Revitalize Your Life

May 25, 2011
By
Start on the path to living your dreams today.

Start on the path to living your dreams today.

Are you living your dreams? Do you even remember your dreams? Or are you too busy trying to keep up with daily demands to take the time to dream? People who do what they love are typically healthier and have lower levels of stress. Here are six ways  you can take time for you and discover what truly matters to you. 

1. Set aside time for you. Keep a journal and write in it regularly to help you stay on task and track your progress. Think about what has ignited your imagination in the past. Ask yourself whose life you would love to have and why. What was particularly moving or  important about them? As you journal, note up to five things that spark your passion.

2. Pick one of your passions and brainstorm with others to identify ways you could explore it. Take a workshop or class that touches on your passion or sign up for some  part-time or volunteer work in a related area.

3. Identify roadblocks and figure out how to overcome them.

4. Define your limits. Some questions to ask yourself: Do you need to limit your passion  to hours outside your work week? Do family responsibilities already consume a great  deal of your time? Can you capitalize on point where your passion, job, family activities, and community may overlap?

5. List five steps you can take today. First consider the small, easy ones that can move you closer to realizing your passion. Don’t shy away from the larger steps though. Think of a reasonable time frames to take initial steps and look at ways to eliminate nonessential time-gobblers.

6. Now—Get Started! Set up a schedule and do something. Enlist your friends and  family as your ‘support group’, give them updates on your progress; continue journaling and share your feelings as you go. After a couple weeks, evaluate how it’s going. Are you healthier now than when you began? Is this something you want to continue pursuing, or might you need to redirect your search for your passion?

Quick Tips To A Good Night’s Sleep

April 13, 2011
By
Quick Tips to a Good Night's Sleep1. Cut Caffeine: The effects of caffeine can take as long as eight hours to wear off. So if you drink a cup of coffee or soda in the afternoon and are still tossing at night, caffeine might be the reason. Cutting out caffeine at least four to six hours before bedtime can help you fall asleep easier. 
2. Avoid alcohol as a sleep aid: Alcohol may initially help you fall asleep, but it also causes disturbances in sleep resulting in less restful sleep.
3. Relax before bedtime: Stress not only makes you miserable, it wreaks havoc on your sleep. Develop some kind of pre-sleep ritual to break the connection between all the day’s stress and bedtime. These rituals can be as short as 10 minutes or as long as an hour.
4. Keep your bedroom quiet, dark, and comfortable: Use earplugs, window blinds or curtains, set the temperature between 68-72 degrees—everything possible to create the ideal sleep environment.
5. Eat right, sleep tight: Try not to go to bed hungry, but avoid heavy meals just before bedtime. And avoid any specific foods that you know cause you trouble, such as spicy foods that cause heartburn. 
6. Avoid napping: While a nap sounds like a good idea after a long day, napping can only make matters worse if you usually have trouble falling asleep. If you do, keep it brief, between 15-20 minutes. 
7. Keep pets off the bed: Allowing pets to sleep with you can cause you to wake up during the night, either from pet movement or allergies.
8. Avoid watching TV, eating, and discussing emotional issues in bed: These activities can wire up your brain,  making it difficult for you to fall asleep.

6 Ways to Beat the Winter Blues

February 24, 2011
By

Does the change in seasons bring you down? Does lack of sunshine make you blue? Ready to hibernate ‘til spring?

Looking forward to spring!

Here are a few tips to help you beat those winter blues. 

1. Let the sun in. The seasonal increase in darkness can have a negative effect on your mood. To fight this, open the blinds and window shades when you get up in the morning. Also, try to spend a little more time outdoors on sunny days. Soaking up some sunshine rays can improve your mood.

2. Enjoy a winter sport. Find a winter sport you enjoy and before you know it, you’ll be looking forward to the cold weather. Whether it’s skiing, skating, or snowshoeing, aerobic exercise boosts your endorphins to lift your mood.

3. Exercise. Aim for at least 3-4 times a week for 30 to 45 minutes. This can be an easy walk on the treadmill, extra laps around the mall, or even just going up and down the stairs at work. Exercise helps your mind by releasing those ‘feel-good chemicals’ that improve your mood.

4. Eat a Healthy Diet. What and when you eat has a great effect on your mood and energy. Avoid refined and processed foods (like white breads, white rice, and sugar). These foods are not only devoid of the nutrients your body craves, but they can sap your energy levels and affect your mood. Try to incorporate more complex carbohydrates (whole wheat breads, brown rice, veggies, fruit) and drink plenty of water.

5. Treat yourself. Having something to look forward to can keep anyone motivated, even when winter seems endless. Plan something that’s exciting to you—a weekend trip, a day at the spa, a party, or special event. If you plan something exciting, your mood improves when you’re anticipating it and when the event actually comes.

6. Relax! You’re busy. Work, family, friends, appointments, meetings—even if you enjoy being busy, everyone needs some time off. Don’t be afraid to say ‘no’ to extra opportunities. Try to spend a few minutes each day doing nothing. Read a book or magazine, sleep in on the weekend, go to bed early, try some meditation, or take a yoga class. Relaxation can alleviate stress and leave you with calm energy. Mental exercises and positive thinking can help keep depression at bay.

5 Tips for Sticking to Your New Year’s Health Resolutions!

January 26, 2011
By

Make sure in 2011, you accomplish everything you set out to do for your health and fitness. Follow these tips and like the tortoise, you’ll slowly and steadily win the race (or get the body of your dreams!)

  1. Figure out WHY you want to achieve your fitness goals. The key here is to go beyond the obvious, surface reasons (i.e. looking good, etc.) Ask yourself WHY looking good is important to you. Then keep asking yourself why THAT is important to you. Do this until you come to a powerful reason why you want to achieve your fitness goals this year. When you figure it out, write it down on an index card for quick reference. Reading this during those “slumps” that happen to the best of us will rekindle your motivation to keep going even when you don’t “feel” like it.
  2. Create an eating plan. The most important aspect of achieving ANY fitness goal lies in what you eat. So make sure you create an eating plan that gives you a caloric deficit. Remember, eating less calories while burning more (through proper exercise) is the simple key to fat loss.
  3. Eat one ‘cheat meal’ a week. This is key to sticking to your eating plan over the long haul. You want to make sure to give yourself one cheat meal every week. Eat anything you want for this meal. This will eliminate any cravings and keep you sane for the remainder of the week.
  4. Keep track of your progress. You want to keep track of all the progress you’re making. This will motivate you to continue doing the right things that will yield your ideal body. Weigh yourself and take measurements only once every two weeks. Any more than that is too frequent.
  5. Get accountability. Find someone who can hold you accountable to do what you say you’re going to do. By having a workout buddy, for example, it forces you to get into the gym even on those days when you’d rather stay at home and do something else.

“Go To” Success in 2011!

December 29, 2010
By

Where will you go to find success in 2011? What are your health and fitness goals for the new year? How will you stay motivated to keep moving toward success?

The new year is right around the corner and what better time to make a fresh start? Here’s a great idea for motivation: Create your own workout playlist. Music is a great motivator and can make us feel great! Pick out some songs that make you jam and put them in your mp3 player or burn them onto a CD. Play them during your next workout and let them move you to reach for success!

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