Lifestyle
The other day Aaron and I were talking about doing something that, in a perfect world, we wouldn’t actually do very often (probably grabbing dinner out, because really – some nights you just have to). One of us said something about it just being ‘this time’ and that sparked an interesting conversation about exactly how often we were eating out.
In truth we would really like to say that we are cooking at home more often than not – because that’s the ideal that we hold in our minds, it’s what we want for ourselves and our family. The reality is that we are trying to keep so many balls in the air that we aren’t really always doing what we say we want to do. So, the truth of ‘just this once’ is that it happens more than once a week – each and every week. That’s not a deviation from the norm – that’s a habit!
How many times have you given yourself permission to break the (read your) rules ‘just this once’ only to find that, over time ‘just this once’ somehow stretches into something that’s completely out of your control?
You had cake and drinks at the wedding and that leads to snacks at the next office party and then treat day and then family game night and before you know it you’re having snacks because it’s Tuesday and the weekend is SO FAR AWAY or for stress relief or because the sky’s awfully blue this afternoon – or (and this is the true issue isn’t it?) because the new habit you’ve created is giving yourself permission to do whatever you want to do in the moment.
Even in the midst of the scenario above, I might insist that I am always a very healthy eater; asserting that I eat LOTS of fruits and veggies, only drink water, and never have sweets – but if someone were to actually TRACK what I eat over the course of the week what would they really see?
I will never forget the day this insight hit me after a visit with my doctor where we had been discussing my fitness regime. I had assured her that I exercise every morning – and while I sat there on the table I was sure that what I said was the absolute truth. But as I walked to my car after the visit I realized that I hadn’t worked out that morning, or any morning in the past week. Had it been a month? More like six months. I didn’t even realize that I wasn’t living my ideal because I believed that I was doing what I wanted to be doing.
Have you ever found yourself saying that you’re doing something and then realized that you really aren’t? While I’m not an advocate for living a meager existence, and I completely think we should enjoy life to the fullest (and have a piece of wedding cake for goodness sake) I do believe that if we want to improve our lives we must learn to exercise self-control and live in integrity with ourselves.
Science
Just how bad is a sedentary lifestyle?
According to a study published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings, prolonged sitting affected people’s fitness levels regardless of whether they exercised or not. In fact it looks like sitting for just two hours cancels out the cardiorespiratory benefits of 20 minutes of exercise. So, that might be okay if you can spend at least two hours at the gym to counteract all of the sitting that you have to do throughout the day – and you most likely are sitting most of the day (unless you are a teacher or work in construction). But very few of us even manage the daily 30 minutes recommended by the American Heart Association so ‘avoiding sedentary behavior throughout the day may represent an important companion strategy to improve fitness and health, outside of regular exercise activity.’
This may sound a bit hopeless until you discover that there are great ways to counteract this serious problem; “We also found that when sitting for prolonged periods of time, any movement is good movement, and was also associated with better fitness,” Dr. Jacquelyn Kulinski, a recent graduate from the UT Southwestern Cardiology Fellowship Training Program, said in a statement. “So if you are stuck at your desk for a while, shift positions frequently, get up and stretch in the middle of a thought, pace while on a phone call, or even fidget.”
Does that recommendation sound a little vague to you too? Not to worry! Each day you will find awesome exercises on the Minute Movement Members Page – so instead of risking a dropped call when you pace into the office’s dead zone, you can take proven steps to improve your fitness every day!
Motivation
Energy and persistence conquer all things.
I’m writing this post as I sit with my family, watching the KC Royals personify this perfect quote by Benjamin Franklin. Although I am a lifetime resident of ‘The Paris of the Plains’ I’m not really a big fan of watching sports on TV but these games have even caught my attention.
What I’ve seen as in these games the past few weeks is, I think, a lesson that we can take away from the series. I see these young men working hard, pushing themselves to the limit, hanging in there even when they encounter difficulty. I can’t imagine the pressure they must be facing – but they’re doing it!
And I feel … Inspired
I find myself considering where I can push a little harder, where I can be a little more persistent. I won’t ever play in a World Series game but I can do my things a little better. I can give a little more. I can win.
What about you?
Mental Health, Minute Movement Lessons, Minute Movement Philosophies, Quality of Life, Tools
Every day you are faced with decisions that seem mostly insignificant to the outcome of your life. Do I floss? Should I have a salad or a hamburger for lunch? Supersize or regular size? Soda or water to drink with my meal? Speak a kind word or not? Read something or watch TV? Read a Facebook post or get my work done? You get the picture.
