Author

Robert Greco

Hi, I'm Robert & I’m a Health Educator & Creator of The 3 Keys to Living a Happier, Healthier, Fitter Life - What you Chew, What you Do & Living True

Blog WHAT YOU DO

Take Regular Holidays

Read This Post: 8 minutes

Who doesn’t love a holiday? It’s something that most of us really look forward to, and for good reason too…

Why are holidays important?

Holidays play an essential role in our physical, mental and spiritual health and well-being. Some of the ways in which holidays do this include…

Help us to de-stress: It’s amazing how much stress we carry with us day to day without even noticing. All of us have our own version of stress. It could include job related stress, such as the burden of meeting tight deadlines, work place politics, or, even being unemployed. It may be financial stress, including paying bills and planning for your future. It may be stress from managing the complexities of household demands, growing a family and having to make making crucial decisions. It may be stress related to physical or mental illness – either your own or others. Or it may be stress related to anything else in your life.

Regardless of the type, stress can have negative effects on both our physical and mental health and well-being. From supressing our immune system, increasing our weight, making us depressed and significantly shortening our life expectancy. Even people who claim to thrive of a high-pressured and somewhat stressful lifestyle often admit, that there are times when they just need to get away from it all.

And that’s because holidays enable us to break the stress cycle by allowing us to become human-beings, instead of human-doings, once again. This includes not having any commitments/feeling any obligation that you need to be here, or, there trying to do 15 things at once – rushing from one thing to another. Being allows the constant inner chatter, and never ending mental ‘to do’ list to quiet down. Being allows us to shift from constant thinking and living in our head, to being more grounded and centred in our own physical body and surrounds. This is a big deal, especially when you consider that most of the negative stress we experience in life is a result of thinking. So, the more we can simply ‘be’ and connect to the present, the more we destress and recharge our batteries. And the more you do this, the happier you become!

Gain perspective & move forward: Within the rush of life today, it is very easy to lose sight of the big picture, which can often leave us feeling flat. Holidays however, allow us to step back from life and form another perspective outside the bubble of routine and work. Holidays can help us to refocus and reconnect with what is real and of true importance, and enable us to make key decisions that ensure that we keep moving forward with our life.

Boost creativity & solve problems: Think about when you are the most creative – it’s usually when you are doing things like taking a shower, going for a walk, and of course when you are on holidays. In-fact, Einstein walked one and a half miles to Princeton and back each day – a walk he considered precious when it came to finding solutions to some of life’s most challenging questions. Why? Because any time you are not thinking, you’re in alignment with the present moment, which is creation itself. Holidays can boost creativity, and help us to find solutions to our problems.

Helps you to grow as a person: Holidays, and in particular traveling abroad meeting different people, learning a new language, experiencing different cultures and seeing different scenery, all help to broaden your knowledge base, and can help you to grow and better yourself as a person. In this way, travelling is so much more than enjoyment – it’s an investment in self-development. The more you travel, the more worldly you become.

Pull you out of a rut: Whilst routine is important for adding structure and organisation, too much of it can feel like ground-hog day, and before you know it, you’ve gotten yourself into a rut. Especially if you haven’t been on a holiday in a long time – you get stuck on auto pilot and become stale. We know that “all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” So what better way to escape the work routine than with a holiday? Even a short holiday can be enough to give you back your mojo and begin enjoying life again.

Bring family and friends together: What is life really about? More so than anything else, it’s about sharing good times and creating positive memories with family and friends. Just think of some of your best memories – I bet some involve being on holidays. But in today’s culture of speed, the little time that we do get to spend with family and friends feels rushed between the daily grind of school, work and everything else. Holidays provide an opportunity to spend quality time with family and friends, without the commitments/obligations. This enables you to really be present, and enjoy your time more fully with those whom you love the most. This contributes positively to family bonding, communication and solidarity.

Rejuvenate your body: Whether its sitting or standing in the same spot for prolonged periods using a computer, or whether it’s being on the tools doing hard physical labour, what we do each day can and does have an impact on our body. In-fact, most of us carry some level of tension in our body – some of us carry it through our shoulders, neck and chest, some in the lower back, hips or wherever else. Most of the time we are not even aware of how much tension we carry, because we have lived with it for so long, that we think it’s normal. However, like all good athletes, sometimes we just need to stop and rest. A holiday forces us to stop and give our bodies much needed rest and recovery. The more replenished and healthier you become, the easier everything in life becomes.

Tips towards planning a holiday:

So now that you know why going on a holiday is so important, here are some of my top tips towards planning holidays…

Give yourself permission: If we don’t allow ourselves to take a holiday, then it just won’t happen. So never feel guilty about booking a holiday for yourself – holidays are an essential part of your wellbeing, not a luxury. It’s about loving yourself and putting yourself first. Give yourself permission to switch off, unwind and relax – after all you deserve it!

Be intentional and plan ahead: We are all busy, but with enough forward planning, we can all take a holiday. The first step is to embrace the possibility that you can go away, and think about where you want to go. Second, is to decide on how much time you want to spend away. The next important thing is to put a date on it – lock it in and say this is when I am going to go away, otherwise before you know it the year will creep away and you won’t have organised anything. Next, decide who you will go with – on your own, with family/friends, or will you do a tour?

Once you have this planned out then speak to your boss and inform them of the dates you will be away. Once its locked in then get others to cover your work/shifts, and organise whatever extra work you need to do before you go, etc. It’s all possible, and it simply requires some forward thinking and planning. Next, plan a very basic itinerary of what you want to do, and make accommodation/transport arrangements early so you don’t miss out and so you can get the best rates. Companies such as Airbnb have made forward planning and booking a holiday easier and more affordable than ever before. If you don’t want the stress of planning and booking your holiday, then consult a Travel Agent.

Organise and let go of your work life: If there’s one thing that takes away from a holiday, it’s having to worry about work. You don’t want to have employees, or, your boss calling you with issues that need to be resolved. So, before you go, delegate what you need done whilst you are away, and leave someone in charge of what you normally do. Turn of all of your email account notifications and set them all up with an email responder, and do the same on your phone messages as well. Delete all of your inbox before you go away, and also leave people to look after it for you so that you have an empty inbox when you get back.

Organising your work in this way will not only allow you to enjoy your holiday more, but it will also mean that coming back to work will be much easier. It will also give you more confidence to go away on holidays more often, because you won’t always be worrying about coming back to more work than before you left – a situation that makes going on holidays hardly worth it for many.

If you are in a situation (CEO, small business owner, gig economy) where you absolutely must do some work when you go away, then ensure to limit your work hours to a maximum of just a couple of hours per day and stick to it! But once again – this is only if you have absolutely no choice but to work. Remember, we work to live, not live to work!

Don’t stay at home: The worst thing you can do is stay at home on your holidays because you will always find chores to do – cleaning, painting, gardening, etc. These are all things that can be done in your free time – not on your holidays. Instead, holidays are about doing things that you don’t normally do whilst you are at home and which you really enjoy. Even if it is just reading a book, staying in bed or playing board games – you’re better off getting away for a few days to do them. So, when you book your holiday, ensure to go somewhere that you are far away enough from home to switch off from everything and in which you can’t just come back home easily.

Have a bucket list: Do you have a bucket list of the things you want to do in this lifetime? Time waits for no one, so it’s important to be doing the things you want to do whilst you can. If you don’t have a bucket list then create one, and ensure to tick a few of those things of your list every year. Aim to do the more physical ones like walking Kokoda trail earlier rather than later in life, but also know that you’re never really too old to do anything! Remember, you only live once, and so you should make the time to explore our beautiful planet. A planet which has countless beautiful and unique countries, regions, people, cultures, foods and everything else. Make the most of it!

Make your holiday an adventure: Life is really one big adventure so why should your holiday be any different? Research shows that holidays that involve new challenges that push you out of your comfort zone not only build new synapses, but are also often the most beneficial when it comes to stress reduction and improved overall well-being. Sure, you can vege out on the beach for hours at a time if that’s what you find the most relaxing. But be sure to stray outside of your resort, hotel, or wherever else, and explore the beaten track a little.

An adventure could just mean doing something different to what you normally do. Possibly hire a campervan and hit the open roads, or, if you like the seas, then a cruise might be for you. Or maybe you could try a more physical holiday by doing a walking/rowing/cycling trek and camping along the way. If camping is too full on, even give glamping a go. The ideas are limitless. So next time you book a holiday, consider trying something different and something a little more adventurous.

Consider a retreat: With more of us suffering burnout than ever before, the best holiday option may be a wellness retreat. Often utilizing well-being practices such as natural therapies, meditation, yoga, spa, massage, organic foods and self-development, a good retreat provides the perfect opportunity for you to unwind, recharge, and leave you feeling invigorated.

Get into nature: Not only is spending time in nature soothing for the soul, it also has the ability to restore physical and mental health. So, it makes sense to choose holiday destinations on the coast, in the hills or anywhere you can retreat to nature. There’s nothing like a bit of Vitamin Sea to make you feel better!

Get social: Holidays are often best shared and experienced with others. So, if you’re travelling alone, then this is a great opportunity to put yourself out there and meet others. Doing so will create more exciting, more memorable and more bonding experiences with you fellow vacationers. If you would like to travel with others but don’t have any friends to travel with/your partner doesn’t want to travel, then websites like travel buddies make finding others to travel with a breeze. Otherwise booking a guided tour can be a great way to travel and meet others at the same time. It’s also worth mentioning that having a regular holiday tradition where you go to the same place each year is also a great way to increase bonds between family and friends, and provide a better sense of identity, strength and belonging.

Go kid free: Does going away with your kids recharge you, or, does it leave you feeling more exhausted than before you left? If the latter is true, then aim to sometimes get away for a short holiday without the kids. It may be possible to leave them at home and ask close family/friends to look after them. Then, offer to return the favour when they plan their holiday.

Take overnight, short and long holidays: Holidays don’t have to be for weeks at a time – instead they can include a mix of:

*Day Trips – even a day at the beach can rejuvenate you.

*Mini Breaks – this is like having a power nap and often involves spending a single night away.

*Weekend Retreats – a couple of nights away are easy to plan around work and are great for getting away.

*Short Stays – 3 to 7 nights away, short trips are great to relax and rest your mind.

*Long Holiday – 1 to 6 weeks now we are talking – you’ll feel relaxed and replenished after this break.

*Travelling – 6 weeks+, great to see and explore the great big world.

Research tells us that it’s the anticipation of a holiday that is more important than the holiday itself. So it really does make sense to break your holidays up throughout the year, and have lots of smaller holidays, rather than one or two big holidays.

With that said, whilst it is healthy to feel a heightened sense of excitement and anticipation towards any upcoming holiday, if you find yourself often hanging out for a holiday to the exclusion of everything else, then this may be a problem. The same is often true if your someone who finds that it takes you a few days or even weeks to unwind when you do go on holidays. If you can relate to either of these, then what is it about your life that you’re constantly wanting to escape from, or, that takes you a significant amount of time to unwind from? Is it your own thoughts, your work, your partner, your kids, or, something else?

Whatever it is, you need to ensure that you live true in a way that makes every day an enjoyable one – not just when you are on holidays. Otherwise you are missing everything that goes on in-between those holidays – which is life itself. On top of being enjoyable, it also needs to be sustainable to, otherwise you’ll find yourself in the same situation again. For example, if you’re just working long hours and doing a job which is nothing more than a means to an end (ie. for money), then you will always feel as if you need to get away. But if you do a job that you love, then every day becomes enjoyable, so you don’t feel the need to unwind from anything.

So, remember, holidays are a necessity, not a luxury, for both your physical and mental health and wellbeing. They help us to gain perspective on our problems, give us a break from our usual routines and provide a chance to unwind and reconnect with family and friends. I don’t know about you, but I’m already starting to plan my next holiday!

Q.When and where are you next planning your next holiday to and why?

Rob

May 23, 2019 0 comment

Blog

Practice Intermittent Fasting

READ this post (7min):

What is intermittent fasting?

