26 August 2015

How to define beauty?

If we will search a definition of Beauty, we will find that it ‘is the quality of being pleasing, especially to look at, or someone or something that gives great pleasure, especially when looking at it.’ And Girls, did you know that only 2 percent of women would describe themselves as beautiful? Are you in that small sampling? The Dove Campaign asked women and found that:
  • Seventy-seven percent strongly agree that beauty can be achieved through attitude, spirit, and other attributes that have nothing to do with physical appearance.
  • Eighty-nine percent strongly agree that a woman can be beautiful at any age.
  • Eighty-five percent state that every woman has something about her that is beautiful.
Interestingly, the study found that two-thirds of women strongly agree that physical attractiveness is about how one looks, whereas beauty includes much more of who a person is.
Anyway, if you don’t like something in your appearance, you can change it just by using some make-up, but you can’t change yours inside beauty so quickly!

Let me introduce with some of history facts related with beauty tricks!

1. You are not enjoying being in the sun? But still you are doing that because EVERYONE has a tan?! Don’t worry about it anymore. Probably you are a ‘blue blood’ girl. During the human history there was a period that people believed in pale skin as in wealthy elite person. People tried to be so pale that you could see the blue blood veins on their face. If they still had to work outside and got some tan, they just tried to pale themselves by using poisonous titanium paint and colour dye to paint the blue veins.

2.  In order to get the femme fatales and ingenues of the early silent screen to not look washed out under the lights and cameras, people started exaggerating their eyes and lips with make-up. And the rest of America followed suit. Hollywood make-up guru Max Factor turned his work on the set into a massive industry. So the father of make-up – Max Factor!

3. Red lipstick is on a top again? Why not?! Even nurses in World War 2 were made to wear red lipstick, to remind them that they are females before soldiers, and to CALM DOWN male casualties. Although it's since been proven that red lipstick might have the opposite effect.

4. Do you know what is the story of eyebrows fashion?!  A new eyebrow era also started during early films in America. Before, eyebrows had usually been left to the forces of nature. But the straight thin eyebrows of "It" girl, Clara Bow launched brows into the fashion mainstream of the 20th century as flapper chic. Anyway, we are lucky now: we can choose the best style for it by ourselves and we have a big variety of opportunities that also will look pretty.

We are beautiful as we are. Don’t think about negative things in you, just enjoy the life and be a little bit of crazy to reach a fullness of life. To get some inspiration, just watch a video here and let’s start to love ourselves as we are!







19 August 2015

TOP 7 exercises to strengthen your body

Dear girls,
It’s workout time tonight!

Let’s see what we can do and what exercises are considered to be the best for us.
Here you are TOP 7 exercises to strengthen your body.

Obviously, any exercise program depends on the underlying health status of the participant. Be certain that your health is appropriate for exercise prior to attempting a new program.


1.  Interval training: This refers to doing almost any type of exercise at a variable pace. For example, if you are walking or doing push-ups, vary the pace of the exercise. You can walk normally for a minute or so, and then speed up a bit, and then return to normal speed several times. For exercises like push-ups, do a few slowly and do others more quickly and, like walking, repeat these faster and slower intervals several times. Interval training helps the body to adjust its aerobic system (heart rate, breathing, and metabolism) to burn more calories to lose weight and strengthen muscles. While some purists may say interval training is not an exercise, others say yes it is because it is a mind over matter exercise that makes you aware that the body can adapt to increased physical demands that will be required to reach your goals.


2.  Walking: A walk is one of the best exercises to begin with in any exercise program. Men and women can do this together as a calorie-burning cardiovascular exercise. One hour of interval walking can burn about 500 or more calories; it takes about 3500 calories to lose a pound so you could lose a pound for every week you walk for an hour. A word of caution: Beginners should start walking about 5 to 10 minutes at a time and slowly increase their times by about 5-minute intervals to allow the cardiovascular system and muscles time to adapt to the new demands.

 
3.  Squats: This exercise is an excellent calorie burner because squats use the largest muscle groups in the body (quadriceps and hamstrings or the thigh muscles and the gluteals or buttocks). Squats are exercises that consist of an up and down motion of the body that resembles the motion of getting out of a chair. In fact, some trainers suggest that a person new to trying to do squats can practice by getting up and down from a chair. The proper way to begin is to keep your back straight, feet spread apart about shoulder length with both arms extended, knees over the ankles and then go downward with your butt just touching the chair; then return to your original standing position. Eventually, stop using the chair and you'll be doing effective squats. Some people with knee discomfort may be concerned about doing squats; they should check with their doctor or orthopedist but some knee problems result from quadriceps problems and squats may help resolve them. Also, avoid bending your knees to 90 degrees or less.

4.  Lunges: Lunges work the same large muscle groups as the squats, but can work additional leg muscles and improve balance. Lunges are done by taking a big enough step forward that the knee forms about a 90-degree angle. However, you must to keep your spine in a neutral position (upright position, no bending forward). Your trailing leg, at the same time, should have its knee come close to the floor and have the toes accept significant body weight. Then, return to a standing position and repeat with the other leg. After you master the lunge, you can vary the exercise by placing the advanced leg to the right or left to mimic more variable movement, such as the angles you might encounter during a nature hike.

