HRB Men's Lifestyle Magazine - Winter 2017

ISSUE 40

WINTER 2016

HOW CAN THE COMPETE WITH

USA PAGE 10

BRANDON

COOK ANOTHER BIG FIGHT WON

EXERCISES THAT’LL IMPROVE YOUR

LOVE LIFE PAGE 22

COVER s ’ e h S LOVE

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DATING EVERY

GUY TIPS SHOULD KNOW

LOOKING FOR

SEE

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INSIDE

WHY YOU SHOULD

ALWAYS GET A MCLAREN

FASTEST CARS IN THE WORLD

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PRENUP PAGE 24

MISS january 2

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There’s a woman out there for you and you’ll change her life - because she will undoubtedly change yours!

MISS JANUARY is ready for someone to change HERS !

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Russian and Ukrainian women are known throughout the world for their beauty, inside and out! Earnestly searching for the ‘love of her life’, MISS DECEMBER is hoping she’ll find her match soon.

CONTENTS

6 COVER single & Looking For Love 10 EXPOSE COMPETING WITH CHINA 14 $uCCE$$ WHY YOU NEED A SUCCESSION PLAN 18 FEATURE meet MISS DECEMBER 22 HEALTH KEEP HER HAPPY WITH KEGELS 24 MARRIAGE IS A PRENUPTIAL FOR YOU? 26 FINANCE YOU’LL PROBABLY NEVER RETIRE 28 TRAVEL VISITING KIEV, UKRAINE 30 FEATURE meet MISS JANUARY 34 FEATURE meet MISS FEBRUARY the

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WHAT’S IN THIS ISSUE?

Men want to be kept informed & up-to-date on what’s important to them so once again we’ll be reporting on sports, politics, cars, fitness, health, leisure, rock’n roll, vices, travel, technology and of course, exotic, single Russian & Ukrainian women seeking romance.

IN

ISSUE

Gregor MacGregor Publisher

Gregor MacGregor

TABLE O F CONTENTS

Publisher

CONTINUED...

Hunter G. Chivas

Co-Publisher

Holly DeLoach

Editor

MCLAREN P1

Amy Pearson

Social Media Marketing

FASTEST Cars IN THE WORLD

Paul Cookson

Sales & Distribution

38 MOTIVE 48 SIGHT 50 ROCK‘ 52 DATING 54 HEALTH 56 ST Y LE 60 SPORTS 66 WOMEN 72 FASHION 82 DATING AUTO

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THE LEGENDARY FAST & SEXY M C LAREN P1

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WHY CEO’S LOVE RUSSIAN WOMEN

N : ROLL

ANTONIO MAC

WOMEN DESIRE ’STYLISH’ MEN

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RUSSIAN WOMEN

FINDING LOVE ON DATING SITES

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TODAY WITH ‘THE WEEKND’

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HOW TO ENTERTAIN YOUR DATE

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WANT TO GET RID OF BACK PAIN?

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THE INFAMOUS ‘LITTLE BLACK DRESS’

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BOXING’S NEW CHAMPION - BRANDON COOK

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RUSSIAN LADIES ARE LOOKING TO MEET YOU !

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WOMEN NOTICE MEN WEARING ANTONIO MAC

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HOW TO SUCCEED WITH RUSSIAN WOMEN ONLINE

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ON THE COVER

AGE: 36 HEIGHT: 5'-4" HAIR: BLONDE EYES: GRAY 6

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ntroducing our Winter 2017 Cover Girl!

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Introducing HomeMadePie, this issue’s cover girl. A blond bomb shell on the outside, on the inside - this woman is also golden. Her friends describe her as kind, willing to help others, to lend a hand to her loved ones when they need her. She takes care of those around her, always ready to bolster and support them.

This woman is a real catch - she’d spice up anyone’s life, always ready to learn new things and spread positive energy.

HomeMadePie’s zodiac sign is Gemini, and like other Geminis - she is energetic, clever, imaginative and adaptable. Exciting and interesting to be around, one can never be bored in HomeMadePie’s company! She is open-minded, progressive and interested in adventure. For work, HomeMadePie has experience as an Administrator, but despite her worldly, businesswoman ways, she still believes in love at first sight, in meeting her destiny and finding true love. Being 36 years old,

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she still describes her heart as “very tender,” and when she falls in love, she wants it to be forever.

HomeMadePie hails from the city of Odessa by the Black Sea in southern Ukraine, where she works everyday, having to communicate with many different people. But she also knows how to enjoy herself, loving art, home decoration, antiques and shopping to improve her mood. Although surrounded by people, HomeMadePie still searches for the love of her life; someone who is positive, kind, attentive and responsible. But she won’t settle for boring—HomeMadePie is also looking for a passionate, romantic partner, someone as exciting as herself. Someone to eventually call her best friend and companion in life.

HomeMadePie—like her alias suggests—wants to make a home, and maybe even pie! She desires to create a family with a mature soul, someone who’ll sweep her off her feet, change her life—because she’s planning on changing his!

‘HomeMadePie’ on www.hotrussianbrides.com ®.

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Competing with China in the New World Economy 1 0

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The fiscal slide in North America began when unions became so powerful they literally started feeding upon their own.

Today, one thing is becoming clear to anyone with a finger on the pulse of North America’s economy. It is that a shift has taken place across the world’s financial landscape. Gone are the days of investors playing by the rules set down in the early ’70s. These principles that allowed North America to prosper for decades have seen its gradual decline during the last economic downturn.

China, however, seems to have not only taken the lead; it has rewritten the rules to suit its newfound prosperity. In its slow but deliberate climb up the ladder to becoming a new world superpower, it has taken no prisoners.

If we look at commerce from a historical perspective, the U.S first became a superpower towards the end of World War II. Its brilliant strategy was enacting a bill passed by Congress called the Lend Lease Act. This arrangement supplied the allies with munitions, air, sea and land vehicles as well as raw materials needed to engage the enemy. In simpler terms; Lend Lease essentially indebted England and many allied countries for decades.

When the smoke cleared, Britain was up to its eyes in debt while the North American economy flourished throughout most of the 1950s. Canada certainly benefited as well, through its resources being sold to manufacturers feeding the war machine.

When the 1970’s emerged, there began a very gradual change; one that’s effects are still felt in the present.

China plays by its own set of rules. It essentially undercuts western industry through lower prices, as well as higher efficiency.

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The result was a massive restructuring, funded by federal bailouts. GM shed its manufacturing model at the cost of three brands. Factories were either revamped or closed, with thousands of workers thrust into the unemployment lines.

Within all this monetary chaos, GM found its salvation by relocating. The main benefactors were South America and Mexico. This move took advantage of a workforce that was not only less expensive, there were no unions.

This saved GM while enabling their factories to work employees much harder.

In contrast, China already ran their operations this way So while America struggled to keep up, China simply opened up its markets to expansion; assigning its greatest resource, the workforce, to ramp up world exports.

China also has a very important resource; rare earth minerals. China has 97% of the world’s supply. What this

...WHILE AMERICA STRUGGLED TO KEEP UP, CHINA SIMPLY OPENED UP ITS MARKETS TO EXPANSION; ASSIGNING ITS GREATEST RESOURCE, THE WORKFORCE, TO RAMP UP WORLD EXPORTS

It was in that decade that President Nixon introduced the Economic Stabilization Act. His intent was to boost employment while ensuring America was economically attractive. This one piece of legislation yielded a platform that resulted in a slow spiral into the turbulent financial environment that exists today.

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Take GM. It had, through union agreements with its workers, an obligation to continue paying for a workforce sect where jobs no longer existed. Operations became so costly that keeping financially solvent became a game of Peter robbing Paul.

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means is that China can set the price; as well as deny supply. Without this commodity, most of the electronics

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we use could no longer be manufactured.

time it’s helping to fiscally injure its home country’s economic base.

Labour relations through the laws passed to protect workers are instrumental in killing profits in North America. So much so that it’s become next to impossible to enter the workforce in most positions as a full-time employee.

Another issue is the Baby Boomers.

They’re exiting the workforce; while drawing pensions have become a large drain on pecuniary resources. As well, health care needs are becoming harder to absorb as they age. In effect, it’s contributing to empty coffers.

Companies like Wal-Mart offer only casual or part-time positions. The benefit is that they can cut their rosters when needed with minimal cost. This also ensures no benefits offered resulting in further savings.

The problem with this approach is that you have a workforce that cannot afford anything but essentials.

With profits declining in each quarter, many companies are treading water; with no choice but to follow this practice.

Wal-Mart is smart, though. Its strategy is why they are the biggest US retailer. They rely heavily upon Chinese imports to keep costs down. While this might be beneficial, at the same

China never had this problem, and it’s likely that it never will. Unlike its American counterparts, Chinese culture promotes families caring for their elderly parents. This removes almost all the economic drain from China’s monetary pockets.

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So, what’s the solution? One thing that needs addressing is the workforce. In the short-term a manufacturer might enjoy some savings by keeping its workforce fluid instead of static. The repercussion, however, is that this approach seriously limits the buying power of its employees.

Henry Ford knew better. He made

sure his workers could afford a Ford product, and he worked at streamlining operations to help both the company and the workers.

The current trend of outsourced labour to other countries; or worse, importing unskilled labour will only serve in steering corporations into the financial storm brewing in the distance.

To compete with the Chinese, requires businesses to examine how they’ve arrived at their current status. Once they’ve come to their budgetary conclusions, the next step is to find a way to model their own operations to viably compete with China’s product. Increasing a workforce to ramp up product might resolve some of the issues, but it’s not sustainable.

With the U.S election results, new US President Donald J. Trump is using the loss of the once mighty manufacturing industries as a rallying cry to take down China at any cost.

While that may make a powerful sound byte, particularly to those in the unemployment lines, it’s simply not feasible. It’s the reason that China simply has more…period. More money, more clout, more workers, likely more artillery…the list goes on.

The workforce in Asia is less expensive, and with no unions, is a prime destination for manufacturing.

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Donald Trump has recently thrown his political comments into the Detroit crisis, claiming that Ford is making things “horrible” for the autoworkers. He further stated that all the jobs in Detroit would be shifted to Mexico. Mark Fields, Ford’s C.E.O fired back at The Donald that not one single job would be lost to shift of manufacturing sent over to Mexico, and that Ford had created

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WAL-MART...RELY HEAVILY UPON CHINESE IMPORTS TO KEEP COSTS DOWN. WHILE THIS MIGHT BE BENEFICIAL, AT THE SAME TIME IT’S HELPING TO FISCALLY INJURE ITS HOME COUNTRY’S ECONOMIC BASE.

28,000 American jobs in the last five years. He also fired back at Trump: “it’s really unfortunate when politics get in the way of facts”.

During all this, Trump also committed himself to renegotiating NAFTA as well. With this, he committed himself to rebuilding Detroit while restoring jobs in the process. Without missing a beat, he also pulled no punches in telling the attendees that Hilary Clinton was only committed to social programs for illegal aliens and immigrants. He said all this to show his commitment to Detroit’s beleaguered workforce.

He held foreign investors responsible for what ails NAFTA, and stated he’d make things right by tacking on a 35% tax on products imported from Mexico instead of being manufactured in the U.S. The only trump card held by North America is through it’s free trade agreements both secured and possibly explored. With some fair and balanced ratifications made to the existing agreements in North America; coupled with newly negotiated H O T

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pacts elsewhere, a slow but solid foundation could be built. This could well generate a new world order, one focused on growing the economic landscape. Not only for North America, but abroad as well.

On the opposite side of the coin, it’s a well documented fact that Hillary has consistently rubbed the powers that be in China, the wrong way.

With her stance on human rights violations in China, business as well as government have obvious concerns about the future of trade between the two nations.

Despite her two decade long relationship with China, they see her as someone who they need to approach with a jaundiced eye. Trump, while not held up to the level of contempt that Clinton is, generates serious doubts in that nation when it comes to stability and economic fairness.

It’ll be interesting to see how China’s reaction unfolds now that Trump is President China may manufacture more, but BRI D E S®

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it still needs materials in order to make this possible. With the rich resources here in America, it would be practical to reach a well negotiated trade agreement, one that equalizes power and industry between Canada, The U.S and China. Currently, the agreements between North American interests and China are sub par to what would bring fair economic growth to all parties.

