T's ass! Eating raw eggs must be good for you right?
I think I blew a wet fart from laughing so hard the first time I heard this one! Let me say this - NO! Raw eggs are NOT good for you! Unless your trying to be sick from salmonella and you don't want to be able to work out for weeks while you recover from diarrhea cha cha cha, and puking your guts out! I will cover more on eggs in the nutrition section and why you should and shouldn't eat them, but for now just don't eat any raw ones OK?
Myth 5 - I can do certain exercises to just ""tone"" selected areas.
A lot of people have asked me what they can do to tone just abs or tone just arms or chest? First let me start of by saying there is no such thing as a ""toning"" exercise. What you will need to do exactly all depends on what your trying to achieve. For example if you want to make your muscles stronger and bigger you need to do resistance training. If you want to become leaner and more defined and get rid of the goo that's covering up that sexy body of yours, then you need cardiovascular exercise and good nutrition.
Myth 6 - I can lose weight just by dieting.
I get this one a lot also, so let me just go ahead and get the whole dieting thing and why it will never work out of the way. Diets are bad. Even saying that your ""going on a diet"" implies that you only intend on having better nutrition for a predetermined period of time, and at the end of it your going to return to your butt-crack nasty eating habits again. You need to change your mindset completely about dieting and understand that good nutrition should be a permanent change in your life. Here's a quickie about why diets don't work. When you eat less your body (and metabolism) adjusts to the lower caloric intake. So after about a month you lose six or eight lbs because your not eating enough and then you feel happy about where your at so you start going back to your bad eating habits again. Well, it takes your body almost twice as long to speed your metabolism up to compensate for taking in a lot more calories now that your off your diet, than it does to slow it down, by eating less. So not only do you gain the weight back, but most people end up fatter than they were before they started by screwing with their metabolism.
Myth 7 - If you want to be super ripped or super huge you have to use supplements or steroids.
How many times have you seen an advertisement for the ""magic fat burning pill. Just take two a day and you'll get ripped without ever having to do a single exercise!?"" Or another one of my favorites ""Take our mega muscle 10,000 powder shake and you can gain 40 lbs of muscle in only four months!"" The fact is, if it were that easy then everyone walking around would be ripped and cut and there wouldn't be such an obesity problem in America.
OK your reading this because your wanting my opinion, so here it is. I am extremely picky about the supplements that I use because I want to know exactly what is going into my body. ""But Sgt E, I heard Arnold say ""creatine will pump YOU up!"" Look, the truth is the supplement industry recognizes the obesity problem in America and is making a fat ass gangster-knott roll of cabbage off of desperate people spending money on it. Supplements while legal, are unregulated, and untested. I could get a Bunsen-burner and my trusty spoon and make a crack rock out of some caffeine, aspirin and exlax and call it Mega Bulk 10,000 if I wanted to.
For example, let's look at a popular brand named supplement named Hydroxycut. On May 1 2009, WebMD Health news reported 14 Hydroxycut products were being recalled by the manufacturer after the FDA received 23 reports of serious liver injuries ranging from jaundice to even death. Don't think I'll be taking that gamble today.
What YOU need to know is what is effective and safe to use. Because of the nature of the supplement industry, I only recommend Nutrilite vitamins and supplements. Nutrilite offers a good variety of snack bars, vitamins, fat burners and carb blockers that I have had great success with. Nutrilite has a proven track record of success and many professional athletes also recommend the Nutrilite brand. I also use 100% whey protein powder because I just don't want to eat a pound of chicken or turkey breast every day to get the full amount of protein that my plan requires. Now depending on your goals you may not need as much protein as I do, or you may need more, but we'll cover that later on as well. To see a full list of the supplements I do recommend just Click Here.
""But Sgt E, Barry Bonds and Mark McGuire broke records using steroids. Should I hit the juice too?""
The quick answer to this question obviously is no. You don't need to get juiced to get ripped and bulk up. Now do roids actually work? Yes and they are very effective. They are also illegal and a lot of people have ruined their lives by misusing them. Most steroids are counterfeit and getting them from your gym rat buddy on the black market only means you really don't know what's in it. So, the roids do not get Sgt E's seal of approval. They are not necessary to achieve results and not worth risking the side affects such as stunted growth, gyno, acne, hair loss, fat gain, ""beer belly"" and not to mention a shrinking of your ""cash and prizes."" That's right, I just went there.
Myth 8 - I can gain 20 lbs of muscle in only two months according to some magazine articles.
Ever heard that saying about never believing anything you read and less than half of what you see? These same magazines are in filled with advertisements for products claiming to get you ripped and bulked and this and that, not because they do, but because that's how they make their money. The simple truth is, outside of adolescent years one can expect to gain about six to eight, maybe ten pounds of muscle in a years time. That means doing resistance training five days a week for about an hour a day, with focus and intensity, and having a good nutrition plan.
Myth 9 - I can still get ripped while stoning out on pot, or getting smash hammered drunk every night after playing guitar hero!
OK let's start with the pot first on this one. It reminds me of the commercial with the kids smoking pot in the basement talking about ""nothing ever happened in their lives."" This is pretty much what's going to happen to your fitness routine if your smoking a lot of pot while trying to workout and exercise. There are a couple of problems here because of the side affects of dancing with the talented Mary Jane. First is the munchies. When you smoke weed you get the munchies and trust me, you don't go to the fridge and reach into the veggie tray for cauliflower and carrot sticks! You end up eating stacks and bags of mega nacho cheesy-poofs and just getting fat. Another problem is the mellowing affect that pot has, which is what reminded me of that commercial. When your working out and staying fit you need to have drive and desire, and the ability to stay focused and determined. After a joint or two you usually just want to chillax naked in a bean bag chair eating Cheetos... or so I've heard. The last problem with pot is also the same for people who also smoke cigarettes and that is, it lowers your bloods ability to deliver oxygen to your muscles.