When many of us hear the word fasting, we often think of starving ourselves, but this is not true. In-fact, intermittent fasting has been practiced throughout all of human history, however until recently in many ways has been virtually forgotten. Thankfully, as science is beginning to catchup with ancient wisdom, many of us today are now re-discovering this age-old dietary intervention. So, what is it?

Fasting means to deliberately withhold the intake of food for health, spiritual or other reasons. Depending upon what type of fasting you’re doing, it can be done for any period of time – hours, days, weeks or even months at a time. In-fact, if approached properly, intermittent fasting can be done as normal part of everyday life.

What are the benefits of intermittent fasting?

There are numerous benefits of intermittent fasting – most of which have been known since ancient times. These fasting periods were often called ‘purifications’, ‘detoxifications’ or ‘cleanses.’ People understood that periods of abstinence from food would clear their bodies’ systems of toxins and rejuvenate them to full health. Today, science now tells us that intermittent fasting can lead to:

*A reduction in body fat:

Intermittent fasting allows your body to use its stored energy/fat supplies. It is important to understand that there is nothing wrong with this – it’s simply how our bodies work. In-fact, it has been essential for our survival as a species, during times of famine and other threats. It’s also what cats, dogs, lions and bears do too.

However, with most of us eating every third hour as is often recommended, our bodies use the incoming food energy, instead of the stored fat, and so we become fat. To restore balance and to lose weight, we need to increase the amount of time spent burning food energy, and we can do this through intermittent fasting.

*Intermittent fasting is superior to dieting:

Why? Because diets very rarely get results, are complicated, limited in their availability, expensive, time consuming, inconvenient (especially if you often have to make seperate meals for others), hard to stick too and are often down right unenjoyable. Intermittent fasting on the other hand, actually works, is super simple, is available everywhere, is free, saves time, is easy to stick too, and is enjoyable because you’re not excluding any of the foods you love.

*Numerous other benefits:

sThe reality is that there are so many benefits to intermittent fasting – far too many to go through in detail here. But some others which are worth mentioning include;

*Lowered blood sugar/insulin levels

*Possible improved blood cholesterol profile

*Possible reversal of Type 2 Diabetes

*Possible increased energy

*Improved mental clarity and concentration

*Possible reduction in Alzheimer’s disease

*Healthier microbiome/gut health – (the key to a strong immune system)

*Possible reduction of inflammation (the root cause of all disease)

*Stimulation of grown hormone and activation of cellular cleansing by stimulating autophagy – both of which decrease the effects of aging

*Possible longer life

How to intermittently fast:

Shorter Fasts (<24hrs):

If your new to fasting, then its best to start with shorter fasts, which are generally done more frequently:

16:8

This involves fasting for 16 hours of the day and then eating all of your meals within an 8-hour time period, E.g. 11am to 7pm. You typically eat 2 or 3 meals within this period, often electing to either skip breakfast, or dinner instead. Generally, this approach is done daily or every second day.

20:4

This involves fasting for 20 hours of the day and then eating all of your meals within a 4-hour time period E.g. 2pm to 6pm. You typically eat either 1 larger meal, or 2 smaller meals within this period.

Longer Fasts (>24hours)

If you’ve fasted before, then you can also try some longer fasts such as:

24hr Fast

This involves fasting for a full 24hour period – meaning that you only eat once daily (breakfast, lunch or dinner). E.g. if you eat lunch today, then you won’t eat anything until lunch again tomorrow. Generally, you would do this 2-3 times per week.

5:2 Fast

This involves 5 regular days of eating, followed by 2 fasting days in which you are only allowed to eat 500 calories on each day. These calories can be consumed at any time during the day – either through smaller meals, or as a single meal.

36hr Fast:

This involves fasting for an entire day, which usually equates to around 36 hours of fasting. E.g. Eat dinner on day 1, fast for all of day 2, and then eat breakfast on day 3. Doing so avoids the temptation to overeat dinner on day 2, which can boost weight loss.

Extended Fasting:

This involves fasting for periods greater than 48 hours. This is not recommended for periods longer than 14 days, due to risks in nutritional deficiency. Only consider this under strict medical supervision.

Who should not fast?

A child under 18 – you need extra nutrients to grow.

Underweight (BMI < 18.5) or have an eating disorder like anorexia.

Pregnant – you need extra nutrients for your child.

Breastfeeding – you need extra nutrients for your child.

Or if you have any of the following conditions, you may be able to fast, but only if you have medical supervision:

*If you take prescription medication.

*If you have gout or high uric acid.

*If you have diabetes mellitus – both Type 1 and Type 2

*If you have any serious medical conditions, such as heart disease, liver disease or kidney disease.

Remember to play it safe and always speak to your doctor before beginning any intermittent fasting program.

So please, before you jump onto the next fad diet in order to get healthy, please give intermittent fasting a go. Not only will you save your time, energy and money, but it may also save your life.

So tell me, have you tried intermittent fasting, and if so, which method do you find the most beneficial?

Rob

March 27, 2019 2 comments

Blog

Love Yourself

WATCH this post (15min):

LISTEN to this post (15min)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 15:01 — 27.9MB)

READ this post (20min)

Why is loving yourself important?

Tell me, do you love yourself? Or, does the whole notion of loving yourself make you feel uncomfortable? Many of us believe that loving ourselves is not only vein and selfish, but also weak. So much so that we actually use self-criticism as a motivating force to drive ourselves towards success.

However, nothing could be further from the truth. This is because well-being has more to do with your relationship with yourself, or the lack of it, more so than anything else. A huge part of which requires that you love and accept yourself for who you are, in each and every moment. And that’s because its self-love that gives you emotional resilience and makes you really strong. Its self-love that allows you to feel worthy and that gives you unwavering confidence – allowing you to be the best you. This includes allowing yourself to dream and chase your dreams. Its self-love that provides you with the desire and long-term motivation to treat yourself including your body, with the respect, love and attention that you deserve, as opposed to relying on willpower which is fleeting. Its self-love that enables you to feel whole and complete, instead of remaining eternally unsatisfied – as if something is always missing.

And so, the more you value and love yourself, the more you are able to make better choices and therefore create abundance in every area, including your relationships, your career, your finances and your entire sense of meaning and purpose in life. In other words, loving yourself allows you to honour your truth/worthiness of what you want. And so, unless you really love yourself, then you will never achieve true successful in life.

What is loving yourself?

To love yourself means to fully accept, to trust, to honour, and to be at complete peace with yourself in each and every moment. To love yourself unconditionally means just that – to love and support yourself without any conditions attached. This doesn’t mean that you have to like everything about yourself – think about all of the people in your life like your kids or your partner – they have aspects which you don’t like but you still love them. It’s about doing the same for yourself. It’s about recognizing/seeing your perfection amongst your imperfections. In this way, loving yourself is about feeling empowered, by bringing forward your wholeness, in order to be the best you and live your best life.

How do we love ourselves?

Let me ask you this… What if the very source of the unconditional love and gratitude comes from within? Well it does, and so in order to truly love and honour who you are, you first need to work on yourself. You need to do this in two main ways – through self-development work, and through practising self-compassion. Here are some of my favourite tips when it comes to doing these…

SELF-DEVELOPMENT WORK:

*REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE:

Very few people love who they are, because very few people know who they really are – it’s as simple as that. First and foremost, you need to get to know who you are and you need to be able to answer the question ‘who am I really?’ This is of uttermost importance because unless you can answer this question, then you will never reach your full potential as a human being, as the full expression of who you are. And if you don’t do that then you’ll never be able to love yourself unconditionally.

And so, when I ask this question who am I, I’m not asking about the roles you play, your behaviours, your body, your possessions, your reputation, your religious beliefs or anything else which constitutes your ‘story’ so to speak. Why? Because nothing you can tell me about yourself is who you really are. So, let me ask you this – If nothing from your past defies who you are today, then who are you? Sure, this may sound crazy, because if you are none of these things then who are you … right? I mean there’s not much left for you to identify with, especially if you can’t identity with any of these things. And that’s my point — all you have left to identify with is your own presence or consciousness itself, that’s it.

In other words, what I want you to realise, is that you are of the same divine consciousness that created all things, that you are not separate from, but rather one with it, and all that constitutes life on this planet. That you are born from, and are an extension of all that is, and as such you are already perfect and whole just the way you are. And so, when you know and live in alignment with who you are, then you become automatically plugged in and charged into this universal, unlimited and unconditional source of love – the truest, deepest, most permanent source of love there is.

But if you don’t know and live in alignment with who you are, then you remain separated from this unconditional source of love that is available to all living beings, and in substitution of it, continue to base your self-worth as a person on other than transitory and fictitious based forms which constitute your story. Both of which leaves you feeling like you’re never enough, and leads to a life-long struggle of loving and accepting who you are. Not only is remembering who you are essential for loving yourself unconditionally, it is the main purpose of life itself. Obviously just reading this post is just a mental concept in your head. Instead, in order for it to help you love yourself, you need to feel who you are – something which comes with enough cognization of your very being and inner/self-development work.

BE YOURSELF:

Be yourself, because everybody else is taken. —Oscar Wilde

Sometimes we are scared to be ourselves, out of fear of not fitting in, or being accepted by others. But the reality is that you don’t need to be accepted by others – you just need to accept yourself. Not everyone will like you and that’s ok because you don’t like everyone either. If you are not ok with this, then you need to come to terms with that. Obviously, this can be very challenging if it comes from the people that we love the most – namely family and friends, as opposed to work colleagues or strangers. In-fact, it’s very often the people we love the most that hurt us the most too. This is because your more inclined to believe them. It becomes easy to second guess yourself and ask am I really a bad person? You can always be a better person – we all can. But this in a process.

Part of loving yourself is accepting all parts of yourself – your personality, your body and everything else. Sure, you might not love everything about yourself – we all have things we are disappointed with or may want to change, but you need to embrace them as a part of who you are. It’s about being whole – not perfect, flaws and all. You know that you love yourself when if you had a choice, you still wouldn’t be anyone else in the world but yourself. It’s about bringing more of yourself to work, at play, in relationships and anywhere else. It’s about giving yourself permission to be yourself 24/7. Being yourself is about understanding yourself and with that the true nature of everything.

If you can succeed in letting go of your entire past and being who you are, then all of the following tips below will eventually happen as a natural progression. However, in the mean-time, do them religiously…

FIND A WAY TO SERVE:

In order to fulfil the highest, truest expression of who you are, off yourself as a human being, you must find a way to serve. Martin Luther King said ‘not everybody can be famous, but everybody can be great, because greatness is determined by service.’ Service means using your occupation, your knowledge, your talent, your gift or whatever it is you produce as a way of giving back to the world. Or, it could be volunteering in your local community, or even simply offering your love and compassion to those who need it the most. Basically anything that brings more light and love to the world. For me it’s been the creation of the 3 keys – what you chew, what you do and living true, in order to enable anyone to live a happier, healthier, fitter life.

In doing so, not only do you make the world a better place, but doing so gives you a real intrinsic purpose to your life. When you begin to serve you realise that you are actually here on earth on purpose – that it’s not a mistake that you are here, and you begin to fall in love with the idea that you belong here. This makes you feel good everyday about yourself, which also makes it much easier to love who you are because you are living your life in alignment with who you really are and on purpose.
And the more you begin to truly value who you are as a person – a being with many unique talents and abilities to contribute to the world, the stronger your self-worth becomes. Remember that in order to serve, you have to honour yourself first, otherwise you have nothing to give away.

PRACTICE SELF-COMPASSION:

There are lots of ways to practice self-compassion. Here are just a few…

STOP BEING SO HARD ON YOURSELF:

This is a great way to love yourself more and there are numerous ways to do this including;

STOP COMPARING YOURSELF/ACHIEVEMENTS TO OTHERS:

It’s easier to love ourselves when we achieve the things we want to achieve in life, but what happens when we don’t? What happens is that we often look back and criticize ourselves for what we have or haven’t done – failed our first grade, married that jerk, didn’t take that job, etc. So much of the time we get so caught up in what we suck at, to the point that we often forget about all of the things we are good at and which we have achieved.

