Now that the new year is here, many of us are struggling to hold onto our usual new year's resolutions. Have you noticed that most of the time resolutions add to your 'to-do' list rather than simplifying your life? Why not making a resolution to simplify your life instead? Do you often feel overwhelmed with things to do, places to be? You enjoy being productive but feel frantic during the day? You are organized and live by your to-do list and yet this chore list seems to get longer rather than shorter? Do you know a lot of people but often wonder why there doesn't seem to be any time for deep connections? Simplifying one's life means just that, letting go of certain habits, conventions, or actions that don't serve you in creating more meaning in your life, and then using that energy to create connections, peace and a sense of gratitude. We all want to be of service, be professional, get things done, be responsible and reliable, be the best we can be but we often forget ourselves on the way. No wonder we end up feeling so overwhelmed. Fortunately, there are some simple steps you can take that will help you let go of things that are not bringing meaning into your life, so you can have more time for those things that are truly important to you! These changes will allow you to find more fulfillment and joy in your everyday activities. Peace and serenity are attainable when you re-arrange your life for more balance. The most common complaint I hear in my coaching practice is from the 'Super mom.' (Now, this example also applies to you men, so read on.) The 'super mom' has a demanding career but she also volunteers at school, bakes cookies for her children's class, takes care of the house, chauffeurs the kids around and listens to her partner's concerns late at night. All of these responsibilities may be important to her. But they can take over, creating a schedule that allows for no time for self or meaningful relationships with others. There is only one solution: Simplify! To experience more joy, we need to let go of certain activities, to create a space that we can fill with more meaning. All our obligations and assignments are serving some purpose. Yet, we need to have the courage to say 'No' so that we can slow down and make time for ourselves. We also need to get to know ourselves. Often we have not taken time for reflection on what gives us true fulfillment. Once we know what we really want, we need to put a realistic plan in place. Change doesn't just happen by willpower but by laying out a concrete plan that is attainable and measurable. We need to create a list of those activities we will courageously say 'No' to, scheduling blocks of time for whatever holds meaning for us and then safeguarding them. We also need someone to hold us accountable during these times of creating new habits and lifestyle changes. Tell a friend, a coach, your partner or even your boss which changes you will accomplish. Lastly, we need to consistently take action on our new plans until the new rhythm of life becomes a habit. So, what can you say 'No' to today so that your life will be simpler and more meaningful? How can you say it so that it gets heard and understood? Where can you create a space that you then thoughtfully fill with something that holds deep meaning to you? If you chose one action that would allow you to create some time for peace, reflection and connection, what would it be? How frequently do you need this special time? How can you safeguard it? And who should you tell about your plans? Who can be your support? Today's the day to make a commitment to yourself. Get out your calendar and block off that special time for the coming month. And keep saying 'No thank you' to new obligations that would jeopardize your time for you. Once you have a little practice, you'll be surprised how easy it is to simplify!
For the best diet results, you need a personalized diet that you can stick to. Maybe your aiming to shape up, or to improve your fitness and health, no matter what you want to achieve the best way to achieve it is with a diet that is designed for you - to suit your tastes, habits, and lifestyle. A personalized diet plan can be obtained from a multitude of sources. Provided you have no major health problems and your trying to lose weight (as opposed to lowering cholesterol which will probably require a more specialised diet) then one of the many diets offered by the major fitness and diet gurus will do the job perfectly. Just pick the diet that best suits you. Advice can also be obtained at your local gym where there will usually be a knowledgeable person who can help you find your perfect diet. Everyone reacts differently to diets, certain diets which cause immediate weight loss for you may cause lackluster change in other people. So personalizing your diet - making it suit you - can greatly increase the benefits you get out of your diet. So verify that the food you eat is the correct food for you. If you suffer from a health condition that is interfering with your diet, or perhaps isn't compatible with your diet, you should avoid changing the diet to suit your condition without consulting your doctor first. Most doctors will be able to tell you what foods are or aren't compatible with your condition and advise you on what to do with your diet. Of course your doctor knows as much as anyone about your health. They are in an excellent position to help you decide on the diet that will be most effective for you. They will also be able to spot any potential problems with a diet you are on, or are considering. For example if you are on medication to prevent blood clots then you shouldn't eat green vegetables (spinach in particular). Your doctor will spot issues like this and point them out to you. Most mass