Olwen Anderson's Blog
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Natural Remedies for Acute Sports Injuries
Here it is - the ultimate natural remedy for health
Energy levels: Its all about what feels right to you now
Two Ways To Stick To Your New Year Fitness Resolutions
How The Right Support Can Help You Achieve Your New Years Resolutions
Have you ever set a resolution on 31st Decemberfor the coming year? Maybe you planned to stop eating donuts, start working outregularly at the gym, or even stop smoking. And yet only a few days into thenew year you’ve broken that carefully thought out resolution, and you’re backto your bad old ways. Your self esteem plummets again. How can you make sure you’llkeep your promise to yourself this time?
To start us off, I’ll let you in on my goal for 2009: I’vealways wanted to participate in a triathlon, so my fitness goal is to be at alevel at which I can participate by the end of the year. By telling you aboutthis goal I’ve already increased the chances I’ll get there. Why? Lettingothers know what I’m going to do will hold me accountable to whoever I’ve told.And I know they’ll call me on it – accountability makes me want to win, to not loseface.
How accountability can work foryou: Choose one or more people that you feelsafe with, and reveal your health and fitness goals to them. Even better, writethem down, hand over the piece of paper, and ask them to check in with you onthe due date. If you really want to add some spice to this process, offer tobuy them an expensive lunch if you don’t do what you say you’re going to!
Now, the next part of the process for you: To achieve mytriathlon goal, I have to take my fitness up to the next level. I’m alreadyreasonably fit, already working out six hours aweek with walking, weight training and boxing; but triathlon training requirestwice as much time, 13 hours of training a week, including running, cycling and swimming.Clearly, well outside my comfort zone. It would be all too easy to start training and give up again when thepain and the extra time gets inconvenient. But I’ve got support in the form of my personal trainer, Sandra Colvin. Sandracomes to some training sessions with me and for the other sessions I report inon my progress (there’s that accountability element again). She cheers me onwhen I’m going well, and encourages me when I’m running out of steam. (Thanks Sandra!)
How support can work for you:Choose a professional in the field whocan give you expert advice, encouragement and support. It’s like having yourown personal cheer squad. A professional knows just what you need to do, andwill identify your wobbly feelings about reaching your goals even before you do.
When choosing your support person, I highly recommend youchoose a professional. Friends and family relationship dynamics may get in theway of providing you with effective support.
ACTION THIS:
1. 1. Add your health andfitness goals to the comments below. I’ll remind you about them at the end ofthis year
2. 2. Engage a professional tohelp you get there – a personal trainer, nutritionist, counsellor, naturopath,hypnotist, whichever professional field best matches your goals. Do it now! (Ifyou’re not sure which could be the best professional for you, add your commentbelow and I’ll reply.)
How To Achieve Your Health Goals in 2009
What is 'lymphatic drainage'?
Don't feel like exercising today? Meet the exercise gremlin!
And then something odd happens. You wake up one morning with the exercise gremlin perched on your shoulder. This creature appears for most of us 2 to 3 days or 2 to 3 weeks into a new exercise regime. His mission is to deter you from training, so he offers a range of plausible reasons why you should not bother to train today: Its too cold, too hot, its raining, you are tired, you are too busy, the reasoning goes on and on. He sounds persuasive, and it can be easy to give in, pull the blankets back over your head and stay in bed.
After a couple of days like this your training program is in tatters, and you are back to your unfit, unmotivated self. How do you stop this gremlin from wrecking your best intentions? And why does he appear in the first place?
It's all about change. We are psychologically programmed to take actions which keep us feeling safe and secure. Change, whether forced on us or of our own choosing, is uncomfortable because it takes us out of that safe comfort zone. With change, its natural to feel challenged. The exercise gremlin is just your subconscious, urging you to stay safe: Stay the same as you always have; that way you will stay secure.
How soon the exercise gremlin appears depends on your personal level of comfort with change; if you usually find it difficult to change, the gremlin is likely to appear within the first day or two of training; if you are comfortable with change, he might not appear for a couple of weeks.
There is really only one effective way to outwit the exercise gremlin, and that is to ignore him. When he lands on your shoulder the moment you think about training, remind yourself of your goals. Recognise the gremlin for who he is, resistance to change, and head out to training anyway. It takes about six weeks for him to disappear. By then you will feel so much better that he will be easy to ignore when he does appear.
By the way, its easier to ignore the exercise gremlin when you can see and feel results from your efforts: So do not be afraid to enlist support from a professional trainer, individually or part of a group, to find the right level of training for you. You will get faster results this way, making it easier to say goodbye to regular visits from the exercise gremlin.
How To Create New Health Habits
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