Now lets look at alcohol. Drinking alcohol and fitness are like those nasty cement mixer shots your stupid friends trick you into drinking. They just don't go well. Now, I'm not saying that it's not OK to have a beer or glass of wine a couple of times a month, that's fine and dandy. I'm talking about daily use and excessive weekend-warrior syndrome (Binge drinking). I tell people to stay away from drinking lots of alcohol for the same reason I tell them to stay away from sodas. It has no nutritional value what-so-ever and is full of empty calories. Imagine taking in an extra 450 calories from two or three beers every night to have to work off with tons of extra cardio! Alcohol also lowers your strength and endurance for up to as much as forty-eight hours, making it that much more difficult to have a focused and intense work out.
Myth 10 - It's impossible to lose weight and gain muscle at the same time.
A lot of people ask me whether they should try to lose weight or bulk up first. Well the answer is why not do both at the same time? I've never been a big guy. At my largest I was about 160 lbs. And while some would say this is about right for a guy that's only 5'8″ I wasn't happy with my physical appearance or mental health. Most people are just looking to slim down a little bit, and that's ok. But, others are wanting to burn the goo and add some muscle nuggets at the same time. This requires the addition of heavier resistance training to your exercise regime, and some more protein to your already excellent nutrition plan. For example at 150 lbs, I should be taking in about 150g of protein a day to help give my muscles what they need to recover from workouts. I still eat low fat, low carb, higher fiber foods though. I keep my calories lower and still do at least three hours of cardio a week to burn the fat away. So it certainly is possible, you may just need to adjust your nutrition plan a little and make sure your doing six to eight reps of heavier weight during your resistance training.
Myth 11 - No pain. No gain.
OK I know we've all heard this at one point or another. Even Marines are used to saying ""pain is weakness leaving the body,"" but it's time to clear up what is good pain, and what is bad pain.
Lets start with bad pain. Any joint pain is bad pain. For example, I have problems with my right shoulder after flying from a Humvee and landing on it a few years ago in Iraq. It grinds and hurts any time I do uppercuts or certain circular motions such as blocks in martial arts. It is not a good idea to try and ""muscle through"" the joint pain thinking your hard core. If you are having joint pain you should stop your exercise immediately. Try using a different grip, or exercise to work that particular muscle group. For my shoulder I simply can't do some exercises, but instead of giving up I do exercises that don't cause me to have joint pain. If you insist on a particular exercise you may consider limiting your range of motion, or lowering your weight and adding more reps.
Next is bad muscle pain. Any signs of sharp, sudden or bolts of pain are usually an indication that an injury has occurred such as a tare. If you experience this kind of pain you should also stop immediately!
Finally lets talk about ""feeling the burn"" or good muscle pain. During resistance training, whether your bulking up with low reps or shaping with higher reps your last three reps with good form should be tough to achieve. You should feel what starts as a slow burn which becomes more intense as your last few reps are completed. This is caused by a buildup of lactic acid in your muscles and is a good indicator that you are pushing yourself hard enough and you have good focus. The other type of good muscle pain is also called delayed muscle pain or the soreness you normally feel hours or a day or so after an intense workout. When you workout with enough intensity you cause micro- tares in your muscles which your body then has to repair. This soreness is a sign that your muscles are being repaired and rebuilt bigger and stronger. Also remember to wait until the soreness is gone to work the same muscle group again. You should only be working on one concentrated muscle group every five to seven days.
So is it true that if you don't have pain your don't have gain? The answer is no. Not all muscles will give you delayed muscle pain or soreness even after intense workouts. For example I never had delayed soreness in my biceps or shoulders, but I always do in my chest, lats, abs and quads. So if you don't have this soreness in a certain muscle group, it does not necessarily mean you did not have a good, intense workout. If your really wanting to see the noticeable difference in your strength workouts, use a logbook and record your reps and the amount of weight your pushing."
Or one of my favorites from an infomercial... ""you can now have rock hard sexy slim six pack abs in only 8 minutes a day! "" Yea, and I have a twelve inch... never mind. I've heard this one more times than I can remember. First let me tell you the one true secret to getting six-pack abs. Are you ready, because you only have to do two things! Here it is - eat less and exercise more! That's it. That's the BIG secret! 90% of getting those six pack abs is getting rid of body fat. You already have abs, you just can't see them because of the layer of goo that's covering them up! The other 10% is doing some ab exercises, such as crunches to help strengthen, and build ab muscles giving that nice rippled look.
Myth 2 - You have to go to a gym or buy expensive weight training systems at home to get fit and have a good workout.
Absolutely not. I do everything at home, except for most of my running of course, with a set of dumbbells, a basic weight bench and a pull up bar. Some people might also want to use a yoga mat if you don't have a nice rug, or carpeted floors for comfort. You may also prefer resistance bands to weights. I prefer the free weights. A weight bench is very handy but not necessary. Also, an extra chair or stool that you may have lying around will come in handy as well. So what does all of this mean? It means don't waste your money on stupid gimmicks, quick ab machines or pills that you see on TV! Save your money and buy some healthy food next time your at the grocery store instead.
Myth 3 - Spot fat removal.
I've been asked by many people what certain exercises just target the love handles, or abs, or my man boobs to get rid of that fat? The answer is, there's not. You can't spot fat remove. As you start losing fat your body will determine where the fat comes from. It may pull some chicken back fat off from your lat area, or some from under the arms. It might pull some thigh cheese from your legs or your ass. Maybe a little from your love handles or around your spare tire gut. So I'm sorry to have to say it, but you don't get a choice. You will notice that you are slimming and shaping up in multiple parts of your body at the same time. Now, in this regard, it is called ""stubborn belly fat"" for a reason. Typically, when your body stores fat the lower abdomen is the first place it gets stored, and again, typically, the last place from which it is removed.
Myth 4 - I saw Rocky eating raw eggs in that movie before he whipped Mr. T's ass! Eating raw eggs must be good for you right?