A pig part of this also involves not comparing ourselves to others. This includes letting go of society’s expectations including keeping up with the Jonese. Remember that your journey is yours and yours alone – yes – others may have, or have done, this or that, but that’s their journey, not yours. Everything that you have or haven’t gone through up until this point is as it should be. As long as you are doing your best in everything that you do, you cannot do any more than that.

Many of us have a dysfunctional sense of what success really is anyway – meaning we often chase what others people’s/society’s definition of success is. If you can relate to this, then it’s essential that you stop trying to prove yourself to anyone (especially your parents), by your achievements, or by your relationship, or by anything else that they wish for you to be, or do, or have. Instead, just be your own person and do whatever you want to do. If the pressure is coming from your sense of self, then shift your goal posts – often we overestimate what we can do in 1 year, and underestimate what we can do in 5. Focus on the long term, not the short, and you will get to where you want to go.

In saying that, whilst external goals and achievements are important, your primary focus should instead be on the internal. Take a minute to stop and think about all that you are right now, and then list five qualities that you cherish about yourself. E.g. I have a good heart, I’m fit, etc. Now turn the paper over and do it again. And then tomorrow I want you to ask your friends what is it that they see in you? What is it that they really love about you and what is it that they feel you are really good at? It could be that you are compassionate, or that you are a good listener. Why am I asking you to do this? Because I see who you are, but I want you to see it for yourself. Actually, I don’t just want you to see it, I want you to know it and I want you to feel it. And when you forget it, call up someone on your paper and ask them to remind you.

So, remember, self-love should have nothing to do with what you have or haven’t achieved. Instead, it should come from the fact that you’re a human-being intrinsically worthy of respect. That at your core, you are completely equal to everybody else. Sure, on the surface it may not appear that way, mostly because when it comes to material and superficial things, you will always be, do and have more or less than others. However, as you have learnt, none of these things have anything to do with who you really are.

Instead, like everyone and everything, you are an extension of the same source energy. In others words, assuming that you are a good person with a good heart, then your ‘being here’ is enough – the world needs you. You need to trust and believe that who you are is of value and worth sharing with the world. That is enough. When you care about what others think, you find that you compare yourself to others and judge yourself much more often. Whereas is you don’t care, you are much less likely to judge and compare yourself to others.

*DON’T BE A CONTROL FREAK:

With life only getting busier, many of us are finding it hard to keep up. Obviously, the constant sense of pressure from society to be it all, do it all, have it all, doesn’t help, with many of us left feeling as if we are failing in our roles as partners, parents, friends, and even as people. In short, sometimes we feel we are losing control. Accepting that you are not in control of your life is something which most of us don’t like to admit. Especially when we live in a world that warrants control – of your body including your weight, career, relationships, children, finances and everything in between. Not being in control is very damaging to your ego, reputation and how you define your self-worth.

So, what happens is we set the bar too high for ourselves, believing that failure is not often an option, and then we keep pushing on and criticizing ourselves. This can also lead to emotional eating, addictions, self-esteem issues, panic attacks, anxiety and even depression. If you can relate to this, then shift your goal-posts a little and remember that you cannot control everything in life and nor should you. Instead, learn to control the things you can control and let go of the things you can’t. Who cares if the house is a bomb-shell? Or if your kid didn’t make school captain?

Reclaim your power and use the extra energy you used for trying to control things on the fun stuff. Make time to drop the endless to-do-list and instead start making more time for play in your life. This includes being creative and just having fun – kids are great at this, so if it helps involve them too in your play time. Painting, cooking, scrapbooking, dancing, doodling, knitting, writing and singing are all creative and fun activities help boost your vibration/feelings of self-love.

*FORGIVE YOURSELF AND OTHERS:

Many of us often hold onto feelings of self-hatred, guilt, anger and other negative emotions associated to past events and attachments. However, it is these very things which take away from being whole and loving both ourselves and others fully. Therefore, it is essential to forgive everyone including yourself, for anything which may have happened in the past. Forgiveness is not a feeling you passively wait for and to come over you, but rather a conscious choice that you need to make so that you can move on with your life. Essentially you need to view forgiveness as a ‘gift’ to yourself, and one which will set you free and allow you to live more fully in the present moment. Part of this involves becoming accountable for your own life — you are in control and responsible for the way you feel at all times and no one else. Remember that no matter how much blame seems justified this is never the case.

Often the hardest person to forgive in life is ourselves. We have all made choices in our life which we are probably not so proud off. If so, then own it, but at the same time also recognize that we don’t always get it right and that’s ok – no one expects you to be perfect! Instead of judging yourself, remove the word ‘failure’ and ‘mistake’ from your vocabulary, and replace it with ‘learning experience’. Realise that there are only lessons, and the world and everything in it is your classroom in this journey we call life. This way, there is no room for self-blame, self-criticism and/or the option to adopt a victim mentality. Doing so will also help you to accept imperfections in others too, making you less judgemental.

*BE & KNOW THAT YOU ARE A GOOD PERSON:

Many of us feel for whatever reason, that we are not worthy of love/loving ourselves, often because we have an underlying belief that through some wrong life choices, we are, or have been, a bad person. Such choices might include anything from not spending enough time with your kids, not earning enough and being fat, to having no self-control around food or even being unfaithful, etc. Any and all of which, can often lead to increased feelings of resentment, guilt and even self-hatred.

You have two choices:

1.Remain in victim mentality and keep telling yourself that you are not good person. This will make it impossible for you to love yourself, meaning you will never have peace and happiness in your life.

2.Remember what I said earlier – that nothing that you can tell me about yourself or what you have done is who you are. Sure, you may have made some bad choices in the past but so what. The Creator forgives all things – you just need to forgive yourself because playing small won’t help you or anyone else. Instead, from this moment moving forward, just focus on being a good person – because if your intent is always good and you genuinely are a good person, then you will have nothing on your conscious and nothing to worry about. In other words, you will know in your heart of hearts that you are worthy of love and you will love yourself. Think about it, it’s only when you doubt whether or not you are a good person or good enough, that the love for yourself begins to waiver.

How do you be a good person? You can do so by always doing the right thing – even when other people might think it might not be. Sometimes when we make a decision, we doubt whether it was the right decision. However, just know that it is always the right decision if in the end there is peace – which will also allow you to sleep at night. Peace is not only your reward for being a good person, it’s also essential towards loving who you are.

*SPEAK KINDLY TO YOURSELF:/QUITE YOUR INNER CRITIC:

If you have a voice in your head that tells you that you suck, then chances are that someone else put it there. Our parents are a great example. Many of us grow up with parents who have their own issues – low self-esteem, anxiety, depression, etc, and if this is the case, then there is a good chance you have rarely heard nurturing words during the early formative years of your life. You may have often been criticized or neglected, and if so, then you probably learned to criticize and neglect yourself too. Obviously, this almost indefinitely occurred because your parents were never nurtured or encouraged by their parents whilst they were growing up either, and so their words to you simply reflected the negativity that they felt about life and themselves.

If we don’t see this for what it is – self-hatred which has been unconsciously passed down, then we can actually see it as normal. And so, whilst some amount of constructive criticism is useful in motivating ourselves to change, most of us do this in a non-constructive way. This is the nasty, harsh, belittling, you’re worthless, you’re bad, you’re no good type of criticism. This language may sound extreme, but if you were to actually write down (especially on a bad day) some of the things you say to yourself, you would be surprised at both how nasty and how frequent it really can be, e.g. I’m fat, I look ugly, I can’t do that, etc. Try it tomorrow and see how you go. The more mindful you become of judging yourself, the more you will see just how easily one judgement can often lead to many others. When you catch yourself judging yourself, then immediately try to focus on something positive about yourself. Laughing at yourself, rather than critisizing yourself, will also help to disarm the whole thing. Remember, self-compassion is the key.

*DON’T PERSONALIZE ANYTHING:

This step is all about having strong spiritual armour otherwise known as emotional resilience and not being so sensitive. We often get hurt when we personalize things such as negative comments, situations, or actions from others. Having a sensitive nature can make you feel stupid, worthless, and weak. In-fact, sometimes even a single comment can scar us for a lifetime, and cause us to experience depression, anxiety, and panic attacks. What we need to realise is that none of these things should ever be taken personally. When you know and live true to who you are, then very little of what people say or do, will affect you. In other words, you no longer personalise anything – it’s like ‘Water off a duck’s back’. This is partly due to the fact that you are no longer subconsciously seeking their approval and are no longer concerned whether you are liked or not. And so, the more you know and love yourself, the more confident you are in yourself and the less likely you are to take stuff to heart and get hurt.

Remember you are always good enough no matter what happens – whether it’s a relationship breakup, you miss out on that job you went for or anything else, none of it has to do with your worth as a person. Instead of allowing others to make you feel unworthy, stand firm in your own power and nothing will shake you. And with the world the way it is, it’s more important than ever before to love yourself, given the increased availability to interact with others across multiple platforms. This includes social media and some people have nothing else better to do with their time than to put others down. And when it can reach you even in the safety and comfort of your own home 24/7, then you definitely to stay in your power to prevent it getting to you.

*LOVE YOUR BODY:

Many of us use our body-shape to not only define who we are, but also as a primary way to define our self-esteem – women especially. Given the fact that most of us are not in shape (almost 80% of Australians are overweight or obese) and hate our bodies, it very easy to see who so few of us love who we are.

If this is the case, what I want you to realise is that your body is the temple of your soul, meaning that it houses the very essence of who you are – your true self. Without your body, you wouldn’t even exist, and you definitely wouldn’t be reading this post today. We often get so caught up with how good others are, or how good technology is, but we often forget just how amazing our own body is. The fact that it makes thousands of computations every minute of every day, enabling you to not only survive, but also thrive. Think about it, not only can your body heal and regenerate itself, but it can also create life itself. And there is no computer that even comes close to matching the power of the human brain. Your body really is amazing, and we need to give it so much more credit for what it does for us.

If you are unhappy with your body, then remember that body didn’t do this to you – you done this to your body. If you need to lose some weight or whatever then do it, but hating your body is of no purpose. Instead love and accept your body for what it is, because its only by doing so that you will then begin to treat your body with the love, respect and attention that it deserves. The key is to instead become focused on the perfection inside of you which is your true self, to the exclusion of everything else.

A great way to do this and more fully accept who you are is to practice a simple mirror exercise (best done without make-up). The idea is to look at yourself eye-to-eye in your mirror and simply observe what you see. Forget about any wrinkles or acne and see yourself objectively. Try also to tune in and observe what your heart is telling you about the person looking straight back at you. If you feel uncomfortable or have negative perceptions of who is staring back at you, then smile at yourself and say an affirmation like ‘you are beautiful,’ ‘I am comfortable with who I am’ or ‘I love you.’

Keep working with the same affirmation until it feels natural and true for you. Do this once a day for the next few months and observe how you feel. Keeping up with this activity is a great way to shift any negative perceptions you might have about yourself and ground yourself in the truth of who you are. You will start to give yourself an experience of yourself in a different way, as it begins to connect to your own innate intelligence. Do this activity for a day, for weeks, for months, for years. And keep on doing it, and eventually your body will respond and you will feel it in a hug, and your body/innate intelligence will begin to work with you, rather than against you. Respect for life starts with respect for self, and that starts with looking after your own body!

*CREATE A SELF-CARE PLAN:

Self-Love must first start with self-care, so make the time to look after yourself and be well. This includes things like doing regular exercise, practicing mindfulness, getting a good night’s sleep and everything else in-between. Essentially everything that I talk about in what you chew and what you do in this blog space. You can do this by creating a self-care plan/routine which as an example, a day could look something like this; awaken after 8-9hrs sleep, 10 minutes of dynamic stretches/yoga, have a nutritious breakfast, take a shower with energetic clearing, take an active outdoors lunch break with a healthy pre-prepared lunch, enjoy a healthy dinner with family/friends and meaningful conversation, pre-prepare tomorrows nutrition, take an aromatic bath, have a herbal tea, reflect upon the day gone and the day ahead, read a favourite book, sleep and repeat the next day.

