CHOOSE A WORD SKIP THE RESOLUTION

Choose your word for 2020

I have chosen the word tolerance as my word for 2020. I have in mind though, several of its meanings, the more common broad-minded, as well as patience, endurance, and forbearance. My phrase is I am strong.

Words are beautiful. And I absolutely love the ones that roll off your tongue, or ones that leave an image in your mind’s eye. While those kinds of words don’t seem fashioned to make words of the year material, every dictionary or thesaurus is full of many possible choices.

So, keeping that in mind I would urge everyone to come up with a word to describe how you want to be inspired during the year, or a word that will make you feel a particular way, or a word that shouts out your intention for the year. 

It’s not too late for you to choose a word, a phrase, or both for this year. Words have the power to resonate beyond their ability to describe things, or when used for communication with one another. When used for your year, it’s meaning will be special to you and as unique as you and your life are.

For example:

I chose to use simplify as my word last year because an ongoing situation in my personal life determined that it would be the best fit for me. It was the right word and it served me well as I simplified how I ran my home and business so I could spend my time on something more important to me.

“I am a lover of truth, a worshipper of freedom, a celebrant at the altar of language and purity and tolerance.”

— Stephen Fry

Of course, if the above doesn’t suit you there are still those people who go the resolution route, though I don’t advise it.

Skip that resolution

Let’s begin with a raised hand if your New Year resolution has gone by the wayside, never to be seen again. Kudos to those of you who are still on track with your goal.

For those of you who have failed to stick with it, you’re certainly not alone. Most of you will have either bitten off more than you can chew, chosen a goal not your own because it’s popular, or made zero effort to plan and follow it through.

Every year that you don’t complete your resolution makes it that much more likely you won’t complete the next one either. Please do yourself a favor and don’t set yourself up for failure at the beginning of each new year.

I hope you found this post instructive. Please share it with your family and friends.

10 Tips To Live More Positively

Are you a positive thinker and action taker? Maybe you want to be, but instead, you often fall prey to the negatives you see and hear around you. It’s your life. It’s time to throw off any negativity you feel and replace it with a positive outlook that makes your life feel less reactive and more under your control.  

How you view life affects your physical and mental health as well as your emotions. It also raises or lowers your blood pressure, cholesterol, and stress levels. Feeling negative about things makes your life harder. You may get sick easily and find it difficult to face the adversities and hardships in your life.

Thinking negatively makes it more difficult for you to enjoy the little things in life. Whether it’s by focusing only on the negative, or by blaming everything that goes wrong on yourself, making things seem even worse than they are, or seeing things in only black and white. If you do one or some of the above, then you’re setting yourself up to fail even before you begin.

But anyone can instill positivity into their lives if they so choose. The power of positive thinking might seem the typical cliché, but it truly does work wonders for your self-esteem, overall mood and thereby reduces the risk of chronic diseases.

“Start each day with a positive thought and a grateful heart.”

— Roy T. Bennett

Here are 10 ways to assist you to cultivate a more positive life.

1. Learning experiences not failures

Acknowledging that no one is perfect puts things into perspective. You’re going to make mistakes, we all do, but instead of focusing on your failure, break down what went wrong so you can learn from it, and use it to your advantage.

2. Positive friendships

Surrounding yourself with people who are grounded, upbeat, and positive themselves, helps you to maintain a positive outlook. Positivity, as is negativity, is contagious. So, choose your friends wisely.

3. Know what you are grateful for

Every night before going to bed, write down 3 things you’re grateful for. It may be as small as a pleasant walk or something bigger such as getting your project done on time at work. It’s a fact, that the more you declare your gratitude, the more you have, to be grateful for. Making gratitude a habit, is one of the most beneficial additions to your daily routine.

4. Laughter is still the best medicine

Watching stand-up comedy routines or funny movies opens you up to laughter which signals the brain to release ‘feel-good’ hormones. This reduces stress levels and allows you to see the silver lining, even in the most difficult of situations.

