Change is part of our lives. It always has been and always will be. The only thing that is certain in this life is that things will change. Health is not only changing, but it requires us to change in order to keep it, improve it or simply understand how it is affecting our lives.
No matter how healthy or unhealthy your lifestyle is today, you have experienced change in your routine. It may be on the job, at school, at home, with friends or all of the above. At some point, you had to make changes in order to keep doing things you wanted to do. Change, while it can be painful, is not difficult to acknowledge or understand.
Although we have understood the presence of change, I’m not sure that everyone has truly accepted the fact that they need to change in order to keep moving in the desired direction. Change in health is simple: it is simple: you have a path that you want to go down. As you move down this path, challenges come your way that require you to adjust in order to keep going down that path. If you don’t adjust, you won’t be able to continue. It is like a personal road block. If something is in your way, you have to change course in order to get around that obstacle.
What if we don’t change?
What happens if we choose not to adjust our course? That’s simple. If you are on a road driving and there is a fallen tree blocking the way, you have to make a choice. You can change and go another way, or you can sit and wait for someone to move the fallen tree. You still have two choices, but one is far more reasonable than the other. I don’t know too many people that would sit and wait for someone to move the tree.
Let’s think about it from a personal perspective. If your family is running into a scheduling conflict and there seems to be no way to get one event or another, you have a simple choice to make. You can adjust your schedule and change how your time is allocated, or you can keep doing it the same way and hope the situation magically resolves itself. This sounds a lot like the fallen tree, doesn’t it? If you are waiting for something to magically happen that will change the results, you will be waiting around for a long time and may never see a solution.
How do we change?
Change is a scary word to many people. In fact, many people will continue do things that are clearly not working for them because the fear of change is greater than the problems they are dealing with now. For that reason, they are ok continuing to deal with more and more problems because that feels easier than changing. After a while, they get used to doing things this way, used to dealing with problems and results that are less-than desirable. It eventually feels like there is no alternative.
Let’s be clear: There is always an alternative. There is always something you can do to make your life better. No matter how long you have been doing something, you can always change. No matter how much time you have invested in a process, you can always make it better. When you do, you will see better results.
There is one thing required for solutions to work in your routine. Action needs to be taken. No matter how badly you want that schedule to work out for you and your family, if you don’t change something, you will keep into conflicts. No matter how badly you want to that tree to be out of your way, unless you are willing to act and change course, it will remain in front of you, blocking your way.
What do we need to change?
In order to change, you need to take action. In many cases, it is easy to see that a person is not doing anything to counteract a problem, but in just as many cases there is something being done, action being taken that is actually causing the problem. Either way, you have problems if this is taking place. Doing nothing and doing things that harm your health are equal and often difficult to distinguish.
That is why the key to change is action. Not only do you need to take action, but you need to focus your action on the results you want. There are certain results you are looking for in all areas. If these results are not seen, what happens? Do you simply keep trying to do the same things and expect different results? Do you do nothing and assume that the problem can’t be solved forgo those results?
I hope you don’t do any of the above. I hope you would look at current results, realize that they weren’t the desired results and change action to get different results. That is what successful people do. They change their actions to change their results.
What does this have to do with your health?
Personal health and wellness is change. When you look at your current routine, if you are not as healthy as you want to be, you have likely been out of the habit of doing healthy things or in the habit of doing unhealthy things. The change you need here is simply to start making your actions help your health rather than hurt them. That is what healthy people do. It’s all about changing action to change results.
That is what it takes to change in any area of life. It may take time and it may take some investment, but the alternative is already happening and it is hurting you. Increasing weight and health issues are pretty big tree in the road. Poor energy and lost days are large conflicts in your schedule. So, what should you do?
I hope you will look at your current results, realize that they aren’t the desired results and change action to get different results. That is what successful people do in any area of life. They change their actions to change their results. Are you ready to be successful in health?