On top of doing all of the essential things required to maintain optimum wellbeing, it’s also important to do something nice for yourself every day. I say this because whilst many of us find it very easy to do nice things for others, sometimes we find it hard to do nice things for ourselves. So, make a habit of doing nice things for yourself, even if it’s something as simple as buying yourself flowers each week, taking yourself on a picnic, or even pampering yourself with a monthly massage. The idea is to become your own best friend, and hold the space for love in your own being. The more you do this, the more you will begin to feel more radiant, beautiful, confident and alive. And the more you will begin to love yourself without conditions.

Obviously, you will need to put yourself first to do these things, otherwise even the best intentions to do so may go unmet due to the sheer busyness of life these days. And that is the last thing you want to do, because not doing these things will leave you feeling worse about yourself. Just think about how terrible you feel when you eat junk and skip your workouts.

Its also worth mentioning that you can also boost feelings of self-love simply by creating a loving environment too. This includes things like playing your favourite music, burning certain oils, placing crystals such as rose quartz in certain areas, keeping freshly cut flowers and placing inspiring works of art in and around your home.

*LOVE YOURSELF AS THE CREATOR LOVES YOU:

The greatest energy on the planet is quantum and it is called love/God/Gaia/a higher source (or whatever you want to call it) and it is everywhere. You don’t need to look for it, it simply exists in the atomic structure of everything that exists. It is the basic building block of everything that is, including the consciousness of the human being. Whether you believe in this higher source or not is no longer questionable, but rather a fact of science. Evidence shows that life is not just random, but rather that there is some higher, benevolent and unknown source at work.

You don’t have to convince me that God exists, I already know – and no I am not religious in case you are wondering. But I suppose what I want you to know, is that you are a part of the plan of God and of all of creation. You are completely unique – no other person is the same as you anywhere in the world which is amazing. So next time you stand in front of a mirror, I want you to look straight ahead and into your eyes and know that you are a piece of the creator/an extension of God.

I want you to know that God knows and accepts you for who you are. Nothing you can do, or don’t do, can displease God, because God loves you unconditionally. The only way I can explain this specific kind of love, is that it is somewhat similar to the love that you have for your children. And it is a love that is freely available to all of us, when we go inside and connect with it. In-fact, the most loving, divine and fulfilling relationship that you can ever have in your life, is your connection with the internal source that always was, and always will be, and this is a source that is inside you.

Trust me, I wish I could instantly open you up right now to the love that God feels for you, just as I feel. It would cancel all of the doubts you have about God as well as any lack of worthiness in an instant. In-fact, when you are connected to God you don’t hear anything else but benevolence, which makes it impossible for you not to love yourself. Obviously, me telling you that you are made in the image of the creator and that God loves you is not going to enable you to love yourself unconditionally.

Instead, you need to cognize this to the point where this becomes your truth, to the point where you believe it as much as you believe in something like gravity. In other words, it needs to become part of your cellular structure. It’s like the light off a bright fire that burns forever, but at the same time it’s deliberately hidden so that it’s your free choice to access it or not.

To access it, you just have to let go of your fear, your ego, your scepticism and intentionally ask for this higher power to take your hand, and to show you the truth of who you really are. Ensure to live true and to work on yourself, and then ask again and repeat this process. Patience is key. Soon enough, you too will feel this unconditional love from God, and in doing so, will never feel unworthy in any way ever again. Opening the door will make you a better and more balanced human.

SURROUND YOURSELF WITH PEOPLE WHO SUPPORT AND UPLIFT YOU:

Surround yourself only with people who respect who you are, who always want the best for you, and whom love and support you no matter what. Why? Because the company you keep will have a big influence on how you see yourself. The more you let others treat you badly, the more likely you are to treat yourself the same way. Life is already hard enough without having others making it harder for you. And its way to precious to spend time and energy on people who just suck us dry – we have to do it and enjoy it with people we love. So never let anyone make you feel as if you are unworthy, because you are magnificent and worthy beyond belief. If they do make you feel unworthy and flat, then sure, give them a warning if you must, but cut ties with anyone who constantly leaves you feeling that way – and yes this includes family and friends!

Then instead, surround yourself with people who will fill up your cup until it runs over, and who leave you feeling uplifted. This could include your partner, your family and your friends. Remember that people who want the best for you, want you to be your best. This includes surrounding yourself with people that you are just like you – essentially your ‘tribe.’ Not only will you become less judgemental of others, but also invariably of yourself too – which is especially important if you are someone who feels as if they are different, or as if you don’t belong. Online communities have now made meeting and interacting with people just like you easier than ever which is fantastic.

Remember, self-development and self-compassion really are the keys to loving yourself unconditionally. Loving and being kind to yourself is the greatest gift you can give yourself. Its not easy, but if you do these things, I promise you that you will get there!

So, tell me, do you love yourself unconditionally and if not then why not? What do you need to do today, to start loving yourself without conditions tomorrow? I want to know! Leave a comment,

Rob

February 26, 2019 1 comment

Declutter Everything

READ this post (10min):

What is clutter?

Clutter is anything that you no longer need, no longer use, or which no longer serves you. Examples include, useless computer files, worn-out jeans, or an unfulfilling relationship. Decluttering therefore, is simply the process of removing these things from your life, and/or reorganising these things in a way which minimizes clutter.

Why declutter?

Most of us are drowning in clutter – an overwhelming sense of ‘too much’ in virtually every aspect of our lives. Take physical clutter for example – the average home has over 300,000 items of clutter. This is a problem because the more clutter we have, the harder it becomes for us to remain ‘present.’ Think about it – so much of the clutter we have is associated with memories, which distract us from being present now. Other clutter can just affect our concentration/create mind fog which also affects our presence.

Being less present can weigh you down and make you feel chronically tired and drained of energy, often leaving you feeling frazzled on a daily basis. It can distract you and affect your concentration, meaning it takes you much longer to do things, whilst at the same time making it easier to feel overwhelmed. It can even compound feelings of anger, sadness and depression, and can make it more difficult to maintain positive emotions. Clutter has a very real and negative affect on both your physical and mental health, including your overall enjoyment of life.

On an energetic level, clutter blocks the flow of abundance, getting in the way of the success we are reaching for. When we have clutter and unwanted stuff in our lives, there isn’t space for the abundance we are seeking – be it more time with our family and friends, more money, or so forth. This makes it challenging to feel grateful and truly appreciate the things we have. So, if you’re serious about living more in the present including manifesting and welcoming abundance, health and happiness into your life, then here are some essential things to declutter…

Declutter your stuff/physical environment:

This is what most of us think of when we think of clutter and applies to the physical space you spend your time in on a day-to-day basis: your home, your workspace and so forth. Before you begin decluttering, just take a minute to sit quietly and imagine your ideal life/the vision you hold for yourself. This includes the abundance you want, the success you need to achieve, and the place you want to be in the next 12months. Then when you come across items like a pile of old recipe magazines, or that piece of art you bought when you were younger, ask yourself if these items are part of that vision. If not then you need to get rid of them/clear that space so that abundance can come in. To do this, simply sort everything into 3 piles/large boxes:

Keep – Keep only the things that you love, use frequently and which meets the high standard of the improved version of your life you’re working toward.

Donate – Not only does donating an unwanted item help to save our environment, but it also helps someone else in need too. Donating an item, rather than trashing it, can often make the process of letting go much easier too. If you feel the item is too valuable to donate, then you can always auction it online.

Trash – Recycle what you can of course, but if it is junk then trash it. If your still having difficulty deciding what to trash and what to keep, because you’re unsure if the item fits your vision, then you could also ask yourself… ‘If I were to move to another country tomorrow then what would I bring with me?’ If the item isn’t on your list, then it’s time to trash it.

Armed with these 3 steps, now it’s time to get rid of any physical clutter…

Declutter your home:

This includes;

*Kitchen – declutter items such as unused or excessive cookbooks, cooking utensils, dish towels, baking/corning ware, cleaning supplies, mixing bowls, oven mitts/hot pads, tupperware or other food storage, cutlery, glasses/coffee mugs, dishware, spices, pantry items, fridge/freezer items, kitchen gadgets, small kitchen appliances, medicine/vitamins, etc.

*Bedrooms – declutter items such as bills and paperwork, ditch technology like computers and television, bedside table, dressers, tallboys and cupboards including unworn clothes, shelves, under the bed, piles of clothes, cosmetics and products, books, etc.

*Garage – should be for storing your cars, so declutter items such as extra refrigerator, freezers, washing machines/dryers, yard and garden tools, bikes, golf clubs, kids toys, tools, etc. Some of these items are best stored in a shed.

*Office workspace – both at home/work – declutter items such as random paper, out dated technology including software, mystery cords/cables, broken equipment, excess office supplies, empty ink cartridges, old books, etc.

*Car – Collect everything from your car and return it to where it belongs – kids toys go back to the kid’s room, paper work in the office and mail in the mail tray. Remove rubbish every time you get petrol, and keep only essential items in your glove box.

*Other possessions – It’s important to realise that the more you own – be it investment homes, cars, toys, pets, or whatever else, the greater the upkeep/clutter (time, energy and effort) in your life. By striving to live a more minimalistic/simple lifestyle, you can free yourself from more clutter.

Do a digital declutter:

*Declutter your computer – delete unused files and programs, delete excessive icons on your desktop, clear the Recycle Bin regularly, delete movies once watched, store information in a file share or cloud system, set up an auto archive on your email, unsubscribe from email lists/newsletters, excessive RSS feeds, switch of all notifications, reduce your email accounts, use automated inbox sorting, clean up your bookmarks, organize your photos into folders by date and/or event, defrag/clean disk, defriend, unfollow, and in general clean out your social newsfeeds and switch off notifications, etc.

*Declutter your phone – Delete unused apps and hide less frequently used apps, create folders and sort apps by usage or tasks, keep your home screen minimal, use cloud storage, stream music, backup photos then delete, etc.

Other things to declutter:

Declutter your heart – We do this by living true to ourselves, meaning living in alignment with who we are, including doing whatever it is that we want to do in life. Because if we don’t, then we will continue to have a constant flow of drama/emotional baggage/clutter in our lives. Also, too often in life we hold onto resentment and fail to forgive either ourselves or those who have hurt us along the way. Doing so keeps us locked in the past, robbing us of our gratitude, and filling our mind with more mental stress and clutter – and yes, even if we think that we have let go of it! So, a really important aspect of living true here is to ensure to be the bigger person, meaning to let go of any heaviness in your heart/emotional clutter, by practicing forgiveness – for both yourself and for others too. See past the things that have hurt or disappointed you as steppingstones and lessons to be learned from.

Declutter your relationships – We’re all directly influenced by the people we choose to surround ourselves with. Often in life we hold on to toxic relationships which do little other than drain our energy. But like the saying goes – people often come into your life for a reason, a season or a life time. If your relationship with another is not allowing you to grow and to feel happy, then it is no longer serving you and you need to let it go. Declutter these relationships and surround yourself only with those people who love and support you, and which you enjoy being around.

Declutter your health & well-being: There is an overwhelming amount of information available today on how best to achieve optimum health and well-being, much of which is both incorrect and damn right confusing. However, it doesn’t have to be, because I’ve summed up everything you need to do to achieve optimal health and well-being in a clutter-free way – by focusing your energy on just 3 key areas – what you chew, what you do and living true.

Declutter your faith – Some of us follow certain faiths – be it religion or some other spiritual belief, that do nothing more than to add more clutter to our lives. This includes beliefs like praying a certain way/at certain times of the day, wearing a particular item of clothing, needing to attend your place of worship at least once per week, etc. The truth is that all of these things are false, and are of no value because the creator loves us all the same regardless of what you do or don’t do. So, if you want to declutter your life, then ditch any man-made doctrines/rules which say that you must do this or that, and instead just be a good person.