5. Appraise what you need to change

This could be hard to do at first and may require several attempts, but it gets results and you’ll feel empowered. Maybe your job is ill-fitting and fills your life with negativity. You may want to do something else, but fear is holding you back. Maybe it’s your car, your apartment, the color of your walls - many things affect the level of negativity in your life, but once you put your finger on it, you can consciously change it for the better.

6. Start your morning with positive affirmations

Begin your day on a high note by affirming that this is a great day and you are confident that good things will happen throughout your day. Pessimists tend to start their day worrying and thinking about all that can go wrong. This makes them see everything in a negative light and causes a series of unfortunate events like a domino effect.

7. Cease the stream of negative thinking

It might need lots of practice at first but be patient and make the effort. Observe your thought patterns. You can do this by taking down notes each time you focus on the negative. Every time you feel negative self-talk creeping in by being overly critical or judgmental, or focusing only on your failures, write down a positive affirmation to counter each negative thought.

8. Discover a new hobby

Hobbies are something we don’t hear of so much these days since we’re all so busy. But taking the time to engage in something you’re good at and enjoy, fills you with a sense of joy and fulfillment.

9. Lead a beneficial lifestyle

Eat right, exercise regularly, and sleep more to see a definite boost in your mood. Plus, you’ll feel more confident and this helps you see things in a brighter, more positive light.

10. Practice until it’s natural

Reinforcing positive living requires practice. Like anything the more you do it, the better you’ll become at it. Then, one day when you’re facing a crisis, you’ll find that the first thing that comes to your mind is not what can go wrong, but how can I use my strengths to overcome this challenge.

No one ever said life was easy and sometimes we become overwhelmed with what life throws our way. But the choice belongs to us as individuals whether we are to meet life with a smile in a positive way or a complaining negative manner.

I hope you found this post beneficial and will share it with your family and friends.

Forgive Old Injuries And Let them Go

Gram’s wisdom 12: Offer forgiveness

My Gram saw forgiveness as an extension of kindness. Just as you would offer your hand in friendship to someone who needs it, you should offer your forgiveness to people who ask. We are all human and we are all prone to making mistakes she said.

From my Gram, I learned we frequently see ourselves as more aggrieved than necessary and nurse the wounds needlessly. Instead, she told me we are the beneficiaries when we forgive others, and let the hurts go.

The end of the year is a particularly good time to forgive old injuries. Don’t begin a New Year with thoughts of past offenses. You deserve to forgive yourself and others and begin with a clean slate.   

Forgiveness in everyday life

The easiest path to forgiving big things is by routinely forgiving small things. Practicing the art of forgiveness in everyday life makes it easier to draw on those experiences when you need to forgive bigger offenses.

People who forgive easily have some things in common:

●       They see life as fallible and know everyone takes missteps

●       They see people as generally good rather than bad

●       They understand that their perceptions play into whether they feel offended

●       They don’t sweat the small stuff

●       They don’t expect perfection

●       They are not overly sensitive people

People who find it easy to forgive have a corner on the happiness market because they use their underlying morals and values to move through the day and offer forgiveness inwardly and outwardly and let it go.

Here are some ways to forgive and adopt an emotionally mature mindset each day:  

For poor service- when you are treated poorly by waitstaff or a clerk at a store, consider what might be driving their negativity. Having compassion can make it easier to forgive poor behavior. Instead of assuming the clerk is a disconnected jerk, imagine he/she is working overtime and has been berated by many customers.

For rude gestures- If someone cuts you off in traffic, takes your parking space, or gives you a smug look - forgive them. Try to not to take things personally. The sooner you can let it go, the sooner you can replace anger with a better-suited emotion for your day. Being able to forgive rudeness frees you up for a better mood.

For mistakes- Mistakes happen it’s a fact of life. You make them too. Berating someone for a mistake rubs their nose in it and makes them defensive. To the best of your ability, forgive mistakes quickly and appreciate any gestures to make amends. Allowing grace and a chance to do the right thing should help wipe away the sting of a mistake.

Learning to let go of righteous anger or sadness that comes from being offended does yourself a world of good.

“Forgive others not because they deserve forgiveness, but because you deserve peace.”