I think I blew a wet fart from laughing so hard the first time I heard this one! Let me say this - NO! Raw eggs are NOT good for you! Unless your trying to be sick from salmonella and you don't want to be able to work out for weeks while you recover from diarrhea cha cha cha, and puking your guts out! I will cover more on eggs in the nutrition section and why you should and shouldn't eat them, but for now just don't eat any raw ones OK?
Myth 5 - I can do certain exercises to just ""tone"" selected areas.
A lot of people have asked me what they can do to tone just abs or tone just arms or chest? First let me start of by saying there is no such thing as a ""toning"" exercise. What you will need to do exactly all depends on what your trying to achieve. For example if you want to make your muscles stronger and bigger you need to do resistance training. If you want to become leaner and more defined and get rid of the goo that's covering up that sexy body of yours, then you need cardiovascular exercise and good nutrition.
Myth 6 - I can lose weight just by dieting.
I get this one a lot also, so let me just go ahead and get the whole dieting thing and why it will never work out of the way. Diets are bad. Even saying that your ""going on a diet"" implies that you only intend on having better nutrition for a predetermined period of time, and at the end of it your going to return to your butt-crack nasty eating habits again. You need to change your mindset completely about dieting and understand that good nutrition should be a permanent change in your life. Here's a quickie about why diets don't work. When you eat less your body (and metabolism) adjusts to the lower caloric intake. So after about a month you lose six or eight lbs because your not eating enough and then you feel happy about where your at so you start going back to your bad eating habits again. Well, it takes your body almost twice as long to speed your metabolism up to compensate for taking in a lot more calories now that your off your diet, than it does to slow it down, by eating less. So not only do you gain the weight back, but most people end up fatter than they were before they started by screwing with their metabolism.
Myth 7 - If you want to be super ripped or super huge you have to use supplements or steroids.
How many times have you seen an advertisement for the ""magic fat burning pill. Just take two a day and you'll get ripped without ever having to do a single exercise!?"" Or another one of my favorites ""Take our mega muscle 10,000 powder shake and you can gain 40 lbs of muscle in only four months!"" The fact is, if it were that easy then everyone walking around would be ripped and cut and there wouldn't be such an obesity problem in America.
OK your reading this because your wanting my opinion, so here it is. I am extremely picky about the supplements that I use because I want to know exactly what is going into my body. ""But Sgt E, I heard Arnold say ""creatine will pump YOU up!"" Look, the truth is the supplement industry recognizes the obesity problem in America and is making a fat ass gangster-knott roll of cabbage off of desperate people spending money on it. Supplements while legal, are unregulated, and untested. I could get a Bunsen-burner and my trusty spoon and make a crack rock out of some caffeine, aspirin and exlax and call it Mega Bulk 10,000 if I wanted to.
For example, let's look at a popular brand named supplement named Hydroxycut. On May 1 2009, WebMD Health news reported 14 Hydroxycut products were being recalled by the manufacturer after the FDA received 23 reports of serious liver injuries ranging from jaundice to even death. Don't think I'll be taking that gamble today.
What YOU need to know is what is effective and safe to use. Because of the nature of the supplement industry, I only recommend Nutrilite vitamins and supplements. Nutrilite offers a good variety of snack bars, vitamins, fat burners and carb blockers that I have had great success with. Nutrilite has a proven track record of success and many professional athletes also recommend the Nutrilite brand. I also use 100% whey protein powder because I just don't want to eat a pound of chicken or turkey breast every day to get the full amount of protein that my plan requires. Now depending on your goals you may not need as much protein as I do, or you may need more, but we'll cover that later on as well. To see a full list of the supplements I do recommend just Click Here.
""But Sgt E, Barry Bonds and Mark McGuire broke records using steroids. Should I hit the juice too?""
The quick answer to this question obviously is no. You don't need to get juiced to get ripped and bulk up. Now do roids actually work? Yes and they are very effective. They are also illegal and a lot of people have ruined their lives by misusing them. Most steroids are counterfeit and getting them from your gym rat buddy on the black market only means you really don't know what's in it. So, the roids do not get Sgt E's seal of approval. They are not necessary to achieve results and not worth risking the side affects such as stunted growth, gyno, acne, hair loss, fat gain, ""beer belly"" and not to mention a shrinking of your ""cash and prizes."" That's right, I just went there.
Myth 8 - I can gain 20 lbs of muscle in only two months according to some magazine articles.
Ever heard that saying about never believing anything you read and less than half of what you see? These same magazines are in filled with advertisements for products claiming to get you ripped and bulked and this and that, not because they do, but because that's how they make their money. The simple truth is, outside of adolescent years one can expect to gain about six to eight, maybe ten pounds of muscle in a years time. That means doing resistance training five days a week for about an hour a day, with focus and intensity, and having a good nutrition plan.
Myth 9 - I can still get ripped while stoning out on pot, or getting smash hammered drunk every night after playing guitar hero!
OK let's start with the pot first on this one. It reminds me of the commercial with the kids smoking pot in the basement talking about ""nothing ever happened in their lives."" This is pretty much what's going to happen to your fitness routine if your smoking a lot of pot while trying to workout and exercise. There are a couple of problems here because of the side affects of dancing with the talented Mary Jane. First is the munchies. When you smoke weed you get the munchies and trust me, you don't go to the fridge and reach into the veggie tray for cauliflower and carrot sticks! You end up eating stacks and bags of mega nacho cheesy-poofs and just getting fat. Another problem is the mellowing affect that pot has, which is what reminded me of that commercial. When your working out and staying fit you need to have drive and desire, and the ability to stay focused and determined. After a joint or two you usually just want to chillax naked in a bean bag chair eating Cheetos... or so I've heard. The last problem with pot is also the same for people who also smoke cigarettes and that is, it lowers your bloods ability to deliver oxygen to your muscles.