Declutter your finances – pay down debt including the amount of loans you have, set up automatic bill pay for recurring expenses, pay upfront instead of interest free, consolidate accounts, go paperless when it comes to utility bills/credit card/bank statements, etc. You can also ditch your paper receipts and use an app such as One Receipt to take pictures of your receipts and organize them digitally. Automate savings, outsource your tax return to an accountant or investable assets to a financial advisor. Also, don’t forget to declutter your wallet too.

Declutter your meals – Eating is something we have to do several times per day, every day of the week. If we are not organised in this area, it can be a constant cause of clutter in our lives. Plan and prepare what you will eat for the week ahead. This way you won’t waste time making multiple trips to the supermarket wandering aimlessly up each aisle, trying to decide what to cook for dinner. Also get into the habit of preparing meals in advance.

When you stay consistent, and stick to these decluttering tips, you will find yourself feeling less stressed and happier. The key is to make the time to do this otherwise it just won’t happen, so start today and start small. Begin by cleaning up your physical clutter first and then move on to the other areas of clutter in your life.

Q.What area of your life do you most need to declutter and why?

Rob

WATCH this post (15min):

LISTEN to this post (15min):

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 14:01 — 26.0MB)

December 10, 2018 0 comment

WHAT YOU CHEW RECENT POSTS

Prevent Vitamin and Mineral Deficiency

READ this post (10min):

Almost one billion of us take vitamin and mineral supplements, provided by an industry fast approaching two hundred billion dollars per year. But why? Often, it’s because we believe that supplements will cure us our deficiencies, and prevent us from being run down and ill. We believe that they will help us get ahead, and help us to live a better life. We believe the promise of vitamin supplements over the more mundane advice to eat well, exercise often and get sufficient sleep. We believe that popping a multivitamin will cover all bases and make up for all of the things we should be doing but don’t really have the time, energy and motivation to do. And we do so, not only because there are often super fit, Olympic athletes marketing these products to us, but mostly because it’s easy. But do we really need supplements, or is it possible to get enough vitamins and minerals from the food we eat? Let’s find out, but before we do…

What are Vitamins?

Vitamins are chemicals which are essential for life. Our bodies can’t make vitamins themselves (with the exception of vitamin d which is produced when our skin is exposed to the sun) so we usually get them from our food. There are 13 different vitamins which can be divided into 2 teams:

*Water-soluble – this includes all of the B vitamins (thiamin -B1, riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, biotin, vitamin B6 – pyridoxine, folate or folic acid, vitamin B12 – cyanocobalamin) as well as vitamin C.

*Fat-soluble – this includes vitamins A, D, E and K.

Water-Soluble vitamins do not stay in your body. Instead your body will take what it needs and then you will excrete whatever is in excess. Fat-soluble vitamins on the other hand, are often stored in your body’s fat reserves, including in the liver and can build up to toxic levels if you are not careful.

What are Minerals?

When most of us think of minerals, the first thing that often comes to mind is something that you find in the earth, like iron and quartz. This is true, however there are also small amounts of some minerals in foods too. For instance, red meat is a good source of iron. Just like vitamins, minerals help your body grow, develop, and stay healthy. The body uses minerals to perform many different functions — from building strong bones to transmitting nerve impulses. Some minerals are even used to make hormones or maintain a normal heartbeat.

There are two kinds of minerals:

*Macro minerals – Macro means “large” in Greek (and your body needs larger amounts of macro minerals than trace minerals). The macro mineral group is made up of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride, and sulfur.

*Trace minerals – A trace of something means that there is only a little of it. So even though your body needs trace minerals, it needs just a tiny bit of each one. Trace minerals includes iron, manganese, copper, iodine, zinc, cobalt, fluoride, and selenium.

Why are vitamins/minerals important?

Vitamins and minerals are important because without them then we can’t see, hear, taste, smell, touch, breath, or do anything else. Vitamins and minerals keep our body working at an optimum. Vitamins and minerals don’t just keep us alive, they are life. When we don’t receive enough vitamins or minerals in our diet, then we become deficient and our body systems begin to fail. This is a fundamental contributor to the vast majority of physical and mental illnesses today, including but not limited to obesity, cancer, heart disease, anxiety, depression and substance abuse.

What are the best sources of vitamins/minerals?

‘Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.’ ― Hippocrates

The best sources of vitamins and minerals are whole foods such as fresh fruit and vegetables, nuts, legumes, grain products including cereals, lean meats and seafood, eggs and vegetable oils (Please see the table below for a comprehensive list). In order to get all of the vitamins and minerals we need for optimum health, one of the most important things we need to do is to eat a large variety of such foods (all colours of the rainbow). Unfortunately, when we get busy we tend to eat the same things all of the time. Variety is also essential to having healthy gut bacteria/your immune system). It is also equally important to eat fresh produce to maximise the nutritional content you receive, as vitamins are affected by heat, light, storage conditions and other variables. For example, after just one week, apples lose over 75% of the vitamin C content, yet most of the apples on our supermarket shelves are over a year old.

It is also important to eat organic wherever possible – either buying it or growing it yourself. Not only does organic produce have less toxins, but they also contain more vitamins and minerals too. If you eat in this way then you actually don’t need to eat a large amount of food to get all of the vitamins you need in a day. Instead its more about eating the right foods in the right balance, to get the nutrients that you need. For example, if you ate a small yoghurt, some salmon, some pecan nuts, a piece of fruit, some brown rice, some spinach leaves, a carrot and an apple you would get all of the vitamins and minerals you need in a day. However, the reality is that many of us today don’t eat this way, which can result in us becoming deficient in some of the vitamins and minerals needed for optimum health.

Do we need to take vitamin/mineral supplements?

So, this raises the question, should we be taking vitamin and mineral supplements? Assuming you eat a large variety of foods, fresh and organic where possible, then most of the times you can get all of the vitamins and minerals you need from food, therefore taking supplements will be of no benefit. However, if you don’t have a great diet and/or are deficient in certain vitamins and minerals, then supplements may be of benefit to you.

It is important to pay close attention to your body, and how you feel in order to recognize early signs of deficiency. Feeling tired for no reason, having low energy, looking pale and always getting sick can all be signs of certain nutrient deficiencies, but there are many more symptoms. Please consult your doctor if you’re not feeling 100%.

If you have had any procedures such as lap banding or suffer from a disease such as cancer, then supplements may be required.

It is also important to know your family history, because sometimes vitamin and mineral deficiencies can have a genetic pre-disposition. For example, if your mum had a magnesium deficiency, then it may be a good idea to keep an on eye on your own magnesium levels and take supplements if you are found to be deficient.

Vitamin/mineral requirements also change through different life cycles, such as during pregnancy, newborn and elderly, and supplements during specific stages can play an important role in maintaining optimum health.

Certain diets or styles of eating which often exclude entire food groups (paleo, vegan, etc) can also cause nutritional deficiency, so be sure to do your homework here and understand what you need to meet your vitamin and mineral requirements. For example, if you don’t eat dairy then you need to ensure that you are meeting your calcium requirements in other ways.

It is also important to ensure that your lifestyle habits are not affecting your nutritional requirements. For example, habits such as drinking, alcohol, and smoking will strip your body of b group vitamins, and should be avoided.

Are Vitamin and mineral supplements safe?

Whilst vitamin and mineral supplements are generally considered safe, it is not uncommon for people to overdose and become hospitalized from using them. This rarely happens with vitamins and minerals sourced from food, as the amount of vitamins and minerals in food is perfectly balanced. And because most supplements are self-prescribed, we often over estimate what and how much we think we need. Such guesswork can be risky, especially when it comes to the fat-soluble vitamins/particular minerals which can easily build up in our bodies over time to toxic levels.

Furthermore, very few if any of the 100,000+ vitamin and mineral supplements on the market today are tested for safety or efficacy before they are sold on our shelves. It is not uncommon for some supplements (including multivitamins) to contain 100 times the vitamin/mineral dose specified on the label. Others contain drugs which shouldn’t be there at all, including (most commonly) anabolic steroids. In other words, there is no proof that they will do what they say they will, nor that they will not hurt you so we need to question how safe these supplements really are.

As such, we should treat all vitamins like all chemicals we put into our bodies – with caution. Know what you are taking and why. Otherwise, apart from expensive urine, you may be doing more damage than good, especially when you consider that most are synthetically made from products such as tar and acetone.

If you are going to take supplements then do your research and speak to your doctor as well as a nutritionist or naturopath first.

Food or Supplements?

There is no doubt that the line between food and supplements is becoming increasingly blurred. However, whilst supplements may have a place, none come close to replicating what you can get from food. And that’s because on top of containing all of the essential vitamins and minerals, food also contains thousands of compounds that work in a complex and often mysterious synergy. A synergy that supplements cannot replicate. However, what is proven is the relationship between a great diet and great health. After all we have been getting our vitamins and minerals from foods for millions of years, as have all living beings on the earth.

Q.Do you take vitamin and minerals supplements and if so why?

Rob

WATCH this post (15min):

LISTEN to this post (15min):

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 12:21 — 23.0MB)

October 17, 2018 0 comment

Empower Yourself

READ this post (10min):

What is motivation and why is it so important?

Motivation means having a reason to act or behave in a particular way. We can have the best of intentions but without motivation nothing happens. Being motivated is integral for taking action and facilitating change in any area of your life, including towards your health and well-being, which is the focus of this post.

Very few of us are really motivated:

Most of us struggle to not only find motivation, but also to keep it too. Just think about how many times you have said to yourself either ‘I can’t find the motivation,’ ‘I can’t stay motivated,’ or ‘I was motivated but then I lost it.’

Why we find it hard to maintain motivation:

So why do we find it so difficult to become and stay motivated? The reason is because we are not in alignment with who we are (our true-self). As a result, we tend to go about motivation in the wrong way, including by having an over-reliance on external goals, as well as through constant self-criticism.

*An over-reliance on external goals – This includes things like doing a fun run, or getting in shape before summer or for a birthday. The problem with being motivated by such goals, is that even if you do eventually reach them, at some point or another, your mind will no longer see a reason to continue the behaviour, and so the motivation stops. This occurs because your behaviour is often merely a means to an end, and never truly the reward itself. The result being that you need to find something else to motivate yourself, and also continuously try to summon up enough will power to stay motivated with it again. Don’t get me wrong, having external goals is not the problem. They only become a problem when you use them as your main source of motivation, as opposed to being motivated from within.

*Constant self-criticism – This is the carrot and stick approach – the carrot is ‘I want to feel good about myself’ and the stick is ‘I don’t want to feel bad about myself.’ This is a fear-based type of motivation – I am not ok if I fail, therefore I must try harder and succeed so I will be ok.

Many of us think we need self-criticism to motivate and keep ourselves in line. And whilst some amount of constructive criticism is useful in motivating ourselves to change, most of us do this in a non-constructive way. This is the nasty, harsh, belittling, you’re worthless, you’re bad, you’re no good type of criticism. This language may sound extreme, but if you were to actually write down (especially on a bad day) some of the things you say to yourself, you would be surprised at both how nasty and how frequent it really can be, eg. I’m fat, I look ugly, I can’t do that, etc.

The problem with this approach is that whilst it may initially motivate us, it often leaves us feeling stressed out and even depressed which is not exactly the most conducive mood for motivation. It also makes us lose faith in ourselves. If we constantly tell ourselves ‘I’m no good, I’m not worthy, I can’t do it,’ then we don’t feel confident to take on new tasks. The more we do it the more we become aware of failure – ‘I’m not even going to try because the consequences of failing are just too devastating – it’s better just not to go there.’ And so, we become less inclined to try and to keep on trying.

So why do we do it then? Well one of the main reasons why we are so attached to our self-criticism is that even though it is so painful, it’s because it gives us the Illusion of control. Think about it, how often have you said to yourself things like ‘I shouldn’t have failed.’ This implies that while it is theoretically possible that you will never fail… it’s because you have done something wrong… you shouldn’t have done this, you shouldn’t have been that, etc. We love the illusion that it is theoretically possible to be perfect. To never have things go wrong, and do anything we want to do. However, the reality is that we don’t have full control over everything, but yet we still criticize ourselves for it. We think if, ‘well maybe if I just tried that little bit harder, I could be perfect’ and that is not reality.