As well, what needs to happen is a complete change of approach to operations and manufacturing. Keep in mind that it’s not just exports that a company is looking toward; it is also being able to sell its product domestically to its own workers. This can only work if North America stops excising its assets and begins looking for simpler solutions within its own economy. Quality product at a fair price will bring in the customers.

It’s what made our markets strong in the past. It’s time to review what worked, and how to go about implementing this model into a modern economy.

Only then will we see a positive return in the North American markets.

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B U SINESS high paying, senior jobs to his incompetent children. He was one of those owners who refused to let go and came to work every day to micromanage operations until his death at age 92. Worse, the salaries his kids were getting (which were quadruple the market rate for comparable work) leaked out to the rank and file. It left those employees demoralized and the quality of their work, and ultimately the company’s products and profits, suffered.

Worse, he never formally decided which of his three children would

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You built your business from scratch; started it with a $2,000 loan from a friend who you paid back the first year; sweated the details of every new equipment purchase, new hire and expansion.

In short, that business is your life.

The problem is, you won’t live forever. Nobody does. And if you don’t start making plans about who will someday own and manage your business, it may end up in the hands of people who will destroy your legacy.

You don’t want that.

So, if you’re over 40, start putting some serious thought into your options for business succession today – even if all you do is pull out a clean sheet of paper and set down a few options.

First stop, the kids For many business owners, the logical successors are their children. So look over the brood and ask yourself seriously – very seriously – whether you deem any of them competent to H O T

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take over.

You need to be objective here, since many children raised in the comfort of a home provided by an aggressive entrepreneur tend to take wealth for granted. If you sense entitlement, or if you feel a son or daughter feels they should be inheriting the company simply because of blood ties, look elsewhere for your successor.

But if you do have a kid who has shown genuine interest in the business, then you need to have “the talk.”

Ideally, the child in question has actually worked in the business – and here we’re talking about something more than spending summers in the stockroom. He or she should be working currently in, or preparing for, a role in the managerial side of the company (finance or marketing are good starting places) and be genuinely earning the salary you’re paying.

I once worked for a machine tool company where the owner gave BRI D E S®

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ultimately be in charge if he ever did let go of the reins. This led to infighting among the siblings that further poisoned the atmosphere in the head office and caused many of the company’s competent, non-family, managers to quit.

And down went the spiral.

Five years after the owner died, his unqualified children gave up on their pathetic efforts to run the company and sold it for pennies on the dollar. The private equity firm that bought the company fired everyone, dismantled the plant, and moved the tooling and the jobs overseas. The once proud company is now mocked worldwide for the inferiority of its goods.

You might be tempted to feel sorry for this guy, since he’s probably turning over in his grave. Don’t be.

He made every mistake possible in handing off his business, and reaped what he sowed.

The lesson? Determine whether you have a viable successor among your children. And, if you do, make your intentions about succession clear to both that child and the rest of the family.

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Ownership structures In some cases, your children may want to continue owning the business, but may not wish – or be qualified – to actually run the operation from day to day.

The solution is quite straightforward. First, ensure you have a base of salaried managers who are competent to take over the company.

Second, get a lawyer and draw up paperwork that hands ownership of the company over to the children.

Technically, this is a sale of the company and so some funds or stock shares have to change hands, and the children will have certain tax liabilities.

Those documents should stipulate

give to a child who’s invested a lifetime into freeloading.

Jokes aside, these are tough decisions. You won’t like making them.

But if you fail to do so, and be honest about the reasons for your choices, you’ll leave a legacy of mistrust and bickering among your kids. Invest the time and craft some family unity.

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Sale options Sometimes, none of the children are suitable. Or, like many entrepreneurs, you may want your children to pursue their own dreams rather than taking over yours.

If that’s the case, a sale of the business is your best option.

the children are silent owners who aren’t involved in the company’s operations. And this ownership is more common than you might think. In fact, you probably buy your toothpaste and condiments from companies with famous founder’s names that are, in fact, no longer run by family members.

Your lawyer will also draw up a structure allocating shares of the company to each of the siblings.

Generally, these shares are issued in the form of preferred or common stock. Depending on the company’s structure, these shares may or may not come with voting rights related to decisions made by the company’s board of directors.

Keep in mind that when allocating these shares, there is sometimes a big difference between “fair” and “equal.”

If one of your children works in the business, but does not want to take over, the share structure needs to account for the economic value added by that child’s work. If he’s working hard, not simply drawing a salary, than his share of the company should be greater than what you’d

You have three primary options: i) Sell to your management team – If your existing managers can raise the capital, and have genuine interest in taking over, this can be the best option.

Your existing managers have deep knowledge of the daily operational workings. They’ve seen the books and don’t have to be convinced of the company’s economic viability.

Selling to them means the firm gets handed off to people who know its strengths, weaknesses and goals.

They know where investment is needed and are best equipped to protect the legacy you’ve built.

Even better, your management team already has established working relationships with the company’s customers and suppliers. On balance, it makes for the smoothest transition.

But this isn’t the right option for owners who’ve been keeping secrets. The key to success for this type of sale is that the management team has to be fully integrated with the founder. The books have to be open and managers must have clear knowledge of the company’s assets

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and liabilities. ii) Sell to a Competitor – This can be a hard move to get on board with, but sometimes it’s the right choice.

A competitor will want to buy you out for some combination of these four reasons: • They want to expand, and buying your company is the fastest way to do that, because they take over servicing your customers; • They want access to proprietary technologies, patents, distribution networks, or licensing you’ve developed; • They want to hire away key employees who currently work for you and acquiring your firm speeds that need; or

• They want to eliminate competition by putting you out of business.

While reasons one through three are strong motivators, reason number four is generally the strongest, which makes it hard for a business owner to move forward with this type of transaction. Worse, you can walk away from the bargaining table believing the buyer has conceded to leaving operations as they are, and then find out he’s fired all your prized employees a month later.

Tough medicine. But the reality is that once a company changes hands, it’s fair game for the new owner to do things his own way.

On the bright side, these competitive buyers are most likely to give you the best price for your company.

When the cash to fund your retirement dreams hangs in the balance, it’s best not to get sentimental. iii) Sell the company to a third party – Simply selling to strangers is the right choice for owners who truly believe they’ve taken their business as far as they can, or that it needs

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. . . THE REALITY IS THAT ONCE A COMPANY CHANGES HANDS, IT’S FAIR GAME FOR THE NEW OWNER TO DO THINGS HIS OWN WAY. an injection of capital or corporate know-how they don’t possess.

In other words, you know in your heart that hanging on to the company for too much longer will lead to its downfall. (It also may be that you started the company fully intending to sell it within a few years).

Your best buyers here are private equity firms, or companies that operate in related industries that want to acquire you to gain access to a product you supply or to distribution avenues your firm has established.

For example, you might make highgrade metal tubing and find yourself on the receiving end of a buyout offer from bicycle manufacturer, or a firm that makes heating coils and wants to gain access to the raw materials you work with.

The vertical integration of your product and the buyer’s is a natural fit that saves them costs or ensures consistent supply. Years ago, such vertical mergers were discouraged

by U.S. anti-trust laws. But, regulators rarely take notice of these things anymore.

Valuation Before you can proceed with a sale, though, you have to know what your company is worth. And that number has to be based on things like earn-

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ings, expenses, taxes, depreciating assets, and the quality of your workforce.

It’s not a number you pull out of the air. And you can’t simply go with the conventional “three times annual earnings” formula.

Most business sale advisors tell entrepreneurs to work with professional valuators to come up with a price that property reflects the hard and soft factors (including the owner’s goodwill within the business community) that combine into the number a buyer will pay.

Buyers, meanwhile, will hire their own valuation experts to comb over your operation to arrive at their own number. Generally, third party buyers and competitors will spend the longest going over your books prior to making a solid offer. Be prepared for this.

In rare cases, the business sale advisors you work with may suggest you get prices from two valuation firms. They’ll do this in cases where they think a potential buyer is planning to try and knock down your asking price. Their goal here is to ensure you have independent evaluations in your court. Since a professional business valuation only costs a couple thousand bucks, consider it cheap insurance.

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Selling a Company is a lot of work The other reason to start thinking about a sale or handoff now is that, simply put, it’s time consuming and stressful. And although a sale can come from ‘out of the blue’, it rarely happens. However, I DO know a software developer who got an unexpected offer to buy his firm from a purchaser with ‘deep pockets’ in 2005.

He was only 45, having founded the firm in 1982.

The offer was generous so he accepted, only to face overwhelmingly detailed requests from the acquiring firm’s army of lawyers. In the 23 years he owned the firm, he’d focused on growth, not paperwork. That put him at a disadvantage when the buying party began its due diligence.

It also made it hard to keep running his business. He made the decision to hand off day-to-day operations to his management team, so he could focus on the sale. Luckily, his firm had 80 employees and the management was first class. Had it been a smaller shop, he told me, the sale process might have taken down the ship.

In That arrangement got him to the deal’s close. And, the next morning he started on his next journey – what to do with his time now that he was suddenly retired. But that’s a story for another time.

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FEAT U R E

IN FOCUS

MISS DECEMBER 2016 Charming Lena embraces all things creative and adventurous. As a stylist, she describes herself as gentle, kind, sensitive, open, honest and sincere. She loves to travel and dreams to make her way around the entire globe with her future husband! She has only seen her home country of Ukraine, coming from the nation’s capital of Kiev in the northern central region. She has elementary English skills but can communicate her sense of self through her style, creative mind and sense of integrity.

Her zodiac sign is Aires, and like other Aires she is a leader, 1 8

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independent, generous, optimistic, enthusiastic, and courageous. Lena has never been married but desires children, looking to find a man who’s reliable, honest and sincere.

She says she prefers men who are slightly impulsive as this suits her sense of adventure and bravery!

She also prefers a man with a sense of humor, who takes “people as they are,” and who’ll treat her with kindness and respect. Like herself, this green-eyed damsel seeks someone who can get the best out of this life, mature enough to make MEN’S

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a relationship work, and who can take serious steps towards making a life together. This 28 year-old beauty loves life and looks forward to finding a man to explore the world with! Lena goes by the online username “CharmingLena” and when she’s not styling hair or hanging out with the girls, she can be found on www.hotrussianbrides.com

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H E A LT H

WHAT ARE KEGELS?

Unlike other physical workouts, where one requires enrolling into a gym or buying expensive training equipment, Kegels are much easier to execute, once you target the right muscles. They are deeply rooted in the premise of contracting as well as relaxing the pelvic floor muscles.

Kegels are suitable for females and males since both genders possess a pelvic floor, which is a network of several muscles that hold in place the pelvic organs. Most men opt for this technique as a way of improving their penile or sex health since weak and premature erections can tarnish their ego.

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We all need to understand that this exercise isn’t just for the ladies, and there’s a long list of benefits to males doing them.

Just look for yourself.

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suffering from erectile dysfunction.

COMBATING PREMATURE EJACULATION

Are you tired of the embarrassment of ejaculating before your partner reaches climax? Well, you ought to start Kegel exercises for improved ejaculation control. This is one of the well-known merits of male Kegels. Consistently training the BC and PC muscles assists in improving the ability to hold back from ejaculation just before it is too late. Once you feel the urge to climax, make sure that you contract your muscles in a bid to prevent yourself from ejaculating.

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BOOST THE STRENGTH AND SIZE OF YOUR ERECTION

Kegels have proven to increase the ability to get harder and longer erections. Primarily, this is because they play a significant role in pumping additional blood into the penis. This merit has also shown the ability to restore the erectile function, especially in men RUS S I AN

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THE IMPORTANCE OF KEGELS

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RELAXING THE RIGHT MUSCLES DURING SEX

Some Kegeling beginners often experience quicker ejaculations than before. This is because most of them Kegel unconsciously during sex.

In turn, this drains their PC muscle’s strength. Men suffering from this side effect are not aware that the Kegel exercises should only come in handy just before they get an orgasm. Since lasting longer in bed is facilitated by relaxing the pelvic muscles during sex, the beginner side effect fades away after learning how to relax the appropriate muscles.