market diets are designed to be 'one size fits all', but in truth we are all different. What works for one person might not work for you. That's why the diet that you can tailor to your self and your body is the best kind of diet. So when you are considering diets check if the diet can be shaped to suit you, this is the kind of diet that will work best. Another problem is that depending on where you live, some diets might call for you to eat a particular food that is difficult or even impossible to find. They might also require you to eat foods that are out of season or more expensive to buy in your location than others. If this is the case, you should change your diet to include foods that are easier to come by, but that also work in your diet. Of course there is little point in beginning your diet with great determination only to find a week later you dont have the ability to stick with it. It is important that you ease yourself into your diet when possible. Phase out your old diet while gradually adopting your new personalised diet. That way you'll be able to stick with it and get the most out of your new diet. Avoid a diet that requires you to abruptly change your eating habits, forcing you to stop eating your favourite foods for example. Changes like that will cause temptation and make you cheta on your diet. A diet like this will rarely last long enough to have any meaningful effect on your health or weight. If your diet has an aim - like losing weight or lowering your blood pressure then you should consider making a progress chart. that way you can look at the chart and see how far you've come and how much closer to your goal you are. that kind of encouragement will give you a much needed boost in your confidence, and your resolve to work along the path of your new diet and achieve your goals.
Recent TV news showed that various food brands are offering low carbohydrate foods due to public demand. That just shows how poorly informed the public can be. The Mayo Clinic (http://www.mayoclinic.com/) tells us that "Every day your body requires certain nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats and protein, to function properly. Too much of one nutrient or not enough of another can influence your health." Encyclopedia Britannica (http://www.britannica.com) tells how carbohydrates can be classified, but they are all described as molecules of Carbon, Hydrogen, and Oxygen. "Carbohydrates are the most abundant molecules in all biology." Carbohydrates and oils are the means that plants store energy. Few plant fats are saturated. Fats are also compounds of Carbon, Hydrogen, and Oxygen, but in more complex structures than carbohydrates. The more structural bonds, the less liquid is the fat at room temperature. Such liquid fats are called oils. Hydrogenating oils creates more hydrogen bonds to make liquids into soft or hard fats. These trans-fats are bad for cardiovascular health. The "essential fatty acids" are the ones that the human body cannot create from other foods, such as proteins. Proteins have many structures, but are mostly composed of Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen plus Nitrogen. The essential amino acids are those proteins which the human body cannot create from other foods. Of course, foods also contain essential vitamins and minerals. Supplements of these can be beneficial, if not overdone. High / Low Carbohydrate / Protein diets really miss the target. Once minimal needs of each food type are met, the real issue is high or low calories compared to those used. If you eat more than your exercise can burn, you gain weight, and vice versa. Carbohydrates as sugars are fine as nature provides them, but not as refined and concentrated by humans. Like any source of calories, excess consumption leads to body fat. The details will vary, but a five pound bag of fresh fruit contains fewer calories than a typical candy bar. Supposed high protein diets are often filled with hidden fats. For example, consider ground beef. Center for Science in the Public Interest, with reports on-line at www.cspinet.org, tells us "USDA allows ground beef labels to make claims that would be illegal on other foods." "Ground beef accounts for 45 percent of the beef sold in the U.S. and it adds more fat -- and more artery- clogging saturated fat -- to the average American's diet than any other single food." "The USDA allows no more than 10 percent fat by weight in most foods that are labeled 'lean.' But the USDA allows ground beef that is up to 22.5 percent fat to be called 'lean.'" Of course, that fat is "saturated". In contrast, protein from plants, such as grains and legumes, has much less fat than ground beef and none of it is saturated. Tempeh, an Asian food made from whole soy beans with careful fermentation, has more protein than an equal amount (volume or weight) of ground beef, and also contains all the essential amino acids. So try this for healthy diet rules. Eat all the vegetables and fruits you can stand, but without sauces, dressings, added sugar, butter, margarine, or cheese. The same applies to grain foods, such as whole grain breads and pastas. Get at least some of your proteins from plant sources. Avoid all foods fried in fat or oil. I lost weight and one third of my blood cholesterol by reducing my beef and pork consumption, increasing my use of broiled and baked fish and chicken, and learning about soy foods that are now available in North America. Even Ph.D. scientists can mis-lead themselves with wishful thinking. A former colleague of mine was often heard to describe his high protein, low carb diet in terms of complex biochemical theories, yet he was always at least 100 pounds overweight. He also ate and drank about three times as much as I did at shared meals.
