Healthy Lifestyle Hint: Why We Talk Ourselves Out of Making Healthy Choices

More and more, healthier messages are all around us, and for many of us, it isn’t so much ignorance as much as self sabotage that keeps us from leading the healthy lifestyle we desire. We all have that inner talk that somehow manages to derail us from our healthy choices. It happens to even the most health conscious people. But why?

It’s as simple as this. Our behavior is most influenced by our feelings. So even though we know intellectually that we should eat healthy, drink a lot of water, get to bed at a reasonable time and make sure we get consistent exercise, it’s our emotions that are determining whether we will follow through or not.

Tips to Help You Follow Through:

1. Deliberately put yourself in situations that will help you feel like you need to do the healthy things you want to do. For example, you could enter into a fundraising walk. This way, you have commitments that you need to fulfill and therefore you will feel like you have to stick to your trainings. 
    
2. Keep it simple and make subtle changes. People often fail because they turn the changes they want to make into a complicated task that no one could or would even want to take on. Instead of setting out to exercise everyday and never eat anything unhealthy, start off slow. Add one workout routine to your week to start and cut out one or two foods. Then work up from there. Make it easy on yourself. The harder it FEELS, the more likely it is that your feelings of not wanting to do it will run the show. 
    
3. Make lifestyle changes, instead of hopping on the next fad diet that promises immediate results. If it’s not part of your lifestyle, it won’t be sustainable and it will only lead to more frustration, not to mention most fad diets are unhealthy (which negates the point of trying to make healthier choices!)

Thank you to Carpe Vita for this insightful article. Visit them at: http://www.carpevitainc.com/

Minimizing Job Stress Before It's Too Late

Minimizing Job Stress Before It’s Too Late

Here you are, minding your own business, doing a great job, then someone asks you to perform what amounts to a professional miracle. They have no idea that what they want will require the [insert your job here] equivalent of leaping through flaming hoops, doing backward flips while juggling three apples and eating one of them in mid-air.

The good news is, you come through. You make it work and you deliver the goods, on time and just a little over budget. The "not so good" news is that, just as you're about to exhale and recover from the job-gymnastics routine, three other people call or come over to you and say: "Hey, you're pretty good! Can you come over and do that for me, too?" Only, I need it a little sooner and a lot cheaper."

There is a phrase in Spanish that loosely translates: "By mistake, I killed a dog once-- Now they call me a dog killer." They don't have a phrase for when you work a miracle once. However, if you find yourself in a quandary of how to think about this, Lao-Tzu had a phrase: "If it doesn't kill you first, it will make you stronger."

If you are time-crunched and have to go work another miracle right now, the quick-view, bottom line solution is, pick one of the following choices:
1) Do it superbly, name your price, including number of days off to recover and recharge.
2) Decline it, just say no, you can't do it under any circumstances and maintain personal and professional integrity.
3) Deflect it; don't automatically take their bait. This is to make them look good - not you!
Or
4) Let THEM delegate it to the three other people who should be doing it, even though they aren't as good at it as you are.
Thanks, it's been great. Call me if I can be of any support in the mind/body department. See ya--

If you have a little time, let’s have a deeper discussion about this phenomenon of being a miracle worker.

Deciding to Do the Miracle
Most of us like to do our best work every time, no matter how much time and money it takes. However, often, we find ourselves challenged by time, money, talent, technology or all of it. Here is where you say to yourself, "This is an opportunity for me to grow and learn. Working through this will get me closer to self-mastery. And that's good.

The key to this step is: Just do it –but on your terms, at your price. Then reward yourself for what you learned and accomplished. Take quiet time to self-reflect, for it is in the quiet spaces that the inner self recharges and re-calibrates itself for great contribution next time.

Declining Opportunity.
Don’t do it. If you're having trouble with this part, it may imply that you're new in your career and you're not sure if this one time is going to be the opportunity that could make or break your career, reputation or both. The bottom line is "just say no, can't do it. You don't even have to give a reason why.

If your commitment is to excellence in your work or your job, to say "yes" to this opportunity is also a vote "yes" for mediocrity at your expense. The more you exercise the "no" muscle, the better you will get at it.

Deflecting Opportunity.
Your colleague comes to you and begins to moan and whine about how they're so busy and so swamped, or so professionally challenged that their life is being made miserable because they don't have what it takes to do as good a job as you could do in the amount of time they have. Woe is them…..

That's your cue to say, "Aw, gee, that's too bad. I'm sure that something will work out for you. Thanks for the conversation. See ya later." This opportunity is to make them (your whiner) look good. It's rarely a good clean chance to make you look good no matter how much of a hero they make it sound like you will be if you rescue them our of their predicament.