IMPROVED EJACULATION FORCE & INTENSE ORGASMS 4

Strengthening the pelvic floor muscles increases the volume of ejaculation. Due to this factor, some men have attained the ability to ejaculate further. Although

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this merit does not serve any practical purpose, it is enjoyable and helps to boost one’s ego. Furthermore, Kegels better your sexual experience and pleasure, as the increased blood flow enhances the sensitivity of the penis.

As a result, you can easily experience more powerful and exciting orgasms.

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IMPROVING OUTCOMES OF INCONTINENCE PROBLEMS

Urinary incontinence or leaks is an embarrassing issue affecting some men. Those affected by this problem experience leaks when sneezing, laughing, coughing or undertaking a strenuous task such as heavy lifting. In men, urinary incontinence mainly emanates from a weak urinary sphincter, which can be caused by an overactive bladder or prostate cancer surgery. People affected by this issue can exercise their pelvic floor muscles to regain bladder control.

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DOING KEGELS THE RIGHT WAY 1

Since Kegels are completely discreet and natural exercises, they can be done anywhere and at any given time. This means that you can comfortably execute your workout while sitting, resting or standing whether indoors or outdoors. Attaining the desired outcomes of male Kegels require you to learn how to do them appropriately. This process involves the following:

IDENTIFYING THE RIGHT MUSCLES

This process serves as the first step to exercising your pelvic floor muscles. In this case, slow down or stop your urine flow mid-stream. Relax the muscles by initiating the urination process again. Doing so will give you a better picture of where your pelvic muscles are located.

Although this method is a proven way of locating your Kegels, avoid engaging in Kegel exercises routinely while urinating to avert the risk of suffering from incontinence related issues such as urine leaks.

If this process is hard for you, you can try to imagine that you are inhibiting the passage of gas. During this process, you will experience a pulling sensation.

The muscles involved in this particular process are the ideal ones for Kegels.

Although Kegels can be performed in any position, most beginners find it more comfortable and easier to do them while laying down. This position minimizes the pelvic floor muscles’ fight against gravity.

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GETTING EFFECTIVE RESULTS FROM KEGELS

Once you have located the pelvic muscles, embark on improving the contraction and relaxation of these muscles. During this process, ensure that you tighten then hold the contraction for about three to five seconds before relaxing for a similar duration.

During your exercises, make sure that you maintain your focus on contracting the pelvic floor muscles only. Hence, do not flex or tense the muscles in your buttocks, thighs or abdomen. You should also breathe freely (in and out) during the workout as opposed to holding your breath.

Make it a habit by doing 3-4 sets of 10 repetitions each day. You also need to be consistent, remember the benefits and keep a keen watch of your progress to make Kegels a healthy habit.

To strengthen your pelvic floor muscles, you need to repeat the contraction and relaxation exercise several times. Once the muscles become stronger, progress to Kegeling when standing, sitting or walking. Doing so adds some weight on the pelvic muscles, which in turn improves your control.

More often, beginners are highly tempted to overtrain their pelvic floor muscles to get better and faster results. This technique is not advisable since the outcomes are mostly counterproductive. You should give your body enough time to recuperate after Kegel exercises to avoid doing more harm than good.

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PERFECTING YOUR KEGELS

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A LITTLE HISTORY

Kegels or pelvic floor exercises are named after Dr. Arnold H. Kegel, a gynecologist. He is credited for initially developing Kegels to reinforce the pelvic-vaginal muscles as a way of controlling women stress incontinence.

Later, Dr. Kegel learned that strengthening the pubococcygeus muscle, which is a sphincteric muscle surrounding the vagina, led to a better female sexual response and satisfying orgasms. Since then, the testimonies of people who have utilized these exercises and medical practitioners have drawn the interest of the male counterparts.

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PRENUPTIALS MAY SAVE YOUR HEIRS

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Get the stars out of your eyes. For men, a marriage is as much a financial contract as it is a romantic one.

Love is beautiful, but you can’t let emotions cause you to ignore statistics about divorce rates. Nor should your feelings prevent you from protecting the assets you’ll be bringing into the marriage – especially if you have children from a previous marriage and want them to inherit some of what you’ve worked for in your life.

A prenuptial agreement is key to ensuring you don’t lose half of your assets in a divorce, and to protect bequests that you want to give to family members or friends when you pass.

Like it or not, each member of a couple brings assets, and sometimes debts, into a marriage. And, at the start of most marriages, one member of the couple is wealthier on the wedding day. The only way to preserve financial harmony, and diffuse feuding among future heirs, is to assign assets and debt responsibilities before the marriage.

Once you say, “I do,” it’s too late.

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What you’re protecting In theory, any assets you accumulate prior to getting married belong to you. Lawyers call these “pre-marital assets” and they can include anything from a house you paid off before meeting your intended spouse, to cars and boats, commercial properties related to a business, and other investments. Do yourself a favor and compile a complete record of these assets two weeks before your wedding and put it on file at your lawyer’s office, just in case.

Your will should spell out who is to get both marital and non-marital assets after you die – especially if you have children. Problem is, not everyone bothers to draft a will because, let’s face it - nobody wants to think about death.

And that’s exactly why you need a prenuptial agreement.

In the absence of a will, most municipal courts will hand a sizable portion of your estate (in some cases all of it) to your current spouse. Your children can sue, but they’ll almost certainly lose.

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It’s a bit trickier to protect assets accumulated after the wedding. If you buy a home together, or she helps with mortgage payments on a home you owned prior to the marriage, she’ll have the right to claim her contribution to the asset’s value (including appreciation) if you get divorced. Typically, a spouse is entitled to half the value of any asset to which she makes a monetary contribution – all the more reason to protect everything you owned prior to tying the knot.

Still, a pre-nup still can protect assets you accumulate during the marriage (including

ations, since it prevents a wife from using children as a weapon to garner a larger pay out. Further, an agreement restricting alimony payments can prevent a wife who becomes bored with a marriage from walking away without giving serious thought to the creature comforts she’ll be giving up.

your salary and resulting savings or investments) by pre-establishing the amount of alimony or spousal support you would owe in the event of a divorce. In cases where a spouse has a career of her own, or enters the marriage with significant assets, a pre-nup can even be used to eliminate alimony or support obligations altogether.

property, how long assets are frozen during and after a divorce (or death), and how ownership of what lawyers call the “matrimonial home” is treated.

Using a real lawyer, with whom you can sit down and spell out your situation, ensures you’ll get a pre-nup that’s drafted consistently with both federal and state laws. Such consultations generally cost less than $1,000 – or a tenth what your bride-to-be is planning to spend on her dress. It’s worth every penny.

If you own more than one property, have made smart investments, or own a business that you intend to either sell or pass down to heirs, then the total value of your assets can be measured in millions. Do you really want to trust all that wealth to a form you find online?

What you can’t protect Unfortunately, a prenuptial can’t be used to guarantee you custody or visitation rights with any children born during the marriage. Issues related to custody, and access to children, are considered circumstantial and are dealt with during the course of divorce proceedings.

An agreement pre-setting alimony and spousal support sums, however, can simplify custody negoti-

A PRENUPTIAL AGREEMENT IS KEY TO ENSURING YOU DON’T LOSE HALF OF YOUR ASSETS IN A DIVORCE...

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Hire a real lawyer If you plug “prenuptial agreement” into a search engine, the first 20 or so links will be to forms you can download, fill in, sign, and have signed by your prospective spouse prior to the wedding day.

Don’t use them Just like the kit wills you can purchase at office supply stores, online pre-nup forms won’t always stand up in court. While the Uniform Marriage and Divorce Act provides the bulwark of property division laws in the U.S., many states have their own quirks regarding division of

Getting the signature I’ll admit, asking a prospective spouse to sign a prenuptial agreement can be stressful. My own wife looked askance at me when I raised the issue 20 years ago (although I had the advantage in spinning it as a way for her to protect her own assets, since she owned her home).

It won’t be a comfortable conversation; and it will likely lead to one or two fights. But few couples are made up of two people who are economically matched on the day of their marriage, or remain that way throughout the life of the marriage.

If you approach this difficult conversation the right way, she’ll sign that prenuptial.

Or, if she won’t, at least you’ll know she’s not marrying you for love.

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YOU’LL NEVER RETIRE ...& THAT’S A GOOD THING

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Retiring at 65 is much too conventional, so don’t do it.

Guys who’ve looked after themselves and managed to avoid chronic health problems like diabetes are living far longer than their parents, and maintaining mental acuity well into their 80s. What’s more, medical experts are calling for increasing numbers of Baby Boomers and Gen X-ers to live past 100.

So why waste 20 or more years on retirement? A person can only play so much golf, and unless you have a bankroll that can fund endless travel or multiple vacation homes in exotic locations, you’re going to be bored. Very bored.

Retirement is for the nearly dead Most people don’t realize how arbitrary the age 65 retirement number is, nor how sinister the thinking behind its selection.

Way back in the 1880s, German Chancellor Otto Von Bismarck was facing a lot of civil unrest from Marxists who were agitating across Europe and spurring his countrymen to call for socialist reforms. To placate their demands, Bismarck put together a plan for his government to contribute to a national pension system for older Germans who didn’t have jobs.

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Specifically it was meant to cover those who had been disabled, or were lifelong invalids who required state care.

Initially, the German government established 70 as the age at which people would begin receiving benefits, but then lowered it to 65 after Bismarck died.

The reason? The majority of 19th Century Germans died before or shortly after their 65th birthdays, which saved the government the trouble of having to pay out pensions to most of its population. Before the turn of the 20th Century, a 55-year-old man was, quite simply, old and could expect to die inside of 15 years.

By the time the U.S. established the Social Security Administration during the Great Depression, age 65 had become a worldwide norm for mandatory retirement.

You’re not old, not even close Today, a 55-year-old man is downright youthful and can expect to go at least 20 years before experiencing any serious declines in health.

There are also important economic considerations.

During the past 25 years, according to the Center for Retirement Research in Boston, the age at which people experience their peak earnings has shifted. In 1985, workers hit their career and wage peaks in their 40s; but by

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2010, that peak moved past age 50. Further, wages rose in that interim, so workers over 50 are now earning far more than they would have 25 years ago, and workers in their 60s now earn 30% more than a comparable employee in 1990.

In other words, you have nothing to lose and literally everything to gain by staying in the workforce.

From a professional perspective, men in their 50s are at the top of their game, a sweet spot from which they can place a hefty price tag on their innate combination of mental acuity, original thinking, sage wisdom and ability to mentor younger colleagues. Plus, a current downward trend in the jobless rate means employers are eager to retain workers – especially those with institutional memory.

Why on earth would you want to give that up?

Instead, start planning today for how you’ll transition into a job that ensures you remain relevant past the age of 65 or 70.

to working longer is well underway. It finds nearly 20% of Americans aged 65 or older are still in the workforce – the highest percentage since before the U.S. enacted Medicare when older people had to keep working to pay for healthcare.

Further, a 2015 study from the Federal Reserve found 12% of respondents saying they don’t plan to retire at all.

The reasons varied. Some said they needed the money because of poor financial planning or losses sustained in the 2008 financial meltdown (they sold low, which is a story for another time).

But most said they wished to remain physically and mentally active – this answer was especially common for knowledge-based workers with college degrees, which accounts for about a third of Americans over age 60, and entrepreneurs who felt they had something to offer to people just starting their careers.

You may not want to stay with the company you’ve worked for during the last 30 years (unless you built it yourself, in which case you might decide it’s time to sell).

But you will need to decide how to deploy the capital from a pension that will now commute to your use. You’ll also have to figure out how funds from an IRA or other savings should be used to supplement your lifestyle costs, instead of viewing it as your sole source of income.

Lastly, put off taking payments from Social Security until absolutely necessary, because the later you start taking payments the larger the monthly check.

Another thing to consider: Most conventional retirement savings plans, including those offered by employers, are designed to fund your lifestyle up to age 85. Meanwhile, medical science is doing all it can to ensure you’ll live well past that mark. In that light, it becomes clear most people won’t be able to generate enough cash to permit them to spend 30 years out of the workforce.

When you couple expanding life expectancies with current declining trends for investment returns, it becomes clear that spending a few extra years earning the weekly pay envelope is the best option.