 

5.  Push-ups: The basic push-up is the classic exercise to strengthen the upper body (chest, shoulders, and triceps) and core (abdominal muscles). Beginners can first do push-ups by spreading their fully extended arms slightly more than shoulder width apart with their hands against an unmovable object like the edge of a kitchen countertop. Then bend your elbows until your chest almost touches the edge of the counter op, allowing only your toes to bend and keeping your back and legs in a straight line. Then push your body away from the countertop until your arms are again fully extended. As you progress, you should use lower stationary objects (for example, a stationary bench) and eventually do the push-up with your hands on the floor.


6.  Abdominal crunches: The standard abdominal crunch is an excellent way to strengthen and define those abdominal muscles (commonly termed a “six pack” but not so commonly seen in many men and women!). There are two ways to start; either with you lying on the floor or on a non-slip rug with your hands placed lightly behind your head (never pull your head up with your hands or arms) and with your knees bent so your feet are flat on the floor. Other experts suggest doing the same with your knees bent and your feet not touching the floor. When you keep your feet off of the floor, it helps you avoid arching your back, a problem that can actually weaken the abdominal muscles. The “crunch” is done by not arching the back. The lower back is pushed downward and then contracting the abdominal muscles and tucking in your chin slightly, lift your neck, shoulders, and back off of the floor. Some experts suggest you hold the raised position for a second or so before returning slowly to the starting position. A variation to strengthen and define the oblique abdominal muscles uses the same technique except you must twist your abdomen to the right or left before lifting the head, shoulders, and back. Although many people think the way to lose belly fat is to do crunches, it is not. Belly fat that covers up those “six packs” is reduced by burning more calories than you take in, so, paradoxically, if you want that “six pack” to show, the fluid six packs (beer) must go, along with other caloric foods.

7.  Bent-over row: This exercise can give the last groups of muscles (back and biceps) a good workout. Beginners can start by sitting on a bench, but the exercise is usually done while standing. You should stand with your feet shoulder-length apart, with knees bent, and hips flexed forward at hip level. Tilt the pelvis forward slightly, contract the abdominal muscles, and extend (straighten) the upper back. Hold your hands straight down beneath your shoulders and make a fist. Then flex your elbows so that your forearms and hands come all the way up and in toward your body. Pause for about a second or two, and return your flexed arms to their previously extended position. People soon add small weights instead of just making a fist. However, you don't have to buy anything, just find two similar shaped items that weigh the same (for example, two books or two bottles of a sports drink) and there you have the weights you need!

We wish you good luck during workouts!

12 August 2015

International Youth Day 2015

“In this landmark year, as leaders prepare to adopt a bold new vision for sustainable development, the engagement of youth is more valuable than ever. At this critical moment in history, I call on young people to demand and foster the dramatic progress so urgently needed in our world.”
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon



IHBG invites you to praise youth everyday but especially today, on 12th of August, when we can unite for celebration across the globe  on International Youth Day! This day was endorsed by UN in 1999 after the proposal in the World Conference of Ministers Rosponsible for Youth, Lisbon in 1998

Each year the International Youth Day has a theme and 2015 is all about youth and civic engagement. This topic is very important because in most of the places all over the world young people are either not encouraged or not able to participate in political, economical and social activities. Especially young women.
Young people are energetic and full of ideas and solutions when taken seriously. There are many examples on how young people can contribute to their community and improve life quality to many. One of the brightest examples is Malala Yousafzai that is known worldwide for her work and achievements and she only recently turned 18, Pakistani girl that is not only political and women's right activist but also a proof on what youth is capable of. There are countless other not so famous stories of young people who are improving life of many, fighting poverty and bringing their community towards sustainable development all across the globe. Our task is to create awareness and let young people know that they can be part of a positive change.
The change can be big or it can be small but it is still worth to create it. You can start to build something right here and right now. Just like this blog, few young activists wanted to empower girls and women all over the world to be proud of who they are and they created this blog five years ago and it keeps running, growing and changing because this is what young people do!

Here is a heart touching and inspiration story from South Africa that shows how life can be changed when there is given encouragement and opportunity to a young person.



Inspirational International Youth Day,
Always yours,
IHBG


05 August 2015

How to have a beach body?



Another heatwave is coming to Central Europe and many people survive those hot days by going to the beach, swimming-pool or lake. And every year, starting from the first spring day until the last warm day of the year, girls and women (also boys and men) ask themselves: “How to have a beach body?” or “How to get a beach body in just a few days/weeks?”. There is this pressure by media and society to show the perfect body at the beach. In every TV show, in social medias or in magazines you can learn what to do, what to eat and what to buy (especially those expensive training programs who promote themselves with “perfect” looking bodies). People talk and judge about celebrities and their bodies (“Oh she gained weight”, “Oh she looks too skinny”...) and many girls are influenced by such gossip.


But it can be easy to have a beach body. There are just two simple rules:
           
           1. Have a body
           2. Go to the beach

So girls, in the middle of summer, enjoy yourselves and enjoy your life. You don’t go to the beach to show your body and to expect other people to talk about it. You go there to relax, have fun and cool off. The most important thing is: feel comfortable :)