— Jonathan Huie

Ask for forgiveness when the mistake is yours

It’s easy to stand behind your own anger and offense when someone has hurt you. It isn’t nearly as easy to be the one who needs forgiveness. When you’ve made a mistake, many things come into play - anger, shame, defensiveness. These things make it hard to ask for or receive forgiveness.

One of the keys to receiving forgiveness is to practice it. Forgiving people are better able to understand that mistakes and missteps happen, and sometimes we step in it metaphorically. By offering forgiveness regularly, they see that it is possible to do something regrettable and be absolved.

You can ask for and receive forgiveness. Consider these tips as you go:

Tip #1. Make a Sincere Apology- Forgiveness comes best following an apology. The sooner the better and the more specific the apology the better. If you know what you did, be sincere and specific about why that was wrong and how you plan to ensure it never happens again.

Tip #2. Hear Your Impact- Forgiveness usually comes after an apology and clearing of the air that includes the offended person feeling heard and validated for their pain. Be willing to hear the impact you made and don’t let pride or defensiveness diminish the feelings of the other person.

Tip #3. Be Willing to Not be Forgiven- Asking for forgiveness is a question, not a command. That means hearing “no” can be one of the options. It is entirely possible that the person you hurt is unwilling or unable to move on now or yet. Be patient.

Asking for forgiveness is a mature and humbling experience. If the person you offended is unable or unwilling to forgive you, you have done the most important thing you can for restoration by atoning and asking for grace. You can sleep well knowing you’ve done what you can. Modify any behavior that got you into that mess and become a bigger and better person. Offer forgiveness to those in need and realize it is all a cycle and what you put out into the world will eventually come back.

I hope you enjoyed this post and will share it with your family and friends.

For more forgiveness look here.

How Forgiveness Makes Us Happier And Healthier

Reflect, Change, And Grow

Grow beyond your comfort zone

With a New Year just around the corner, many of you are forming plans for what you hope to achieve, and who you hope to become in the future. It’s important that before you finalize those plans, you have spent some time in reflection on this year’s accomplishments.

You will want to ask yourself these questions first. How have you have grown this year as a person and what did you contribute to the world? And lastly, did you bring your previous year’s plans to fruition or are you still the same person who had big dreams last December?

If you succeeded in your aims this year, then I am positive you know the amount of effort it will take to repeat it. If not, it’s time for you to move from your comfort zone because it’s not serving you. Make some scary changes, or just one, if more seems too overwhelming.

Here are some reasons to change:

1.     Growth takes change

Change is necessary for growth, in fact, growth is impossible without change! You can choose to stay safely in your familiar comfort zone, but if you do, you’ll be missing out on all life has to offer.

The challenge of a new job or moving to a different city might be uncomfortable, especially at first. But it’s guaranteed that change is likely to lead you down all sorts of unexpected paths, with rewards you could never have imagined, just waiting for you. Wouldn’t you rather be a butterfly than remain a caterpillar?

“Without reflection, we go blindly on our way, creating more unintended consequences, and failing to achieve anything useful.”

— Margaret J. Wheatley

2.     Flexibility aids resilience

Change forces you to become more flexible. Faced with large unexpected changes, you learn to adapt and move with the flow. And once you’ve learned to roll with whatever the circumstances are, you begin to see the positives and rise to the challenges. Even something as negative as losing your job can open you up to new prospects and exciting opportunities, such as changing industries, furthering your education, or starting your own business.

3.     Focusing on your values creates change

There’s nothing quite like change either good or bad to make you focus on what’s genuinely important in your life. Negative changes like illness, divorce, or business reverses can help you recognize the importance of relationships, with family, and friends. Having to make tough decisions can sharpen your focus on what your ethical framework is, what you will and won’t stand for in your life.

4.     Small steps can accomplish big things

Not all changes are big or life-changing. Small incremental steps, made over time to your habits and routines, can add up to huge changes in the future. You might start getting off the bus one stop early and after a few months find yourself walking to the office every day.