Now lets look at alcohol. Drinking alcohol and fitness are like those nasty cement mixer shots your stupid friends trick you into drinking. They just don't go well. Now, I'm not saying that it's not OK to have a beer or glass of wine a couple of times a month, that's fine and dandy. I'm talking about daily use and excessive weekend-warrior syndrome (Binge drinking). I tell people to stay away from drinking lots of alcohol for the same reason I tell them to stay away from sodas. It has no nutritional value what-so-ever and is full of empty calories. Imagine taking in an extra 450 calories from two or three beers every night to have to work off with tons of extra cardio! Alcohol also lowers your strength and endurance for up to as much as forty-eight hours, making it that much more difficult to have a focused and intense work out.
Myth 10 - It's impossible to lose weight and gain muscle at the same time.
A lot of people ask me whether they should try to lose weight or bulk up first. Well the answer is why not do both at the same time? I've never been a big guy. At my largest I was about 160 lbs. And while some would say this is about right for a guy that's only 5'8″ I wasn't happy with my physical appearance or mental health. Most people are just looking to slim down a little bit, and that's ok. But, others are wanting to burn the goo and add some muscle nuggets at the same time. This requires the addition of heavier resistance training to your exercise regime, and some more protein to your already excellent nutrition plan. For example at 150 lbs, I should be taking in about 150g of protein a day to help give my muscles what they need to recover from workouts. I still eat low fat, low carb, higher fiber foods though. I keep my calories lower and still do at least three hours of cardio a week to burn the fat away. So it certainly is possible, you may just need to adjust your nutrition plan a little and make sure your doing six to eight reps of heavier weight during your resistance training.
Myth 11 - No pain. No gain.
OK I know we've all heard this at one point or another. Even Marines are used to saying ""pain is weakness leaving the body,"" but it's time to clear up what is good pain, and what is bad pain.
Lets start with bad pain. Any joint pain is bad pain. For example, I have problems with my right shoulder after flying from a Humvee and landing on it a few years ago in Iraq. It grinds and hurts any time I do uppercuts or certain circular motions such as blocks in martial arts. It is not a good idea to try and ""muscle through"" the joint pain thinking your hard core. If you are having joint pain you should stop your exercise immediately. Try using a different grip, or exercise to work that particular muscle group. For my shoulder I simply can't do some exercises, but instead of giving up I do exercises that don't cause me to have joint pain. If you insist on a particular exercise you may consider limiting your range of motion, or lowering your weight and adding more reps.
Next is bad muscle pain. Any signs of sharp, sudden or bolts of pain are usually an indication that an injury has occurred such as a tare. If you experience this kind of pain you should also stop immediately!
Finally lets talk about ""feeling the burn"" or good muscle pain. During resistance training, whether your bulking up with low reps or shaping with higher reps your last three reps with good form should be tough to achieve. You should feel what starts as a slow burn which becomes more intense as your last few reps are completed. This is caused by a buildup of lactic acid in your muscles and is a good indicator that you are pushing yourself hard enough and you have good focus. The other type of good muscle pain is also called delayed muscle pain or the soreness you normally feel hours or a day or so after an intense workout. When you workout with enough intensity you cause micro- tares in your muscles which your body then has to repair. This soreness is a sign that your muscles are being repaired and rebuilt bigger and stronger. Also remember to wait until the soreness is gone to work the same muscle group again. You should only be working on one concentrated muscle group every five to seven days.
So is it true that if you don't have pain your don't have gain? The answer is no. Not all muscles will give you delayed muscle pain or soreness even after intense workouts. For example I never had delayed soreness in my biceps or shoulders, but I always do in my chest, lats, abs and quads. So if you don't have this soreness in a certain muscle group, it does not necessarily mean you did not have a good, intense workout. If your really wanting to see the noticeable difference in your strength workouts, use a logbook and record your reps and the amount of weight your pushing."
Bearded Dragons - Basic Care
"Bearded Dragons - Basic care
Bearded dragons can make wonderful pet lizards, with fantastic and fascinating behaviours they are often sold as the perfect 'beginner' lizard. However much care and thought should be put into buying one as a pet. As with all lizards, they are a long-term commitment and have specialist requirements, which need to be understood.
Bearded dragons originate from Australia; although many of the Bearded Dragons sold are captive bred, meaning they are generally healthier specimens. The lifespan of a Beardie is usually around 7 years, which is why careful consideration must be put into owning one! Due to their natural habitats they are terrestrial creatures that like to occasionally climb. They are generally docile creatures that show a lot of expression through body language, so they can be fascinating to watch. They are also one of the few lizards that will tame nicely and some can become quite friendly toward their owners, however you should still keep in mind that they usually prefer their own space.
Housing a Beardie
Bearded dragons are endothermic, like all lizards, meaning they take their heat from their surroundings. With this in mind their enclosure needs to have adequate space and placement to allow them to regulate their temperature. The vivarium itself should be around 36 Inches to 42 inches long and of no less than 18 to 24 Inches widthways. The height should be adequate to place decor and allow the Beardie to climb, so a height of around 18 to 24 Inches should be available.
There are several types of vivarium available, from the usual ply board and sliding glass door type to the all glass type. Either is sufficient, however the wooden types tend to keep heat in more effectively and reduce stress as the wooden sides don't create reflection like glass vivariums and create secluded corners for your pet to retreat to. However some glass vivariums come with metal mesh on the top and ventilation on the doors, allowing for better air movement than the wooden types.
Whatever type of vivarium you choose, placement in your home is important and should be carefully considered before buying. The vivarium should not be placed in draughts or next to radiators, not should it be placed in direct sunlight. All these things will change the temperature of the enclosure and this can lead to problems with your pet. It should also be placed somewhere quiet, where there isn't a lot of 'traffic' or noise either from people or household appliances. Lastly, careful consideration should be put into whether the vivarium is accessible to other pets or younger children who may be overly inquisitive! This also brings about the last point, always make sure the vivarium is secured, either with it's own locking system or a traditional 'viv lock'!
Heat and lighting
Beardies require a temperature gradient of around 30-35 degrees Celsius at the hottest end and 20-25 degrees Celsius at the coolest end. A basking spot reaching around 40 degrees Celsius is also needed. Creating this gradient is the key to beardie success as it governs all of their habits and workings.