And that’s okay, because if you’re not dying, you shouldn’t be retiring. The easiest way to get off your ass is to ensure you don’t sit on it for too long in the first place.

The stats are with you According to the Bureau of Labor statistics, the trend

You may need the money

FROM A PROFESSIONAL PERSPECTIVE, MEN IN THEIR 50’S ARE AT THE TOP OF THEIR GAME. .

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TR AVEL

KIEV, UKRAINE As North Americans look for places to play in their spare time, points of interest seem relegated to sun and fun locales. With beaches brimming with golden goddesses in barely there bikinis, it’s pretty much a no-brainer for most men. Still, when it’s all said and done, most of us return to our lives, wishing for a vacation from our vacations. It’s the way of the world in this modern age.

Kiev is a historic state in the north central part of the Ukraine, situated right next to the Dnieper River. As the largest city in the Ukraine, it’s also its capital. Within its borders, you’ll discover a historic mecca; boasting two UNESCO world heritage sites, as well as being home to a booming high-tech industry. It also offers her students a world-class education, making Kiev a businessman’s dream.

Kiev has survived many challenges throughout its long and storied history. From being invaded by the Vikings, to a leveling by the Mongols in days long past, Kiev has emerged stronger and richer with each emergence from the proverbial flames. As recently as the collapse of the U.S.S.R, where the Ukraine declared its independence, Kiev has always 2 8

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The beautiful Kiev cityscape at dusk landed proudly on its well-constructed feet. A cultural and scientific melting pot, there is much to take in when visiting this cultural gem.

UNESCO World Heritage Sites With a country as old and well-established as Kiev, it’s not surprising that it would host two shining examples of historical importance.

Kiev Pechersk Lavra, or the Kiev Monastery of Caves is a historic and fully active monastery, home to Eastern Orthodox Christian worshippers. Listed as one of the Seven Wonders of Ukraine, you’ll find many ancient structures to explore, one such attraction being the Lavra Bell Tower. Among its ancient offerings, you’ll find different houses of worship; Church of the Saviour at Berestov and The All Saints Church, to name a couple.

Kiev Perchesk Lavra also has caverns occupied by monks, and are home to its catacombs. Created in 1051 by the monk Anthony, it grew over the centuries. It’s now in modern times an extensive network L IFESTYL E

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that covers hundreds of kilometers.

It’s cramped quarters, to be sure, but an excellent place to explore and discover.

Kiev’s other world heritage site is Saint Sophia Cathedral. This place of worship was Ukraine’s first UNESCO selection, and is the most famous attraction in Kiev. Named after the Hagia Sophia Cathedral in Constantinople, the Cathedral went up in 1011 or 1037 (depending on the source), it took two decades to complete. In 2011, this survivor celebrated it’s 1000th anniversary.

gime, and the tale unfolds within this two-hour tour, starting with the monument Rodina Mat. You’ll discover many facts, as well as seeing war equipment, and a fascinating excursion throughout points of interest during this exploratory adventure.

ing. Seeing the sites and playing the games can lead a man to a hearty appetite. Well, this city boasts a great selection of bars and restaurants; each one tailored to the discerning tastes of a man on the go. Whether it be fine dining, or local fare, you’ll not be disappointed with the selections available.

Another hot pick for anyone looking for simple yet engaging activity is the Open-Air Museum Pirogovo. On this survey of Kiev, you’ll discover historical architecture as well as learning facts about the culture during the time periods on this guided viewing into her past, present and future.

Have a night out, well why not. You only live once. There are lounges, taverns and hot spots throughout the city, many of them boasting some of the most beautiful females you’ll ever see. If you prefer something low-key, why not visit the Whisky Corner. It boasts a broad menu of spirits and beers, as well as a menu brimming

All Work And No Play?

If fun is what you’re seeking, you can’t go wrong with “Escape Quest”.

In different themes, you’re given a limited amount of time to try to escape the room you’re in. There are different levels to challenge every person hungering for excitement, and the adrenaline rush of trying to work a clue with a clock ticking away.

with traditional English and Scottish fare.

If you want to let yourself soar, you may find The Aerodynamic Tunnel worth visiting. Here you get suited up, and literally soar inside the aerodynamic tube.

No strings, no wings, just you and the air blended in perfect harmony.

So, with all this being offered up, it’s clear that Kiev has a world of deep history and modern excitement that’s yours for the taking. You only need to take one trip to discover a world far beyond the islands and typical tourist attractions visited while on your average Caribbean Cruise.

Originally, it was host to several high-profile burials, including those of Vladimir Monomakh and Vsevolod Yaroslavich, two rulers of note.

Between the 11th and 12th centuries, the Cathedral saw itself pillaged and left to decay in the aftermath.

To add insult to injury, during the 16th century, in trying to unite both the Polish catholic church with the Ukraine orthodox church, the church suffered extensive damage to her finishes, artwork and roof. Between the 16th and 17th centuries, repairs and restorations took place that saved the church from her disintegration.

The final product saw it’s rebirth in Ukrainian Baroque influences, something that is clear centuries later. It’s a place well worth your time.

Not Your Average Tour Another point of interest are the museums and monuments in Kiev.

With its long history, you can expect to find many wondrous places

Wine, Women And Song Kiev is many things, but it’s never bor-

If it’s something more local you crave, Spotykach will fit the bill. With a distinctive old world elegance, it’s offerings are not only delicious, they’re also unique to the Ukraine. Don’t be shy, try their selections. You’ll find no disappointments.

Kiev Pechersk Lavra monastery overlooking the Dnieper river

to partake in its fascinating stories.

One such museum of note is the Great Patriotic War Museum.

During World War II, Kiev was not exempt from battling the Nazi reH O T

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FEAT U R E

IN FOCUS

MISS JANUARY 2017 This blue-eyed woman is a dreamer, a sun-seeker, a kind spirit looking for love. Smilewoman—like her alias suggests—loves to smile and make others do the same. Her friends describe her as kind, understanding of others’ point of view, accepting of others and welcoming. She mentions that if a suitor has children—she would accept them as her own. Described by some as sympathetic, Smilewoman can hold her own, so don’t be fooled by her sweetness—this woman has fiery emotions! However, she mentions she’s “able to apologize first,” even if she’s 3 0

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right. She’s looking for a supportive, generous soul to share her life, someone who meets her kindness and matches her heart and motivation. Smilewoman is looking for a man who has goals of his own, who knows how to take care of himself and a woman.

Originally from the city Odessa by the Black Sea in southern Ukraine, Smilewoman’s zodiac sign is Aquarius. Of course like others with the Aquarius sign, Smilewoman is smart, progressive, original, independent, and a genuine MEN’S

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humanitarian. Smilewoman also knows how to take care of herself—she doesn’t smoke or drink.

She stands five feet tall and three inches. Not having any kids and having never been married, Smilewoman is sociable, liking to meet new people, open-minded and having an interesting personality. Her hair is light brown, she identifies as Christian and speaks little English—but she’s learning.

Being only 22, she understands the value of a reliable man who can support her—and she will gladly do the same!

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MISS FEBRUARY 2017 You are in for a treat if you can secure a chat with the mysterious Yourlina! This grey-eyed vixen brings the allure, glamour and intrigue to the romantic table. She asks you to look into her eyes, to notice the thoughts coming into your mind when you see her. Do you feel anything at all? Coyly playing with the camera, Yourlina’s natural sensual appeal comes across in her pictures and in her writer’s voice. Only 24, Yourlina speaks English well, able to communicate all her spark, spunk and passion. It is good she speaks English well 3 4

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because Yourlina is a multi-dimensional woman with many sides, someone who’ll keep you guessing forever. Her zodiac sign is the Libra and like other Libras she is diplomatic, graceful and hospitable.

Yourlina comes from the city Gorlovka in eastern Ukraine, where she lives as a student, dreaming of meeting a man who can match her kindness, loyalty, and passion for passion! The man she seeks has no specifications—she doesn’t delude herself that there MEN’S

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is such a thing as a perfect man. If you are able to win Yourlina’s heart—you will be more than enough. She says, “My soul and mind will be yours.” However, she knows the value of a man who can treat her with respect, a mature soul who knows how to handle her!

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AUTO M O B IL E S

McLAREN

ONE OF THE FASTEST CARS IN T

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Sports cars will never go out of style. Vehicles that are sleek and stylish and that are as fun to look at as they are to drive will always be desirable commodities, especially for car lovers. It also doesn’t hurt that they can move at high speeds, which always tends to capture people’s attention.

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One of the best sports cars to be released in recent years is the McLaren P1, which has quickly become a favorite among car enthusiasts and brings a lot of great features to the table, making it a truly super car.

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Hybrid Technology Many of the sports cars of the past haven’t necessarily been the most environmentally friendly, which has led to some speculation and concern that there would be a decline in popularity as we search for more fuel-efficient vehicles. But that is not an issue whatsoever with the McLaren P1. In fact, the P1 is a hybrid vehicle, making it part of the solution rather than part of the problem.

The McLaren P1 utilizes hybrid technology, including a synthesized engine, making it a game changer among modern sports cars. Being an electric vehicle means that the P1’s twin motors stay quiet without sacrificing anything with regard to power or performance. Users can also get great mileage out of the electric car, as one charge can be enough to last a week or more. Unlike what some may think, being an electric car doesn’t make the McLaren P1 any less of a sports

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car. In fact, it’s likely to lead a new wave of super sports cars that are environmentally conscious and outstanding cars to drive.

Color Spectrum When it comes to sports cars, it’s about more than looks. Just kidding, of course everything is about how a car looks, and with the McLaren P1, there’s absolutely no denying its aesthetic brilliance. Not only does the car come in a variety of color combinations, but also the colors are bright and bold, making them stand out, even amongst other sports cars.

Obviously, everyone has his or her own personal prefer-

THE FACT I PUT 880 MILES ON IT IN THE FIRST FIVE DAYS… I CAN’T STOP DRIVING IT. ence when it comes to color, but it’s hard to deny how sharp the black P1 looks on the open road. Of course, it’s hard to go wrong with a yellow sports car, and the volcano orange that’s also an option with the P1 can help bring the car to life. Surprisingly, white seems to work M A G A ZINE

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...THE ONE THING DRIVERS OF SPORTS CARS WANT IN THEIR VEHICLES IS PURE POWER, AND THE MCLAREN P1 DEFINITELY HAS PLENTY OF THAT... quite well with the McLaren P1.

Also, the royal blue version is almost blinding in how sharp the color is. The bottom line is that there’s almost no wrong choice when it comes to color on the McLaren P1, as the car offers plenty of amazing options.

want the car to look like, the next most important feature is how it drives.

Again, this is not an issue with the McLaren P1. Due to the positions of the hybrid engines, the driver sits closer to the wheels than in other vehicles, allowing for better control over the vehicle. Steering the vehicle is almost effortless, giving the driver complete Wild But Controlled Ride control of the wheel, enabling them Once you’ve determined what you to handle even the most difficult driving conditions with the greatest of ease.

P1 driver’s side interior That kind of control over the vehicle allows you to have some fun with the P1 when appropriate. Even among similar cars, the P1 has incredible amounts of torque, allowing you to slip and slide around on purpose, if you feel like enjoying yourself. Those high levels of torque also come in handy when driving at high speeds in the McLaren P1. Obviously, you always want to be a safe and responsible driver, but if you do ever get the urge to cut loose a little, the McLaren P1 is a great car in which to do it.

the one thing drivers of sports cars want in their vehicles is pure power, and the McLaren P1 definitely has plenty of that. The car can do 0 to 60 in 2.8 seconds, making it faster than its predecessor, the F1. It’s electronically limited not to go any faster than 218 mph, but if you can remove that electronic buzz kill the P1 can reach close to 250 mph.

For a little extra acceleration, the P1 comes equipped with an Instant Power Assist System, a feature of the F1 that has been replicated in the P1 to produce increased levels of speed. There is also a Drag Reduction System that can further enhance the vehicle’s speed and power.

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Power Even more than great steering and handling, 4 0

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It’s What’s Inside That Counts Not to be forgotten with the McLaren P1 is the view from the inside. To be fair, there’s not all that much about the car’s interior that will blow the competition away, at least compared to other modern sports cars, although the dihedral doors that open upwards are something to marvel at. This type of door is still rare in modern cars and will

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make you feel like you’re about to blast off into the future every time you get in the car.

