Diet! Exercise! Think positive thoughts!
Take care of these things and you’ll feel great. It sounds so simple, yet can be so difficult to do in real life. We’re bombarded with advice on how eating the right food, moving the right muscles and thinking the right thoughts can change our lives, increase our happiness, improve our physical appearance, attract a partner and solve all our problems. If making a few adjustments to our regular routines was the answer, then we’d all be healthy, wealthy and wise, right?
Not so. Check the shelves at your local bookstore and you’ll find hundreds of self-help titles. The fitness and diet section bulges with advice and plans. Experts appear on talk shows to discuss why their methods are the best ones to follow. Friends tell us about the latest diet they are following or the newest listing of sport and activity programs offered in your community arrives on your doorstep. The information out there can be overwhelming and instead of feeling inspired, we can easily feel defeated and stressed before we even start on a journey to improve our well-being. Bring on the ice cream!
The answer to enhancing health and reducing stress is not complicated, it just seem that way. Keep in mind the diet and fitness trade is a multi-million dollar industry and very competitive, and so new solutions – some based on sound research – and others not, are constantly being offered as the keys to our wellness challenges. Why not take a breather and give yourself a break.
Before you sign up, buy the latest running shoe, hand over your money, or restock the fridge, consider these easy-to-follow suggestions to improve your physical and mental well-being…
1. Keep it Simple
One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. Small steps, one at a time, can lead to major accomplishments. So think about changing one negative habit at a time, instead of deciding to lose weight, stop smoking, start exercising, eat a nutritionally sound diet – all in the same week. You’ve likely already found out (the last time you tried this) that taking it all on at the same time just doesn’t work!
Pick one small healthy thing you can do and well, just do it. Perhaps start by reducing the amount of salt or processed sugar you use, bit by bit. Drink one less cup of coffee a day. Once you feel the difference it makes, tackle something else.
2. Keep it Moving
Machines that don’t move start to rust, seize up and eventually stop operating. It’s that simple. So, start your engine and get your body – the most fascinating machine around – in gear. And remember to keep it simple. Don’t sabotage yourself with expectations you’ll be running a marathon by next month if you haven’t strolled around the block for ages. Start small, buy an inexpensive pedometer, strap it on and take a walk. Then take another walk the next day and the next. You’ll see what’s new in the neighbourhood and yes, you’ll feel good about doing something healthy.
3. Keep it Interesting
We are creatures of habit and with habits, come complacency. Our field of vision narrows and it’s hard to see life ever being any different.
Do you get to work via the same route every day?
Do you stop at the same coffee shop to pick up a double-double?
Do you follow the same routine every weekend?
Could a visitor easily tell where you plunk down on the couch to watch television every night?
Wake up your senses by doing something different. Take another route to work – you can set out a few minutes early. Drive through a new neighbourhood. Get off the sofa and explore the outdoors. Sit in a different chair. Reposition your desk. Buy a plant. Try tea instead of coffee. Say yes instead of no. Change things up a bit and you’ll get a new perspective.
4. Keep it Tasty
Good food tastes good. Bad food tastes greasy, heavy, and salty. It sits in your stomach like a lump and feelings of I shouldn’t have eaten that make us feel guilty. Yet, we eat it anyway. The reason junk food tastes good is because of all the added salt and high fat content. And that’s not good. Give your body a break and wake up your taste buds by treating yourself to some healthier but still delicious choices.
5. Give it Away
In our busy lives it’s so easy to become caught up in a mentality of me, me, me. We’re encouraged to satisfy urges to buy things and to look after our own wants first. Yet we can feel disconnected and not really part of society, even while surrounded by people. Change this easily by doing something for someone else. And like our other suggestions, start small. Let the driver who cuts you off go ahead without yelling at him. Smile at people and say hello. Let someone in line go before you. Once you’re used to these small motions, consider joining the random acts of kindness movement and do something unexpected for someone. Put your ego aside and do it anonymously. Make someone’s day by giving them a sincere compliment. Say thanks – often. These small steps can increase your sense of well-being and happiness.
Allan’s Tips for Stress Reduction and Well-Being
1. Lighten Up!
Don’t take yourself so seriously. Laugh more, complain less. And gossip less. And if you feel overwhelmed with life, ask for help – it’s out there.
2. One Thing at a Time
Don’t set yourself up for failure by aiming to be a complete new you within a month. Make one small healthy change, get used to it, then another and so on.
3. Have Fun
Find a physical activity you enjoy, then do it. Join a group or start one. Try a new hobby or dust off an old one. Spent time with your family and enjoy the company
4. Appreciate
Less is more. This wonderful saying means stop buying more stuff and enjoy what we already have. Family, friends and community is important; getting the latest toy is not. After all, if you could have everything you wanted, where would you put it?
5. Stretch your Brain
Ask questions, read more, take a course, research something that interests you. Give your brain a workout and stretch your thinking powers. You’ll see things in a different light – and learn something too!
Coming soon: September, if you can believe it! Check back weekly for new blog posts!