Showing posts with label healthy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label healthy. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Monday, February 25, 2013
Want to Live Healthy: You Can
Living healthy is not easy. The more we see in the media, the more problems seem to be plaguing our country. If you are human, which I think you are if you are reading this, you likely see the problems and may even be experiencing some of them yourself.
Health is not something that comes easy to anyone. There are many people that have made it easy for them, but only after many years of hard work and practice. It may look easy for them now, but they had to build those habits. They had to work their way to where they are now. When you see them in action, it looks easy. It may even be easy for them now, but trust me, it was not easy to start and there are still difficult times for them when it comes to sticking with the routine.
The difference between healthy people and unhealthy people is nothing more than the habits and routines that they have worked on for a long time. Even with new habits, the process is the same for healthy people. They know what it will take to make something stick, so they do it and do it until it is part of their routine.
Unhealthy people look at these people and think that the process is easy for them. They think that it is hard for themselves, but easy for the healthy people and they think that the difference between them and the healthy people is the ease. That is not true. No matter how much you struggle with health, there is a way to do it. You can be successful.
You can also fail. This is not what you want to hear, but failure is always a possibility. If you are trying something new, you can fail. If you are working to include new habits into your routine, you can fail.
Now that we have that out of the way, we can discuss some real solutions. Here are some solutions to help you realize that you can:
Stop Fearing Failure
If you acknowledge that failure is an option, you can get over the fear of failure. The fear of failure is worse than failure itself. The difference between successful and unsuccessful people is that successful people are able to fail and keep going, try again or simply find a better way to do something. There is always another way to do something, so if you fail, simply try again, try something different and you will eventually succeed.
Determine Plan B
If you have another option, failure will be pretty short. The problem with falling short of a goal is that it leaves you feeling like you missed the mark. Well, it’s true. You did miss the mark, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t try again. If you have a plan for getting back on track or a secondary goal that will allow you another option, you can succeed or simply limit the impact of a small failure.
Don’t Expect it to Be Easy
Health is not easy. If you expect it to be easy, you will be disappointed. The most common reason for failure is poorly managed expectations. We’ve all been there. You set out to try something new and expect it to be easy. When we run into one little issue, it is enough to derail us. We didn’t see it coming because we expected it to be easy. Success is not easy and often takes a lot of practice. If you go into it knowing this, you can reach it. If you go into it with the fantasy that it will be easy, reality will quickly catch up to you and failure will not be far behind.
So, what are you goals? What is the new habit you want to make part of your routine? No matter what it is, you can do it. How do I know that without knowing what your habit is or what your routine looks like? I know that you can because it isn’t as hard as you think it is. If you can move forward without fear of failing, have a plan B in place because you know that failure is possible and expect a few challenges along the way, you can do it.
It’s not rocket science. It’s not brain surgery. Health is hard, but it’s not that hard. We can all do it. You don’t have to run marathons or lose a hundred pounds in a week. All you have to do is come up with a simple plan that works for you. Determine what habit you want to improve and go improve it. Notice I said improve and not change, eliminate or create. We already have many habits. If you can improve just one habit gradually, you can make a significant impact on your health.
Can you improve your health? Of course you can. Is it going to be easy, of course it won’t be easy. But no matter what it is you are trying to do, if you are focused on your health and willing to create a realistic plan, you can do it. Trust me, you can.
Health is not something that comes easy to anyone. There are many people that have made it easy for them, but only after many years of hard work and practice. It may look easy for them now, but they had to build those habits. They had to work their way to where they are now. When you see them in action, it looks easy. It may even be easy for them now, but trust me, it was not easy to start and there are still difficult times for them when it comes to sticking with the routine.
The difference between healthy people and unhealthy people is nothing more than the habits and routines that they have worked on for a long time. Even with new habits, the process is the same for healthy people. They know what it will take to make something stick, so they do it and do it until it is part of their routine.
