This is a habit that I have picked up from years of yoga practice; setting an intention. This intention can last for an hour, a day or a lifetime but today's goal is to set a daily intention. A simple short term goal that will hopefully lead to a long term change.
In yoga, the teacher will often guide the class to set an intention from the outset. Sometimes they give everyone the same intention and sometimes it is up to the individual to set their own. Mine are usually something short like "relax" or "happy" or "strong." These are easy words to constantly refer back to throughout the course of the class. If something pulls me away from my intention I take a break and go back to my word or phrase and then rejoin the class.
Outside of yoga, I use the same approach. For example; last Saturday I set an intention to eat more slowly all day. I have a bad habit of eating without putting down the fork. I often over eat as a result of cramming food down my gullet too fast. Not mindful. I ended up doing this all weekend, although my usual Sunday morning fish tacos (best in the world) were gone in about one minute. In the long run I will still find myself eating too fast on occasion. But setting a short term intention will serve as a memory of how it felt to eat slower and hopefully remind me to do so in the future.
This practice can be applied to any arena of your life, from eating to business to sports to parenting. Pick one thing that you want to change and make that your intention for the day.
Give it a try and let me know how it goes.
Jack
KBs
Monday, January 28, 2013
Monday, January 21, 2013
Being Lazy is a Good Thing?
Yeah, I said it. In the big scheme of things, having the option to be lazy and still survive is a good thing. Think back to the dawn of man. Imagine if a cave man didn't feel like leaving the cave to find food. Imagine if a feudal farmer didn't bother to tend to his crops. Throughout history, mankind has not had the option to sit back and take a lazy day without risking peril. Today, most of our lives don't take much physical effort. Our food doesn't need to be hunted. Our cave doesn't need to be defended from bears. We spend most of our days sitting, either at work, at home or in transit. Foods that used to be rare delicacies (sugar, salt, fat) that provided vital calories to our diet are now overly abundant. Our laid back lifestyles coupled with our proclivity for sugar, salt and fat has led to a wide spread tendency to avoid physical activity and pack on a few pounds.
What I'm trying to say is that we, as a species, have won. We live comfortable lives without much uncertainty. That is a good thing.We don't have to fight bears for our food, also a good thing. The only things that worry me are the symptoms of our modern life. Now we have to make an effort to seek out healthy foods instead of just seeking out foods. We have to make time to exercise instead of burning calories and staying in shape in our daily battle with those bears that try to steal our food.
The Freakonomics guys said that 300 years ago, it took the average person 12 hours of work to earn enough to buy a candle to light their home. Today, it takes the average person about 2 minutes to earn enough to light their entire homes. We have reached a point where it takes relatively little effort to meet our basic needs. This means we have no excuse for being unhealthy.
Every morning, when you wake up, think about all the things you will not have to do; you won't have to search for food, you won't have to fight off bears (hopefully), you won't have to struggle to survive. These are all good things. But don't take these opportunities to only sit back and eat bon bons. Take advantage and be the best you can be every day.
And watch out for bears.
Jack
PS - Yesterday's version of Gameday Games was a good one. We watched the early game, San Fran Vs. ATL. Here are the results:
Touchdowns/Turnovers - 10 total, 20 temper tantrums each, 200 total tantrums. A temper tantrum is done sitting on the ground with your feet lifted off the ground. One tantrum is completed when you touch the ground on either side. You can hold a kettle bell or use no weight. We used a 35lb and a
50 lb kettle bell.
Field Goals/Sacks - 3 total, 1 minute wall sit each, 3 minutes of total wall sit.
1st down - 27 total first downs. Each 1st down we did 4 high five push ups and 4 kettle bell front squats. A high five push up is done with two people facing each other in the push up position. At the top of each push up, the two people high five, ie; right hand to right hand, etc. 108 push ups and 108 squats total.
What I'm trying to say is that we, as a species, have won. We live comfortable lives without much uncertainty. That is a good thing.We don't have to fight bears for our food, also a good thing. The only things that worry me are the symptoms of our modern life. Now we have to make an effort to seek out healthy foods instead of just seeking out foods. We have to make time to exercise instead of burning calories and staying in shape in our daily battle with those bears that try to steal our food.