The car also features bucket seats, which are light and comfortable, making them perfect if you have a long journey ahead of you. The seats are also positioned at 28 degrees, which is perfect for giving you H O T

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a full view of the road in front of you.

A Rare Gem When it comes to cars, is there anything better than having something you know no one else will have? Well, that’s possible with the McLaren P1. Only 375 vehicles were produced, and most of them included a unique feature requested by the owner, meaning if you can find one, BRI D E S®

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there’s a good chance it’s going to be a one-of-a-kind car. Of course, with so few being produced, it means the P1 is a rare gem that can be difficult to get your hands on. As we all know, when it comes to sports cars, being rare is a good thing; adding to the mystique and uniqueness of the vehicle, which is a big part of what makes the McLaren P1 a one-of-a-kind super car.

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DESIGNED, ENGINEERED AND BUILT TO BE 4 4

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E THE BEST DRIVER’S CAR IN THE WORLD. H O T

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RUFFRACINGWHEELS.COM

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Single Russian & Ukrainian women represent some of the most sought after for wealthy CEOs seeking a wife and it’s not difficult to understand ... why.

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ussian women represent some of the most beautiful in the world, and their culture allows them to embrace their femininity in a way that is largely lost in the western world. Not only are single Russian & Ukrainian women extremely dedicated to their husbands and families, many of them are looking for a well off man who can offer them a new life in the United States and give them the real life Cinderella treatment.

Men who make their way to the top of the corporate food chain don’t like to mix work and pleasure. While American culture has placed a lot of pressure on women to strive for a career of their own, CEOs aren’t looking for a wife to compete with their success. At the end of a long work day, a man wants to come home and unwind. After a hard day’s work, he wants to be greeted by a wife who has a home cooked meal ready on the table. While CEOs expect a strong work ethic when looking for a wife, they

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put equal value into housework and motherhood as they do their own work, and Russian women are known for their fierce love of their families.

a Russian woman on his arm, and CEOs know that they’ve earned the privilege of such company through their hard work and perseverance.

CEOS work tirelessly to manage their companies, and it’s no small task to lead a successful business. These alpha males have accomplished great things and know they’ve earned a status in society that affords them the most attractive women. Single Russian & Ukrainian women are known around the world for their stunning beauty, which makes them extremely desirable to wealthy entrepreneurs. Any man would be lucky to have

Of course, beauty is more than skin deep and a CEO looking for a wife needs to know the mother of his children will work as hard in the home as he works outside of it. While the life of a mother has been written off in Western culture, single Russian & Ukrainian women still maintain the old time value that family comes first. Wealthy men make sacrifices for their families and want to know they’re in good hands when he is at the office. This view of home life may be incompati-

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A CEO SIMPLY WON’T FIND THE BEAUTY, GRATITUDE & DEVOTION TO FAMILY IN A WESTERN WIFE THAT HE WILL WITH SINGLE RUSSIAN & UKRAINIAN WOMEN.

ble with the values of western women, but single Russian & Ukrainian women know better.

Single Russian & Ukrainian women hope to find a better life than their mother country can offer them, and CEOs can offer them a new lease on life. Russian women understand that a CEO who is looking for a wife can offer them the life and family they dream of, and are extremely grateful for the opportunity to please their husband. The standard of living that single Russian & Ukrainian women face is far below what women in the US have grown accustomed to, and they won’t take these privileges for granted. Single Russian & Ukrainian women are devoted to their families and husbands, and will do what it takes to preserve their marriage above all else. This attitude has largely been lost among American women.

A CEO simply won’t find the beauty, gratitude and devotion to family in a western wife that he will with single Russian & Ukrainian women. These types of men need a wife who can care for their children and put the amount of work into managing a home that they put into managing their companies. Russian women aren’t afraid to embrace their feminine role in the home and will go the extra mile to keep their husbands happy.

Of course their world class beauty and dedication to maintaining their looks only makes single Russian & Ukrainian women that much more enticing. These women are looking for their prince charming who can whisk them away from the poverty of their mother country and provide them the sort of life they have only dreamed of. Find the wife that will provide you with the companionship you’ve earned at Hot Russian Brides Mens Lifestyle Magazine.

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R O C K & ROL L

Toronto-born R&B singer The Weeknd is on a familiar trajectory towards pop superstardom, albeit with a decidedly social media-era twist.

Abel Tesfaye broke out in 2010 anonymously uploading music on YouTube under the moniker The Weeknd, before dropping a now-infamous trilogy of mixtapes, House of Balloons, Thursday and Echoes of Silence, in 2011 ahead of his 2013 debut album, Kiss Land. He turned music fans’ heads with his dark, pop-laced R&B and his hip-hopinfluenced verbiage and delivery, but it wasn’t until 2015’s The Beauty Behind the Madness that he rose to the next level. Propelled by hits like ‘The Hills’, ‘Earned It’ (from the movie Fifty Shades of Grey) and the crossover smash ‘Can’t Feel My Face’, Beauty became The Weeknd’s first No. 1 album and those three songs marked the first time any artist had the top three songs on Billboard’s R&B chart.

Along the road to fame and success, Tesfaye has hit some of the usual bumps. His relationship with fellow Torontonian Drake has seemingly become strained (the two have been in a sort of on-again, off-again passive-

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aggressive beef since The Weeknd signed with Republic Records after Drake said he was about to sign the singer to his own label.) There was also the time he punched out a Las Vegas cop. But through it all Tesfaye has seemingly let it all roll off him, never losing focus – or even deigning to respond publicly in most cases. It’s all part of his allure, which began with a mysterious figure uploading mysterious music onto the web back in 2010.

The Weeknd’s career seems as if it were being designed by a cynical music industry insider who’s seen it all. He’s had the Big Song of the Year with ‘Can’t Feel My Face’, he’s brought the house down repeatedly at awards shows, hell, even Tom Cruise is a fan.

Now The Weeknd appears poised to put all the pieces together and elevate himself to the A-list of pop stardom, that rarefied air occupied by the true icons. Whether it will shake out that way remains to be seen – the stairway to Pop Olympus is littered with the broken carcasses of those who came close but ultimately came up short – but he hasn’t taken a wrong step yet.

From what we’ve heard of his new album, Starboy, his

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WHILE ON THE SURFACE THE WEEKND DOESN’T COME ACROSS AS CALCULATING OR IMAGE CONSCIOUS, THERE’S MORE AT WORK THERE THAN MEETS THE EYE. music is evolving as well, incorporating more diverse influences while also becoming even more pop-friendly.

The undeniable ‘80s-with-the-volumeturned-up pop of ‘Can’t Feel My Face’ is being challenged by his current hit, ‘Starboy’, another up-tempo number that’s a departure from the moody, drugged-out sounds found on Kiss Land (and that still make up a large part of Beauty Behind the Madness).

He seems to have truly embraced the mantle of popstar with his newest music, infusing it with even more ‘80s shimmer, as well as adding some rock and roll to his sex and drugs with the driving punk rhythms on ‘False Alarm’, the second of his two new singles.

When ‘Can’t Feel My Face’ broke the way it did in 2015, it felt a little like The Weeknd had stumbled across something he didn’t realize we’d all like so much; with Starboy, it feels like he’s directly targeting the mainstream, like a cooler, darker Bruno Mars (but with street cred).

While on the surface The Weeknd doesn’t come across as calculating or image conscious, there’s more at

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work there than meets the eye. While he (reasonably) refused to answer questions about his once-signature hairdo (because, yeah, that’s a stupid question to ask), he also refers to himself on ‘Tell Your Friends’ as “that n***a with the hair/Singing ‘bout poppin’ pills, ‘f***in bitches, livin’ life so trill”, about as great a dryly selfeffacing line as you’re likely to find in a pop song this decade.

The Weeknd also shed his trademark locks ahead of his new album – likely a wise choice for an artist that wants to be taken seriously and not easily reduced to a caricature. He addresses it head-on in the ‘Starboy’ video, which opens with a mysterious figure dragging the 2015 version of The Weeknd, wild dreads and all, into a room, and brutally murdering him.

The masked man reveals himself as…

2016 Weeknd, with a fresh fade and slick leather duds.

It’s the latest in The Weeknd’s string of stellar videos. He grabbed attention with a triptych of dark and cinematic shorts for ‘The Hills’, ‘Tell Your Friends’

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and ‘Can’t Feel My Face’, created with director Grant Singer, melding a David Lynch/Twin Peaks vibe with the sex-and-drugs content of the music.

The ‘Starboy’ video (also directed

by Singer) keeps up The Weeknd’s maybe-it’s-starting-to-get-a-bit-weird running gag of being killed and/or mangled in his music videos. He’s famously set on fire in ‘Can’t Feel My Face’, is dragged to the desert and buried in the clip for ‘Tell Your Friends’, crawls bloodied from an auto wreck in ‘The Hills’… no pop artist in modern music video memory has been so consumed with documenting his own bloody death and dismemberment on film.

And it’s great! Any fan of great music videos (especially those of us old enough to recall their real heyday in the late 1980s and through the 1990s) can appreciate the cleverness on display in the clips for ‘The Hills’ or ‘Starboy’ (which is essentially three-plus minutes of New Weeknd literally destroying Old Weeknd in various ways). But the epic ‘False Alarm’ video might be his best one yet, marrying First-Person Shooter video game visuals with the grittiness (and bloodiness) of a Michael Mann or Martin Scorcese movie, courtesy of director Ilya Naishuller.

Whether The Weeknd becomes the next Michael Jackson or just the latest very talented artist to be tagged with that insurmountable title remains to be seen. The buzz around Starboy is growing and there’s a good-toexcellent chance the album has the song of next summer on it. And The Weeknd will likely still be deepening his mystery on the pop landscape for a long time to come.

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DAT IN G

DATING LESSONS

ENTERTAIN YOUR DATE

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WHAT JOKES TO MAKE & WHAT STORIES TO SHARE TO FIND YOUR MATCH!

Create an Image We all get nervous talking on a date or online with someone we find attractive. It’s easy to forget what you have to offer, what image you want to represent and how to convey this in a simple, effective way. No one likes being overlooked or ‘skipped’ especially on a dating website or chat line. Many beautiful women, like men, have so many choices and it’s hard to stand out amongst the many suitors. First step is to create an image of who you want to be seen as a person. Do you want to be seen as a confident male who knows how to have a good time?

Or do you want to be seen as a gentleman who knows how to treat a lady? Maybe both.

Choose Topics & Interests With any image comes a whole topic of conversations that would help convey your persona to an attractive woman.

Women need to have something to be excited about, but they also need to be able to match you to a potential life in their future. They want to know what you care about and what’s a part of your life. If you want to convey that you’re adventurous maybe you’ll mention your hobbies: running, lifting weights, or drinking a well-mixed cocktail. If your image is classy maybe you want to mention your interest in 5 2

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golf, what books you’ve read or who your favorite American actors are. Choose the aspects of American culture or any other culture that appeal to you. Maybe there’s a sport you love watching or a TV show you like making fun of. Mention these things!

Women love men who have their own passions, men who have vast interests and investments in their culture and men who can think for themselves. Women also love hearing about differences in cultures. They already know about their own country—this is why they want to hear about yours!

Know and Own It Once you’ve chosen topics of conversation and decided which interests best define you, make sure you know them and own who you are. Women like men who are confident and who can carry conversations about things they’re passionate about. Also, because there are many women online, it’s important that you both can hold a conversation together. Make sure to find someone who you have chemistry with, but who you can also communicate with. Own your passions and own your image! This way you’ll attract women who are interested in a man like you.

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Be a Lifestyle Be more than your hobbies and passions—be a lifestyle.

Honestly, if you enjoy relaxing and taking it easy, then make sure you convey this. Women, no matter what country, seek men whose lifestyles they’d either like to have or which match their own. If you enjoy getting together with friends and going out to party, mention this!

“Women feel safe if they feel a relationship is going somewhere…”

It is a well known psychological fact that one’s interests predict one’s lifestyle. If you’re interested in reading, a woman will predict that you’re smart, that perhaps you lead an intellectual life. Women find this appealing because it makes them feel safe. If you mention you’re interested in football, a woman might predict that you like manly activities. If you mention that you’re interested in travel, a woman might predict that you like experimenting, adventure and trying new things.

of an elite group in your neighborhood. Whatever it is, realize that these aspects make you more appealing.

