Athletes have good bodies as they carry out required physical exercise in order to build it. Another great asset is mental stamina.

It is possible to build up mental stamina with training. Mental stamina skills are not simply meant for athletes. They can help musicians, actors, writers, or for those who need them.

It is important to be mentally alert apart from being on good physical shape. One has to make required efforts to build up one’s mental stamina in order to cope up with stressful conditions. Attitude does make a difference and one must make a conscious effort to train one’s mind in order to gain control, over one’s thoughts.

1. Think Positively

Self-confidence is definitely the most important mental characteristic that athletes do require and others as well. Self-confidence does not necessarily emerge from physical ability. One has come across highly-skilled athletes who have lost their self-confidence and have fallen apart.

How do you get more self-confidence? Building self-confidence is indeed a mental exercise that you can practice. One has to try to replace interrupting negative thoughts with positive ones. This improves one’s overall outlook.

2. Use Visualization

Visualization is also a common technique for handling stress. When one is overwhelmed, it is important to imagine as one being calm and a soothing feeling off for a few minutes in order to be able to manage the stress. Some athletes make use of use visualization right before a game order to practice mentally.

One can visualize past achievements and focus on times that one really felt good. It boasts one’s morale.

3. Plan for Setbacks

Things go wrong at times even if one may feel otherwise. Everybody has their own way of coming up. Some sing songs or simply repeat a word. They would like to regain their self-confidence.

One must know what to do when the pressure mounts. One must have a plan in place.

4. Manage Stress

One may feel stressed before a competition. Try techniques such as meditation or progressive muscle relaxation, in which one consciously relaxes each muscle group, from one’s toes to one’s head.

All stress is not bad in fact the fight or flight response can rather push one harder during an athletic competition.
Positive stress (excitement) and negative stress (anxiety) really do have the same physical effects. One’s heart rate and breathing do go up. One’s pupils dilate.

The difference is how one experiences these effects. If excitement before the competition does get one amped up, it is considered to be good. One must try to gain control over one’s stress.

5. Sleep More

Not only does sleep help athletes physically, but it also allows one’s body time to repair itself after a workout — but it also has mental benefits. Studies have shown that getting sufficient sleep can improve one’s reaction time and help in making split-second decision making.

Mental stamina development is essential in order to be successful in one’s life. Both in personal as well as professional lives, one needs it.

Women do gain weight after 40. They may have been slim when young, but as they grow older they tend to put on weight.

1. Hormonal Imbalance:

This is indeed the most obvious reason why women do start gaining weight after the age of 40. This is the peri-menopause stage when the ovaries start reducing their production of estrogen. With reduced estrogen, the body also tends to retain fat, so that it can maintain normal hormonal balance and this leads to weight gain.

2. Reduced Levels of Progesterone:

As women approach menopause, the body does reduce the production of progesterone. While reduced levels of progesterone do not cause one to gain fat, they do contribute to bloating and water retention which does add to one’s weight and also gives one a shock when one weighs oneself.

3. Increased Appetite:

Hormone levels changes do increase one’s appetite and hunger. This will indeed cause one to eat more than normal and as we all know, overeating is one of the main reasons for weight gain.

4. Aging:

As one grows older metabolism slows down. Unfortunately, every single woman does experience this problem. Once the metabolism slows down, one’s body does burn fewer calories and one will end up accumulating unwanted fat around one’s waist.

5. Insulin Resistance:

After crossing 40, in case one’s diet consists of white sugar and processed foods, one’s body cells to become resistant to insulin. This causes one’s body to store fat, thus resulting in weight gain. Of course, this is something to worry about as insulin resistance does lead to Type 2 diabetes.

6. Stress:

Women cross their 40s do have to cope up with more stress. They are worried about their kids, retirement and possibly health. When one is stressed, one’s adrenal glands will indeed produce cortisol to combat the stress. Unfortunately, while one’s body is able to cope with stress, cortisol does prevent weight loss, so most efforts to lose those extra pounds are of no use.

7. Your Body Composition:

As women near menopause, they do lose muscle mass but also retain body fat. Initially, one will not notice a difference in one’s weight, but as the body loses more muscle mass, the basal metabolism does slow down. One starts gaining fat all over one’s body, resulting in weight gain.

8. Lack of Appropriate Physical Activity:

Most women, after they cross 40, do not indulge in an intense physical activity which helps burn calories in order to reduce body fat. As one lowers the intensity of exercises and physical activities, women put on weight like never before.

9. Poor Eating Habits:

Once women cross the age of 40, their lives to become more complicated. They do worry about work, aging parents and kids. They are busy managing different aspects of their lives and many women tend to skip meals or do not pay much attention to what they are eating. As a result, they overeat or consume larger portions that normally do cause them to put on weight.

10. Medications:

Many women face health problems after the age of 40 and take prescription medications. Many of these cause weight gain. These include anti-depressants as well as corticosteroids.