Making small changes often has a snowball effect and before you know it you have accomplished that big, seemingly impossible task.

5.     Confident as you meet life’s challenges

You might be surprised to discover how strong you are. Your confidence will increase as you deal with life’s challenges and you’ll quickly learn what you can handle and what you can’t.

And as a bonus, change can make you a more compassionate and kinder person and give you more insight into other people’s circumstances and choices.

Learn to see change as an opportunity, not a threat, and you will live a much more fulfilled and exciting life.

I hope you find this post valuable and share it with your family and friends.

For further reading check out this post from a year ago.

Using Self-Reflection To Your Advantage

Do You Get The Best Sleep?

The importance of sleep in your life

Sleep is a natural bodily function just as breathing, eating, and drinking are. What you may not realize is just how beneficial sleep is for you and why. The thought was once held that you would spend a third of your life sleeping, yet, the evidence of our own lives shows that to be no longer true.

Everyone recognizes the importance of sleep. You know you feel tired and have no energy when you miss sleep, plus your moods and general well-being change.

Much research has gone into understanding the benefits of sleep. Sleep has been shown to help improve immune function, metabolism, memory, as well as your ability to learn. Sleep is required so that your body can run and perform at optimal levels. Sleep aids your body to repair itself.

Sleep has been shown to help your learning and memory function. There are two main benefits connected with this and sleep. The first one is quite simple and that is a person who is deprived of sleep just cannot focus properly, so they will not learn effectively. The second benefit is that after learning something new your memory consolidates this information while sleeping. So, studying just before going to bed is a good thing.

Getting adequate sleep has been linked with living longer. Research shows that people who’ve slept less than 5 hours per night were more likely to die early. This does not mean that you want to oversleep either, too much sleep is also connected with a shorter life span.

Your health can also be affected by the quality of your sleep. People who sleep less than 6 hours a day often suffer from health issues such as arthritis, diabetes, stroke, and heart disease.

This has been linked to them having more inflammatory protein levels in their blood. When these issues are treated, and more sleep is accomplished the protein levels have been shown to decline.

Your creativity levels, athleticism, and school grades can all improve by sleeping more. It was discovered that many children with ADHD were in fact, sleep-deprived. It is recommended that young children get more than 8 hours of sleep per night.

If you are trying to lose weight, sleep has additional benefits. Dieters who sleep more find that they can lose weight quicker. This is because your metabolism and sleep are controlled by the same areas of your brain. If losing weight is your goal, then try and get a good night's rest every night.

“A well-spent day brings happy sleep.”

— Leonardo da Vinci

How much sleep do you need?

The amount of sleep that a person requires varies as they age. Newborn babies, for example, require anywhere from 12 to 18 hours of sleep per day. While an adult can manage with only 7 hours. There are several factors that affect the number of hours you need on a regular basis.

The biggest thing to understand is that there is no magic number when it comes to sleep. Sleep patterns are as individual as your personality. The quality of your sleep is often more important than the actual number of hours.

There are two basic principles that pertain to sleep:

1.   Basal Sleep

2.   Sleep Debt

Basal sleep is the amount of sleep required by your body to keep your body functioning at an optimal point. Sleep Debt is the number of hours you lose due to either poor sleeping habits, illness, or other problems that keep you awake.

Studies show that most adults need between 7 to 8 hours of basal sleep per night. Sleep Debt is connected to those times when you are feeling sleepy and tired, even if you just slept for 7 hours.

What this research suggests is that your body needs to catch up to your sleep debt numbers. Depending on how sleep deprived you are, this may take several nights of your sleeping for 7 hours or more to catch up.

Your mood and energy levels are a good indication of sleep deprivation. People who do not sleep enough are at more risk of being involved in a car or work-related accidents. Plus, many people find that they gain weight when they do not sleep enough for extended periods of time.

As you can see, sleep truly does have a major impact on your life. The best way to determine just how much sleep you require is to pay attention to your body. Note things such as what kind of mood you are in, if you feel more hungry than usual, and how much energy you have.

Pay attention to how many nights per week that you get enough sleep. If this number is low, then you may want to appraise your sleep habits and make some changes.