Many men and women don’t realize how exciting their lives actually are. They downplay their lives and take everything for granted. But to someone else, your life could be really exciting! If you play poker with a group of friends, mention this! If you enjoy cooking a special dish, mention this! If you like driving a certain car, mention this! To you it’s nothing special but to someone you’re getting to know it could add an attractive feature.

Studies have shown that men who have plants and who take an interest in nature actually have an increased appeal to women because plants make many women feel safe as they represent a calm, mature lifestyle.

The main point is women feel safe if they feel a relationship is going somewhere. If you share aspects of who you are and your life, she’s likely to be able to envision herself amongst it.

compliment your lifestyle.

Make yourself and the lifestyle you represent so good— you can afford to be picky. Women will be attracted to men who suit their own life. You must give an honest and accurate representation of the life and expectations you have but also the ones you want. Be honest with yourself and ask yourself what romantic partner will make you happy. Maybe their lifestyle doesn’t matter to you—that’s fine. But realize your boundaries and limits so you’re not disappointed.

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Decide What You Want Before you preset a lifestyle to others it’s important that you know what you personally want. If you’re used to a certain standard of living or if you’re accustomed to stimulating conversation, it’s important to realize this. Great, long-lasting relationships won’t work if you settle too quickly with someone who doesn’t match or

IF YOU LIKE DRIVING A CERTAIN CAR, MENTION THIS! TO SOMEONE YOU’RE GETTING TO KNOW IT COULD ADD AN ATTRACTIVE FEATURE. The topics of conversation you choose will represent the lifestyle you live. Be more than just a picture or a tagline. Be a lifestyle, and women will associate you with these attributes. When you represent more than just an individual, women see what you’re a part of, what makes you appealing and what makes you an exciting ‘catch.’

Market Yourself & Lifestyle What is most exciting about your interests? What is the most glamorous aspect of your life? Maybe you watch a really exciting TV show or maybe you’re part H O T

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Make Her Laugh Laughter, according to psychology, is the number one way to build a relationship. Wasn’t it Marilyn Monroe who said, “If you can make a girl laugh you can make her do anything,”? The point is that laughing makes people feel good. This is because laughing releases endorphins which can reduce pain up to 50%!

If you can make her laugh or figure out what makes her smile—you will have an exciting conversation. Studies have shown that women are more attracted to men who they share a sense of humor with, someone who can touch their minds.

Also laughter is an excellent indication that you’ll have fun together and that you’ll develop a long-lasting relationship and connection. According to Psychology Today, women see humor as a sign of intelligence.

Also, men are more likely to go for women who laugh at their jokes. At the end of the day, dating serves to connect you to women who understand you, your image the lifestyle you represent.

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H E A LT H 2

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT

This is a deadly culprit for back pain and most men don’t even think to consider it.

A mattress should be comfortable but also supportive. It needs to provide the right resistance and support the hip, knee, shoulder, and lower back areas as those are what receive the most pressure during the night.

So, consider this; is your mattress is more than 8 years old it needs to be replaced.

Look for something that is supportive and promotes good posture as you sleep. Memory foam products are great for this.

BACK PAIN

3 Do you find yourself in a constant state of discomfort or lower back pain?

Studies show that the rate of lower back pain in middle-aged men has increased exponentially over the last decade and it’s all to do with the heavy lifestyles we live today.

Workload, stress, and health problem, these are all key factors in why your back probably hurts. But let’s take a deeper look into the common causes and what you can do to help relieve or remedy the pain.

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WHAT CAN CAUSE BACK PAIN The list of reasons are endless, but these are the most common today.

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WORKPLACE CONDITIONS

Immediately, you probably think this applies to men who work in physically challenging workplaces. But that’s not always the case. Those who have careers which force them to bend, lift, and carry large and/or heavy items will no doubt lead to some serious back pain.

But so does a career in an office. Sitting for long periods of time in an uncomfortable chair can put pressure on your spine and promotes poor posture as you lean over your desk. Studies show that this environment can worsen an existing back problem but also create a new one if you continue it each day.

To avoid this, make sure that your back is straight against the back of the chair, your line of sight is parallel to the floor, and your elbows (when bent) are level with the top of your desk. Also, taking frequent breaks by getting up and stretching can make a world of difference.

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HEAVY LIFTING

This ties in with workplace conditions, but it also applies to everyday life. It’s recommended that you not attempt to lift more than half of your body weight and, even then, it should be done with caution. When you bend to lift a heavy object, your lower back immediately become the pivoting point. If the item is too heavy or you bend the wrong way, you risk displacing your lower lumbar, tearing ligaments, and stretching muscles.

Instead, see if there’s a way to push or pull the object on a trolley. Seek the assistance of another person to help lift from the other end. Anything, aside from lifting it yourself.

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HEALTH PROBLEMS

Sometimes, back problem among men area unavoidable if they’re passed down from family members. Poor bone density, hereditary conditions, and other more serious issues can be embedded in your body, regardless of what you do.

Also, obesity is a health concern when talking about lower back pain. Your spine supports your entire body and when there’s extra weight to accommodate the spine becomes weak and strained.

It’s tough, but try and do things like losing a few pounds, changing your diet to help soothe the effects of other medical conditions.

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REMEDY THE PAIN Sometimes selftreatment doesn’t work and you may need to seek the help of a doctor or chiropractor.

But in most cases, lower back pain in middle-aged men can be fixed with a few lifestyle changes.

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YOGA

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Yoga is a widespread practice that can help a number of different body issues. It’s divided into areas so there are certain poses to help you lose weight, relieve stress, and help with back pain.

The Tree Pose is a great one to try for building up your core muscles and increasing the strength of your lower back. Simply stand straight, place your foot on the inside of the opposite leg and hold your hands together at your chest while you focus and hold the pose.

The Cobra Pose is another great one to relieve lower back pain, mostly from the kind you get from poor posture. Lay flat on your belly, hand on the floor at your chest, and push-up bending at the waist and stretching your face up to the ceiling. You’ll feel your lower back stretching and almost instant relief.

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WALKING

Walking, provided that your back pain isn’t caused by a serious physical injury, is a great way to loosen your lower back and strengthen your body. Start off small, go for a quick walk every day and you’ll begin to see the results in no time.

FLOOR EXERCISES

Sit-ups and crunches may be a bad idea if you’re suffering from lower back pain. On a good day, these moves tend to test that area.

But the key to a strong lower back is a strong core so you do need to find some exercises that achieve that.

Leg lifts are a great way to engage your core without putting a strain on your back. Lay flat on the floor, face up, feet together. Then proceed to lift your straight legs into the air.

Hold, and then release slowly to the floor.

Planking originates from yoga but is incorporated into so many routines today. Flip over and lay flat on the floor, face down. Prop your body up on your toes and forearms while keeping yourself as straight as possible.

Tighten your abs and hold the position for as long as possible.

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PROPER REST

After you’ve made sure to get yourself a decent mattress, try and get better rest, too. Adult males need anywhere from 7-9 hours of deep sleep each night. If you work a strenuous job during the day, your body is going to need ample time to recover, otherwise, you’ll increase your risk of further back pain.

Practicing Yoga and Meditation can help relieve and remedy back pain.

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S TYL E

LITTLE BLACK DRESS 5 6

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The little black dress, commonly referred to as the LBD—has been an iconic symbol of classy, simplistic date-night attire since the mid 20s. The word chic comes to mind when women decide to bring back this sensual staple. But it wasn’t until Coco Channel, the legendary French fashion designer, had her drawings published in Vogue America in 1926 that the little black dress would make its way into the closets of all fashionable women around the world. At the time Coco’s vision was revolutionary, introducing a shorter hemline to the Modern Woman. Famous actresses were the early adapters of the trend, followed by high-profile women such as Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn, Jaqueline Kennedy and even the Duchess of Windsor, renowned for her sense of style and her ability to influence the world of fashion.

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Other designers, such as Christian Doir, added their own twists to the Little Black Dress, allowing it to evolve with the times.

Eventually the LBD would change into a cocktail gown in the 50s, the iconic mini skirt of the 60s, a dinner dress in the 70s, a maxi in the 80s and a cute party statement in the 90s. Princess Diana famously wore a little black “revenge” dress in 1994, raising eyebrows around the globe as women rushed to copy. Throughout the early 2000s and up until present day, supermodels, celebrities and the cinema have kept the idea alive. The little black dress—truly a classic that never gets old.

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S P ORT S

BRANDON COOK: ANOTHER VICTORY

It’s 5 o’clock in the morning in the middle of the work week, and while most people are sleeping, Brandon Cook is getting ready for his 45-minute morning jog. Once he goes through his routine, he’ll head to work at Pro tech Glass Windows and Doors Ltd., put in a 12-hour day glazing windows for customers, and then go straight to the Ajax Boxing Club near his home.

If it sounds like Cook takes his favorite sport a little more seriously than the average blue collar men’s league hero, it’s because he does. He isn’t just boxing because he loves it, he’s boxing because he hopes to one day raise a world title belt over his head.

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The X-factor that has allowed him to experience tremendous success in the ring as a professional is his natural ability to fight and win. Cook learned that the hard way as a student at Sir Robert Borden High School in Scarborough, Ontario. It was there that he found himself in a fight with the toughest guy in school, who decided he was going to intimidate Cook and take all of his money after a dispute in the schoolyard. When classmate and present day trainer Mike Guyett witnessed what happened, he too hit it off.

“I ended up being in Mike’s class and we sat beside each other and started talking,” said Cook. The biggest bully in MEN’S

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IT’S HIS SENSE OF BELIEF AND IMPECCABLY POSITIVE ATTITUDE THAT HAS SEEN COOK RISE TO THE TOP FIVE OF THE WBA RANKINGS IN HIS WEIGHT CLASS... school tried to take my money after I won a game during recess. I ended up having to fight him after school because he confronted me and Mike saw it. I destroyed the guy with a big overhand right. He never bothered me after that.”

Although Cook was never one to invite a confrontation in school, he stood up for himself when necessary. He wasn’t afraid to stand up for others either. Prior to discovering his new found love for boxing, Cook had always been involved in team sports including soccer, baseball and hockey, where he always made sure that teammates who were being pushed around got the support they needed.

“I wouldn’t say I was an enforcer back then,” said Cook.

“But whenever things got heated and my teammates were getting bullied, they looked to me to take control.

All I wanted was for my guys to be treated with respect on the playing field, whether it was the rink, the pitch or the baseball diamond. Everyone at school knew I was a lead by example kind of guy when it came to sports. It’s something I took a lot of pride in.”

Realizing his friend had both physical ability and the mental toughness required to succeed in the ring, it was Guyett who eventually invited Cook to lace up a pair of boxing gloves. The boxing club is where the two really began to hit it off, working on the art, science and craft of the sport. They’ve been working hard ever since then

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hoping to work their way to the top. “Mike is basically a boxing encyclopedia. If it wasn’t for him suggesting I get in the ring, I don’t know where I would be right now.”

Fast forward to the present day. Cook is now the IBF Super Welterweight Champion, following a seventh round technical knockout of Quebec’s Steven Butler at the Bell Centre in Montreal last month. While Cook credits his team and 500 of his closest friends and family who showed up to watch the fight with inspiring him to keep going, there was an atmosphere in the air that night the likes of which he had never experienced to this point in his career. It led to an even bigger fight outside of the ring that neither Cook nor Butler were prepared for.

“There were a ton of Quebec flags in the crowd and when he came out all of the flags were waving,” said Cook. “It was like a Rocky movie, coming out in Russia or something.

After I won, Mike lifted me up and people started throwing bottles. I went to shake Butler’s hand and he pushed me away. A bucket flew into the ring and hit me in the head.

It was crazy.”

After a blistering right hand sent Butler to the canvas leaving the referee no choice but to stop the fight, a handful of out of control fans started a brawl that for the most part, pitted Quebecers against Ontarians. Multiple

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people were sent to hospital with injuries.