Lastly, Let THEM delegate this project to the three other people who should be doing this job, even though those other people are not as good as you are or as experienced as you are. Don't make the mistake of agreeing to make sure it gets done, which only means that you have now accepted work that got dumped on you that you either have to do poorly at your expense or delegate it.

Consider the possibility that the reason why more opportunities exist is so more people can take advantage of them, not so that highly competent people can be taken advantage of. If you are a miracle worker, when you do say "yes," make sure it's on your terms for doing excellent work, including your requests for preparation time, ample talent & budget resources, time to do the job, and the opportunity to recover and rejuvenate yourself after a job well done.

The Emotional Anatomy of Lower Back Pain

The Emotional Anatomy of Lower Back Pain

The Other Side of Low Back Pain

If you find yourself full of joy, with a sense of belonging and fulfillment, your back probably doesn’t bother you that much.  On the other hand, if you’ve been suffering from chronic back pain—or perhaps you have some recent low back pain you can’t ignore anymore—it’s time to look at what’s going on in your life that would manifest itself as your aching back.

The lower back—this is the lower part of the back starting at the pelvis going up to the lowest ribs of the back and also includes the inside front of the hips. 

On the outside of your low back where you might be experiencing your pain, your body transmits the energy of activities you engage in with others.  Many of us in the mind-body medicine professions have a sense of this. 

Back Pain and Core Flexibility

Some of us have the idea that increasing core strength will help resolve chronic pain.

However, only a few of us are aware of the need for core flexibility, especially deep in the front hip muscles.  It is good for the core muscles to be strong.  However, if these muscles lose their flexibility, then the body becomes rigid, which forces our back muscles to work harder and may even cause wear and tear to the joints, all of which can be painful and frustrating.  What gives muscles good tone is a balance of strength and flexibility. 

You need core flexibility in the hips and low back as a foundation for all movement as well as balance for your emotional body. 

Where Passion Lives—The Front of the Hips

The front hip muscles attach to the front of the low back bones, go down through the pelvis and attach to the inside of the upper leg.  Together they lift your legs when you are standing, walking or running.  They also keep your low back upright when sitting. 

This muscle group stores and transmits the energy of your passion and charisma.  We express passion when our heart and soul are actively engaged in meaningful activities and professional pursuits.  There is even something about the activity that reflects and completes something deep inside us.  Sometimes the experience is perpetual, like in one’s relationships or life work.  Sometimes it’s spontaneous and short-lived, like craving chocolate or sharing a special moment with someone.

Time to Reflect

If you are experiencing pain or discomfort in the low back—the question to ask yourself is: “What am I doing that, maybe I used to like doing before, but it’s no longer fulfilling for me? What’s missing now that will give me those warm, fuzzies I really want to enjoy?  What is next for me?” 

A woman was doing some professional growth seminars and got to a point where she accomplished her goals and reached a level of sufficiency by applying the skills and tools she acquired with the organization. Around that time, her back started to hurt.

With Reposturing Dynamics treatment and Reposturing Yoga exercises, we helped her get rid of the low back pain.  Coincidentally she was also completing her agreements with that organization. Lo-and-behold, at the same time the stress of her unfulfilling commitments was eliminated, her back started feeling better. 

Cause and Effect—Flexibility and Freedom

It’s not that there is ever a clear “cause-and-effect” to point to.  What IS evident is that there seems to be a correlation between how our body manifests physical stress and our life choices and activities.

The connection I have found is this: The more flexibility and freedom you give to your front hip muscles, the more passion and pleasure you are able to experience and express.  Remember, the front hip muscles start in the front of the low back.  Therefore, in order to truly help your low back, you must stretch and release tension in the front hip muscles.  When you are no longer passionately engaged in meaningful activity, you may experience low back pain. 

Again, when your back hurts, in addition to the professional help you seek, the questions to ask yourself are, “What activities am I doing just for myself?  Is this still fulfilling for me? Do I still enjoy doing it? Does it produce the results I want in my life?”

Self Care Action Plan

If the answers are no—find a way to complete the unfulfilling agreements you have in place.  You can even decide that you want to have one crowning-achievement by completing that project and move on with the rest of your life.

Of course, seek the care, support, and good advice from health professionals such as chiropractors, physical therapists, and orthopedists.  However, the best self care for low back pain is stretching the front hip and front low back muscles.

The Reposturing Solution

Some of my favorite hip stretches from the Reposturing Yoga DVD are: Standing Quad Stretch, Step-Up Lunge, and Standing Crossover Hip Stretch.  These will get you started toward a pain-free back.

More important, with the self care emotional approach, you may also open the door to even greater happiness in your life.