Quite often something as simple as a warm bath or shower before going to bed can make a huge difference. As can passing on the coffee or alcohol too close to bedtime.

Conclusion

The benefits of sleep cannot be overstated. Nor can the deleterious effects from lack of sleep be underrated. Sleep works hand in hand with exercise and diet, increasing the effectiveness of both.

I hope you liked this post and that you will share it with your family and friends.

Get more information here.

Sleep Statistics for 2019

Too Much Good Food Is Bad For You

Gram’s Wisdom 11: Eat a little of everything in moderation

My Gram never counted a calorie in her life. She didn’t look at labels for the salt, sugar or fat content in the food she ate. It never became necessary. Healthy foods, eaten moderately is what she preached to anyone who would listen.

She was a firm believer in eating a balanced diet from all the food groups. Don’t deprive yourself of food you enjoy. Instead, eat something of everything in moderation so you don’t crave and binge on the wrong foods.

This method for eating carried her through a life of health and wellness for more than a hundred years. I have sensibly followed my Gram’s example of eating everything moderately all my life with good results, but in a way that suits me. 

Focused on the wrong thing

Many people go crazy counting calories, checking serving sizes, and ingredients. This behavior has driven everyone a bit insane. And instead of helping with weight loss, it has pushed many people closer and closer to the brink of an epidemic which is known in the medical world as obesity.

Young and old, obesity has infiltrated your life in one way or another; affecting you personally or your loved ones. And it isn’t just about the numbers seen on the scale. Obesity increases your risk of heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, arthritis, and many other types of chronic illnesses.

Serving size vs. Portion

A serving is what can be found on a food product’s food label, or Nutrition Facts, on the side of the package. It’s a suggestion of how much you should eat from that particular food product. Each product has different serving sizes and uses various measurements, such as cups, grams, ounces, slices, or pieces. There’s also a serving per container on the label which gives you an idea of how many servings are in the entire package.

A portion is the amount of food you eat per meal. It could be directly from the box, or how much food is on your plate at home or at a restaurant. More often, the portion of food you decide to consume won’t match the serving size provided for you on the food label.

Do you eat too much?

You all know what’s good for you and what isn’t; or what you should eat 80% of the time and what you can indulge in 20% of the time without feelings of guilt. The problem now, however, has become not what to eat, but how much should I eat? Even healthy foods should be eaten in moderation.

How much food you can consume at each meal is different from one person to the next based on age, gender, weight, metabolism and how active that person is. If you work out regularly, you’ll need more calories than someone who leads a sedentary lifestyle. Or if you’re in your twenties, your metabolism will be working faster than someone in their fifties, which means you can eat larger portions without worrying as much.

Here are a few tips to help you quickly figure out your portion sizes both at home and on the go:

• Use smaller dishes. It may sound simple, but you’ll be amazed at how easily your brain accepts that you’re eating less. And you won’t even feel you’re doing it.

• Use your plate as a measuring tool. For example, if you’re eating salad, that should take up ½ your plate. Protein and complex carbs should take about a quarter of your plate. And if you’re eating foods high in fats, that should only be ½ a tablespoon.

• Use your hands. It’s not an exact science, but the size of your hands usually corresponds to the size of your body. So, protein should be roughly the size of 1 palm for women and 2 palms for men; vegetables and foods rich in carbs should be about a fistful for women and 2 fistfuls for men; high-fat foods should be about the size of a thumb for women and 2 thumbs for men.

• Avoid eating straight from the container. Measure out the serving size in a bowl instead.

• Always start each meal with a glass of water.

• Avoid eating while standing up or while you’re being distracted by something, as a phone call or the TV

• Stop eating when you notice you feel full

• Always focus on how your food looks, smells, tastes as you purposefully chew each bite. Practicing mindfulness will help you reevaluate your relationship with food. It will also feel full quicker, and most importantly, satiated and content.

The bottom line is that it’s important to have a healthy relationship with food. Just like in any relationship, neither side should have the upper hand. There should be a sense of balance and respect without that negative hold that food can sometimes have on you.  

“Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first.”

— Ernestine Ulmer

Intermittent fasting

I adhere to an eating window that falls between 12:00 PM and 7:00 PM most of the time.

Long before I ever knew there was a term for it, I had been intermittent fasting. I began this process as a rebellious teen who just hated eating breakfast food, at the acceptable breakfast hour. By the time I was 16 both Gram and my Mother had given up fighting the breakfast battle, and I was on my way to skipping lunch as well, most days.

Little did either of them know, but that was the beginning of a pattern of eating that I thought of as a lifestyle choice. Now that it has its own name, it’s much easier for me to describe to people and I receive fewer eye rolls and more questions about how to do it long term.

There are benefits to intermittent fasting, like weight loss and cellular repair, that make it popular. What I have always found beneficial was not having to plan, shop, cook, or clean-up after an extra meal or two every day.  

Just like any other eating regimen, intermittent fasting isn’t for everyone. But it is simple, and it usually only takes a week or two to make the transition from how you eat now. After a few short weeks, you should begin to see physical changes, greater focus, and more time in your schedule. Depending on your overall health you may want to clear this with your doctor first.

I hope you find this post beneficial and will share it with your family and friends.  

For additional information, you may want to check out this post by Mayo Oshin.

11 Lessons Learned from 4 Years of Intermittent Fasting: The Good and Bad.

How Exercise Increases Energy And Vitality

One of the most prized things among seniors and, likewise, one of the hardest things to achieve is a renewed sense and feeling of youth. Energy, vitality, and physical agility are difficult to hold on to as we age, but not impossible with exercise.

When you introduce healthy and positive habits into your regular routine, you can begin feeling younger and have greater energy in no time. By maintaining both a physically and socially active lifestyle you can greatly improve your overall quality of life during your golden years, making them feel truly golden.

Boost your confidence and mood

While exercise is just a small chunk of recovery, it provides a host of health benefits that aren't just physical. In fact, engaging in exercise on a consistent basis has been found to improve mood, increase happiness, and boost productivity! Who knew that hitting the gym a few times a week could be as effective as a therapy session?

In addition, exercise has been known to make individuals feel a sense of calm and relief. This control helps them deal with their everyday challenges without getting overwhelmed. If you're looking for ways to improve your self-development and seek happiness, check out why and how exercise is a great tool to implement into your recovery routine.

1. Get a proven mood boost with exercise 

When you exercise, your brain releases dozens of hormones that contribute to your happiness. Of those hormones, endorphins and serotonin are the primary ones. 

The hormones regulate your mood and help you to balance your emotions. In fact, healthy doses of serotonin increase your happiness! Because of this biological boost, many doctors suggest engaging in some form of physical activity to increase the production of these hormones.

2. Feel more confident

Sure, exercising on a regular basis and eating well contribute to a nice physical appearance. That's partly one of the main reasons why people exercise so often. However, did you know that regular exercise can make you feel confident, productive, and accomplished.  

Exercise isn't an easy task. If it was, more people would enjoy doing it. But, by pushing yourself to overcome your physical limitations and hit the gym, you give yourself an immediate boost of confidence. 

Tackling those heavy weights or finally being able to run a mile on the treadmill are awesome accomplishments you can be proud of. And as you continue going, your strength and stamina will increase. This will make better equipped to tackle other challenges in and out of the gym.

3. You feel better about yourself

When you aren't happy with your outward appearance, it's hard to feel confident on a regular basis. Exercise not only improves your strength; it also improves how you look physically. When you begin to see progress, you begin to feel a sense of success and confidence.

Having a healthy sense of self-confidence helps you to develop lasting relationships with others and yourself. You're automatically happier which obviously results in an increased mood. 

“Aging is not ‘Lost Youth’ but a new stage of opportunity and strength.”

— Betty Friedan

Choosing exercise that fits your abilities and lifestyle

There are countless different forms of exercise such as cycling, kickboxing, yoga, CrossFit, Zuu workouts and so many more. When it comes to choosing a type of exercise to stay active, most people think of the popular and fancy workouts like Zumba, P90X, etc.

