Shape Up By Making Small Changes

Posted inDetox, Diet, Weight LossNo Comments

 

It’s that time of the year! About now we begin realizing we have gained some pounds because of all the eating we do between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Whether you need to lose 10 pounds, 25, 50 or more – it is time to start eating healthy and lose those pounds. Why do you want to lose weight? Is it for your appearance—so your clothes will fit comfortably again—or is it for your health?

Here are a few tips—and we will include more motivational tips in next week’s email:Incorporate strength and cardio training into your daily routine. You need both to tone muscles and rev up your metabolism. Do exercises to work your largest muscle (butt muscles—glutes) and your abs (for that flat belly). One thing that can derail your efforts is an injury so be sure to warm up before every exercise session. Use a tracker and you will tend to challenge yourself and increase your normal activity. I even have a tracker on my phone that measures steps taken in a day. Aim for 10,000 steps. Is that way more than you are now walking? Start where you are now and add 1000 steps. Challenge yourself and try to increase your goal each week.

Drink your water—some experts say to drink ½ of your body weight in ounces. If you weight 140—that will be 70 ounces of water a day. Did you know that many of us walk round in a state of dehydration most of the time? If you are increasing your physical activity, it is important to stay hydrated. And drink a glass of water before eating a meal—it really works!!

Who Needs Omega 3?

Posted inBlood Pressure, HealthNo Comments

Does everyone need an Omega 3 supplement? I will let you be the judge of that.

Here is my story—I have been health and weight conscious all my life. I had always maintained a reasonable (not perfect) weight–exercised regularly–ate healthy—never drank and never smoked. No one was more surprised that I was when I had a significant heart attack 8 years ago.

Following my hospital stay, my cardiologist put me on prescriptions that he said I would have to be on the rest of my life AND told me to always take Omega 3. In fact, my cardiologist has never had a heart problem and he takes Omega 3 regularly. He checks in every six months to be sure I am continuing to take my Omega 3.

Do You Eat Even When Not Hungry?

Posted inDiet, HealthNo Comments

We love our food!! We eat to maintain and support our bodies, but some of us eat even when we are not hungry. Or we eat when we are hungry and never stop until we are stuffed.

Overeating can lead to weight gain and obesity, but there are so many other risks associated with overeating. It can lead to Type 2 Diabetes. Web MD says Type 2 Diabetes means your body cannot use insulin correctly and this makes your blood sugar levels harder to control. If left untreated, this can lead to other problems like damage to your kidneys, your eyes and your heart.

Then consider depression and anxiety. Often overweight people suffer with these. Are they bought on by overeating and being overweight….or does the depression or anxiety cause a person to continue eating way past the full signal? Either way, the extra pounds are just not good for your body!

Jan 30 Accentuate the POSITIVE….Eliminate the NEGATIVE!

Posted inHabits Of Success, Happiness, UncategorizedNo Comments

In a hit song from 1944 made popular by Bing Crosby, the Johnny Mercer lyrics told us to….

“Accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don’t mess with Mister In-Between”

There is nothing more dangerous or destructive than a life of NEGATIVE thinking.

Negative attitudes and remarks are the first sign of a “toxic” person. When you meet someone who always has an opinion, who continually makes excuses, finds fault, places blame and almost rejoices in telling you all the reasons why something ‘won’t work’–you should avoid these people like the plague.

There is nothing ‘realistic’ or ‘noble’ about being negative. These folks will try to convince you that they’re just ‘realists’ ….they help you keep your feet on the ground and your head out of the clouds. Don’t believe them. In fact, take a good hard look at them. What kind of lives are they living? Do they have great relationships? Are they healthy? Do they smile and live with a sense of joy and enthusiasm? I can answer that for you….NO!

Whatever you do, do not allow these ‘DREAM SQUASHERS’ –toxic negative people–to influence your life.

Your Miracle Moments are Waiting for You Now!

Posted inHabits Of Success, SUCCESS, UncategorizedNo Comments

There’s a simple story in the Bible that best illustrates what a Miracle Moment really is.