With no previous animosity between the two fighters, and no apology offered following the incident, Cook continues to shrug off the aftermath and get focused on what he hopes will be his first big break south of the boarder. His first big fight in the United States could score Cook and his team a six figure pay day.

An opportunity of that magnitude would surely get him one step closer to his dreams. It would also ease the burden of having to take time off from his day job to train for fights.

Cook took seven unpaid weeks off to prepare for his recent win, which netted him less than $10,000.

Though the man himself looks up to legendary fighters

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As he continues to reflect on his accomplishments in the ring, Brandon Cook is grateful that he can have an influence on teens who are struggling to find their way. That he can prevent them from going down the treacherous paths that young guys like him all too often choose to venture through growing up in Scarborough.

“Never give up, says Cook. A lot of people quit but I always try to push my limits. It’s always tough when things aren’t going your way but as long as you don’t give up, you’re giving yourself a chance to succeed. I always put in 110%.

Always work harder than the other guy.”

While that may sound like a lot of money, Cook and many other Canadian boxers would readily acknowledge that it’s tough to make a living as a fighter in this country.

Canadian companies simply don’t offer the same level of sponsorship support that elite boxers in America get. Yet still, Cook continues to persist through all of the adversity he faced as a teen walking down the wrong path, moving forward with an unbridled enthusiasm. All in the name of making his dreams a reality.

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like Mike Tyson and modern day superstars like Canelo Alvarez, Cook has set a great example for others through his own story of perseverance and determination. He credits the sport of boxing for allowing him to discover both his passion and purpose in life. Spending a few minutes talking to him, it’s easy to tell that Cook would be the first person to thank those close to him for his success in the ring. That includes his team at United Boxing Promotions, namely Mike Guyett, Tyler Bruxton, Gord McPhale and cut man Carlos Carrera.

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It’s his sense of belief and an impeccably positive attitude that has seen Cook rise to the top five in the WBA rankings for his weight class. He continually strives to succeed every time the next opportunity presents itself.

Just a few weeks removed from his most recent victory, he doesn’t quite know for sure when or where his next bout will take place. What is certain is that somewhere in Ajax, Ontario well before the sun rises, Brandon Cook will be up running, skipping and fighting for the right to live his dream and someday be crowned a world champion.

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. . . e v o L h t i w a i s s u From R SOME LADIES’ PROFILE PICS WE THOUGHT YOU’D ENJOY

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AND. . .

MORE LADIES’ PROFILE PICS. . .

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STYLEPROFILE

BY SARAH STEELE

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You’ve got the looks. You’ve got the cash.

You’ve got the brains. But will that be enough to win you the woman of your dreams? It’s certainly a start, but you need to know what women are really looking for, what truly makes a man irresistible in their eyes. Style is a huge factor in terms of a woman’s initial attraction to a man, yet the importance of this is often not acknowledged; the prevailing conception of ‘style,’ particularly from a male perspective, seems to be that it is more of a feminine concern than a masculine one, which can

difficult to reduce the correlation of style and attraction to a mere formula, but let’s just say that style embodies that “je ne sais quoi” that initially attracts a woman’s eye.

This is ultimately the determining factor in terms of her either pursuing and/or being receptive to a male’s advances. If you are hoping to attract Mrs. Right you will need to add ‘an attuned sense of style’ to your qualities-arsenal, but do not fear: with sound advice from renowned fashion designer Antonio MAC we are here to help.

ultimately be a self-sabotaging mentality for a lot of men. Contrary to what people might think, women notice and value a man’s style - to the same degree that men notice and value a woman’s. It would be

The concept of ‘style’ in the context of sexual attraction is a multi-faceted one, as it encompasses a wide range of factors such as confidence, appearance, hygiene, etc.; however, when we boil down this context

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to its most basic description it is the idea of image, the projection of ourselves onto others, and the projection of others onto ourselves. Integral to this ‘projection’ of self is fashion, which is a critical component in terms of personal style. As aforementioned style, and more specifically fashion, seems - from a male perspective - to be more crucial to the female experience of courtship than the male’s, but this is a misconception. Despite the fact that women’s fashion may generally be more elaborate and widely-discussed than men’s, both men’s and women’s fashion are equally important in the game of sexual attraction and courtship.

One of the most fundamental struggles men face when it comes to personal style is the allure of comfort at the expense of other, arguably more important factors such as put-togetherness, quality, etc., and this is probably attributable to the apparent double-standard within society between men and women in terms of ‘comfort vs. style.’ Women, over time, have been forced to adopt a ‘no pain, no gain’ mentality in terms of fashion, which is particularly evident when we consider the girdle (more historically), and objects like high heels, skin-tight dresses, ‘suctioning’ undergarments (such as Spanx), mini-skirts, etc. Men, on the other hand, have been able to enjoy a greater level of comfort when it comes to fashion (historically and today) than women have, and as a logical consequence their approach to style has become substantially more ‘slack’ than women’s. The fact is, however, that men must reconcile themselves to the idea of being comfortable with being uncomfortable (a concept to which women have been long-accustomed) if they wish to give themselves that edge when attempting to win that

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special woman. This means that instead of allowing ‘convenience’ or ‘ease’ to be their primary considerations in terms of fashion, men should style themselves with a woman’s desires at the forefront of their minds; it may seem daunting at first trading in that T-shirt for a collared shirt, but you’ll reap the rewards of the self-worth and confidence you’ll project.

The advantages of dressing with a woman’s desires as the standard may seem pretty obvious, but the disadvantages of failing to do so are probably far less apparent; how a man (or anyone, for that matter) dresses/styles himself says more about him than he may realize. For example, a woman who meets a man who is dressed conservatively is likely to, either subconsciously or consciously, categorize him as being conservative with money, conservative in bed, conservative with his emotions, etc.; if she is not enamored with the idea of being with this kind of man she will immediately become turned off, without the conservatively-dressed man having said even one word. This example illustrates the fact that, just as women would prefer a man who chooses style (i.e., wearing a collared shirt) over comfort (i.e., wearing a T-shirt), they would prefer a man who is not afraid of being a bit bold or perhaps even ‘flashy’ over one whose style is more drab or predictable.

The challenge of resisting dressing ‘drably’ or ‘predictably’ is representative of yet another major struggle men are faced with when it comes to fashion and personal style, and that is the allure of minimalism; generally-speaking men are not encouraged to wear bright or eye-catching colors, or to embellish their personal style to the same degree that women are, and instead are encouraged (or at

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Style is not only the primary vehicle of personal expression, but also a powerful tool in terms of attracting and ultimately winning a woman’s attention.

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the very least seem to gravitate towards) very muted, quiet colors and tones, and a more minimalist approach to style. Although this dichotomy between male and female style-expectations may make sense upon initial consideration since, generally-speaking, women are more associated with brighter, ‘flashier’ colors and greater embellishment in terms of style, it can also be limiting or disadvantageous for men to adopt these expectations themselves. Color, for example, can have a large impact on our impressions of others, and this is not only true of a man’s first impression of a woman; as women too are visual creatures and are susceptible to the power of color. As previously mentioned, a lady’s passions are not likely stirred by a drab or predictable outfit on a man, so it stands to reason that, should a man be attempting to win that special someone he should at least help increase his chances by incorporating some color and embellishment into his look.

Style is not only the primary vehicle of personal expression, but also a powerful tool in terms of attracting and ultimately winning a woman’s attention. The subtleties of style are many and oftentimes difficult to pinpoint, but we hope that, with the advice we have provided and will continue to provide courtesy of style-expert and fashion designer Antonio MAC, you will be able to project that same confidence that made you successful within your field.

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HHOOT T RRUUS SS SI IAANN BBRRI IDDE ES S®® - - MME ENN’ S’ S L LI IF FE ES ST TY YL LE E MMAAGGAAZ ZI INNE E

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TURN ONS, TURN OFFS,

&

HOW TO FIND LOVE ON RUSSIAN DATING SITES

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DATING A little education about Russian women and Russian dating websites can go a long way towards soothing a gentleman’s fear of the unknown.

Many men are pleasantly surprised by the benefits a Russian dating website may have to offer and regret not trying the service sooner.

In creating this guide, we hope to educate men seeking love abroad about:

W

• What

qualities

Russian

women want in a roman-

While many men have found love and happiness on international dating sites, many more are afraid to give these services a try. The reasons vary, but common concerns include the taboo of the international dating industry, the value of matchmaking services, whether or not the women on such sites are sincere in their quest for love or merely looking for money and a green card, and the potential difficulties of dating women halfway across the world.

tic partner • What

qualities

Russian

women find repulsive and unattractive • What to consider when choosing a Russian dating website • What blacklists and anti-scam sites are about

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A recent survey of 580 Russian women on HotRussianBrides.com and RussianLoveMatch.com revealed the Top 10 turn ons.

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Men who have a low opinion of themselves are not likely to attract others. Remember, everyone has something to offer so never feel like you’re not good enough to snag a hot woman.

1. A GOOD SENSE OF HUMOR: A good sense of humor is what turns Russian women on the most, so do your best to make your special lady laugh. When chatting with a woman, try to tell a joke or share a funny story, listen appreciatively when she does the same, and laugh at yourself if you say something silly or make a mistake. Men who take themselves too seriously are simply no fun.

7. SENSITIVITY: Many men tend to hide their sensitive sides for fear of appearing feminine or unmanly. While you don’t have to cry at every sappy movie or cuddle on every

2. GOOD MANNERS: Many Russian women view chivalrous behavior as indications of good manners, so make an effort to open doors for your date, carry her bags, pull out her chair, and generally treat her like a lady. You can also display your good manners by remembering to say please, thank you, and you’re welcome, something many people forget these days.

The more you behave like a gentleman the more you will impress your significant other.

3. RESPECT: It should come as no surprise that women want, and expect, to be treated with respect. So what’s the best way to show her you care? Refrain from using foul or inappropriate language. Don’t pressure a woman to do anything she doesn’t want to do. Respect her ideas and opinions, even if they clash with your own. It may seem obvious, but you would be surprised at how many men treat their dates with disrespect.

4. INTELLIGENCE/EDUCATION: Women like men who are intelligent and well-rounded. While you don’t have a Ph.D., or even a college degree to keep a woman’s interest, a basic knowledge of history, geography, and current events will take you far. One easy way to impress your Russian lady is to educate yourself about her country and culture. Do some research online and show her that you’re interested in what makes her tick.

5. SELF-CONFIDENCE: Women like confident men, so don’t be afraid to let your personality shine! Smile, make eye contact, don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and ideas. If you don’t have natural confidence, fake it until it feels right.

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6. KINDNESS: A man can demonstrate kind behavior in many ways, including giving sincere compliments, comforting a lady when she is worried or upset, sending heartfelt gifts on special occasions (or even when there’s no occasion at all), treating others with dignity and respect, volunteering to help those in need, etc. There are many ways to show a lady your kind heart, just be sure your actions are sincere.

No one likes a phony.

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couch, it’s okay to show a little emotion on occasion and cozy up to your significant other. In fact, as you can see from the top billing on this turn on list, Russian women like a sensitive man! If you make an effort to share your feelings and express your affection you won’t be sorry.

8. OPTIMISM: No one likes a pessimist, so take care to maintain an optimistic outlook when interacting with your special lady. While it’s okay to share your concerns with a love interest, try not to drone on about gloomy topics like the failing economy, your unstable job, or your troubled finances. Pessimists tend to drag others down with them and that’s the last thing a woman wants, or needs, in a relationship. Try to see the best of life, even if things aren’t going as well as you’d like.

9. CLEAN AND WELL GROOMED: Just as men want to date a woman who is clean and neatly put together, women prefer men who take care of their appearance. It may seem simple, but a shower; clean, neatly pressed clothing; a freshly shaved face; and a little cologne go a long ways in attracting a woman.

10. A GREAT SMILE: This turn on is pretty self-explanatory.

Women love men with a great smile! This doesn’t mean you need the perfect smile of a toothpaste model, but rather one that shows you are cheerful, fun-loving guy who enjoys life. When you’re chatting with a sexy lady, smile, laugh, show that you enjoy talking to her. If you are exchanging photos online, send one of you with a heart-melting smile on your face.