The Freakonomics guys said that 300 years ago, it took the average person 12 hours of work to earn enough to buy a candle to light their home. Today, it takes the average person about 2 minutes to earn enough to light their entire homes. We have reached a point where it takes relatively little effort to meet our basic needs. This means we have no excuse for being unhealthy.
Every morning, when you wake up, think about all the things you will not have to do; you won't have to search for food, you won't have to fight off bears (hopefully), you won't have to struggle to survive. These are all good things. But don't take these opportunities to only sit back and eat bon bons. Take advantage and be the best you can be every day.
And watch out for bears.
Jack
PS - Yesterday's version of Gameday Games was a good one. We watched the early game, San Fran Vs. ATL. Here are the results:
Touchdowns/Turnovers - 10 total, 20 temper tantrums each, 200 total tantrums. A temper tantrum is done sitting on the ground with your feet lifted off the ground. One tantrum is completed when you touch the ground on either side. You can hold a kettle bell or use no weight. We used a 35lb and a
50 lb kettle bell.
Field Goals/Sacks - 3 total, 1 minute wall sit each, 3 minutes of total wall sit.
1st down - 27 total first downs. Each 1st down we did 4 high five push ups and 4 kettle bell front squats. A high five push up is done with two people facing each other in the push up position. At the top of each push up, the two people high five, ie; right hand to right hand, etc. 108 push ups and 108 squats total.
Sunday, January 13, 2013
Gameday Games - January 13, 2013
Another Sunday, another edition of Gameday Games. Today, we watched the Patriots lay the smack down on the Texans. Here are the results:
Touchdowns/ field goals - We did one kettle bell overhead squat for each point scored, ie, field goal equals 3 overhead squats. 72 total
First Downs - These are by far the most common occurrence (duh) so we did two exercises per first down: 2 pull-ups and 5 push-ups. There were 35 first downs, 70 pull-ups and 185 push-ups total. We did wide, normal and narrow pullups and pushups.
Sacks - There was only one sack all day, so we did one minute of wall sit. Pretty easy, but that's the way this game goes.
Turnovers - Same thing happened here; only one turnover, so only one minute of plank. Lame.
Overall, this version of Gameday Games was challenging, but more well rounded than last week. What games are you playing?
Jack
PS - From last Wednesday to today I ate poorly, never worked out, and spent most of my time sitting (either in a car or at a desk building PowerPoint presentations). I can't put into words how bad I felt by Saturday. Lesson learned: even though I made a few days worth of bad choices, I still got back on track. It doesn't matter if it's a few days or a few years, it's never too late to change your habits.
Touchdowns/ field goals - We did one kettle bell overhead squat for each point scored, ie, field goal equals 3 overhead squats. 72 total
First Downs - These are by far the most common occurrence (duh) so we did two exercises per first down: 2 pull-ups and 5 push-ups. There were 35 first downs, 70 pull-ups and 185 push-ups total. We did wide, normal and narrow pullups and pushups.
Sacks - There was only one sack all day, so we did one minute of wall sit. Pretty easy, but that's the way this game goes.
Turnovers - Same thing happened here; only one turnover, so only one minute of plank. Lame.
Overall, this version of Gameday Games was challenging, but more well rounded than last week. What games are you playing?
Jack
PS - From last Wednesday to today I ate poorly, never worked out, and spent most of my time sitting (either in a car or at a desk building PowerPoint presentations). I can't put into words how bad I felt by Saturday. Lesson learned: even though I made a few days worth of bad choices, I still got back on track. It doesn't matter if it's a few days or a few years, it's never too late to change your habits.
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Game day Games - January 7, 2013
Today's edition of game day games was played while watching the Redskins and Seahawks playoff game. It went a little like this:
Touchdowns x4, 6 pullups each, 24 total (should have upped the number to around 20)
First downs x37, 10 weighted lunges with a 50lb Kettle bell, 370 total (ouch)
Field goals x3, 5 overhead squats with 2 kettle bells, 15 total (went with the 35lb and 50lb KB)
Turnovers x3, 1 minute plank, 3 minutes total.