Where motivation should come from:

The key to endless motivation lies not in self-criticism or pursuits of the external, but rather by becoming empowered by your own sense of being, including the love and gratitude you have for who you are, and for life itself. This occurs naturally when you connect and live in alignment with your true self. – Robert Greco.

So, if the way we typically motivate ourselves doesn’t work, then how should we motivate ourselves? The answer is that we should be entirely motivated from deep within ourselves – from our very own sense of being, including the love and gratitude we have for who we are, and for life itself. This can only occur when we connect to, and live in alignment with our true-self, including our heart. Remember, it’s your heart that feels, not your head. If you want to feel motivated, then your hearts got to be in it. In this way, motivation has more than anything else, got to do with your relationship with who you are, or the lack of it. How exactly does living in alignment with your true-self motivate you? It does so in many ways, including

Increased Self-compassion – This is not a self-pity or poor me attitude, but rather the understanding that it’s hard for all of us – for me, for you, for everyone else. This is a more connected way of relating to yourself. Unlike self-criticism, self-compassion doesn’t evaluate and judge the worth of yourself as a person including whether or not you are good enough, or feeling like you have to always be doing more in order to see yourself in a positive light. Self-compassion is kind, enduring, supportive and constructive. This includes accepting, loving and embracing yourself for who you are, as you are – even though you’re not perfect and even though you fail sometimes. Yes, this is something most of us struggle to do!

You’re probably thinking… So, if I just accept myself as I am, flaws and all, then how and why would that motivate me? And the reason is because by doing so, we provide the safety needed to see ourselves clearly. And because we care about ourselves and don’t want to suffer, then we are going to want to make changes conducive to well-being. Think about it – if we love who we are more fully, then we are naturally going to want to look after who we are on all levels. We are going to treat ourselves with the respect, love and attention that we deserve. But if we don’t, then we are just going to do what makes us feel good in that moment rather than what is actually good for us long term. We also know that if we don’t succeed, it is still OK. There is no pressure that unless we change, then we are a bad person. Sure, it would be great if we could change, but also that we accept ourselves the way we are regardless.

Unfortunately, despite these positives, most of us find it really hard to motivate ourselves from a place of self-compassion. A common reason for this is because we don’t trust ourselves enough and or we confuse self-compassion with self-indulgence. This is where we think that if we are compassionate towards ourselves, then we will not do any exercise and eat lots of chocolate every day, or whatever else we like. However, when you come from a place of self-compassion, you understand that whilst pleasure in the short term feels good (self-indulgence), you are also aware that it harms you in the long run, so you are unlikely to engage in it. Self-compassion only wants health and well-being for ourselves, not harm, and as such provides the basis and motivation to adopt healthy lifestyle behaviours. When you are motivated from a place of compassion, including from a place of love and wholeness for self, you believe that you, and your health and well-being, are worth fighting for.

However, we need to ensure that we don’t use self-compassion as a way of making excuses for unhealthy choices. E.g. drinking two bottles of wine over dinner and saying ‘I’m only human.’ Sure, you could blow things off and say its self-compassion but is it really? No, because self-compassion only wants well-being, so make sure you live true to yourself regarding whether you’re using self-compassion as a source of motivation towards increased well-being and not for making excuses for unhealthy choices including irrational rewards. If you do make unhealthy choices, then it will be easier to take responsibility for them coming from a place of compassion because you won’t be so hard on yourself. This is important because when you take full ownership for everything in your life then you’re in control. The more you do this, the more you begin to trust and honour yourself and the easier it becomes.

Increased Inspiration – Did you know that after almost 20 years of working in the health and wellness industry, I have never met a lazy person. But I have met many who people who are uninspired. The problem is that when you feel uninspired, you don’t feel very motivated. So, the question is not ‘how can I become motivated,’ but rather ‘how can I be or feel inspired?’ You can do this by connecting and living in alignment with, your deepest nature.

Increased Purpose and Meaning – What really motivates you to get out of bed in the morning and do what you do each day? Without a consistent sense of purpose and meaning in your life, then it’s difficult to become motivated. However, when you begin to really connect and live in alignment with who you really are, then you begin to understand the true purpose of life. This leads to doing more fulfilling work and fostering more harmonious relationships, both of which imbue your life with a greater sense of meaning and purpose. This supports, rather than detracts, from our motivation for things like health and well-being.

Increased ability to live in the present – Did you know that the average person has about 50,000 negative thoughts each day. Thoughts which not only lead to increased stress and anxiety, but other mental health issues including depression. Being in this space can often make simple everyday things harder than what they should be, and it’s easy to fall into a state of learned helplessness or begin to feel overwhelmed. It’s like riding an emotional rollercoaster, where we feel great one day, but then down the next. And guess what, your motivation does the same. However, when we live in alignment with our true-self, we also live more in the present moment. This is important because virtually all negative thoughts come from either by analysing the past, or worrying about the future. By living more in the present, we significantly reduce most, if not all of the negative thoughts in our life. But more than that, when we do so, we also create/make space to experience our natural states of being, this includes feelings of happiness, peace, joy and enthusiasm; all of which helps us to become more motivated. In-fact, there is no greater source of energy, determination and inspiration for life and well-being, than when your heart is full of love and your mind is present. This is because universal energy/love, is more able to radiate though you without any resistance, providing a constant source of energy in everything we do.

Increased Gratitude – What’s your take on life? Do you love it, or do you think that life sucks? Because unless you love life and believe that you have everything to live for, then you’re always going to struggle to stay motivated.

However, when you live in alignment with your true-self, you begin to see the sacredness of not only who you are, but also of life itself. You begin to understand that each and every moment is a gift (that’s why it’s called the ‘present’) as there is no way of assuming that another moment will be given to you. Yet, that is the most valuable thing that can ever be given to us – life itself.

Unfortunately, most of us don’t really acknowledge just how sacred life really is. We think life’s just going to go on, and we think we have all of the time in the world, and as result, end up taking so much of it for granted. But the reality is that we don’t have all of the time in the world, because one day we will die. In-fact, the average life is only 27,000 days, and for many this is cut much shorter. In this way, life is precious and we must not take anything for granted. Every minute, of every hour, of every day, is absolutely precious, and needs to be honoured.

The good news is that you don’t have to wait until you’re living in alignment with your true-self before you start becoming grateful for life itself. Instead, start to write down one thing you are grateful for each day. The more you do this, the more in alignment you become with yourself.

Remember, you only have one chance at life. The question is, are you going to waste it, or are you going to make the most of it? Living in alignment with our true-self helps us to realise this, and the more we do, the more we become motivated towards well-being, including doing all of the things that give life, not take it away.

So, if you’re struggling to get and stay motivated, then it’s time you start to connect to, and live more in alignment with, your true-self. Because as you do, you will begin to also connect to that inner well of unconditional love, inspiration, purpose, gratitude and infinite energy. The result being that you will become empowered, rather than just motivated towards health and well-being, and this makes all of the difference.

Q.Do you constantly struggle with motivation, or are you someone who is empowered towards health and well-being?

Rob

WATCH this post (15min):

LISTEN to this post (15min):

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 15:02 — 27.9MB)

September 9, 2018 0 comment

Maintain Correct Posture

READ this post (10min):

What is correct posture?

Posture is the position you maintain – essentially how you hold your body. Dynamic posture is how you hold yourself when you are moving, like when you are walking, running or bend over to pick up something. Static posture is how you hold yourself when you are not moving, like when you are standing, sitting, or sleeping.

You have correct posture when your position creates the least amount of strain on supporting muscles, ligaments and joints whilst standing, sitting, lying down or doing any other activity. The key to correct posture is the position of your spine. Your spine has three natural curves – at your neck, mid back, and low back. Correct posture should maintain these curves, but not increase them. Your head should be above your shoulders, and the top of your shoulder should be over the hips.

Correct posture not so common

As kids we are often taught and reminded of the importance of correct posture, however as we age we are less mindful of our posture (low postural awareness). Unfortunately, we live in a forward-leaning society – spending much of our time sitting – either in the car, on the train, at work on our desks all day, at school, on the couch or glued to our smartphones. The result being that most of us have poor or incorrect posture.

Why is having correct posture important?

Correct posture…

*Decreases your chance of injury, muscle pain and other problems – by keeping your bones and joints in proper alignment, decreasing joint compression and allowing you to use your muscles more efficiently. This prevents muscle aches/strain and fatigue/overuse and is essential for avoiding neck, back and shoulder pain including headaches, as well as arthritis, spinal/disk problems and constricted blood vessels and nerves, as well as tendonitis and bone spurs. Good posture also increases your balance and decreases your chance of falling.

*Increases oxygen and helps all bodily systems to operate smoothly – breath is life, and good posture helps to open the airways and ensure proper breathing. Proper breathing allows enhanced oxygen flow to the nervous system, organs and other tissues, so that they all function effectively.

*Decreases stress and better mood – poor posture creates unnecessary stress and strains your body including your spine, which can make you feel heavy, achy, tired and irritable. It also decreases your digestion which is linked to your mood – did you know that more endorphins can be released from your gut than your brain? All of these things combined often lead to increased stress, anxiety and depression. Good posture on the other hand, stimulates physiological arousal, such as a spike in blood pressure, and triggers a coping response to stress. The result is increased resilience and better mood. This is common sense really, given that the body follows the mind, and the mind follows the body. Try it now – adopt a depressed mind-state by thinking of something that gets you down, and see what happens to your body. Now do the opposite with a super excited mind-state – what happens? Your body follows your mind, so you go from a closed posture to an open one. Next time you want to kick your negative mood, start with fixing your posture first.

*Helps you look and feel good – maintaining good posture helps increase your physical appearance because by avoiding slouching, you look taller, slimmer and stronger. The result being a more attractive, more comfortable and more confident you.

How can you improve your posture?

Here are a few of the best ways to improve your posture:

*Stay active: All types of exercise generally help to improve posture, but some are especially beneficial. This includes exercise such as weight training, yoga, pilates, as well as any other movement which focuses on body awareness. Cardiovascular exercise such as rowing and swimming can also be beneficial. Regardless of what type of exercise you do, always ensure to include exercises which strengthen your core (muscles around your back, abdomen, and pelvis) as these play an essential role in the maintenance of good posture.

*Stretch more: This goes hand in hand with staying active, but stretching is of paramount importance when it comes to having great posture. Try to stretch for at least 5-10 minutes per day or more, on most days of the week. If you do activities such as yoga and pilates, stretching is already built in. It’s also a good idea to get a massage every so often, because sometimes no amount of stretching can release locked up or worn out muscles. Besides, it’s wonderful for total body rejuvenation including mental stress release too.

*Maintain a healthy weight: Excess fat can weaken your abdominal muscles, cause problems for your pelvis and spine, and contribute to low back pain, sore hips, knees and anything else. All of these can hurt your posture, so if you are overweight, then losing weight may be the best thing you can do to fix your posture.

*Sleep on your side: The best position to sleep on is usually on your side, with a well-supported pillow for your head, and an additional pillow down by your side to support the leg not resting on the mattress. Not only is it better for your posture, but it is also better for your breathing and digestion too – particularly if you lie on your left side. Sleeping on your back is not advised, however sleeping on your stomach does the most damage to your posture – putting strain on the muscles of the head, neck, jaw and can also put out your lower back and pelvis.

*Wear comfortable, low-heeled shoes: High heels, can tighten your calves, throw off your balance and force you to change your gait/walk differently. This puts more stress on your muscles and can damage your posture.

*Be mindful of your posture: Be mindful of your posture during everyday activities, like watching television, eating dinner, or walking. The more aware of your posture you are, the more quickly it improves.