So how do you create the correct temperature gradient for a Bearded Dragon? Well, it partly depends on the type of vivarium you have. The main tools of heating are a heat mat (regulated with a thermostat) and a basking spotlight (in addition to UV lighting).
The general method for creating this gradient means putting a heat mat under the substrate at one end of the vivarium, it should cover around half of the vivarium floor. The heat mat works on infrared and will literally heat the substrate and therefore your lizard. A thermostat is usually required to control the heat mats output, avoiding it from getting too hot, as the heat mat needs to stay on all of the time. You should also place a thermometer at each end to check the gradients.
At the same end a basking light should be mounted. This will provide your lizard the area of concentrated heat it needs as well as heating the air in the vivarium, known as 'ambient heat. How you mount the bulb will depend on the type of vivarium you have. Glass vivariums presuming they have a mesh top can simply have the bulb and lighting unit stood on top of the vivarium. Some vivariums have special units that can clip onto the top. If your vivarium is wooden you can use a standard light fitment and affix the bulb to the wood, inside the enclosure. Sometimes the wooden type vivariums have these prefitted. If you have this type of vivarium you need to also purchase a light guard that can fit onto the bulb fitment ensuring your beardie doesn't climb onto the light, burning itself.
The wattage of the light also needs to be carefully considered. Generally smaller enclosures require a smaller wattage, 50, 75 and 100 watts are good standards although larger cages may need 150w. It is also important to remember glass will not insulate the enclosure as well as wooden sided vivariums, therefore may require a higher wattage. The best thing to do is to ask your local pet store on the specifics of your tank, going from there you can experiment until you are satisfied. This also emphasizes the need to set up your vivarium and running it for a bit to see what needs changing and so on.
Lastly, UV lighting is needed for Beardies. Without proper lighting your beardie cannot manufacture the vitamins he needs from food. This can cause serious implications for your Beardie. Usually a UV light strip, manufactured especially for use in vivariums, is put at the centre toward the top back of the vivarium, allowing even light dispersal. The light is usually powered by a starter unit, which allows you to power the light as well as mount it. Some vivariums come with them already fitted and some, such as glass vivariums can have special units that fit on the top of the mesh.
The light itself should be around 10.00 UV level, if you are unsure when buying it is best to ask! The light should be replaced around every six months to ensure its UV output is still at optimum levels. To replicate the environment that a beardie is naturally in you should keep both the basking lamp and fluorescent light on for no more than 14 hours. In the winter months this should be decreased to around 12 hours. After this 'day' period you should turn off the fluorescent light and either dim or turn off the basking light. It is generally better to dim the basking light so there is still some heat being produced in the basking area. You can buy a range of timers and dimmers for this purpose although they are not necessary as you can just turn it off manually.
Cage decor for the Beardie
Beardies require only the most basic decor, substrate, water bowl and somewhere to hide and climb. However you may prefer to create a more stimulating environment both for you and your beardie!
Substrate is the most important thing. It should be carefully considered, there are many different opinions on substrate types, so you should generally use your good sense when choosing. It is important to remember the age of the beardie, fine substrates can be swallowed easily and cause impaction in young lizards. You also need to keep in mind how clean the substrate will be, how easy will it be for you to spot clean? Also, substrate should not be more than an inch thick, as this will stop the heat mat from working properly.
Generally people use sand for older beardies, it is easy to clean and looks natural. There are several types of sand, from calcium sand to fine 'repti-sand'. Which one you use is up to you and how well your beardie responds to it.
You can also consider shelf liner, reptile carpet or newspaper, especially for younger Beardies as it reduces the risk of impaction. However it doesn't look as nice and some people have disputed the cleanliness of such materials, as they can be difficult to clean.
Some people even use ceramic tiles or large slate pieces, although they don't look as good they are easy to clean and heat up rather well under the basking light. However it is important to keep in mind the change to temperature it may cause. As a general rule you should do as much research on substrate and try to decide what you feel is the best for you and your beardie.
After you have decided on substrate you need to now focus on other essentials, like water bowls. The water bowl should be big enough for your beardie to get in but not deep enough for it to not be able to get out again! Some people use large ceramic dog bowls, which are easy to clean. You can also purchase resin bowls, which are also easy to clean and tend to be moulded to look like rocks, enhancing the enclosure's look. It is again, down to personal preference. The positioning of the bowl is important. It needs to be positioned at the coolest end of the vivarium, to ensure the gradient is maintained. You may also want to purchase feeding bowls, in order to contain insects and other foods stuffs.
Another essential is a hiding spot for your beardie. This can be anything from pieces of cork bark and mopani/bogwood carefully and securely stacked, to shaped hides, made from resin, wood or similar materials. This, again, needs to be put at the coolest end of the vivarium as most lizards when hiding prefer to be cool and temperatures inside the hide will rise if put too close to the basking lamp.
Additional decor isn't needed, but will make the enclosure a lot nicer for both you and your pet. Things such as plastic plants, branches, slate and rocks can be placed to provide areas for climbing, basking and hiding. Be careful not to put live plants in, as they may be harmful. You should also try to buy wooden branches, as they will be free from pests. When placing decor keep in mind that Beardies are can be heavy and so items should be secure and no sharp edges present.
Cleaning your Beardies Enclosure
Having a clean enclosure is very important, dirty conditions will lead to disease and general discomfort for your pet as well as putting you at risk.
It is important you spot clean. When you see 'deposits' or loose skin from shedding you should safely remove it and any affected bedding. If any of the decor becomes soiled you should clean it with a lizard safe disinfectant and rinse with water.
Food and water bowls should be cleaned daily with lizard safe disinfectant and rinsed thoroughly.
You should completely clean the vivarium at least every three months, completely changing the substrate, cleaning the decor and vivarium with disinfectant and rinsing with water.
