More Energy Everyday – 15 Simple Steps to a Healthier, Happier You

It’s late afternoon, you still have tons to accomplish, yet you can’t keep your eyes open.  Your focus is gone, and all you can think about is how you will possibly get through the rest of the day.  When you do get home, you’re too tired to enjoy your family, cranky and irritable, and all you want is to have some dinner and collapse in front of the TV.  Sound familiar?

You are not alone.  So many friends of mine tell me the one thing they really want is more energy! Amazingly, small changes in your daily habits can produce big changes in how you feel. Try on some of the suggestions below, and see if you don’t begin feeling more alive, productive and energized throughout your day.
Action Steps to Energize Your Days

1. Eat often and eat light.  Food is fuel for the body.  Without it, we just don’t function well.  Eat every 2 1/2 to 3 hours, and never go more than 4 hours without eating. This will keep your blood-sugar levels even, and give you the constant fuel needed to get through your day.

2.  Never skip breakfast. When you awake, you come off a 10-12 hour fast. All foods convert to glucose, and glucose equals energy. Give your brain and your body the fuel it needs to begin the day with energy and focus.

3.  Have a mixture of complex carbohydrates, lean protein and a small amount of healthy fat at every meal and snack.

4.  Minimize simple sugars to avoid spikes in your blood glucose that are followed by an energy crash. If you must have a sugary snack, eat a small amount of protein with it.

5.  Drink water and no-sugar beverages all day. Energy slumps are often the result of dehydration. Your urine should be light or pale yellow. Anything darker means your not getting enough fluids.

6.  When working at your desk, take a break every 90-120 minutes. Get up, walk around, take a snack, get some fresh air, or call a friend. Even five minutes will bring you back to your task feeling refreshed and energized.

7.  Get at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep every night, preferably at the same time, to keep you feeling rested and alert.

8.  Exercise. It seems like the last thing you would want to do when feeling exhausted and drained. However, energy begets energy. Even 10 minutes of brisk walking will refresh you and make you feel more awake.

9.  Switch your exercise routine to mid-afternoon when energy levels are most likely to plummet.

10.  Practice deep breathing. When we are rushed and stressed, often we breath fast and shallow, and we don’t even know it. Taking a few minutes to relax your body and take a few long, deep breaths, will refuel your cells with oxygen, leaving you feeling more refreshed.


11.  Try a power nap. Set your alarm and don’t sleep for more than 20 to 30 minutes or it might interfere with the quality of you evening sleep.

12.  Avoid toxic relationships as much as possible. If you notice whenever you spend time with a particular friend or colleague you leave feeling exhausted, it’s a sure sign that they are an energy drainer.

13.  Commit to a time and finally complete that big project that’s been on your to do list. If it’s been constantly nagging at the back of your mind, getting it finished will release an enormous amount of energy.

14.  Stop multitasking. Stay completely engaged until one job is complete and then move on to the next.

15.  Build in some down time every day. Sitting in silence, meditating, journaling, praying or enjoying nature are all powerful ways to refresh and recharge your batteries.

It’s hard to change our habits, but when we take small steps, one at a time, we reach success. Choose one or two tips, and incorporate them into your routine every week. Within a couple of months, you should notice a huge difference in how you feel.  Everyday holds opportunities to love, learn, and enjoy life with those around you. Don’t be too exhausted to notice!

Avoid Gaining Weight This Holiday Season
...While Still Enjoying Your Holiday

I know what you are thinking – the holidays are a time for fun and indulgence. You don’t want to think about fitness during that time. You want to enjoy yourself. Don’t worry! The festivities don’t have to be eliminated or avoided. You can have a fabulous time while also maintain your weight and your fitness regime.

The secret to achieving a holiday season that is both full of fun and also includes fitness is found in moderation. There are two typical approaches to the seasonal festivities: 1) throw all healthy habits out the window and indulge in every guilty pleasure 2) starve and binge approach (for example, you eat nothing all day long to allow yourself to overindulge in party food). Of course, neither approach is successful at maintaining a healthy, fit lifestyle throughout the holiday season. But some how we should manage, because holidays should not be a disaster for our health.

As mentioned above, the key is found in moderation. With a moderate approach both to what you eat and how much exercise you do, you can avoid packing on extra weight and also take part in all the fun of the season.

Here Are Some Tips On Maintaining Your Health And Fitness:

Create a plan ahead of time. Before the holidays sneak up on you, create a plan for incorporating fitness and good nutrition into your daily routine. Evaluate your holiday schedule and then determine how much time you will realistically have available to devote to working out and/or eating healthy meals.

On the day of a party, be sure to eat regularly all day long. If the party is in the evening, eat breakfast, lunch and a snack before hand. Once you are at the party, go ahead and indulge in some of the fun, delicious foods. Since you have eaten meals earlier in the day, you probably will find that you aren’t tempted to go overboard and eat everything in sight. However, if you starve all day long attempting to save up all your calories for the party, you will be so famished by the time it begins that it will be difficult not to overeat.

Schedule your workouts. Mark them on the calendar and set-aside time to complete them. Consider them as important as any other appointment or event you have marked on your calendar.

When at a party, start by eating some of the healthy offerings. For example, vegetable sticks , fruit pieces, plain chicken pieces, etc. Then move on to some of the less healthy offerings. You will be less likely to overindulge on these foods if you have already filled-up on some of the healthier items. Yet, you will not feel deprived or unsatisfied.