Unhealthy people look at these people and think that the process is easy for them. They think that it is hard for themselves, but easy for the healthy people and they think that the difference between them and the healthy people is the ease. That is not true. No matter how much you struggle with health, there is a way to do it. You can be successful.
You can also fail. This is not what you want to hear, but failure is always a possibility. If you are trying something new, you can fail. If you are working to include new habits into your routine, you can fail.
Now that we have that out of the way, we can discuss some real solutions. Here are some solutions to help you realize that you can:
Stop Fearing Failure
If you acknowledge that failure is an option, you can get over the fear of failure. The fear of failure is worse than failure itself. The difference between successful and unsuccessful people is that successful people are able to fail and keep going, try again or simply find a better way to do something. There is always another way to do something, so if you fail, simply try again, try something different and you will eventually succeed.
Determine Plan B
If you have another option, failure will be pretty short. The problem with falling short of a goal is that it leaves you feeling like you missed the mark. Well, it’s true. You did miss the mark, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t try again. If you have a plan for getting back on track or a secondary goal that will allow you another option, you can succeed or simply limit the impact of a small failure.
Don’t Expect it to Be Easy
Health is not easy. If you expect it to be easy, you will be disappointed. The most common reason for failure is poorly managed expectations. We’ve all been there. You set out to try something new and expect it to be easy. When we run into one little issue, it is enough to derail us. We didn’t see it coming because we expected it to be easy. Success is not easy and often takes a lot of practice. If you go into it knowing this, you can reach it. If you go into it with the fantasy that it will be easy, reality will quickly catch up to you and failure will not be far behind.
So, what are you goals? What is the new habit you want to make part of your routine? No matter what it is, you can do it. How do I know that without knowing what your habit is or what your routine looks like? I know that you can because it isn’t as hard as you think it is. If you can move forward without fear of failing, have a plan B in place because you know that failure is possible and expect a few challenges along the way, you can do it.
It’s not rocket science. It’s not brain surgery. Health is hard, but it’s not that hard. We can all do it. You don’t have to run marathons or lose a hundred pounds in a week. All you have to do is come up with a simple plan that works for you. Determine what habit you want to improve and go improve it. Notice I said improve and not change, eliminate or create. We already have many habits. If you can improve just one habit gradually, you can make a significant impact on your health.
Can you improve your health? Of course you can. Is it going to be easy, of course it won’t be easy. But no matter what it is you are trying to do, if you are focused on your health and willing to create a realistic plan, you can do it. Trust me, you can.
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Hard to beat someone that never gives up (Personal Wellness)
Health is something that we all talk about. It is something that we all think about. Is it something that we all are doing something about? That is where things get a little less clear. We all want to be healthy. The difference between wanting to be healthy and being healthy is a finer line that most people think.
Let’s think about a healthy routine for a minute: you have to exercise, eat mindfully and take time for yourself to do these things on a daily basis. While everyone is busy wanting to live healthy, those that are living healthy are busy…living healthy.
What is the difference? Well, it’s not a matter of will or determination. It is not a matter of being stronger or being a healthy person or not. Living healthy comes down to the ability to keep going. The ability to get up when you’ve fallen down is the only way to live healthy.
The great baseball player, Babe Ruth once said: “It’s hard to beat someone that never gives up.”
This is true in all areas of life. Since we are talking health, let’s keep it focused on that area. How often does living healthy get difficult? That is a trick question, because living healthy is always difficult. The day to day can be a challenge and keeping it going week in and week out, month in and month out gets even more challenging.
The key is to keep going. When things get difficult, you have to find ways to overcome the challenge. When you get knocked down, and you will get knocked down, you have to do three things:
1. You have to decide that you are going to get up.
2. You have to figure out the best way to get up.
3. You have to decide where you are going to go when you get up.
Try it
When you set a goal, you are trying to do something. When you are simply thinking or talking about it, you haven’t tried anything yet. It may be take energy to focus on the goal even before you get started, but you haven’t gotten started yet. When you start trying, you will be putting in real energy and real time.
