Part of having a delicious life is about loving the skin you’re in. Finding movement that feels right for you can help you love your body that much more. When you take care of your body with vitality-building exercises, you are rewarded with higher energy levels and more positive emotions (not to mention a sexy hot bod).
I work out in the morning because I know there’s no way of getting out of it. At 6:00am, I’m too sleepy to reason with myself. If I make myself just get up and do it, I’m already 10 minutes into the workout by the time I fully wake up, and then I’m not resisting working out.
Sometimes I have an awesome workout. And sometimes I want to die. Most of the times, I like working out. But sometimes, if I’ve stayed up too late the night before (like last night), I really don’t want to get out of bed. I think about hitting the snooze button. But then I get up anyway.
Why? Because the best - and only - way to get in shape is to consistently put one foot in front of another. That means, just show up.
Even if it’s not your best workout day, or if you can only work out for 20 minutes. Or 15. At least you showed up. That’s 15 more minutes than you would have done had you stayed in bed. And once you get into the habit, you won’t think twice about skipping a workout. It will become second nature like brushing your teeth, just another step in your routine.
It takes about 21 days to ingrain a new habit. Once you do something consistently each day for about 3 weeks, it becomes part of your daily routine. If you continue past that time, you’re probably going to keep the habit for quite a while.
I’m 19 days into my new workout routine. I’ve noticed that the shape of my body is starting to change. All of my pants are loose, and most everything else in my wardrobe fits well or is moving to the “too big” side. And while I’m sleepy today, my overall energy has definitely increased over the past few weeks.
I highly recommend trying a new workout routine and committing to it for at least 3 weeks. Try something that challenges you. If you’ve been a runner forever, take up a new cardio sport such as biking or swimming. If you lift weights, try yoga. If you’re a weight lifter, try Tai Chi. Even if you’re in amazing shape, you may be surprised how difficult a new type exercise can be. And, if you’ve been bored with your same old routine, you might find yourself loving working out again.
Something to get you started (if you’re in New York City/Brooklyn):
Want to kick start a new diet or exercise routine? Try my week-long cleanse class - a quick, flexible, easy way to get moving. The class starts May 7, so sign up today!
Spring has sprung. Finally things are starting to bloom, weather is warming up, and it’s time for some spring cleaning. Besides cleaning out old things and clothes from your home that no longer fit or that you enjoy, you can also do a holistic spring cleanse for your body, mind and lifestyle.
A dietary cleanse is a good idea in the spring after a winter of eating heartier foods. It’s a gentle way to start eating lighter and shed any winter weight that may have accumulated over the past few months. And it’s a great way to get ready for the warmer weather in late spring and summer.
You can cleanse for a few days or a couple of weeks, depending on the condition of your health and what works for your lifestyle. There are many different ways to do a food cleanse. Some people will cut back on foods that cause accumulation - dairy, meats, refined carbohydrates - and add in lighter leafy greens, fresh veggies and fruit. Some people go vegetarian for a short while, cutting out all animal products. And some do a juice cleanse and fast.
Some of the benefits you can get from it may include:
Increased energy
Clearer skin and shiny eyes
Losing a habit like caffeine addiction
Fresher breath
Better sleep
Weight loss
Interested in trying out a cleanse this spring? I will be holding a cleanse class starting May 7, 2008.
Details:
Teleclass – Wednesday, May 7, 8 pm - call in number to be announced when you sign up
Cleanse Days – Saturday, May 10 – Friday, May 16
Cost – Intro teleclass is free - but you must Contact me though this site to participate. Cleanse class is $50 for menus, shopping lists, and full week of support
I suffered from insomnia the other night, but I didn’t bother taking anything for it. I slept as much as I could and hoped for the best during the day. I was a little sleepy, but I didn’t bother tanking up on coffee either. I knew it would be worse the next day if I did - I would probably have some kind of rebound effect like a headache, more insomnia, or who knows what else.
Now there’s a new supplement on the market that promises to have you wake up on time. Made from guarana extract, B vitamins, and riboflavin and niacin, with a special coating that acts as a time release mechanism, Wake Up on Time supposedly has you do just that.