So far, the evolution of our exercise and fitness techniques has done wonders to improve our muscular strength, balance and flexibility, increase our cardiovascular efficiency and reduce our body fat. However, the problem is that many of the movements, motions and techniques found in the local gym have no correlation to the needs or goals of your life. For example, do bicep curls apply to your everyday life? Running on a treadmill provides cardiovascular health, but its application to the needs of everyday life seems to be somewhat ill defined. I have been in the health professional for over a decade and have thought long and hard upon the meaning and value exercise represents in our lives.
While the main focus of exercise seems to be upon physical and aesthetic results I believe that another layer of benefit can be added to improve upon our desire and motivation to exercise as well as increase the return on our energetic and monetary investments. Here are some questions to consider as you ponder the role of exercise in your life: What motivates you to improve your life? ·Is it the advancement of your life station, the exploration of your unique abilities and the constant learning that you obtain as a result of your direct experience that provides you the most pleasure and reward? What are the goals of your life? ·What does it take to be successful in these goals? ·Is your life station being advanced by your efforts? Is there a direct application exercise provides your life? ·Are you learning about yourself during your exercise routines?
·Would you like your exercise routines to have a more meaningful impact upon your life?
What makes a person successful? I believe success is something that is practiced through a combination of commitment, perseverance, staying true to your word, integrity, and other attributes. With these attributes sufficiently developed any individual can attain success in whatever form they choose for their life.
The question is how does one practice and develop these somewhat nebulous concepts?
My answer is exercise.
Here is how it works
Our sub-conscious mind responds to whatever we repeatedly do and what thoughts we constantly think. Also, whatever we practice we get better at. For example, positive thinking becomes more positive. Negative thinking becomes more negative.
If you think positively your health reflects this. You can see it in the eyes, skin, hair and energy. A positive person positively shines while a negative person brings the whole world down.
By consciously choosing to practice exercise as a means to develop and strengthen not only your body but also specific attributes of success, you will create a powerful mind/body association
Consider this scenario: If you go to the gym and decide that you are going to stay true to your word and that today in the gym you are going to get on the bike for twenty minutes. You work hard towards this goal and all the while you are exercising on the bike you maintain this inward focus. Not only will you improve your health, not only will you lose fat, but you will also improve your ability to focus, your ability to commit, your ability to follow through upon what you say goes in your life and your ability to succeed!
This is the true power of what exercise can do for your life!
Decide before your workout what attributes you need more of in your life. Do you need more practice committing or is integrity something you need more of? Whichever you choose they all can be practiced in the gym setting. Consider the following examples:·Commitment, decide what exercise you will perform, for what time interval you will perform it and at what level of intensity. Then follow through upon your intention and DO NOT STOP until you are successful. ·Integrity, find your most powerful and uplifting posture. Lift weights while maintaining this posture. Use the weights as a means to challenge your posture. The integrity is staying true to your form while being challenged.
·Perseverance once again pick an exercise and choose how intense you want to exercise (keep it safe). After you reach the end of your set, increase the number of reps or increase the weight and DON'T STOP (unless you feel pain) until you complete the set as you intended. Persevere through the effort and discomfort until you reach your goal.
There are many other attributes that can be practiced and all it takes is some imagination and some thought to apply them to the gym. Balance, learning to adapt, endurance, intimacy, self-connection, inner listening, improving confidence and so on.
The real nectar you receive from working out this way is that when you reach the goals you set for yourself as a result of your intention, you create for yourself a physical-mental memory anchor.
Then when you are in your life and you feel your integrity or commitment being challenged you can remember this anchor. You remember that if you can last twenty minutes on the treadmill at 6.5 mph and remain true to that, than you can most certainly overcome whatever obstacle you are currently facing in your work or personal life.