Get up and try again
This is a good start, but that doesn’t mean that there won’t be set-backs. When you get started and start getting some progress made, there are going to be days that get difficult. There will be challenges that make you wonder if you can keep going or not. There are even going to be moments that make you feel like you can’t go on.
That’s right, there are going to be times that you have fallen and don’t know if you can get back up again. Guess what: you can get back up again.
Where will you be if you quit?
You have to keep going. You have to get up and you have to move on. Where will you be if you don’t get up and keep going? What will you have accomplished? Have you reached your goal? Are you going to be satisfied if you stop now? Probably not. That is why you have to keep going.
What progress DID you make?
It is one thing to say that you want to keep going. It is another thing all together to actually do it. That is where thinking and talking turn into doing. You have to look at where you were when you fell down. Did you get as far as you wanted to get? Probably not. Now it is time to think about what you need to do to keep going. You have to pick yourself up and get moving again. One way to do that is to look at the progress that you DID make. When you can look at your routine and realize that you made some progress, it is easier to start getting back on track because you are not starting from square one again. You don’t have to go back to the beginning.
What’s next?
Now that you have decided to get back up again, what are you going to do? What is the plan? The sooner you set a plan and get going on it. When you get your plan in motion, you are free to make choices and do what will make it work for you. If you run into challenges, you have to remember the reasons you started doing this in the first place. If you still want to reach your goals, why would you stop pursuing them? Why would you give up?
After all, if you don’t give up, you can’t lose. That is the beauty of health. The more you do, the more you get. As long as you get up and keep going, you get results.
When Babe Ruth was talking about not giving up, he was right. Baseball takes perseverance and determination. So does health, but in health, you are even more likely to succeed if you are willing to keep going. As long as you don’t give up, you can’t lose when it comes to health. In other words, it is hard to beat someone who never gives up.
Let’s think about a healthy routine for a minute: you have to exercise, eat mindfully and take time for yourself to do these things on a daily basis. While everyone is busy wanting to live healthy, those that are living healthy are busy…living healthy.
What is the difference? Well, it’s not a matter of will or determination. It is not a matter of being stronger or being a healthy person or not. Living healthy comes down to the ability to keep going. The ability to get up when you’ve fallen down is the only way to live healthy.
The great baseball player, Babe Ruth once said: “It’s hard to beat someone that never gives up.”
This is true in all areas of life. Since we are talking health, let’s keep it focused on that area. How often does living healthy get difficult? That is a trick question, because living healthy is always difficult. The day to day can be a challenge and keeping it going week in and week out, month in and month out gets even more challenging.
The key is to keep going. When things get difficult, you have to find ways to overcome the challenge. When you get knocked down, and you will get knocked down, you have to do three things:
1. You have to decide that you are going to get up.
2. You have to figure out the best way to get up.
3. You have to decide where you are going to go when you get up.
Try it
When you set a goal, you are trying to do something. When you are simply thinking or talking about it, you haven’t tried anything yet. It may be take energy to focus on the goal even before you get started, but you haven’t gotten started yet. When you start trying, you will be putting in real energy and real time.
Get up and try again
This is a good start, but that doesn’t mean that there won’t be set-backs. When you get started and start getting some progress made, there are going to be days that get difficult. There will be challenges that make you wonder if you can keep going or not. There are even going to be moments that make you feel like you can’t go on.
That’s right, there are going to be times that you have fallen and don’t know if you can get back up again. Guess what: you can get back up again.
Where will you be if you quit?
You have to keep going. You have to get up and you have to move on. Where will you be if you don’t get up and keep going? What will you have accomplished? Have you reached your goal? Are you going to be satisfied if you stop now? Probably not. That is why you have to keep going.
What progress DID you make?