Sacks x7, 1 minute wall sit, 7 minutes total.
This ended up being a lunge heavy game. The wall sits burned as a result. Made sure to stretch legs, hips and back afterward.
Jack
PS - Has anyone else tried playing game day games recently? If so, how did it go?
Touchdowns x4, 6 pullups each, 24 total (should have upped the number to around 20)
First downs x37, 10 weighted lunges with a 50lb Kettle bell, 370 total (ouch)
Field goals x3, 5 overhead squats with 2 kettle bells, 15 total (went with the 35lb and 50lb KB)
Turnovers x3, 1 minute plank, 3 minutes total.
Sacks x7, 1 minute wall sit, 7 minutes total.
This ended up being a lunge heavy game. The wall sits burned as a result. Made sure to stretch legs, hips and back afterward.
Jack
PS - Has anyone else tried playing game day games recently? If so, how did it go?
Thursday, January 3, 2013
New Year
The holiday season is behind us, and in its wake, we are most likely out of sync with any good habits or routines. Travel, family events, irregular schedules and a seemingly endless supply of cakes, pies and other delectable goodies have given many of us (me included) plenty of excuses for not making good choices. Don't get me wrong, I love this time of year. I see lots of family and friends. We eat and drink and generally have a good time. I don't even think that this unmindful splurge once a year is a bad thing, so long as you do let the splurging become a habit that persists into the new year. Here are a few ideas for getting back on track in the new year.
1) Spend some time with your goals. Set aside a block of time (at least an hour) and write down what you want to accomplish in the coming weeks, months and years. What are you already doing to see these goals happen? What can you start doing? Are you doing anything to hinder your progress? Be open and honest with yourself. Tell others close to you about your goals. Write them down and put them somewhere where you will see them daily.
2) Surround yourself with good things. If you are eating too much cake, don't have cake in your house. If you want to do kettle bells daily, have a kettle bell in your office or living room or both. Proximity to whatever you are trying to do lowers the barrier to getting it done. On the flip side, I have never once gotten in my car and driven to the store because I was craving cake. But if it's sitting in front of me I'll eat it all day.
3) Get out of your comfort zone. There is no better time to try new things than the start of a new year. New foods, new activities, new habits.
Getting better starts with you making a choice and taking action. Make 2013 a year of growth, betterment and success. Start today.
Jack.
PS - I am about as guilty as it gets when it come to falling off the "better every day wagon." My lack of holiday self control can be summed up in one meal. I woke up, went to the gym for a great workout, came home and ate a healthy meal of lean meat and veggies. Then I saw the coconut cake sitting in the fridge. And I ate not one but two large slices and proceeded to take a nap. Curse you, coconut cake!
1) Spend some time with your goals. Set aside a block of time (at least an hour) and write down what you want to accomplish in the coming weeks, months and years. What are you already doing to see these goals happen? What can you start doing? Are you doing anything to hinder your progress? Be open and honest with yourself. Tell others close to you about your goals. Write them down and put them somewhere where you will see them daily.
2) Surround yourself with good things. If you are eating too much cake, don't have cake in your house. If you want to do kettle bells daily, have a kettle bell in your office or living room or both. Proximity to whatever you are trying to do lowers the barrier to getting it done. On the flip side, I have never once gotten in my car and driven to the store because I was craving cake. But if it's sitting in front of me I'll eat it all day.
3) Get out of your comfort zone. There is no better time to try new things than the start of a new year. New foods, new activities, new habits.
Getting better starts with you making a choice and taking action. Make 2013 a year of growth, betterment and success. Start today.
Jack.
PS - I am about as guilty as it gets when it come to falling off the "better every day wagon." My lack of holiday self control can be summed up in one meal. I woke up, went to the gym for a great workout, came home and ate a healthy meal of lean meat and veggies. Then I saw the coconut cake sitting in the fridge. And I ate not one but two large slices and proceeded to take a nap. Curse you, coconut cake!
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