On days that you really lack motivation or simply do not have time for your complete exercise routine, commit to do just 10 minutes of exercise. You’ll probably end up doing more than that once you get started. Even if you only end up completing 10 minutes, that is still a lot better than zero minutes.
When presented with a large variety of food options, it’s tempting to want to eat everything. Rather than eating one large slice of chocolate cake or a huge plate of meatballs, select a sampling of bite size pieces of several of the desert or appetizer offerings. This way you get the enjoyment of trying many different foods without overeating.

Exercise at home. You’ll be more inclined to follow-through on your exercise commitment if you don’t have to drive somewhere to do your workout. Plus, you won’t waste any time on driving, parking, the locker room or waiting to use equipment. Working out at home requires very little equipment (even can be equipment-free) and is quite inexpensive.

Avoid wasting calories on alcoholic beverages. The average alcoholic drink contains 150-200 calories per glass. Indulge in just 2-3 drinks and you’ve drunk the equivalent calories of an entire meal. If you partake in these beverages, choose wisely. For example, instead of having a full glass of wine, try mixing half a glass of wine with sparkling water or with a diet cola. This will help cut your calories in half.

When running errands or shopping be sure to pack some healthy snacks to have on-hand. Then after you work-up a big appetite, you won’t be tempted to grab something at the mall food court or the fast food restaurant on the way home. 

Hopefully these tips will help you find a balance between staying fit and also enjoying the fun of the season. Remember, moderation is the key. 

Have a great holiday season!

Health tip # 17

Every morning on an empty stomach make it a habit to drink 2tsp of honey with warm water and a half spoon of lemon extract...this acts universally as a best blood purifier and also a good drink to keep the cholesterol and your weight under control..

BODY MIND AND SPIRIT 

Many people who want to get into shape don't realize there is more to fitness than well-toned muscles. There's no shortage of exercise regimes that just promote the perfection of the body, or the idea of fitness as a part of a weight loss plan.

Centuries ago, Western culture lost its focus on the interconnectedness between the body and the mind or spirit, and how each has the power to affect the other. Cultivating a love of movement can help you get beyond the concept of physical fitness as separate from mental fitness - and toward a lifelong program of good health through mind and body fitness.

Whether you choose yoga or another form of movement for exercise, remember that our bodies are made to move to feel good. So when you incorporate regular activity in your life, you're moving closer to overall mind and body fitness. But if you are overweight, this can be more difficult. You can improve your mind-body connection for better mind and body fitness - it's just important to choose realistic fitness options.

You might consider redefining exercise as any activity that unites your mind and body and reduces your stress level. In fact, high levels of stress have been linked to weight gain, and certainly can lead to emotional eating. Finding activities that are both enjoyable and easy to do is important when developing any type of exercise plan.

It's important to be realistic about what we expect from ourselves. Consider your goals. Is 30 to 60 minutes on a treadmill a reasonable time frame at this point in your life? Are you setting yourself up for failure or success when you create this expectation for yourself? Would it be more enjoyable to you to do some stretching and a shorter period of time on the treadmill?

Developing an exercise plan that fits your lifestyle and your desires is critical. Surprisingly, long-term weight loss is linked more closely to whether a person sticks to their fitness routine than to what that routine actually consists of. A routine that is gentle and pleasurable is more likely to lead to the long-term gains you are seeking.

All-or-nothing thinking about exercise leads us to first bite off more than we can chew and then give up all together. Just walk into a gym in the month of January and try to get on a Stairmaster. There's a good chance you'll have to wait in line. But by March or April, there are usually plenty of free machines.

It is also important to tailor your fitness goals to your preferences. Some people like the idea of getting out of the house in the evening and going to the gym. Others prefer staying home and doing a quieter exercise routine after the demands of a stressful day. Either approach, or a combination of the two, can result in improved mind and body fitness.

What is critical is for you to come to know yourself and to take yourself seriously. If you like to be home in the evenings, find things to do in your home or consider an occasional walk with friends or family. If you crave the company of others, head for the gym. Think about what would please you most, and follow your inner voice.

Many people who are preoccupied with food and body issues tend to pay too much attention to the needs of others, while paying too little attention to their own needs. While you may intend to benefit your children with their countless activities, the added stress can cause an imbalance within your family. Can you take a look at your schedule (or your family's) and reschedule some time for yourself? What would it be like to say no?

Long-term weight loss can take time. And we can get demoralized when we don't see immediate results. But remember that maintaining an exercise routine is associated with physical as well as mental well-being. Where has our focus on the numbers on our scale gotten us? Some would say it has taken us to more harsh thoughts, more bingeing and grazing on food, and, ironically, less fitness rather than more.

It may be that the best exercise you can do right now is to throw your scale into the garbage. Focus on how you're feeling with your exercise routine. Is it something you enjoy and can maintain? Is it reducing your stress level and allowing a connection between your mind and body? If so, you'll probably keep it up, and fitness of mind and body and spirit will be yours.

Don't forget how important it is to see your physician before starting any type of exercise routine, and to following his or her recommendations. So try to be gentle with yourself and realistic about how to proceed.

There is tremendous confusion in our society about how to approach health and fitness. You may have tried losing weight before and failed. But consider the possibility that we as a society have not failed at dieting and weight loss. Rather, dieting has failed us as an effective tool for fitness.

Remember that fitness of mind and body belong together, and that exercise is very narrowly defined in our society. So redefine exercise as any activity that reduces stress and connects your mind and body. You'll be more likely to continue your exercise plan and achieve the outcome you're looking for.