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1. BAD MANNERS: The biggest way to turn a Russian woman off is to display bad manners. Neglecting to say please, thank you, and you’re welcome can send a lady warning signs about your sense of etiquette (or lack thereof). You also want to avoid sharing crude or inappropriate jokes and making inappropriate comments about her appearance.

friends, throw yourself into a hobby, or work on bettering your career. Any passion is better than none at all.

7. ARROGANCE: Even if you are the richest, most handsome man in the world, bragging about it will only make you sound like an obnoxious jerk. While everyone tends to broadcast their best qualities, keep the boasting to a minimum if you want to score that special lady.

2. LYING: This big turn off is easy to avoid.

Don’t lie! While it’s tempting to exaggerate certain aspects of your life, resist the urge to embellish facts about your job, salary, age, or appearance. Lying only suggests that you’ve got something to hide or that you’re suffering from low self-esteem, things no woman finds appealing. If you’re

8. DISRESPECT: There are many forms of disrespect, but one easy way to avoid this offense is to treat others how you would like to be treated. Some common disrespectful behavior includes lying, cheating, name calling, talking about a woman behind her back, sending crude or suggestive messages, and treating women like sexual objects.

open and sincere while courting a Russian lady, she’s much more likely to respond well to your advances.

think about sex more frequently than women. But while this may be true, most women don’t want a man who constantly

9. SEX ON THE BRAIN: Almost anyone will agree that men

3. SELF-CENTERED BEHAVIOR: Believe it or not, the whole world shouldn’t cater to your wants and needs. There’s little that annoys a woman more than a man who behaves as if he is the center of the universe. Ask questions, express interest in a lady’s life, let her know you’re interested in something other than yourself. If she wants to take the relationship slower than you’d like, respect her wishes and don’t press the issue. Men who make an effort to consider a lady’s preferences as well their own are sure to do much better.

4. RUDENESS: Rudeness takes many forms, so the old saying “treat others as you’d like to be treated” is a good proverb to keep in mind. You can never go wrong by taking other people’s feelings into consideration.

5. DIRTY APPEARANCE: No woman likes a dirty, unkempt man. Show a little initiative and put your best face forward.

Take a shower; shave; put on a clean, nicely pressed outfit.

Posting a photo of you in your rumpled pajamas or showing up for a date in torn clothing isn’t going to impress any woman. Russian women are known for their fashionable clothing and immaculate appearance. The last thing you want to do is look like a slob by her side.

6. LAZINESS: Women like enthusiastic, ambitious men.

They don’t like men who are content to sit on the couch all day, watching reruns and eating pork rinds. Exercise, visit H O T

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Women...don’t like men who are content to sit on the couch all day expresses his sexual desires. This is particularly true in new relationships. When corresponding with a lady, don’t even think about mentioning sex in the first few emails! You also don’t want to send her nude photos or ask her to do the same. If you do, she might think you’re a creepy pervert.

10. CHEATS: Cheating, by definition, is the act of being sexually or emotionally unfaithful. While there may be a few gray areas as to what constitutes cheating, it’s best to abstain from any borderline behavior. Trust your gut when it comes to determining what’s appropriate and what’s not. Want to know what other behaviors to avoid? Russian women are also turned off by bad language, close-mindedness, stubbornness, a man who is uneducated, a man who lacks goals, a poor sense of humor, men with poor communication skills, anti-social behavior, immaturity, a man with a forceful physical approach, and insecurity.

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DATING Now it’s time to put your newfound knowledge to work. Most Western men turn to online sites to meet Russian women who are seeking love and companionship. While some gentlemen may meet a lady while traveling or living abroad, international matchmaking sites, despite their negative connotations as a place for “mail-order brides,” are often the easiest and most convenient way for men to meet ladies from Russia, the Ukraine, and other countries.

So what’s the best way to go about finding love online? Here are some things you should do (and NOT do) to make the courtship process go a little smoother.

OW TO FIND

HE ONE

ON A RUSSIAN DATING SITE

CREATE A COMPELLING PROFILE The first step on any dating website is to upload a picture and complete your profile information. Your profile is the first thing a lady will see, so make it good! Men who take the time to write full, developed profiles get better responses than those who write only a few words. The more information you share, the better your chances of finding your perfect match.

It is also very important that you post a nice, yet accurate photo of yourself. Don’t upload a photo that was taken several years ago or one of you in your stained pajamas. You don’t want to appear to be a liar (turn off #2) or a slob (#5).

Other photos to avoid are ones that are out of focus, those that show you with other women, anything involving nudity,

that you care about getting to know her. Ask about her life, her country, her culture. Listen to her thoughts and ideas.

Ask your lady what she’s looking for in a relationship. Men who make an effort to get to know the women they’re dating do much better than those who talk only about themselves.

etc.

things come to those who wait” is a good proverb to keep in mind. Not everyone wants to get married right away.

EASE INTO THE RELATIONSHIP A few men who frequent international matchmaking sites are understandably excited by the beautiful and intelligent women who appear online, and they want to find a lady to marry right away. The men narrow down their search, single out a special lady, and initiate correspondence. Things seem to go well and after a few months, or even a few weeks, the gentlemen suggests marriage and is shocked when the lady does not agree. So what gives? It’s likely too soon. Russian women, like women everywhere, can be frightened off by suitors who move too fast. Take your time, get to know the lady, and see how things progress. The old saying, “good

BE POLITE AND RESPECTFUL It may seem obvious, but the best way to court a lovely Russian lady, whether in person or online, is to treat her with dignity and respect. Use appropriate language at all times, refrain from sharing crude or offensive jokes, respect her opinions and beliefs, and avoid treating her like a sexual object.

GET TO KNOW HER If you want to keep a Russian woman’s interest, show her

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Men who make an effort to get to know the women they’re dating do much better than those who talk only about themselves.

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even think about posting a photo of someone else! If things progress as you hope, you might meet your lovely Russian lady one day and what could be more humiliating than being exposed as a fake?

LI E Nothing will repel a lady faster than learning that her online suitor is a liar. Be truthful in your profile! Don’t lie about your age, your job, your income, or anything else for that matter. On a similar note, don’t post a photo of you in your 30s if you’re actually in your 50s, and don’t 9 0

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BE INAPPROPRIATE Once you’ve found a sexy lady who’s caught your eye, the last thing you want to do is scare her away by being inappropriate. One way to do this is to ask her for nude or sexy photos or to bring up sex in the first few emails. Sex-obsessed men are a big turn off for Russian women, so tread carefully. It’s fine to tell a woman you think she’s beautiful, but not to comment on her body.

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BE NEEDY Imagine that you’ve found the woman of your dreams. She’s seems beautiful, intelligent, and charming, so you send her an introductory email. After a day or two, she doesn’t reply so you send her another email, then another and another and another. When she doesn’t reply after a week or so, you grow disgusted and perhaps send a curt message telling her not to bother contacting you. While some women like a persistent man, others find it annoying or even frightening.

Keep in mind that many women are only able to access the Internet a few times each month, so be patient when awaiting a reply. A delayed response doesn’t mean she isn’t interested.

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BE NEGATIVE Who would you rather reply to? A woman who says “I doubt this online dating thing will work and I know you’ll never want to write back to me, but I thought I’d try anyway” or the one who says “I saw your profile and I am really impressed!

I think we have a lot in common, write me back!” If the first impression you make is that you’re a negative person who isn’t very enthusiastic about meeting someone new, you’re likely to scare away women who might otherwise have liked you very much. Be positive, confident and excited in your letters and your Russian woman is sure to enjoy reading them!

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OOSE

THE IGHT BSITE

There are a lot of international dating sites out there, all proclaiming to be the best at helping Western men find the Russian bride of their dreams. So how can you be sure that a site is worth your hard-earned dollars?

VALIDATION PROCEDURES A big concern among would-be suitors today is the validity of the ladies on dating sites. Gentlemen want to know that their money is going towards meeting real Russian women who are looking for love, not phonies or scammers.

When evaluating a potential site, ask yourself the following questions: • What is the company’s anti-scam policy?

• What steps do they take to ensure that the ladies on their site are real?

• Is there a video streaming service that allows members to see the ladies for themselves?

• How does the company respond to allegations of fraud?

• Can you easily contact the company if you have a question or complaint?

The more vigilant a company is in validating ladies’ identities and thwarting would-be scammers, the more you can trust the authenticity of the site.

roll all professional translation and interpretation costs into comprehensive member packages, while others may charge anywhere from $0.02 to $0.10 per word, $15 per letter, or $5 per minute for online chat. These fees can really add up, especially if a customer is interested in chatting with many ladies! Be sure to review the translation fees before joining a site so you don’t end up with any nasty surprises.

ADVANCED COMMUNICATION TOOLS Each international matchmaking service offers a variety of chat, email and video features, some more advanced than others. When considering a matchmaking service, it’s important to evaluate the company’s chat features. For example, does the site offer instant messaging or live video chat? A video streaming service is particularly valuable as it allows members to see and chat with the women in real time. Costs for these services may vary, so carefully weigh your options before making a decision.

SEARCH FEATURES Search features are very important to many customers.

CUSTOMER SERVICE TEAM Customer service is an integral part of any business. When researching Russian dating sites, consider what kind of customer service they offer (if they even have one at all).

Unfortunately, many customers find themselves hunting for obscure contact information or struggling to communicate with a person who speaks limited English. If customer service is important to you, try to find a site that offers a friendly customer service team that you can reach quickly and easily.

Some questions to ponder are: • How broad or narrow is the initial search tool?

• Does the site have a bookmarking or Favorites feature?

In other words, can you flag women you find particularly appealing?

• Can a man see when a woman has added him to her Favorites folder?

• Does the site offer a way for customers to keep track of the women they are corresponding with, a virtual black book if you will?

• Does the site offer introduction videos, i.e. short videos a woman records to help would-be suitors learn more about her life and personality?

INTERPRETATION AND TRANSLATION FEES It’s very important to consider translation costs when evaluating a potential Russian dating website. Some sites

If a site offers a wide variety of search features, it’s generally easier for customers to narrow down their search and find women they are truly interested in pursuing.

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OUT

ACK STS

Anti-scam or blacklist websites are informational sites that claim to spread the “truth” about Russian dating websites, purportedly to save innocent men from being scammed by devious matchmakers. While some anti-scam or blacklist site operators may have good intentions, the sad truth is that many of these lists exist solely to slander the competition.

So how can you know who to trust? Here are some things to keep in mind when judging an anti-scam site.

SOME BLACKLIS TS ARE OPERATED

BY OR AFFILIATED WI TH COMPETING DATING SITES Check which international dating websites have purchased advertising space on a blacklist site, and then compare these sites to the ones who appear on the “approved” or “safe” list. If you only see one or two advertisers and they’re high up on the “safe list,” it is possible the blacklist owner is receiving kickbacks from the “approved” website. You should especially be suspicious if links to these sites appear to be part of an affiliate program, where the blacklist publisher receives money in exchange for traffic sent to the linked site.

BLACKLISTS ARE NOT REGULATED Any website which is considered to be an “International Marriage Broker” must obey applicable laws which govern their industry; however the so called “blacklist” websites are not regulated by ANYONE. There are no “official” black list websites or agencies for the international dating and correspondence industry, so any information you see posted to these “black list” websites should be considered the publisher’s subjective opinion. Want to check with a

reliable source? While there are none specific to international dating and marriage broker services, there are many official consumer protection organizations which may be trusted, both within the government as well as in the private sector.

REJECTED SUITORS OFTEN USE BLACKLIS TS TO VENT THEIR FRUSTRATIONS Look closely at reports that come as a result of a failed relationship. Sadly, many women are accused of being “scammers” simply because of a personal dispute. The dissolution of a relationship can be very painful and sometimes a man will stretch the truth or even outright lie to make the woman seem villainous. Always take post-breakup reports with a grain of salt. If you weren’t there and don’t know either of the people involved personally, it’s impossible to know what REALLY happened when the couple broke up.

Remember, just like a brick and mortar establishment, Internet-based businesses are subject to bad publicity from disprovable and often times highly speculative sources. This is even more prevalent nowadays with internet access becoming more widely available and the sense of anonymity provided by online forums and message boards. Use your best judgment when determining the validity of black lists and anti-scam websites.

...the so called “blacklist” websites are not regulated by ANYONE...

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