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Nutritional Wealth: Take a vacation and smash your routine
Mike Thompson mug
Mike Thompson

Congratulations!

You are determined to lose weight and get in shape…for real this time.

You want more energy, physical freedom and less illness and injury. You also want sharper thinking, increased happiness and well-being while enjoying renewed abilities.

This is like graduation for you; time to commence to the next highly anticipated step of your life.

Young adults graduate from high school and it is a celebration of change.

Traditionally this person’s environment immediately changes-like their living space, what they do, and from whom they learn.

A new way of thinking drives the change process.

Starting college or other development experience is not easy, yet many people look back on the experience fondly as the time of their life.

When you take a few steps to change your environment-it will be remembered with pride and gratitude by your future self.

“Tiny changes make for dramatically different tomorrows”-Richard Bach Make simple 5-minute changes now for your self-care. Keep it up over a few weeks and a better future is yours. But first in American style-lets go on vacation. What is a vacation? The voluntary interruption of a routine activity.

Mental Vacation Take this vacation by changing your routine thoughts.

Interrupting routine thinking is more exotic and beneficial than going to Europe. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done, what foods you craved or what habits you had in the past. “The greatest discovery of the 20th Century is that our attitude of mind determines our quality of life, not circumstances” said William James, the father of modern psychology.

Steer that mind attitude by Uncluttering your mind, Understanding your present and Upgrading your action.

Unclutter your mind: Take a 5-minute action to find silence, accept yourself and appreciate getting this far. Clearing your mind reduces stress and helps you solve your problems. Once you comfortably complete 5 minutes of this-then you can move the needle to 6 minutes of silence, 7 minutes and upward each day. Soon you will thrive with an uncluttered focused mindset following this practice.

Understanding your present by creating your Owner’s Manual-The magnificent machine that hosts your mind and body is capable of many, many wonderful activities and accomplishments. It is much more complex and capable than your automobile. Your automobile has a practical and in-depth owner’s manual. Create your own dedicated owner’s manual to record your unique features and operating tips. Learn from yourself and get a better handle on where you’re going.

Guide this endeavor by asking yourself important questions such as: What are my favorite self-care activities?

What 5-minute action can I take to move better now?

What healthy foods work for me and which don’t? How can I create a better sleep environment to get the rest I need?

Add more thought-starter questions and record your answers. Expand your Owners Manual daily. Writing in your manual stimulates your mind and creates clarity to what is important and where you are going. Upgrade your action by not sprinting. Most of us go at a rapid-fire pace in all that we do-much of the time without thinking. Slow but steady will help you win the race of the mind and the desires for excellent health. Daily steady actions:

1. Take five minutes of silence to think, feel and see the person you are becoming-in your mind.

2. Take five minutes to learn about nutrition for your body and mind every day. Email me for SelfCare reports, sign up for Nutritionfacts. org or plug into a gym or health coach class. Reflect in your owner’s manual about your reading and learning.

3. Practice what you learn.

4. Teach someone else.

5. Get outside for five minutes. The benefits are crazy good including increased energy, improved immunity, naturally resetting your sleep cycle, free aromatherapy and so many more. Google it! Try it if you have a sedentary job and you’ll be amazed at how refreshed you feel. Just get outside.

6. Eat something slowly each day (opposite of fast food). Savor your meal’s benefits. Enjoy and consider the color, smell, texture and taste of a nutritious meal. You’ll be more satisfied and you’ll eat less following this practice.

Exercise regulars learn you cannot out train a bad diet. Interrupting your thinking routine with this mental vacation insures a healthy diet for your mind and your magnificent body.

Enjoy your masters-level work towards a happier and fit future.

Mike Thompson is a health coach and writes about nutrition and amazing aging. He lives in Richmond Hill, is certified in exercise nutrition and founder of SelfCare Sustained. Reach him at MikeThompson@SelfCare-Sustained.com

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