No Barbie Dolls; this isn’t how we look or move! A better way…Yin Yoga for Athletes, tonight, 6-8pm, Yogani. http://ow.ly/i/5L3gW
Yeah, we’re this good. #magichands #manyhandsmakelightwork http://ow.ly/i/5PiZR http://ow.ly/xJjT0
It’s that time! Hit a little balance! Yin Yoga for Athletes, Wed 6/11, 6:00-8:00pm, at Yogani Studios http://ow.ly/i/5L3aY
Easing into evening yoga practice. Work is done, rest and recovery at hand, transitioning into busy week ahead. #Justmystyle http://ow.ly/xuIsx
“Soon” is here!! LIFT at Diesel Fitness on Monday! Call for massage, flexibility, and corrective exercise sessions! http://ow.ly/i/5KDUk
Just one month ago I told the story about my brief conversation with a young veteran…how any discipline is better than no discipline…that change only comes with discipline, action, and time.
Today we meet for our fourth week of Daniel Plan, and the focus is…focus. I can’t help but go back to the equation with which I began the year. The outcome we desire is “change”. Yes, many in the Plan have specifics; weight loss, lowered blood pressure, stronger core. The common thread is that we all desire change. And we know that change from long-standing habits does not come quickly or easily.
So keep your eye on the prize…which is change. And if in doubt, pick one of the variables to work on today. Or now. Right now. Have you scheduled a session of joyful movement? Have you left yourself enough time to shop? Create a balanced meal? Have you chosen a discipline to work today? Any, all of these will bring you closer to your goal of change. All of these will bring you closer to peace, closer to loving yourself and your capabilities. (Wait, maybe that’s the prize?)
As I climbed stairs at the BofA building last evening I began by merely marking the workout, counting the flights, monitoring my heart rate. My friend quickly “appeared” in the stairwell. My mind was quickly reminded, renewed; I climb in his memory. With his companionship my workout lasted 15 minutes more than I had planned.
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God–this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing, and perfect will. (Romans 12:1-2)
And she’s climbing the stairway…to heaven.
Where are you TODAY? What’s the best you can DO and BE today?
It’s not easy to stay on the path of fitness. Heck, it’s not easy to stay on the path of HEALTH! For average Americans, the quest is not to get fit and to live a live of vitality, it is to GET BACK to a level of HEALTH. As Daniel Plan followers, we are attempting to put the status of our bodies in a better place. We do this by proclaiming our truths…our “who” we are, our “what” our greater plan is, our “where” we are now, our “why” it is good and necessary, our “how” this should be accomplished…
…our “if” we really buy into the whole thing…
…today.
My whole premise of this blog…life is a tightrope walk. Keep your eyes on the prize. Don’t look back, don’t look down. Shift happens. Some days you’ll be doing your best to maintain your balance, and others you will find the strength to carry on. Maybe even with a little grace. If you fall off the rope, decided whether you want to get back up of lie there. Try again when you’re ready.
Use your tools. Put in the training time. Get help/coaching when you are in need. Don’t expect miracles (take them when presented with them).
As for exercise:
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits…(2)Such teachings come through hypocritical liars whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. (3)They…order them to abstain from certain foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving…(4)For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving…(7)Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. (8)For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. (1 Timothy 4:1-8)
The thing I like about The Daniel Plan is that it gets back to basics. It allows us to get to the heart and soul of the matter.
We are built to move, built to perform work. Why would we be so sturdily designed if not to move? Our skeletal system gives us a sturdy framework and gets brittle without proper stress. Our muscles generate heat, allow us to move, make it possible for us to care for and provide for our offspring. The forces of our daily movement patterns drive along our connective tissue. Neurologically we are hardwired to fight our enemies and run from danger.
As Christians, we are given a set of directions from which we can purpose ourselves. Our lives. Our WHOLE lives, body, mind, and spirit. Whilst on our spiritual paths we encounter roadsigns to help maneuver the detours, roadblocks, and rotaries. Those on the life-long journey rarely (ever?) say “I want the fast track…get me to the endpoint more quickly”. We are to spend eternal life in God’s heavenly kingdom; we are to spend our earthly life here.
Why is it when we get to diet we want the quick solution, giving the charlatans and hypocrites our hard earned money? And why do we buy into the thought that a life journey can be performed without training, with a weak and overburdened physical body, and while looking for every shortcut imaginable? Undernourished and overburdened does not make for a smart expedition.
Maybe it’s time we each had (yet another) serious chat with Our Maker. Ask specific questions. Wait for answers that are Godly in nature. Try using your exercise, fitness, or training sessions as a time for listening. It is difficult to train at an indoor gym and expect it to be quiet. We long for constant companionship, and often create buddy systems that help us keep our health plan on track. We regularly ask for someone to entertain us with conversation, a perfect playlist of songs for motivation, or some other distraction…to keep us on the path. Might that just be a detour? Maybe you’ve missed the road sign to peace. Maybe that bus stop of entertainment kept you from missing the bus.
Keep training for the long haul. Nourish the body. And the soul. And in all things, be thankful.
“For everything that God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.”
New Year’s Day marks the right to begin anew for so many. Although we may know that our hope is our future, the past is over and done with, and there is no use crying over spilled milk, we often “forget” that each moment is indeed a new start.
In the plethora of Facebook posts of January 1, my friend posted “I am a soul on fire”; it struck a chord. As I said in a January post, it would become my focus, my mantra, my mission for the year. From Ferdinand Foch, “The most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on fire.” Foch, a French soldier, historian, and military theorist, lived 1951-1929. Edith Södergran, a Swedish-Finnish poet, lived 1892-1923. I don’t know if their paths ever crossed, if they read the same books, if their politics were completely dissimilar. Would they be willing to have tea and conversation on a snowy afternoon? Would they spit at each other if they encountered each other on the street? Perhaps they were complete non-entities to each other.
Yet they have nearly identical sentiment. “The inner fire is the most important thing mankind possesses.” It’s a general theme for those who show passion for anything…life, hobbies, sport, love, philanthropy, the divine, a cause.
Where is your fire? Is it hidden in a recess of your body? Is it stuck in a tight hip joint? Held in the tension of your shoulder? Does it reside in harmony with your very soul…and is it allowed to come out and play?
Can I be a soul on fire?
Roughly two-thirds of the American population is overweight; approximately 30% of our population is clinically obese.
“Let food be thy medicine and they medicine be food.” (Hippocrates)
Happy Meal!
It ain’t that complicated…we’re given one body with which to play out or mission on this earth. Run down the vehicle and we won’t be so effective. Daniel Plan team member, Dr. Mark Hyman says “You cannot exercise your way out of a bad diet.” I have (for years at a time, I might add) struggled with the balance of food as fuel vs. food as comfort and enjoyment. I’ve had phases of deprivation and punishment, but have settled happily on using food as nourishment with lovely moments of sheer bliss in a well prepared meal. No guilt, no starving, no shame.
That said, this study finds me sitting on my ample derriere with a couple pounds to lose. I created a list of my top ten food guidelines to bring me back to balance:
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