It is one thing to say that you want to keep going. It is another thing all together to actually do it. That is where thinking and talking turn into doing. You have to look at where you were when you fell down. Did you get as far as you wanted to get? Probably not. Now it is time to think about what you need to do to keep going. You have to pick yourself up and get moving again. One way to do that is to look at the progress that you DID make. When you can look at your routine and realize that you made some progress, it is easier to start getting back on track because you are not starting from square one again. You don’t have to go back to the beginning.
What’s next?
Now that you have decided to get back up again, what are you going to do? What is the plan? The sooner you set a plan and get going on it. When you get your plan in motion, you are free to make choices and do what will make it work for you. If you run into challenges, you have to remember the reasons you started doing this in the first place. If you still want to reach your goals, why would you stop pursuing them? Why would you give up?
After all, if you don’t give up, you can’t lose. That is the beauty of health. The more you do, the more you get. As long as you get up and keep going, you get results.
When Babe Ruth was talking about not giving up, he was right. Baseball takes perseverance and determination. So does health, but in health, you are even more likely to succeed if you are willing to keep going. As long as you don’t give up, you can’t lose when it comes to health. In other words, it is hard to beat someone who never gives up.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Find Your Way
When you look at your health routine, what do you see? Are you making time for yourself and living healthy? Or are you wishing you were making time for yourself and living healthy? Of course, there are many points in between these two extremes, but for many it feels like you are on one end or the other.
The reality is, most of us are somewhere in the middle. We make some time for ourselves and get some results. We may not be making as much time as we want and therefore not living quite as healthy as we want to be living, but if you are making SOME time, you are doing something right.
What are you doing right? Let’s start there. This is often the key to success. Obviously doing things right is important. However, the real value in this is not just doing something right, it is knowing what to do so that you can do it and most importantly, being able to understand why it works so you can keep doing it.
That is the difference between someone that can continue with a successful routine. It works in any area of life. When you look at a successful business person, they have a deliberate plan, a process in place that continues to give them the results they are looking for and they make time to keep that process going according to plan.
The same goes for a top-level athlete. They are talented, yes. They are able to do things that most others cannot. The reason that they are able to excel among others with similar abilities is their ability to focus on their strengths, keep practicing and perfect certain techniques. These techniques can include certain strategies that give them advantages over someone that simply “plays the game”. There is a difference between preparing to play and simply playing.
Health is nothing more than a skill-set. In fact, health is a skill-set that we all have. We can all eat healthy foods and move our bodies. We all learned how to do these things without even thinking about it. Our childhoods were filled with movement, play and other activities that kept us in great shape whether we knew it or not. The foods we ate were the foods that were in front of us. Sure, we all recall having to stomach something that wasn’t as fun, but for the most part, fruits and veggies are not magically introduced upon adulthood.
We have the skills do to the things that get us and keep us healthy. We are born with those or we learn them as part of everyday life. What we don’t have automatically is the routine to keep these things going or the plan to make them work when things get more challenging. That is why many of us are not getting the experience we want out of health.
What can you do to get the experience you want out of health? You have to find a way. There are ways to do it in every routine. I don’t care how much time you have or don’t have. I don’t care how busy you are. I don’t even care how much you dislike certain foods or exercise. You can find a way as long as you see the value for yourself.
If you want to do something, you will find a way to do it. If you want to do something, you will find YOUR way to do it. That is the key to success. It has to be your way, or it won’t work for you. Here are some steps you can take to find your way to good health:
Step 1- Think about the little things you can do to improve your health
Take a step, any step toward good health. You know what it means to be healthy and you know what you are doing or not doing in your routine. There is no excuse. Even a small step will lead to changes as long as you keep doing it.
Step 2- When you find a small step that works for you, cling to it and commit to keeping it going
No matter how small and insignificant you think something is, it will lead you in the right direction if it becomes part of your routine.
Step 3- Keep an eye on what is working…and what isn’t
The key to setting your routine in stone is making sure that it is working. Keep track of your schedule. You can do this with as much detail or effort as you see fit. Don’t over-complicate things, but if you know which days and times are requiring certain things, you can be sure to properly allocate your tasks.