*Sit Properly: Some things we can do to improve the way we sit include:

Don’t sit for too long – it’s called the 20-10 rule… Sit for 20min, stand for 8min and walk for 2. You can also gently stretch your muscles to help relieve muscle tension at the same time.
Make sure that your feet touch the floor – if this is not possible, use a footrest.
Don’t cross your legs – instead, keep your feet on the floor, with your ankles in front of your knees.
Make sure that your back is fully supported – use a back pillow or other back support if your chair does not have a backrest that can support your lower back’s curve (either a small rolled up towel, or commercial product).
Change the way you sit – a great way to do this throughout the day, is to try to alternate your chair with a fit-ball to activate your core/postural muscles and prevent them from wasting away. This could be for an hour in the morning and then again in the afternoon. You can also perform simple strength movements like balancing on one leg and figures 8’s as you sit. You just need to ensure that you choose the right size ball so that your thighs and hips are parallel to the floor or that your hips are slightly higher (<145cm tall = 45cm ball, 140-165cm = 55cm ball, 165-195cm = 65cm ball, >195cm = 85cm ball).
Relax your shoulders – instead of rounding your shoulders, gently pull them back, whilst at the same time keeping them relaxed/depressed.
Keep your elbows close to your body – they should be bent between 90 and 120 degrees.
Make sure that your thighs and hips are supported – you should have a well-padded seat, and your thighs and hips should be parallel to the floor. You may need a footrest to keep your hips and knees level.
Setup your computer screen correctly – instead of adjusting your posture to suit the position of our computer screen, adjust the screen itself so that the centre of it sits at eye-level.

*Improve the way you stand:

Stand up straight and tall – keep your shoulders back but relaxed with your head level.
Pull your stomach in – activate your core and let your arms hang down naturally by your sides.
Put slightly more weight on the balls of your feet – rather than on your heels, whilst ensuring that your knees don’t buckle in/no knock-knees.
Keep your feet about shoulder width apart – and facing straight ahead to avoid internally or externally rotating the hips.
When using a standing desk – position the screen so that the centre of it is at eye-level just like sitting posture.

Where to get help

If you need further help with achieving better posture, then consult your local Personal Trainer, Exercise Scientist/Physiologist, Osteopath, Physiotherapist or Chiropractor. Things like the Alexander Technique are also excellent, otherwise you can speak to your Doctor who can put you into contact with someone who can help.

Q.Do you have poor posture and if so, then what things will you start doing to improve it?

Rob

WATCH this post (14min):

LISTEN to this post (14min):

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 14:09 — 26.3MB)

July 20, 2018 0 comment

WHAT YOU CHEW RECENT POSTS

Eat Organic

READ this post (10min):

We are what we eat but how many of us actually know what we are really eating? We often think that the food which we eat is safe, however this is hardly the case. Food is really only as safe as it is grown and manufactured, and the safest food to eat is organic food.

What is Organic?

Organic farmers and food producers grow and produce food without using synthetic chemicals such as pesticides and artificial fertilisers. They do not use genetically modified (GM) components or expose food to irradiation. Organic foods are foods in their most natural state, just as nature has provided. Some examples of organic produce include fruit and vegetables, dried legumes, grains, meat and meat products, dairy foods, eggs, honey and some processed foods. Any food can be organic or non-organic depending upon the processes it has been through.

Why is it important to eat organic?

It is important to eat organic because due to many of the processes which non-organic foods go through, they can be unsafe. Some of the dangers of non-organic foods include:

Genetically modified (GM): GM are foods that have been genetically modified/altered from its naturally occurring state. Genes from other sources have been introduced into these foods in order to ward off pests/disease and increase yield/profitability. For example, it is common practice for glyphosate (which is the active ingredient in Roundup) to be added to the genetic structure of plants. Currently, GM foods comprise about 55%-70% of the processed foods in the supermarkets, mostly in the way of GM corn and soy bean products. No long term studies have yet been done on the effects of GM on humans, however many have been done on animals which indicate infertility, immune problems, accelerated aging, problematic insulin regulation, stomach problems, reduction in digestive enzymes, liver toxicity, allergic reactions, antibiotic resistance, cancer and more.

Manure & Fertilizers: Manure such as animal poo or blood and bone contain anything which the animal was exposed to in its life, including hormones and antibiotics. These are then absorbed by the plant and into our own body when we eat it ourselves. If you’re vegan then you need to eat 100% organic to avoid eating animal products. Natural Fertilizers like peat moss and potash are fine, but chemical fertilizers can also be dangerous to your health in many ways.

Pesticides/Insecticides: Are applied directly to the unwanted pests of plants and can be either non-systemic or systemic. Non–systemic pesticides are topical and can be mostly washed off of a plant before consumption. Systemic pesticides are chemicals that are actually absorbed by a plant when applied to seeds, soil, or leaves. The chemicals then circulate through the plant’s tissues, killing the insects that feed on them. … Unlike with traditional insecticides, you can’t wash or peel off systemic pesticide residues. Pesticides are often sprayed generally more on summer than winter crops due to increased pests. They are also excessively sprayed on out of season crops – which is a real worry when you consider that nearly all fruit and vegetables are available in our supermarkets all year around. And also because 90% of us don’t even know what season most fruit and veggies are naturally grown in. So next time you want to buy tomatoes in the winter or broccoli in summer, take into consideration the impact these excessive additional pesticides may be having on your health.

Fungicides: Are chemicals used to cure diseases in crops and to protect seeds during shipment and storage. Many of the chemicals have adverse effects that harm the skin, lungs (like asthma) and eyes. Fungicide chemicals are known to cause contact dermatitis, chronic skin disease, visual disturbances, pulmonary edema and other effects. Most fungicides are poisonous when ingested and some can be fatal.

Herbicides: Are chemical substances used to control or manipulate all or selected undesirable vegetation, especially weeds. Some herbicides have been labelled endocrine disruptors and have been linked to cancer, miscarriages and more. The more herbicides are used, the more resistant weeds and pests become.

Irradiation: Where food is treated with ionizing radiation to kill bacteria and parasites that would otherwise cause foodborne disease. Similar technology is used to sterilize medical devices so they can be used in surgery. At high doses, food is essentially sterilized, just as what occurs in canning. Products treated with irradiation can be stored at room temperature almost indefinitely – which is great for supermarket chains who don’t have to worry about fresh produce going rotten on their shelves. Research indicates that irradiation also can destroy vitamins (like Vitamin B) and nutrients, disrupt proteins and essential fatty acids, and corrupt flavour, texture and odour.

Growth hormones: Artificial/synthetic growth hormones are injected directly into animals or added to their feed to enhance their growth rate, and the amount of eggs, dairy (including milk), fish and meat they produced. Research indicates that growth hormones in food can lead to cancer and diabetes.

Antibiotics: In order to increase profits many companies no longer allow animals to freely roam the land but instead confine them to small, heavily crowded and often unsanitary places. In order to make sure these animals don’t get disease from such conditions, they routinely feed them large amounts of antibiotics. Also, the feed (such as corn mash) which these animals are given also contain even larger (and unregulated) amounts of antibiotics meaning we are really getting a double dose. This is leading to a new generation of drug resistant super-bugs. In-fact, even viral infections like the common cold and flu are increasingly becoming untreatable with antibiotics.

Aesthetically enhanced: In order to sell more/increase profits, food manufactures often make food more attractive. For example, in the wild, salmon get their beautiful colour by eating krill and shrimp, which contain a reddish-orange compound called astaxanthin. However farmed salmon which live in a pen, are fed kibble made from fish waste, corn gluten, ground-up feathers, soybeans, chicken fat and genetically engineered yeast. This gives them a dull grey flesh which is not very attractive. So in order to get the perfect colour, astaxanthin is synthesized in a lab, using petrochemicals and given to the farmed fish. Another example would be the beautiful looking shiny apples that you buy which are full of wax – Just pour some boiling water over one and see how much wax comes off. Virtually all processed foods contains a various array of chemicals to increase the appearance.

Ripening agents: Natural ripening is a physiological process which makes the fruit edible, palatable and nutritious. During ripening fruits soften, changes colour, and characteristic aroma and flavours develop. However today, so much of the fruit we eat is actually artificially ripened. This is done to achieve faster and more uniform ripening characteristics. It allows many fruits to be picked prior to full ripening, which is useful, since ripened fruits do not ship well. For example, bananas are picked when green and artificially ripened after shipment by being gassed with ethylene. Artificially ripened fruit produce less nutrients and are less tasteful. The substances used are often toxic. For example, Calcium carbide contains traces of arsenic and phosphorus, and is linked to cancer and a host of other health problems.

Long Storage Time: We all know that fresh is best, however not everything we eat is fresh. Much of it is stored in cold storage for long periods (and even gassed with chemical SmartFresh to stop the ripening process) before we actually buy it. For example, tomatoes are stored up to about 2 months, carrots 9 months, potatoes up to 12 months and apples up to 24 months. The result is less taste and less nutritional properties. Think about it, when was the last time you bought fresh produce from the supermarket which was bursting with flavour and tasted amazing? One which tasted just like it was home grown? It’s little wonder why a home grown apple, tomato or anything else often tastes so much better than a shop bought one! Obviously if you are not used to organic eating then you don’t really know what you’re missing.

You have a choice:

As you can see, there are many dangers associated with eating non-organic foods, and these are just some of them. With that said, most of the time the benefits of non-organic fresh produce outweighs any risks, so please don’t let this be a barrier to eating them. At the end of the day, food is a very personal thing, and it’s up to you what you eat. The purpose of this post is simply to ensure that you are aware of what happens to our food from paddock to plate, and now it’s up to you to choose to eat organic or not.

For me, the choice is a simple one – to eat certified organic produce/products whenever possible. I do this because it’s the only real way to ensure that what you are eating is safe. Sure it’s more expensive, but what price can you put on your health? You can however significantly minimize the cost of eating organic by also growing your own – it’s easy once you know how. Even if you grow just some things.

So next time you go to a grocery store and every time you put something in your mouth, ask yourself – where is this food from, what has it been through and is it really good for me? Food is an intrinsic part of who we are as human beings and if we don’t take care of our bodies by being mindful of what we are putting into them we will continue to damage them. Remember, natural food is our medicine, so choose local, choose fresh, choose seasonal and choose to eat organic whenever possible.

Rob

WATCH this post (13min):

LISTEN to this post (13min):

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 12:42 — 23.6MB)

June 17, 2018 3 comments

Write Your Own Story

READ this post (10min):

Definition: ‘Writing your own story:’

Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom. Thomas Jefferson.

Did you know that the Latin root of the word “authenticity” is “author.” To write your own story means to be the authentic author of your life. This includes knowing and living true to your highest values and continuing to do so when you experience adversity or hit cross roads in life. It means to live life on your own terms – in consideration of your needs and desires. To ‘own it’ and to intentionally make decisions that steer your life in whatever direction you choose. It means chasing your dreams and doing what you love and what makes you happy. You’re in the driver’s seat.

Why is it important?

There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you. – Maya Angelou

If you are not writing your own story, then you are simply a character in someone else’s story. Sure there is nothing wrong with doing this, but it will most likely be a mediocre life, with less happiness and increased stress.

If on the other hand, you want to live a happy and fulfilling life, then you need to write your own story. Whether you want to live a simple life or more exhilarating one doesn’t matter – what matters is that you live the life that ‘you’ want to live. Writing your own story makes you feel empowered because you are standing in your own power and in control of what you do and don’t want in life.

Writing your own story gives you a sense of purpose, and we all know that the best stories are the ones that have a purpose. When you do what you love, you have much more gratitude, and you achieve so much more in your life. Writing your own story and chasing your dreams lights a fire in your heart and whether you reach it or not it warms everyone and everything around you. Wouldn’t the world be a better place if we were all inspired, if we all chased our dreams? I know I feel inspired chasing my dreams! Most importantly writing your own story makes you happy and you can’t put a price on that!

Are you writing your own story?

There comes a point when you need to stop reading other people’s books and write your own. – Albert Einstein

Are you writing your own story, or are you following other people’s story? Are you living the dream – your dream? Are you just plotting through life according to other people’s wants, desires, expectations and dreams? If you are not writing your own story you need to start, especially if you’ve found yourself in the wrong story.

How do we write our own story?