Little thought is given to walking as a form of exercise. It is often disparaged and thought of as an activity that is reserved for senior citizens. However, there are many health benefits that can be gained from walking daily.

It’s one of the best exercises on the planet, it needs no special equipment, and our bodies have evolved over centuries to benefit from regular walks.

1.   The impact on your body is low

Walking is a low-impact activity that won’t wear out your joints. Unlike running, kickboxing or other high-impact activities that can make your joints ache, walking is a lot more forgiving on your body.

2.   The low intensity nature allows it to be done daily

It’s a low-intensity exercise that will not tax your central nervous system like CrossFit or some of the more vigorous forms of exercise. With high intensity interval training (HIIT), you may need to take a one-day break after every workout because of the demands it places on your body. Walking is much more relaxing in comparison and can be done daily.

3.   The versatility is almost endless

Walking can be applied to many different areas in your life. You could easily walk to the mall and back, if it’s within walking distance or walk in the mall on a cold or rainy day. Driving to work? Park your car a block away and walk to your office.

There are social benefits when walking with a friend and you can inject a bit of competition to rev up the walk. The more you walk, the better.

Thousands of people wear Fitbits to track the number of steps they take daily. You’d easily meet your daily quota if you walked for 30 to 45 minutes a day.

4.   Walk your weight off

Walking may seem like a humble exercise, but it can help you lose the pounds if you’re consistent. Going for a 30 to 45-minute walk daily on an empty stomach will help your body tap into its fat stores for fuel because its low on glycogen.

This is a very effective way to lose weight. Thousands of people shirk exercise because they fear the exertion and exhaustion involved. Walking is easy enough to do and help you achieve your weight loss goal. It may take longer than more rigorous training methods, but you’ll still get there.

5.   Stress be gone

Walking will help you to relieve stress. This is especially true if you walk in a park or some picturesque setting. Walking allows you time to calm yourself and get in touch with your thoughts.

You do not need to focus on good form or train to failure like you would with resistance training. Walking is a natural form of movement and therapeutic to your soul. Walking will also aid in digestion and improve your blood circulation. It will improve your cardiovascular strength and boost your immune system.

If you walk in the sun, you’ll get your daily dose of vitamin D. Thousands of people are deficient in vitamin D and it causes them to feel lethargic and depressed. Walking will lift your moods by ensuring that you get natural vitamin D in your system. Don’t forget to wear your sunblock.

Conclusion

By now you’ll realize that walking is an activity that’s so useful it can’t be neglected. Even if you focus most of your training on hardcore activities like HIIT or weightlifting, on your off days, you can have an active rest day.

What that means is that you can go for a 30-minute walk and call it a day. The walking will help to soothe sore muscles because of the increased blood circulation, and it’s also light enough to not tax your body but still burn a few calories so that it’s easier to stay lean and fit.

I hope you found some useful information in this post. I would appreciate it if you share it with someone you care about.

What Is A Grandparent’s Journal

A grandparent’s journal is written for the express purpose of revealing your early life to your grandchildren or even your children.

Remember when you were younger, and it felt as if the people you loved would always be there? You believed you would have all the time in the world to do all the things and have all the conversations. Sadly, you don’t know how much time you will have with anyone.  

How much time do you spend with your grandchildren? Regardless of the frequency or length of time, does it ever feel like it’s enough?  I will bet you aren’t spending that precious face to face time discussing your childhood with your grandkids.

Of course not. First, you’re listening to their dreams, what they want from their future life. Second, you want to make your time together into lasting memories, with them and for them.

Unfortunately, perhaps after the loss of a loved one, you begin to wonder what their earlier life was like, what the times were like when they were growing up. And when it’s too late, there is no one you can ask.  

I was fortunate enough to have my Gram live near me for 55 years. We talked all the time and she brought to life many stories of her girlhood for me. I heard about some of her pets, her home life, and her parents. Not everyone has this opportunity. Which is why I began writing a journal for my grandson.