Feeding your Beardie
Careful consideration should go into your bearded dragons diet, as it will largely determine the health of you pet. Bearded dragons will eat a mixture of vegetables and live insects. If you are not comfortable feeding insects, you should consider if a lizard is the best choice for you as ultimately you need to think of it's health first.
If you are okay with feeding live insects, feeding time can be a fun and rewarding experience.
Firstly you need to understand how much a bearded dragon likes to eat. They have high metabolisms and therefore should have food available for the majority of the time. This can come in the form of mealworms, dried food and vegetables, with things such as crickets or locusts completing the diet. You should never leave insects such as locusts or crickets in the enclosure for a long time as they will nibble your pet, causing annoyance and pain.
You also need to provide fresh water everyday. Although desert creatures, they need water. Some of this is obtained through food although they will enjoy the very occasional misting of water.
When feeding your dragon, it is best to give it no more food than can be consumed within 10 minutes, with the exception of vegetation, which can be left in for the day. Insects should be removed after 10-15 minutes and vegetation and dry foods removed at the end of the day.
A young bearded dragon should be fed on small amounts of small brown crickets 2-3 times a day. Mealworms should be excluded from their diet at this stage. This is the same for young or 'sub' adult beardies. When feeding crickets, they should be no bigger than the size of the gap in between their eyes.
Young Beardies can also be fed on commercial foods, specially formulated for young bearded dragons. This should be fed in accordance to the manufacturer's instructions.
An adult Beardie can be fed larger crickets, 2-3 times a day. They may also be willing to take locusts. New foods can be introduced to the adult Beardie, including mealworms, which can be left in a suitable bowl in the enclosure. Wax worms can also make a delicious treat for your Beardie, however they should be given in moderation, both to stop selective eating and weight gain!
Adult bearded dragons will also love to eat vegetables; spring greens are a particular favourite. Make sure you wash any vegetables you provide, ensuring any pesticides or preservatives have been removed.
You can also feed manufactured dry foods formulated especially for adult beardies and always in accordance with the manufacturers instructions.
Shedding in Beardies
As your Bearded Dragon grows, it will shed its skin. During this time it may be less inclined to be 'active' and may dislike being held. It is important that you don't pull or try to 'help' you pet shed. It is quite capable of rubbing it off on decor items within its enclosure. Unlike snakes, the skin will fall off in parts, so don't be alarmed! If you think it's having trouble shedding you can give it a light mist with some lukewarm water.
Problems you may encounter
Beardies rarely encounter problems if kept properly, however if your beardie does become ill this will help you to know what to do next!
Impaction
This comes from the beardie eating too much or eating fine substrates or other foreign objects, such as sand, plastic plants, small pebbles and so on. Signs include loss of appetite, sluggish behaviour, bloated or discoloured abdomen, hiding away and not passing stools. It can, in early stages, be solved by firstly removing any possible causes, reducing food and bathing for 10-15 mins in warm (not hot) water everyday to encourage the lizard to pass stools and the blockage.
If symptoms persist you should seek veterinary treatment.
Mites
Caused by unsanitary conditions, infection from external causes or contact with other infected animals or objects. It is more common on wild caught specimens. Signs include the beardie rubbing on items, scales looking 'lifted' and small brown, white, tan or black specks embedded between scales. You may also see 'specks' running over the surface, particularly near the vent, eyes, mouth and joints. Usually a pre-prepared solution, applied as directed gets rid of the mites on the animal. You should also do a complete clean of the cage and bedding, making sure to soak decor in hot water and buy new bedding. You should also try to find the source of the problem and deal with it accordingly.
Sometimes the problem can be more persistent, in which case treatment from a vet may be required.
Injuries
Sometimes, through climbing or if kept together, fighting, your pet may sustain an injury. A little iodine applied to minor injuries can ensure no infection happens, although it is generally better to seek veterinarian advice. You should always seek a vet's advice for breaks and larger injuries.
Tail/Scale rot
Caused by keeping the enclosure too wet or by keeping the lizard in unsanitary conditions. Symptoms include blackening of the area, softening of the skin and general unhealthy appearance. You should clean the Beardies enclosure and make sure it is kept dry. Because this is an infection a vet's advice should be sought.
Coccidia
This is a intestinal parasite, rarely contracted by captive bred Beardies, however in the case of your pet contracting it you will see sluggish behaviour, diarrhoea, bloating of the abdomen and fluid loss (characterized by 'wrinkly' skin that sticks as wrinkles and appears baggy) You should consult your vet if this occurs.
Metabolic bone disease (MBD)
Rare in well looked after specimens, this comes from ongoing poor nutrition and inefficient lighting exposure (lack of UV) it will cause softening of bone tissue, particularly in jaw tail and spine. It will cause bones to break easily and slow the rate of growth. The only cure for this is usually prevention, which is why it is important to give your pet the correct nutrition. If you have acquired a specimen with MBD you should seek a vets advice."
Bearded dragons can make wonderful pet lizards, with fantastic and fascinating behaviours they are often sold as the perfect 'beginner' lizard. However much care and thought should be put into buying one as a pet. As with all lizards, they are a long-term commitment and have specialist requirements, which need to be understood.
Bearded dragons originate from Australia; although many of the Bearded Dragons sold are captive bred, meaning they are generally healthier specimens. The lifespan of a Beardie is usually around 7 years, which is why careful consideration must be put into owning one! Due to their natural habitats they are terrestrial creatures that like to occasionally climb. They are generally docile creatures that show a lot of expression through body language, so they can be fascinating to watch. They are also one of the few lizards that will tame nicely and some can become quite friendly toward their owners, however you should still keep in mind that they usually prefer their own space.
Housing a Beardie
Bearded dragons are endothermic, like all lizards, meaning they take their heat from their surroundings. With this in mind their enclosure needs to have adequate space and placement to allow them to regulate their temperature. The vivarium itself should be around 36 Inches to 42 inches long and of no less than 18 to 24 Inches widthways. The height should be adequate to place decor and allow the Beardie to climb, so a height of around 18 to 24 Inches should be available.