Start with Once Upon a Time… Here are some of my top tips when it comes to writing your own story:

*Be careful not to let others write your story:

If you don’t write your own story then others will write it for you.

If you were to look back upon your story thus far today, you would likely find that part of your story comes from your own choices but part of it also comes from your environment too – namely via the projection of others. Often this starts at birth, with our parents and siblings. In-fact, so much of this influence is unspoken – meaning that their influence is subtle yet powerful through their values, including the way they behave and live their life. And as we grow up, this circle of influence extends to relatives, friends, teachers, work mates.

Regardless of who it is, all of these people can affect both how you perceive and interact with the world including how you write your story. I suppose from a young age, parents probably have the biggest influence on the outcome of your story, because from a young age your values are so heavily influenced by their own. However, although it’s often always from good intentions, if you are not careful, then it is easy to let them or anyone else write your story – and especially so if you look up to them. This isn’t a bad thing if you’re happy with the story they have helped you write. However it’s just that sometimes they just can lay out quite a narrow path for you to success, and they can make you feel like if you don’t go down this path you will be a failure.

It’s one thing to take advice from others but it’s another thing altogether to live your life the way they want you to live it. Sometimes if we are not careful, we can let others influence our story more than we know. Have you sold out on your dreams in order to make those whom you love and respect happy? Remember to always surround yourself with those who are supportive of your dreams.

*Listen to your Gut:

The key to writing your own story is to take the time to reflect on what you really want to do and want from life & then take positive steps towards it. Obviously this is never one thing because there are many things you can do. But the key is to listen to your heart and follow your intuition, otherwise known as your internal GPS. You can do this by tuning in and going with your gut, in all areas of your life.

As children we all had dreams, but sadly many of us forget about them along the way. What would your 5 year old self tell you it wants to do? What makes you tick? What do you really want from life? What does success really mean to you? What is it that puts the fire in your heart? What moves you? What is it that you absolutely love? For me it’s helping people live happier, healthier, fitter lives.

If you could live your life over again, would you do anything differently? Once you decide what you want from life then chase it – dreams need to be acted upon in order to become a reality. Dream big and follow your gut!

*Believe in yourself:

Many of us never write our own story simply because we don’t believe in ourselves. What do you believe about the things you want? I ask this because life doesn’t give you what you want – life gives you what you believe. So think about what you want, and then think about what you believe, and then your job is to line them up. You will always get what you want if you believe it enough. So believe in, and back yourself 110%.

*Step out of your comfort zone:

It’s pretty easy to grow up and put your passions aside, to take a job that you really don’t mind and raise some kids that will most likely be inspired to do the same thing, going from point A to point B to point C. There’s nothing wrong or nothing bad about that, but there’s also nothing great, and nothing inspiring about that either. It’s much safer in life to do what is common and what is expected of you, rather than to go out on a whim and write it yourself. However, the reality is that everything you really want in life is usually outside your comfort zone. You need to put your fears aside in order to achieve happiness.

Life is pretty easy, but chasing your dreams isn’t always easy – it takes a lot of courage and you just need to take action. You need to let go of the fear of failure. If you do fail to achieve some dreams, then that failure itself is part of your success. I challenge you tonight before you go to bed, to find out what your dreams are. There is nothing more important in your life than figuring this out, because when you do, you’ll be going to sleep, not to dream, but with a dream, and waking up with one. Most importantly, persevere and never give up on following your dreams and on writing your story.

*Don’t leave it too late:

People often tell me “someday I’ll write a book,” “someday I’ll travel the world,” “someday I I’ll do this and that.” The only problem with this is that ‘someday’ isn’t on the calendar, and you will never be as young as you are today to fulfil your dreams and do the things that you really want to do in life.

There’s nothing like the loss of a loved one or a cancer diagnosis to empower you to start writing your own story. However, for many this often comes too late. Don’t wait until it’s too late – instead take the initiative and start writing your story how you want to write it from today. Because life is short, and you never know what’s around the corner in life. Life can end at any time due to circumstances which are completely beyond your control. You only have one unique life, you have to make it count, and you have to make it memorable. You have to write a story that’s worthwhile reading and one that you’re happy with.

*Never compromise who you are:

We would all like to be doing ‘exactly’ what we want in life, and for the most part we can. However, the reality is that we all have to compromise in life – it’s just a matter of how much and what. Most of us know this, and as a result are accommodating to the needs of others, however where some of us become undone is when we also begin to compromise on our deepest values, needs, desires and whatever else it is that makes us happy. So ensure to never compromise who you are and what makes you tick. Don’t worry you’re not being selfish – you’re just looking after your own well-being by putting yourself first. Never feel selfish for something that you really want to do.

So remember, it’s your story, your destiny, your life. If you own the story, then you can write the ending. You and the story you write are a contribution to the world so make it count!

Q. Who’s story are you writing – yours or someone else’s?

Stay Social

READ this post (10min):

There are many things we should be doing if we want to live happier, healthier, fitter lives. But the one which is the greatest predictor of health and longevity is staying social. Staying social means;

*Having good relationships in your life – these are relationships with people whom you can count on when the going gets tough. People who you can trust to take you to the doctor if you are sick, or who can just sit with you if you’re in despair. It’s a biological imperative to know we belong and at least three stable relationships is what the research says you need here.

*Having daily social interaction – This means how much you interact with people as you go through your day. This includes not just the people you’re really close to, but also everyone else you talk to. Do you talk to the person who made your coffee, with the postman, with your neighbor? All of these different interactions are an important part of staying social.

Why staying social is important:

*It’s good for your Body:

Research shows that loneliness shortens your life as much as being a regular smoker or alcoholic. If you’re a women with breast cancer, then you are four times more likely to survive if you are not a loner. And did you know that the level of satisfaction you have with your relationships is a better predictor of physical health than your cholesterol level? Your also much more likely to suffer from a heart attack because loneliness weakens the left ventricle of your heart – your really can die of a broken heart. Staying social is not only restorative for your heart, but also bolsters your entire immune system and will literally help to save your life. Women are often much better at staying social than men, and this is a contributing factor to why women in the developed world live an average of six to eight years longer.

*It’s good for your Mind:

Good relationships don’t just protect our body; they protect our brain. Staying social sends feel-good hormones surging through the bloodstream and brain, eliminating much of the emotional and physical pain you would normally experience if you weren’t as social. It leads to less mental deterioration as you age, including better memory functions and less chance of developing dementia. It’s also an important part of overcoming all addictions.

One of the biggest causes of mental health issues is stress – and today more people are feeling stressed out than ever before. One of the most simple ways to reduce stress is by staying social. It doesn’t matter who it is – your friends, work colleagues, your therapist or so on. Having someone to talk to helps to lighten the load and has been shown to significantly reduce stress levels and increase your overall well-being.

*It’s good for your Spirit:

It’s often said that the quality of your life is in direct proportion to the quality of your relationships, and I couldn’t agree with this more. Everything is better in life and more fun when you have people to share it with- laughter is the pathway to the soul. We all need each other, because if we don’t then we miss out on the greatest things life has to offer – the sharing and receiving of love, encouragement and support from family and friends. Sure, things like having a nice house, car or going on nice holidays can all boost your happiness in the short term, however it’s having great relationships and regular engagement that makes you happy over the long term. At the end of the day, all you really have and all that you can leave behind in this journey we call life, is the people you have met and touched along the way. Staying social is vital to the wellbeing of your spirit – the core essence of who you are.

How social are we?

Despite the enormous benefits of staying social, almost around 50 percent of people living in westernised nations suffer from loneliness. They often feel alone and have no one to talk to, and even more feel as if no one knows them well. It’s hard to believe this is the case given that we live in a world in which we are more connected than ever before.

Barriers to staying social:

The Internet and social media – Studies show that the average person is spending up to 11 hours a day on the internet with much of it being spent on ‘social’ media. However, there is a big difference between interacting on social media as opposed to in person. It’s really important to point this out because it often passes under our conscious radar, which is why we relate online activity with the real thing. Basically, face-to-face contact which includes making eye contact with somebody, shaking hands, giving somebody a high-five is enough to release oxytocin, which increases your level of trust and lowers your cortisol levels, therefore lowering stress. And dopamine is generated, which gives us a little high and it kills pain. It’s like a naturally produced morphine. In-fact, face-to-face engagement releases a whole cascade of neurotransmitters, and like a vaccine, they protect you now in the present and well into the future. Face-to-face interaction also increases your social intelligence and creates a biological force field against disease and decline.

Being too busy – We all live increasingly busy lives these days and it really can be difficult to catch-up with family/friends. Obviously different life stages also affect this, with some stages providing less time for social engagement than others.

Other – Mental health issues either diagnosed or un-diagnosed, fear of putting yourself out there, social awkwardness, poor self-esteem, grief, estrangement of family and friends due to conflict, divorce, substance abuse and so forth. All of these things can and often become barriers to staying social.

How can we be more social?

There are lots of ways we can be more social. Some of these include;

Be fully present – How often do you go anywhere these days only to be surrounded by people glued to their mobile phone screens. Instead, make an effort to be fully present with those around you and engage in conversation. Instead of avoiding eye contact in the lift, make it – you never know who you may meet or what interesting conversation you may strike up.

Moderate your use of technology – The potential for technology to increase intimacy in your life is great, but so is its capacity to diminish it. Think about it – you can skype and send pictures to your loved one from across the world and feel close to them. But at the same time you can lose yourself endlessly looking at this machine, because you may not wish to have a difficult conversation with someone over dinner. So it is important to recognize if your time spent on your computer is increasing or diminishing your social engagement, and in particular that it doesn’t take away from your face-to-face social time. Unfortunately no amount of emoji’s is a substitute for this.

Have regular catch-ups with family and friends – In many regions of the world, such as in Calabria Italy (which is where my family is from), as people age, and indeed across their lifespans, they’re always surrounded by extended family, by friends, by neighbour’s, the grocer and so forth. People are always there or dropping by, and they are never left to live solitary lives. However, here in Australia and other similar countries, we often come home from working long hours and shut ourselves off in our houses. One in three of us live alone, with family and friends often spread over different cities and sometimes with thousands of kilometre’s in-between. If you are fortunate to have family and friends close by, then make an effort to all catch-up more often – maybe the last Sunday of the month or whatever suits.

Get involved with your community – Do you know your neighbour’s? If you don’t then this is the first place you should start – in your street, in your suburb. Also get involved with your community – the local sport club, rotary, an emergency service, a walking group, dance class, school functions, fundraising/other events or anything else. Being part of your community is a great way to be more social.

Be Intentional About it – If you want to have great relationships in your life, then you need to be intentional about doing so. Otherwise, you just drift on by and time passes and you lose contact with those who mean the most to you. We are all busy these days so if your friends don’t instigate a catch-up then you need to take the initiative and do it yourself. If you don’t have many people in your social circle then be proactive and put yourself out there. Websites like meetup and hundreds of others have made it easier than ever before to meet new people in real life with the same interests as you.

Being social includes the non-humankind – There is a reason why it’s said that a dog is a man’s best friend. Whether it’s a dog or any other animal, connecting with them plays a vital role in our overall well-being. In-fact, anyone who has never really connected with an animal before hasn’t really lived.

Connect with yourself first – The ultimate source of connection is with yourself, because once you connect with yourself on a deep level, then you actually realise that you are connected with everyone and everything else that exists. That is to say that you become one with all things. By working on yourself enough you can achieve this, and when you do you will never really feel lonely ever again, and this is so comforting. Without this connection, it is possible to feel alone even if you are in a crowded place.

So if you are not being social enough, then ensure to invest the time and energy into relationships, because we are social creatures at heart. Remember also that no-one wants to be lonely – even if they say they do. Be it a child, aging parents, friends, or the homeless person down the road, if you know anyone who is lonely, then make an effort to visit them – they will appreciate it more than you know.

Q.Are you well connected and engaged in a meaningful way with at least three other people on a regular basis?

WATCH this post (12min):

LISTEN to this post (12min):

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 12:29 — 23.3MB)

May 19, 2018 0 comment