“If there was no other motive in view [except] to have the privilege of reading over our journals and for our children to read, it would pay for the time spent in writing it.”

— Wilford Woodruff

 Creating a grandparent’s journal

Nothing could be simpler to do. I suggest a spiral-bound 8 x 10 or larger journal with at least 100 pages. This will allow you space to add photos, stickers, and doodles to add color and personality. So, don’t forget the colored pencils. Write from your heart and let the words bubble up and flow onto the paper.

To make this easier I’ve included a list of prompts.

1.      Where you were born, the date and place.

2.      Who named you, and how was your name chosen?

3.      Your parents, names, birth dates, and places of birth.

4.      Your aunts and uncles.

5.      Your siblings oldest to youngest.

6.      Who were you closest with in your family?

7.      The history of your family.

8.      The origins of your family.

9.      How you got to where you are now.

10.  What is your first memory?

11.  What kind of child were you?

12.  What special memories do you have of your mother?

13.  What memories of your father?

14.  What memories of your father’s parents?

15.  What memories of your mother’s parents?

16.  Did your parents read to you as a child?

17.  What were your favorite pastimes?

18.  Did your family play games together?

19.  If so, what were you favorites?

20.  Did you have pets?

21.  Describe your bedroom.

22.  Did you share or have it to yourself?

23.  What was your favorite Television show?

24.  What was a special meal your mom made for you?

25.  Did you help around the house?

26.  Did you get an allowance?

27.  Who were your childhood friends?

28.  Where did they live?

29.  What was your neighborhood like?

30.  Where did you first go to school?

31.  How did you get there?

32.  Did you like school? Why?

33.  What were your favorite books?

34.  What was your favorite kind of music?

35.  How did you listen to it?

36.  Did you go to concerts? Who did you see?

37.  What were your favorite movies?

38.  Who were your favorite movie stars?

39.  Did you keep a diary?

40.  What did you do during the summers?

41.  Where did your family go on vacation?

42.  How did your family spend the holidays?

43.  What were your favorite holiday foods?

44.  Do you have a favorite recipe to share?

45.  Who was the clown in your family?

46.  After school did you play any sports or belong to any clubs?

47.  Did you ever leave school with your friends without permission?

48.  Did you do something that you were never caught doing?

49.  How did you wear your hair? Did you wear makeup?

50.  What did you think you would be when you grew up?

51.  What was the biggest thing you remember happening while you were in high school?

52.  Who was president?

53.  What’s the best thing that’s been invented since you were a kid?

54.  Did you imagine what kind of house you wanted or where you would live someday?

55.  Tell all about your first date. How old were you? The who, the where, the when.

56.  Did you go to college?

57.  What was your first place like? Did you live alone?

58.  What was your first job? How much money did you make?

59.  What was your worst job?

60.  Did you go on any road trips?

61.  What about your love life? Was there one that got away?

62.  What is your best relationship advice?

63.  What was the most romantic date you ever went on?

64.   How you met grandfather, and what about him now?

65.  What about your first home and baby together?

66.  Did you enjoy being a mom, what was your favorite thing?

67.  How was it when you brought home my dad/mom for the first time?

68.  Tell me about my parent as a child?

69.  What kinds of hobbies, activities or vacations did/do you enjoy as an adult?

70.  Where have you traveled that you love best and why?

71.  When you heard you were going to be a Grandma the first time, how did you feel?

72.  How old were you when I was born?

73.  Did you babysit me? What did we like to do, just the two of us?

74.  What is a favorite family recipe, and why?

75.  Will you write it down here?

76.  What is your favorite quote, and why?

77.  If you could be any age, which would you choose?

78.  If you could do it all over again, would you change anything?

79.  What hopes and dreams do you have for the future?

80.  What would you most like to be remembered for?

81.  What is your best life advice?

82.  What makes you the happiest?

83.  What is the most important thing you have learned?

Wouldn’t you like to leave some of what you saw, thought, and felt, for someone in your life? I truly feel that it is never too late nor even too early to begin.

I hope you liked this post, and that you will share it with those you love.