Maybe it does work, maybe it doesn’t. And yes, very few of us don’t get enough sleep, go to bed too late, drink too much coffee for us to fall asleep at a reasonable hour. But wouldn’t it make more sense to try to get back into balance instead of taking pills to sleep and pills to wake up? True health does not come in a bottle. It comes from developing healthy habits and making a commitment to taking care of yourself over the long term.
Ah coffee…Most people can’t fathom starting their day without it. But for those people trying to get healthier, the big question is: to drink or not to drink? Is it good or bad for you?
I was a heavy coffee drinker from age 16 until recently. I couldn’t imagine life without the bean. I loved the smell and the taste, and the feeling I got when I had my first cup. Or my second. I thought it was what gave me a delicious life.
That is until I realized that I was really quite a nervous person. And sometimes I didn’t want to go to sleep at night. Or was it that I couldn’t? And sometimes I got angry - very angry - at things that really didn’t matter all that much. But why?
When I started learning about how to get healthier and I did my first dietary cleanse, I was told I would have to give up coffee. I consoled myself by remembering that it would be a temporary quitting. I’d have to give it up for about six weeks. It sounded like forever. But I wanted to feel better, and this was one of the things I needed to do to do it.
And then suddenly life got a lot less stressful. I was still living in New York City, still commuting on those crowded subways, still going to a job I didn’t really like and working way too much, and yet it all got easier. I wasn’t angry, and I wasn’t nervous. I could sleep at night and I never had any indigestion.
After the cleanse, I started drinking coffee again, but much less. And eventually I quit. I occasionally have decaf, but it’s not usually worth my time. And I’ve recently started drinking green tea, but I’m even thinking of drinking less of it or none at all, because life for me is more delicious with less caffeine.
According to Caffeine Blues author Stephen Cherniske, there are a lot of reasons (here are ten of them) why you might consider reducing or avoiding coffee, tea or any sort of caffeine. Also, another reason recently found in the New York Times’ Well blog: a new study shows that caffeine may hamper blood sugar control for people with diabetes.
But don’t believe what I say - try it for yourself and see what happens.
Would you be willing to give up coffee for thirty days or more?
Did you get your laughter for today? There are many benefits you can get just from laughing - it boosts your immune system, relieves stress, stretches your facial muscles, relieves tension in the head, neck and jaw, and can be good for alleviating headaches.
Besides all of those tangible benefits, there are many other that come with regular laughter. I think we could all use a little more merriment in our lives. Life is not all that serious, yet so many of us take everything so seriously all the time.
I want to start one of these laughter clubs - or find one to join near where I live.
It’s one thing to love your job. It’s another if you can’t seem to tear yourself away from it - obsessively checking e-mail outside of the office, calling in while on vacation, or even not wanting to take a vacation.
If this sounds familiar, you may be a workaholic. Pick the Brain has a good article about work getting in the way of life that can help you determine if you are a workaholic, and tips for how you can start to overcome it.
I went to see Donna Eden speak Monday night. She was pretty amazing. In her book, she says something like, “My mother said I was born smiling…” and it seemed true - she just radiated positive energy, especially when she was smiling which was most of the time.
I had just picked up her book, Energy Medicine, a couple of weeks ago from the library on recommendation from a friend. A week after I started reading the book, I picked up a Learning Annex catalog and saw that she was teaching a class in a week - I couldn’t believe it. And it was going to be the only night that she was in New York. I had to go.
The class taught a lot about how to perform the basic exercises outlined in her book and why they were good for you. She gave us a basic routine to do each day that will restore and balance our energies. Then she took many volunteers from the audience, quickly diagnosed their energy issues, and helped them solve the problem through various exercises - tracing meridians, tapping trigger points, visualizing, and using acupressure on different parts of the body to stimulate or calm the energies of different organs or systems.
Her husband, David Feinstein, was also there teaching alongside of her. He is an energy psychologist, and he also taught portions of the class and answered questions. They are both very knowledgeable about energy balance and control. By the end of the class, the mood had shifted from drained and tired to awake and alive.
