Keep It Simple to See the Benefits

Today I am letting you in on something that manifested in my thoughts whilst taking my two youngest kids for a walk yesterday. I had to wait for today because yesterday was my day solely dedicated to being with them. The message is solely about how much we over emphasise exercise for fat loss. This probably sounds wrong coming from a restrictionator that prescribes exercise as a part of a healthy holistic lifestyle to increase well being.

My point being reducing fat loss is achieved by using up more energy than you take in. So what I emphasise to all and sundry that cross my path and wants to lose weight - get more physical activity in your life. Walk, run, skip, hop or whatever tickles your fancy but just move. What this will do is use up more energy obviously but it then enhances any other efforts you are utilising to drop some excess fat stores. You are setting yourself up for failure if you are doing 2 or 3 hours a week of specifically designed fat loss training and not much else. You simply aren't using up enough energy. Add another 6 or more hours physical activity in the mix and the scales will definitely head in your favour.

The physical activity doesn't have to be anything other than walking or it could be something more demanding like skateboarding or running. To add your specific fat loss efforts on top of an already enjoyably active lifestyle you should see much better results plus you will receive a lot more health benefits. Don't get me wrong I will always encourage resistance type of training in any holistic lifestyle especially if losing weight is a desired outcome. But to rely on weight training or resistance type of training solely may be not enough.

Just like you hear finance experts telling you to spread your risk factors and don't put all of your eggs in one basket use the same principle with your lifestyle and fat loss efforts. Have multiple energy using sources to help guarantee success.

Show Yourself Some Identification

Remember way back when (for some of us) when you were asked for identification to prove your age before you entered a licenced premises. It is also standard practice to have to show ID to open a bank account or get a credit card. Society takes this for granted and whilst it can be a pain in the butt at times, the masses recognise the importance of all of these identification processes.

However something goes a miss when it comes to ourselves. In my chosen role as a restrictionator (terminator of restrictions) the first plan of attack should be to change your mindset. Simply because we all possess conditioning's from our upbringings that will feel almost tattooed permanently into our psyches. I am the first to own up to having them and I'll also admit not all of those conditioning's are bad for me. But if you aren't aware of them then there is definitely no way you will erase the damaging thought processes that keep restricting your personal development. Whether it is physical, emotional, spiritual or mental restrictions you place on yourself it has the potential to stop your development in its tracks.

Without trying to address and then fix everything all at once your first point of call is your thoughts. Start identifying what it is you are actually thinking. Are your thoughts regularly negative and restrictive. For example, "I would never be able to do that" or "When I do that I will be a better person ....". Although the examples are vague I hope you get the point. Once you know what you are putting into your head space you can identify what it is that will be holding you back in some capacity. Without revealing your thought patterns there is no way known you can ID the destructive ones that will be holding up your development.

I liken it to creating a building base or foundation that is solid enough to take the massive weight that will be placed upon it. Any weakness that is left unattended could lead to potential destruction and disaster. Your mind is the same. If you have weaknesses that are left unattended they will most definitely surface in some shape or form. Get on the case and become a Sherlock Holmes in your mind, any clues you find will be vital.

Elite Athletes do it Why Shouldn't We?

I'm talking about taking a break, having an off season to recover and rejuvenate. I think we can learn a lot from elite athletes just by seeing how they constantly attempt to get the best out of themselves. In doing this they also have regular natural health intervention such as physio, chiropractic care and massage to name a few plus medicos on hand to assist. Because they are attempting to keep themselves free of injury and sickness in order to carry out their trade optimally. Isn't that what you should be doing?

If you look at the way you live at present in general terms there is no comparison to an elite athlete. Fair enough I realise you aren't an athlete with elite status but you can still invest in yourself to enable you to run on all cylinders. After all if you go down who pays you? My generalised view of our lives goes something like this; work 8.30am till 5.00pm if your lucky, get dinner ready and try and fit in activity, social interaction, hobbies oh and get some sleep as well. Repeat, repeat and repeat again. This goes on all year rain hail or shine with little if any thought to recovery, rejuvenation or preventing sickness. Just keep going, it's the way it is. When you do go on holidays or take your annual leave you are usually to tired and run down to enjoy it.

Point being you need to periodise your lives other wise there is no way you will operate any where near your peak. I wrote about the winter blues recently and how they affect energy, motivation and even our mental state. So it makes sense that winter should be the time when you purposefully slow down. You are now aware this is the time we slow down anyway so why not make it your off season. And while you are there factor in regular you time during your year for recovery and rejuvenation. There is a great book out called "Flip the Switch" by Andrew May who goes into greater detail about all of this stuff if you are interested in taking this further. Just remember you are the only one who will truly look after yourself and spend time, money and energy ensuring you are firing on all cylinders and preventing illness and disease. Everyone else is thinking about themselves to. Time you started isn't it.