This is just three steps and if you can do these you are not only off and running, but you are focusing on ways to keep going and you are positioned to make improvements along the way. It really is that simple: take a step by starting something…anything, keep it going if it works, change what you are doing if it doesn’t and keep a close eye on what is and isn’t working, so you can continue to adjust but keep the good parts moving in your routine.
Health is not about being perfect. No one is perfect and no one ever will be. Health is not about staying with some magic formula that you saw on TV or that your friend told you about. Health is about doing what works for you. Health is about finding your own way. If you want to live healthy, you have to find your routine. You have to find your way.
The reality is, most of us are somewhere in the middle. We make some time for ourselves and get some results. We may not be making as much time as we want and therefore not living quite as healthy as we want to be living, but if you are making SOME time, you are doing something right.
What are you doing right? Let’s start there. This is often the key to success. Obviously doing things right is important. However, the real value in this is not just doing something right, it is knowing what to do so that you can do it and most importantly, being able to understand why it works so you can keep doing it.
That is the difference between someone that can continue with a successful routine. It works in any area of life. When you look at a successful business person, they have a deliberate plan, a process in place that continues to give them the results they are looking for and they make time to keep that process going according to plan.
The same goes for a top-level athlete. They are talented, yes. They are able to do things that most others cannot. The reason that they are able to excel among others with similar abilities is their ability to focus on their strengths, keep practicing and perfect certain techniques. These techniques can include certain strategies that give them advantages over someone that simply “plays the game”. There is a difference between preparing to play and simply playing.
Health is nothing more than a skill-set. In fact, health is a skill-set that we all have. We can all eat healthy foods and move our bodies. We all learned how to do these things without even thinking about it. Our childhoods were filled with movement, play and other activities that kept us in great shape whether we knew it or not. The foods we ate were the foods that were in front of us. Sure, we all recall having to stomach something that wasn’t as fun, but for the most part, fruits and veggies are not magically introduced upon adulthood.
We have the skills do to the things that get us and keep us healthy. We are born with those or we learn them as part of everyday life. What we don’t have automatically is the routine to keep these things going or the plan to make them work when things get more challenging. That is why many of us are not getting the experience we want out of health.
What can you do to get the experience you want out of health? You have to find a way. There are ways to do it in every routine. I don’t care how much time you have or don’t have. I don’t care how busy you are. I don’t even care how much you dislike certain foods or exercise. You can find a way as long as you see the value for yourself.
If you want to do something, you will find a way to do it. If you want to do something, you will find YOUR way to do it. That is the key to success. It has to be your way, or it won’t work for you. Here are some steps you can take to find your way to good health:
Step 1- Think about the little things you can do to improve your health
Take a step, any step toward good health. You know what it means to be healthy and you know what you are doing or not doing in your routine. There is no excuse. Even a small step will lead to changes as long as you keep doing it.
Step 2- When you find a small step that works for you, cling to it and commit to keeping it going
No matter how small and insignificant you think something is, it will lead you in the right direction if it becomes part of your routine.
Step 3- Keep an eye on what is working…and what isn’t
The key to setting your routine in stone is making sure that it is working. Keep track of your schedule. You can do this with as much detail or effort as you see fit. Don’t over-complicate things, but if you know which days and times are requiring certain things, you can be sure to properly allocate your tasks.
This is just three steps and if you can do these you are not only off and running, but you are focusing on ways to keep going and you are positioned to make improvements along the way. It really is that simple: take a step by starting something…anything, keep it going if it works, change what you are doing if it doesn’t and keep a close eye on what is and isn’t working, so you can continue to adjust but keep the good parts moving in your routine.
Health is not about being perfect. No one is perfect and no one ever will be. Health is not about staying with some magic formula that you saw on TV or that your friend told you about. Health is about doing what works for you. Health is about finding your own way. If you want to live healthy, you have to find your routine. You have to find your way.
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