There are several types of vivarium available, from the usual ply board and sliding glass door type to the all glass type. Either is sufficient, however the wooden types tend to keep heat in more effectively and reduce stress as the wooden sides don't create reflection like glass vivariums and create secluded corners for your pet to retreat to. However some glass vivariums come with metal mesh on the top and ventilation on the doors, allowing for better air movement than the wooden types.
Whatever type of vivarium you choose, placement in your home is important and should be carefully considered before buying. The vivarium should not be placed in draughts or next to radiators, not should it be placed in direct sunlight. All these things will change the temperature of the enclosure and this can lead to problems with your pet. It should also be placed somewhere quiet, where there isn't a lot of 'traffic' or noise either from people or household appliances. Lastly, careful consideration should be put into whether the vivarium is accessible to other pets or younger children who may be overly inquisitive! This also brings about the last point, always make sure the vivarium is secured, either with it's own locking system or a traditional 'viv lock'!
Heat and lighting
Beardies require a temperature gradient of around 30-35 degrees Celsius at the hottest end and 20-25 degrees Celsius at the coolest end. A basking spot reaching around 40 degrees Celsius is also needed. Creating this gradient is the key to beardie success as it governs all of their habits and workings.
So how do you create the correct temperature gradient for a Bearded Dragon? Well, it partly depends on the type of vivarium you have. The main tools of heating are a heat mat (regulated with a thermostat) and a basking spotlight (in addition to UV lighting).
The general method for creating this gradient means putting a heat mat under the substrate at one end of the vivarium, it should cover around half of the vivarium floor. The heat mat works on infrared and will literally heat the substrate and therefore your lizard. A thermostat is usually required to control the heat mats output, avoiding it from getting too hot, as the heat mat needs to stay on all of the time. You should also place a thermometer at each end to check the gradients.
At the same end a basking light should be mounted. This will provide your lizard the area of concentrated heat it needs as well as heating the air in the vivarium, known as 'ambient heat. How you mount the bulb will depend on the type of vivarium you have. Glass vivariums presuming they have a mesh top can simply have the bulb and lighting unit stood on top of the vivarium. Some vivariums have special units that can clip onto the top. If your vivarium is wooden you can use a standard light fitment and affix the bulb to the wood, inside the enclosure. Sometimes the wooden type vivariums have these prefitted. If you have this type of vivarium you need to also purchase a light guard that can fit onto the bulb fitment ensuring your beardie doesn't climb onto the light, burning itself.
The wattage of the light also needs to be carefully considered. Generally smaller enclosures require a smaller wattage, 50, 75 and 100 watts are good standards although larger cages may need 150w. It is also important to remember glass will not insulate the enclosure as well as wooden sided vivariums, therefore may require a higher wattage. The best thing to do is to ask your local pet store on the specifics of your tank, going from there you can experiment until you are satisfied. This also emphasizes the need to set up your vivarium and running it for a bit to see what needs changing and so on.
Lastly, UV lighting is needed for Beardies. Without proper lighting your beardie cannot manufacture the vitamins he needs from food. This can cause serious implications for your Beardie. Usually a UV light strip, manufactured especially for use in vivariums, is put at the centre toward the top back of the vivarium, allowing even light dispersal. The light is usually powered by a starter unit, which allows you to power the light as well as mount it. Some vivariums come with them already fitted and some, such as glass vivariums can have special units that fit on the top of the mesh.
The light itself should be around 10.00 UV level, if you are unsure when buying it is best to ask! The light should be replaced around every six months to ensure its UV output is still at optimum levels. To replicate the environment that a beardie is naturally in you should keep both the basking lamp and fluorescent light on for no more than 14 hours. In the winter months this should be decreased to around 12 hours. After this 'day' period you should turn off the fluorescent light and either dim or turn off the basking light. It is generally better to dim the basking light so there is still some heat being produced in the basking area. You can buy a range of timers and dimmers for this purpose although they are not necessary as you can just turn it off manually.
Cage decor for the Beardie
Beardies require only the most basic decor, substrate, water bowl and somewhere to hide and climb. However you may prefer to create a more stimulating environment both for you and your beardie!
Substrate is the most important thing. It should be carefully considered, there are many different opinions on substrate types, so you should generally use your good sense when choosing. It is important to remember the age of the beardie, fine substrates can be swallowed easily and cause impaction in young lizards. You also need to keep in mind how clean the substrate will be, how easy will it be for you to spot clean? Also, substrate should not be more than an inch thick, as this will stop the heat mat from working properly.
Generally people use sand for older beardies, it is easy to clean and looks natural. There are several types of sand, from calcium sand to fine 'repti-sand'. Which one you use is up to you and how well your beardie responds to it.
You can also consider shelf liner, reptile carpet or newspaper, especially for younger Beardies as it reduces the risk of impaction. However it doesn't look as nice and some people have disputed the cleanliness of such materials, as they can be difficult to clean.
Some people even use ceramic tiles or large slate pieces, although they don't look as good they are easy to clean and heat up rather well under the basking light. However it is important to keep in mind the change to temperature it may cause. As a general rule you should do as much research on substrate and try to decide what you feel is the best for you and your beardie.
After you have decided on substrate you need to now focus on other essentials, like water bowls. The water bowl should be big enough for your beardie to get in but not deep enough for it to not be able to get out again! Some people use large ceramic dog bowls, which are easy to clean. You can also purchase resin bowls, which are also easy to clean and tend to be moulded to look like rocks, enhancing the enclosure's look. It is again, down to personal preference. The positioning of the bowl is important. It needs to be positioned at the coolest end of the vivarium, to ensure the gradient is maintained. You may also want to purchase feeding bowls, in order to contain insects and other foods stuffs.
Another essential is a hiding spot for your beardie. This can be anything from pieces of cork bark and mopani/bogwood carefully and securely stacked, to shaped hides, made from resin, wood or similar materials. This, again, needs to be put at the coolest end of the vivarium as most lizards when hiding prefer to be cool and temperatures inside the hide will rise if put too close to the basking lamp.
