Yahoo! UK & Ireland Answers blog

New Year’s resolutions, the promises we make to ourselves to truly improve our lives, are some of the hardest to keep. And as we reach the end of 2007’s first month, we all know the pressure of sticking to your gym sessions or avoiding the lure of chocolate bars.

Targets that should have lasted the whole year are broken after a month by over half the people who make them. So why do we bother if we’re just going to stumble at the first hurdle? Answers user Starting Over thinks it’s best to start on a positive note. “It shows hope for the New Year, hope that things can change and get better.”

Overindulging at Christmas is probably the reason why most people decide to beat the bulge and get fit. To do that, will power and self-discipline are what Gallagher G recommends: “they make a great difference in everyone’s life, and bring inner strength, self mastery and decisiveness.”

For some people, it’s not about not wanting to achieve their fitness goals more a question of not knowing how. Highlandandrew doesn’t know how to spend his time at the gym. Luckily Mfactor has some tips: “you need to do a whole body routine. Pick one exercise per body part and do three sets on each… Ignore anyone who tells you weight training will make you bulky, muscle burns more calories.”

Whereas, Ms_jaffa_cake has questions about food: “I want to be more toned but are there any foods/meats that I should be eating a lot of to move the process along faster?” K_K proposes sticking to a low-fat diet: “low-fat chicken is definitely good, so are egg whites, turkey and other foods with protein.”

How many of us are familiar with the phrase: “I’m going to quit?” Probably too many of us; it’s heard all too often. But like Roxy found, once you’ve located something to deeply motivate you, saying ‘no’ to nicotine isn’t as hard as it seems.

Sticking to your resolutions is a far greater challenge than making them but Answers is a good source of tips. Lolo shared some great advice when she said: “instead of planning on how I am going to change, I visualize that change as if it has already happened”.

Johann_lucas2008 faces the common problem of quickly forgetting his goals, but luckily Dreamsong67 has jumped in with the simple recommendation of keeping resolutions realistic. Contributing to charities might be more within your grasp than wanting to become the next Superman!

Whether it be pasting post-it notes around the house or support from the Answers community, lets hope you find what it takes to stick to your goals and make 2007 successful.

– Yahoo! UK & Ireland Answers team

There are many reasons people use Yahoo! Answers. Some come with questions they can’t find answers to while others, who enjoy sharing their personal experience and first-hand knowledge, come with answers. Still others simply like to chime in with their random, oddball, and obscure facts.

There are many people on Answers who’ve passed on some wonderful knowledge through their questions and answers. Sometimes members go above and beyond the call of duty to give advice and share knowledge, and in the process, become integral members of the community. Some of these people we have turned the spotlight on as our weekly featured users, including our resident nurse Dumplingmuffin, wine connoisseur Pontac, or Irish tutor Alpha.

However, it is not only our featured users that have stories to tell – some of you have your own stories to tell around how Answers has changed the way you work, play or lead your lives. We want to hear how!

We all have questions we want to ask and we’re all experts at something that can pass along our valuable knowledge. So why do you use Answers and how has it changed your life? Do let us know: y_answrs_team_uk@yahoo.co.uk

–Yahoo! UK & Ireland Answers team

There really is no shortage of quality users on Yahoo! Answers, as once again, we congratulate an expert with over 7,000 points: Mick! While terms like ‘muffler’ and ‘gasket’ may not mean much to a lot of us, 50 years of working in the motor industry has meant Mick knows his four-wheeled field. It comes as no surprise then, that he spends most of his time in the Cars and Transportation category, explaining to fellow drivers why their car valves might bend or what exactly an intercooler is.

As well as understanding a car’s engine like the back of his hand, Mick has also gained enough experience to advise others on the best way to service their vehicle, while at the same time enabling Answers users to be watchful of scams.

The brand or make of the car isn’t a problem for Mick when answering questions and neither is the age. In fact, he has a deeper interest in vintage cars than with new ones, as he explains: “I miss the individuality of a particular car… because of CAD systems all mass produced cars look alike. Although cars are much more reliable now I miss the looks and sounds of yesterday”. This is why he is even able to offer answers for people wanting to trace the roots of their old cars.

So next time you’re left scratching your head over why your car is refusing to start, post your worries in the Maintenance and Repairs category, and who knows, maybe Mick will be on hand with some of his handy hints.

Thank you for all your great answers Mick and here’s hoping you never put a brake on them!

– Yahoo! UK & Ireland Answers team

Amid all the snow that has landed on much of the UK, spare a thought for our furry friends outside in hutches and burrows. Yes, it’s National Rabbit Week, a celebration that includes seven days of “Healthy Hopper” rabbit MOTs, pet shop promotions and the Bradford Excel Small Livestock Show. Answers has lots of avid rabbit enthusiasts, asking and answering in the pets category so we thought we’d also mark the week here on Answers too.

Answers user Kangaroo has a rabbit and is curious whether their coats change colour in the winter. It’s a topical question, given today’s cold weather. “My lionhead rabbit was a browny-grey colour when I got him in October. Now he is completely grey with black around the top of his head. Is it because he’s getting older or is it a winter coat?”

Thankfully Devilishblueyes has the answer: “Dark coloured rabbits such a black rabbits will tend to get a brownish tint to their fur due to the sun hitting their fur. During the winter the sun isn’t as intense. When the rabbit gets it’s winter coat and all of the fur that has been tinted brown by the sun has moulted out, the rabbit’s true fur colour shows.”

Pamrats wanted to know about “house” rabbits and whether they make good pets. Nix C is quick to explain that it depends on your rabbit’s natural temperament. “If you have a natural chewer … you may want to keep it outside. Even if they don’t chew you will need to make sure all wires are kept out of their reach or in cable protectors… They are programmed to chew through roots which are in their way, and wires=roots!”

Paul.sperring1 has another issue: his rabbit is grumpy! Yes, while somehow rabbits give off the impression of being at all time docile and friendly animals, clearly even they get out of the wrong side of the hutch now and then. “He doesn’t like to be picked up and gets very stressed. He only likes to be stroked if he approaches me and he will often make a sort of growling noise and box me away with his paws,” explains Paul.

CanineHeroTahoe has an interesting answer: it turns out rabbits don’t like being picked up very much. “The rest of the behaviour isn’t unusual either, but you can work on it… Sitting on the floor while he is out in the room and letting him come to you can be very beneficial… Another idea may be to get a second rabbit. It’s good that your guy is neutered – a spayed female could be a great companion.”

So, got a question of your own for National Rabbit Week? Ask it on Yahoo! Answers or simply browse the pets category. Either way, to our furry friends everywhere: this week’s dedicated to you.

– Yahoo! UK & Ireland Answers team

“How would the world be different if people began to follow their dreams?” – Paulo Coelho

This week we are featuring a question from award winning author Paulo Coelho. Originally from Brazil, Paulo has written close to 20 books, many of which have topped international best seller lists. His works have been translated into 62 languages and are sold in 150 countries.

Paulo spent much of his life pursuing the ideas of spirituality and religion and his best known book ‘The Alchemist’ is about a young boy who achieves spiritual enlightenment after travelling the world in order to fulfil his dreams. This has been the influence to the question he is posing to the Answers community: “How would the world be different if people began to follow their dreams?”

This quote from the book adds an extra dimension to this great writer’s question: “No heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams, because every second of the search is a second’s encounter with God and with eternity.”

What is your dream? How would following it change your life and the lives of those around you? Ponder that a while and then give your perspective on taking the steps to turn dreams into reality.

–Yahoo! UK & Ireland Answers team