Here is Your Wake Up Call

Undernourished, disease, dehydration and malnutrition are all words we associate with third world countries. Well I hate to tell you but undernourished and dehydrated apply to us in the developed world also. A vast majority of individuals don't drink enough water leaving us chronically dehydrated. Big problem. And a massive proportion of us don't get enough micro nutrients (vitamins and minerals) in our diet. In fact judging by the study we dredged up none of us are getting enough nutrients in our diets.

The purpose of this study was to determine if food intake alone provided the Recommended Daily Allowances (RDA) requirements for 10 vitamins and 7 minerals. The ten vitamins analyzed were Vitamin A, Vitamin D, Vitamin E, Vitamin K, Vitamin B-1, Vitamin B-2, Vitamin B-3, Vitamin B-6, Vitamin B-12, and Folate. The seven minerals analyzed were Iodine, Potassium, Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Zinc, and Selenium. 20 people were analysed comprising of 6 sedentary individuals and 14 athletes. Pro cyclists and amateur cyclists, athletes and triathletes were in the mix.

There is so much info I could stuff into this post but you would switch off before you finished it all so I will leave the address at the bottom of the article if you wish to check it out yourself. Very briefly 10 diets were calorie deficient and 10 were calorie excessive but the real problem is that none of the participants met the minimum recommended daily allowance for their micro nutrient intake. You may have already suspected this already, but I found this alarming and highlighted how our vitamin and mineral deficiencies reduces our ability to prevent nutrient deficiency diseases and disorders. For the record Iodine, Vitamin D, Zinc, Vitamin E, Vitamin E and Calcium was lacking in all of the diets monitored.

To wrap this up let me reiterate that this study was only conducted on 20 people. So hopefully more widespread research can be carried out in this area. However I am quite confident in predicting most intakes would fall short of the mark nutritionally. Now is the time to make changes if you wish to increase the quality of your diet and your health. The longer you wait, the more open you leave yourself to nutrient deficiency problems. Even small incremental changes will make a massive difference. Take matters into your own hands and take action today.

The address of this study can be found at jissn.com/content/3/1/51

Changes, What Changes?

Do you get concerned, anxious and uneasy when you know things are going to change. Or do you do just avoid change like the plague? If routine is vital for you and change is frowned upon then perhaps you need to think about changing your mindset.

Your still with me; good. The basis for my change topic is that we only know what we know and as far as we are concerned that is all that counts. Have you ever been told or asked to do something different to the way you normally do things? Even if it's just mentally you resisted initially didn't you? Even more so if you were ordered or rudely told to do it. See we believe as fact the first thing we learn or are told on a subject. Research carried out by the University of Michigan states whatever information individuals first hear is what is believed. It is taken and embedded in your brain as fact. This illustrates why we must be careful not to carry around the old and out of date conditioning's that are mostly ineffective and often incorrect. As is normally the case with ideas carried around in the minds of most people.

If you are existing with restriction in your life at the moment then you need change. Be aware of your thoughts and see if they are restrictive. Do you often repeat the phrases like, 'when I' and 'if only I could'. Even phrases starting with 'I should' are restrictive. Are you exercising the same way you did 5 years ago and wondering why you aren't seeing the results you desire? Is your diet the same as it was in your childhood? Do you carry around beliefs you have had instilled in you from parents, grandparents or old coaches? If you answered yes to any of theses questions then why not dissect your actions and see if they are beneficial or restrictive. And if you screwed up your face in angst at my suggestions, I hope the wind doesn't change because if it does you will stay like that forever!!! Change; a life with less restriction is dependent upon it.

Are You Aware of Your Value in the Grand Scheme Of Things

This post has been inspired by a collection of experiences that my wife and I have been through very recently. My wife runs her own business and has recently refurbished her hair salon. She has dealt with suppliers, contractors and her own staff majorly in the last two to three weeks. because of her tales and tribulations I have seen from a outsiders view how our values and actions can impact on so many.

An example was where a small furniture company's owner was on holidays. All dealings were with a younger employee. Everything was a drama and was really drawn out. There was no passion for her job and doing the best for everyone she came into contact with. My first thoughts were she doesn't care and she is slacking off because the boss is away. Then my mind started flipping things around to see it from her point of view. Hypothetically of course.

She isn't aware of the importance she plays in the general community. Her inaction and unprofessional manner upset harmony between two individuals initially. Due to this other associated professions were disrupted creating a snowball effect of setbacks and hold ups. All of them reflected badly on the company, not her as she is representing that company. The people affected will all speak badly of the company to their associates, the company loses credibility and in turn business and if this keeps going unchecked, her job will go and she will hate her boss for sacking her. All in all her perceived lack of value has been reinforced by the end result, but she will have no idea of the scale of destruction in the lead up to that point.

Maybe as a boss he should be making her aware of her value to the company and reinforcing that value in some way. Instead she isn't learning her true value, he isn't capitalising on it and the community suffers also through general inefficient and inharmonious practices and the company not reaching it's true potential and employing more staff. If this girl never has her true value highlighted to her and how her actions affect so many others she will go through life absolutely clueless of her self worth. Reinforcing how important it is for you and me to keep striving to realise our true value first and our circle of influence will benefit from that realisation much more.