Additional decor isn't needed, but will make the enclosure a lot nicer for both you and your pet. Things such as plastic plants, branches, slate and rocks can be placed to provide areas for climbing, basking and hiding. Be careful not to put live plants in, as they may be harmful. You should also try to buy wooden branches, as they will be free from pests. When placing decor keep in mind that Beardies are can be heavy and so items should be secure and no sharp edges present.
Cleaning your Beardies Enclosure
Having a clean enclosure is very important, dirty conditions will lead to disease and general discomfort for your pet as well as putting you at risk.
It is important you spot clean. When you see 'deposits' or loose skin from shedding you should safely remove it and any affected bedding. If any of the decor becomes soiled you should clean it with a lizard safe disinfectant and rinse with water.
Food and water bowls should be cleaned daily with lizard safe disinfectant and rinsed thoroughly.
You should completely clean the vivarium at least every three months, completely changing the substrate, cleaning the decor and vivarium with disinfectant and rinsing with water.
Feeding your Beardie
Careful consideration should go into your bearded dragons diet, as it will largely determine the health of you pet. Bearded dragons will eat a mixture of vegetables and live insects. If you are not comfortable feeding insects, you should consider if a lizard is the best choice for you as ultimately you need to think of it's health first.
If you are okay with feeding live insects, feeding time can be a fun and rewarding experience.
Firstly you need to understand how much a bearded dragon likes to eat. They have high metabolisms and therefore should have food available for the majority of the time. This can come in the form of mealworms, dried food and vegetables, with things such as crickets or locusts completing the diet. You should never leave insects such as locusts or crickets in the enclosure for a long time as they will nibble your pet, causing annoyance and pain.
You also need to provide fresh water everyday. Although desert creatures, they need water. Some of this is obtained through food although they will enjoy the very occasional misting of water.
When feeding your dragon, it is best to give it no more food than can be consumed within 10 minutes, with the exception of vegetation, which can be left in for the day. Insects should be removed after 10-15 minutes and vegetation and dry foods removed at the end of the day.
A young bearded dragon should be fed on small amounts of small brown crickets 2-3 times a day. Mealworms should be excluded from their diet at this stage. This is the same for young or 'sub' adult beardies. When feeding crickets, they should be no bigger than the size of the gap in between their eyes.
Young Beardies can also be fed on commercial foods, specially formulated for young bearded dragons. This should be fed in accordance to the manufacturer's instructions.
An adult Beardie can be fed larger crickets, 2-3 times a day. They may also be willing to take locusts. New foods can be introduced to the adult Beardie, including mealworms, which can be left in a suitable bowl in the enclosure. Wax worms can also make a delicious treat for your Beardie, however they should be given in moderation, both to stop selective eating and weight gain!
Adult bearded dragons will also love to eat vegetables; spring greens are a particular favourite. Make sure you wash any vegetables you provide, ensuring any pesticides or preservatives have been removed.
You can also feed manufactured dry foods formulated especially for adult beardies and always in accordance with the manufacturers instructions.
Shedding in Beardies
As your Bearded Dragon grows, it will shed its skin. During this time it may be less inclined to be 'active' and may dislike being held. It is important that you don't pull or try to 'help' you pet shed. It is quite capable of rubbing it off on decor items within its enclosure. Unlike snakes, the skin will fall off in parts, so don't be alarmed! If you think it's having trouble shedding you can give it a light mist with some lukewarm water.
Problems you may encounter
Beardies rarely encounter problems if kept properly, however if your beardie does become ill this will help you to know what to do next!
Impaction
This comes from the beardie eating too much or eating fine substrates or other foreign objects, such as sand, plastic plants, small pebbles and so on. Signs include loss of appetite, sluggish behaviour, bloated or discoloured abdomen, hiding away and not passing stools. It can, in early stages, be solved by firstly removing any possible causes, reducing food and bathing for 10-15 mins in warm (not hot) water everyday to encourage the lizard to pass stools and the blockage.
If symptoms persist you should seek veterinary treatment.
Mites
Caused by unsanitary conditions, infection from external causes or contact with other infected animals or objects. It is more common on wild caught specimens. Signs include the beardie rubbing on items, scales looking 'lifted' and small brown, white, tan or black specks embedded between scales. You may also see 'specks' running over the surface, particularly near the vent, eyes, mouth and joints. Usually a pre-prepared solution, applied as directed gets rid of the mites on the animal. You should also do a complete clean of the cage and bedding, making sure to soak decor in hot water and buy new bedding. You should also try to find the source of the problem and deal with it accordingly.
Sometimes the problem can be more persistent, in which case treatment from a vet may be required.
Injuries
Sometimes, through climbing or if kept together, fighting, your pet may sustain an injury. A little iodine applied to minor injuries can ensure no infection happens, although it is generally better to seek veterinarian advice. You should always seek a vet's advice for breaks and larger injuries.
Tail/Scale rot
Caused by keeping the enclosure too wet or by keeping the lizard in unsanitary conditions. Symptoms include blackening of the area, softening of the skin and general unhealthy appearance. You should clean the Beardies enclosure and make sure it is kept dry. Because this is an infection a vet's advice should be sought.
Coccidia
This is a intestinal parasite, rarely contracted by captive bred Beardies, however in the case of your pet contracting it you will see sluggish behaviour, diarrhoea, bloating of the abdomen and fluid loss (characterized by 'wrinkly' skin that sticks as wrinkles and appears baggy) You should consult your vet if this occurs.
Metabolic bone disease (MBD)
Rare in well looked after specimens, this comes from ongoing poor nutrition and inefficient lighting exposure (lack of UV) it will cause softening of bone tissue, particularly in jaw tail and spine. It will cause bones to break easily and slow the rate of growth. The only cure for this is usually prevention, which is why it is important to give your pet the correct nutrition. If you have acquired a specimen with MBD you should seek a vets advice."
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