There are obvious good choices, and on the contrary, there are obvious poor choices. Most of us don’t even think beyond the choice. There has been an eastern movement which focuses on awareness of living in the present, which certainly has its place (which I will address in a different post), however not to the determent of who we say we are and who we envision ourselves to be.
You might say, Aaron, come on, putting sugar in my coffee isn’t a reflection on who I am and who I claim to be. And I would challenge that statement. If you claim to be a powerful, healthy, strong, ______ (you fill in the blank) person choosing to add something to your coffee isn’t “bad or wrong” – but is out of integrity with who you choose to be?
We have to look at what we call the “micro-decisions” of the addition of sugar, not just the here and now of the choice. If we add 15 years of sugar to our daily coffee, the “macro-result” is certainly a whole lot of wasted calories and could lead to extra pounds, addiction, skin issues, hormonal issues, diabetes – even mental issues.
Whereas sugar in moderation isn’t necessarily going to send you to a convalescent home. My point here is that the little choices in life are what make up who you are in the long run. The small choices add up. Is one cigarette going to kill you? Not likely. However if you continue to make the micro-decision to smoke, what are your odds of death? I know that smoking might seem like an obvious threat to your health but what are the less obvious micro-decisions in your life that go against who you say you are? What are the micro- decisions that you make that go with who you say you are? You are still a vital living being and the beauty of your life is that you can change it on a dime, and begin to make good micro-decisions that lead you toward optimum macro-results – the big things you want out of life.
As I’m faced with decisions every day, I constantly stop and think what is the macro-result of this micro-decision? If we never cross paths again I want to make sure that I leave you with a litmus test to challenge your micro decisions against your ideal you. And remember, your micro-decisions create your Macro-Results.
Minute Movement Philosophies
Lately it seems like almost half of the articles I read are about someone’s opinion regarding how we should weigh. Either it’s that we’re too fat – and can’t possibly be healthy with all of that extra baggage (and we shouldn’t ever, ever forget how ashamed we should feel about that) or it’s that we shouldn’t worry about our weight at all, just be happy wherever we are. Sometimes the message is even about shaming thin people (a friend of mine who is blessed with a very thin frame told me that a stranger once approached her at the gym to inform her that she must be anorexic).
Realistically, all you have to do is look around a little to see that humankind comes in all shapes and sizes; yet to hear the chatter one would think that your body is only acceptable if it falls within a few points of a particular BMI.
For example, this woman in the UK has decided to ‘get fat’ in order to prove to all of us how a person can not be happy and overweight. Of course she is clearly missing that factors other than ‘laziness’ often come into play with regard to one’s weight like genetics, medical conditions, and psychological factors. She stands by her assertion that there is no valid reason to be fat (clearly she lacks mercy and love for her fellow man).
That’s why this short article was a refreshing read, the author tells us to focus on fitness instead of size and points out that a very thin person can have health problems just as a heavy person can be relatively healthy.
I can attest to that from my own life. When I was young and thin; I smoked, I never drank water (my drink of choice was a highly caffeinated yellow beverage if I remember correctly), I ate fast food daily – rarely even looking at a vegetable, I drove everywhere, and participated in zero exercise. I may have looked just fine on the outside but I assure you that I was not healthy, in fact I was often sick with a cold or general malaise. Today I could absolutely stand to lose a few pounds (I’m working on that) but I drink a ton of water and not much of anything else, I eat gluten free so my carb intake is limited, I consume lots of fruits and veggies, and I walk three miles almost every day (in addition to my Minute Movements) sometimes I don’t even get in the car for days. Regardless of the number on the scale or on the tag of my jeans I am positive that I am living a healthier life today than I was twenty years ago.
I’ve also found that focusing a number doesn’t seem to be the best method to attain sustained fitness. It’s too tempting to do something drastic (that will eventually result in backsliding) or to get overwhelmed and give up completely. Our philosophy is that by mindfully taking small, positive actions several times each day you will achieve success in any area of your life.
I would love to see us (ALL of us) switching our focus from outward shape to a focus on TRUE health. I’d love to see us recognizing people for all that they are – their hearts, their souls, and their character. I’d love to see the day when we recognize that we are all wounded in our own special way and begin to treat each other (and ourselves) with compassion.
Stop worrying about the numbers.