I highly recommend her book if you want to learn more about how to revitalize your energy, from balancing your chakras to redirecting your meridians to strengthening your aura. Also, check out her website, Innersource, for some very good information about how to solve energy issues (look in the questions and answers section).
I found this article on Daily OM and thought I would share it:
Not Alone In The Dark Looking At What We Don’t Want To See
It is one of life’s great paradoxes that the things we don’t want to look at in ourselves are the very things we need to look at in order to know ourselves better and to become more fully who we are. The feelings that make us want to run away are buried treasure full of energy and inspiration if we are willing to look. These feelings come in many forms, from strange images or snippets of information to recurring dreams and feelings that rise up seemingly without a reason. Whatever shape they come in, and no matter how scary they seem, these messengers bring the information we need in order to grow.
When we are tired of pushing something down, or trying to run away from it, a good first step is to write down what we think we are avoiding. Often this turns out to be only the surface of the issue or a symbol of something else. Expressing ourselves fully on paper is a safe way to begin exploring the murky territory of the unconscious. The coolness of the intellect can give us the distance we need to read what we have written and feel less afraid of it. It helps if we remember that no matter how dark or negative our thoughts or feelings may be, these are energies shared by all humanity. We are not alone in the dark, and all the gurus and teachers we admire had to go through their own unprocessed emotional territory in order to come out the other side brighter and wiser. This can give us the courage we need to open the treasure chest of what we have been avoiding.
Within the parts of ourselves that we don’t want to look at, there are emotions that need to be felt. Unfelt emotions are stuck energy, and when we leave emotions unprocessed, we deprive ourselves of access to that energy. When we feel strong enough, we can begin the process of feeling those emotions, on our own or with guidance from a spiritual counselor. It is through this work that the buried treasure of energy and inspiration will pour forth from our hearts, giving us the courage to look at all the parts of ourselves with insight and compassion.
I don’t like writing when I’m not in a good mood - I feel like this sentiment translates in my work. I want my messages to encourage positive thoughts that help people. But I also realize that if I show my real self to the world, that can be helpful too.
Right now, I’m dealing with some heavy emotions from things that happened long ago. I have been afraid to examine them, so instead I buried them. That’s tough to live with though. You can do it for a while, but inevitably, they will come up. The good news is that I’m getting the courage to look. And while it can be painful at times, this article reminds me that releasing this old energy is healthy - it’s necessary in order to grow and it makes room for new good things to come.
I’ve been talking recently about the importance of how you eat - what happens when you change your focus from eating to other things, and how your emotions affect your digestion. I found this article interesting and related to this discussion, so I thought I would reprint it:
How Mindset Affects Your Waistline By Jon Benson
When it comes to being fit, you should focus on being happy first.
This may seem like putting the cart before the horse. However, new research on the brain shows us that simple meditation - for as little as five minutes - can alter brain chemistry in a way that improves both athletic and work performance and increases our own experience of happiness and well-being.
Numerous studies on why diets fail demonstrate that a happy person is more prone to follow through on a diet or exercise program than one who is merely going through the motions of life. Depression is often cited as the number one reason people give up on a diet. It makes sense to make yourself truly happy… and science shows us you can.
Give meditation a try. Just take five minutes in solitude, and focus on two simple things: Kindness and compassion. This is a great start. See if you can work your way up to 30 minutes a day. Changes in brain chemistry occur in as little as two weeks, according to Harvard University researcher Olivia Carter, Ph.D.
This article appears courtesy of Early To Rise, the Internet’s most popular health, wealth, and success e-zine. For a complimentary subscription, visit http://www.earlytorise.com.
Meditation practice is really good for calming the mind, as long as you don’t get caught up in the fact that your mind is constantly wandering while you’re sitting there. That’s why they call it “practice.” If you can get over the fact that you will not be able to do it “perfectly,” even for five minutes, and just allow yourself to practice it, you will benefit over time. Five minutes per day in the morning and five in the evening is enough to get long-term benefits - as long as you practice every day.
The Delicious Life newsletter delivers news, upcoming events and special offers right to your e-mail inbox. It's free to subscribe, so all you have to do is sign up now.