Peter asked Jesus to allow him to step out of the boat and join him by walking on the water.

THAT WAS A MIRACLE MOMENT.

In those few short moments, Peter taught us a lesson that holds within it the SECRET toall success in life.

Let’s look at what happened.

Peter saw Jesus standing out on the lake. He thought it was totally cool that Jesus could do that and he wanted to do it, too. (He KNEW what he wanted!)

I imagine that in the few moments preceding his request to Jesus, that Peter envisioned himself walking across the lake. He could see himself standing out there next to Jesus–defying all sense of reality or what was “possible”. (He created a VISION in his mind.)

When he asked Jesus to call him over there, he was making a bold statement of FAITH. He believed it was possible.

At the same time I imagine that the other guys in the boat with Peter had a few remarks to make of their own (even if they were made quietly). Peter chose to ignore the NEGATIVE and envision the positive outcome.

So what happened? Peter stepped out of the boat, started walking on the water and within a short time, sank.

What You Think About You Bring About

Posted inHabits Of Success, SUCCESS, UncategorizedNo Comments

You must guard your mind from negative thoughts and emotions.You are in control of your thoughts. You can put a stop to a negative thought the moment it enters your mind. Is this easy? No, but it is absolutely critical to your ultimate success.

One effective tool for you to use is to REPLACE worry with a positive vision. Worry brings fear, nervousness and frustration. It distracts us and keeps us from operating at our optimum level.

Worry stems from FEAR. And in 90% of all cases, FEAR is negative. Yes, there are times when fear can be healthy–like choosing not to walk too close to the edge of a cliff. But for the most part, FEAR is nothing more than FALSE EVIDENCE APPEARING REAL (F.E.A.R).

The problem with allowing your mind to obsess and worry over something you fear is that by doing so you can actually manifest the very thing you fear into your reality. Remember, our subconscious mind works hard to bring about the thoughts we focus on the most.

So here’s the plan: when you start to worry over something, instead of doing what most people do and imagining the worst possible scenario as being inevitable, begin to imagine that BEST possible outcome you can think of. Instead of obsessing over “what could or might” happen that is bad, begin to vividly imagine that what WILL happen is a good and positive outcome. If you’ll do this, I guarantee that you’ll begin to see GOOD things happen and you’ll eliminate the bad.

 

How to Bloom Where You Are Planted

Posted inComplaining, Dreams, UncategorizedNo Comments

We can’t always choose the cards we have been dealt, but we can learn to play them. Like a flower that grows through a crack in the concrete, sometimes we have to make the best of our situations and bloom where we have been planted.

You may not be where you want to be in life just yet. You may be working a day job that is not your passion and working on your dream through the night.

Keeping our dreams alive is what uplifts the human spirit. But how can we deal with the fact that sometimes we may have to tolerate something that we do not like to eventually get to where we want to be?

Not everyone can quit their jobs and follow a dream. Sometimes our dreams take time. So instead of getting bitter and upset at your situation, why not try blooming where you have been planted?

Here is how I think we can do that and why it makes a difference:

1) Every step in life prepares you for the next one

You may not realize it, but where you are now is providing you with vital life lessons for your next adventure.

When late producer, director, author and screenwriter Michael Crichton was interviewed about how his training as a physician helped him to be a writer, he said this:

 

THE MAGIC BANK ACCOUNT

Posted inDreams, Gratitude, HappinessNo Comments

THE AUTHOR IS NOT KNOWN. IT WAS FOUND IN THE BILLFOLD OF COACH PAUL BEAR BRYANT, ALABAMA, AFTER HE DIED IN 1982

Imagine that you had won the following *PRIZE* in a contest:

 Each morning your bank would deposit $86,400 in your private account for your use. However, this prize has Rules:

The set of Rules:
1. Everything that you didn’t spend during each day would be taken away from you.
2. You may not simply transfer money into some other account.
3. You may only spend It.
4. Each morning upon awakening, the bank opens your account with    another $86,400 for that day.
5. The bank can end the game without warning; at any time, it can say, “Game Over!” It can close the account, and you will not receive a new one.

What would you personally do?