Are you feeling stressed out?
Research by Perkins (1994) cited in the Harvard Business Review shows that 60% to 90% of doctor visits were stress-related.
What can be done about this?
Check out this article that gives you 13 ways to reduce stress during the holidays!
Check out this article that gives you 13 ways to reduce stress during the holidays!
As a grandma, it was easy for me to think that I could not make positive habit changes in my life. I was excited to see studies that show that not only is this not true, but there are simple steps we can take to make our new habits easier to accomplish!
1. Start Ridiculously Small
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Most people want to make big changes as quickly as possible.
The problem is that this requires a tremendous amount of willpower. Studies show that willpower works like a muscle. If you use it a lot, it gets tired, and you will be more likely to quit.
The solution? Start small:
• Instead of fifty pushups daily, try five.
• Instead of switching to a new diet, add a vegetable to lunches.
2. Have Clear Intentions
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If you’re serious about your new habit, you cannot make vague commitments like “I'll try to go to the gym three times this week.”
Studies show that you'll be much more likely to follow through if you've planned exactly when and where the behavior is going to take place.
Here are three powerful strategies for doing this:
• Reframe your habit as an “When/ Then” statement. For example, “When I’ve finished my breakfast, then I’ll walk for fifteen minutes.”
• Use “habit stacking.” Link your new habit to an already existing behavior by filling in this sentence: “After/Before [established habit], I will [new habit].” For example, “After I leave the office, I will go for a power walk.”
• Start scheduling. This might seem obvious, but few people actually do it. What gets scheduled gets done. If your habit is truly important to you, put it on your calendar, just like you would with an important business meeting.
Focus on establishing the habit first. increase the effort after it has become a natural part of daily life.
3. Celebrate Your Small Wins
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If you’re like most people, you’re much better at chastising yourself than you are giving yourself a reward.
That’s a shame, because studies show that rewarding progress is crucial for your motivation.
Rewarding yourself releases key chemicals which make you experience feelings of achievement and pride. These emotions empower you to keep going and to create even bigger successes.
So, reward yourself for your progress, no matter how small it might be.
4. Design Your Environment
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In many ways, your environment drives your behavior.
Have you ever made chocolate chip cookies and eaten tablespoons of dough, just because it was in front of you? If so, you know what I mean.
Instead, make your environment supportive of the habits you want to develop.
Maybe you want to read more good books, but you normally watch TV instead. What should you do?
• Put a book next to your living room couch.
• Put the TV in the basement and the remote in another room.
By doing this, you can make your environment support your desired behavior.
5. Surround Yourself with Supporters
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Those around us have a surprisingly big impact on our behavior. One study showed that if your friend is obese, your risk of obesity increases by 57 percent — even if your friend lives hundreds of miles away!
Other studies show that we tend to take on the feelings and goals of the people we spend the most time with.
Increase your chances of success by creating a support group who inspires you and picks you back up when you fall.
6. Pre-Commit to Your Habit
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When the alarm goes off at 6:00 am, within seconds, your plan of walking before work is in jeopardy as your brain starts rationalizing.
”I’m actually really tired. I wonder if it’s good to walk when I’m this tired. I could walk after work. Yeah, I’ll hit the snooze button.”
But then you remember that you’ve declared publicly to your family & friends to stick to your workout plan for thirty days.
Suddenly, going back to sleep is not as tempting as before.
By having this commitment beforehand, you can add an extra layer of accountability that makes you push through difficulties.
By having this commitment beforehand, you can add an extra layer of accountability that makes you push through difficulties.
Sticking to this process helps even a grandma like me get the results of new habits that stick!
What new habits are you wanting to commit to?
Love this info? You'll LOVE my guide to becoming a Groovy Grandma! Check it out right here.
What new habits are you wanting to commit to?
Love this info? You'll LOVE my guide to becoming a Groovy Grandma! Check it out right here.
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Stretching & breathing exercises have been working their way into mainstream culture for many years.
Practitioners all over the world speak wonders about the ability to improve mental and physical challenges. The good news is that you don't have to be an expert stretcher to enjoy the benefits of this gentle practice.
In addition to cultivating relaxation, let's take a look at some of the other benefits that come with this.
1. Treats back pain:
1. Treats back pain:
Exercise and movement can help the body reduce and eliminate pain, but a gentle practice that enhances flexibility such as stretching can do wonders for back pain. Stretching & breathing exercises has been shown to help those suffering from chronic lower back pain after just a few months of practicing. If you're someone who doesn't suffer from lower back pain, you can still benefit from spine stretching.
2. Aids fertility:
2. Aids fertility:
Stress throws our bodies off course in several ways. Studies have shown that stress greatly decreases our fertility, and stretching is a means to combat this. When women engage in stretching, it gives them them great opportunity to de-stress, relax, and open channels that can increase the chances of conception. Stretching & breathing can also improve blood flow to reproductive organs, therefore, improving their function and hormone levels.
3. Prevents heart disease:
3. Prevents heart disease:
Though stretching isn't overly strenuous, it can be challenging. Stretching asks your body to find balance and in doing so, it builds your strength and flexibility. When this happens, it increases your capacity for exercise. If you struggle with physical activity now, stretching & breathing exercises may be a gateway that will allow you to work up to other cardio exercises. This has also been shown to help patients diagnosed with heart failure due to its ability to reduce arterial plaque.
4. Relieves asthma symptoms:
4. Relieves asthma symptoms:
Stretching & breathing exercises encourages deep breathing, which can ease the symptoms of asthma. Studies show that this also helps to increase breath and body awareness, slow your respiratory rate, and promote calm and relieve stress — all of which are beneficial for people who have asthma.
5. Combats arthritis:
5. Combats arthritis:
One of the worst things you can do for arthritis is to sit still. Consistent movement is good for those with arthritis, and gentle stretching is highly beneficial. If you suffer from rheumatoid arthritis, don't feel like you cannot practice stretching. If you stick with it, you just may find that it helps combat your symptoms and pain.
6. Improves memory:
6. Improves memory:
Stretching & breathing is great for the mind as well as the body. When we engage in stretching, we allow ourselves to let go of physical tension, which reduces stress. When we reduce stress we're better able to recall details, thoughts, and conversations - which means we give ourselves a memory boost.
What has stretching and breathing exercises done for you? I would love to hear how you have benefited by this!
Love this info? You'll LOVE my guide to becoming a Groovy Grandma!
What has stretching and breathing exercises done for you? I would love to hear how you have benefited by this!
Love this info? You'll LOVE my guide to becoming a Groovy Grandma!
I have been using Young Living essential oils for over four and a half years now, and I am so glad that I was introduced to these oily wonders. I love to talk about the oils, smell the oils, put on the oils, and even ingest the oils.
Even though I truly cannot see myself living without them, I have an even greater love that is my foundation and my drive.
I would be remiss if I did not share the most important aspect of my life – which is my relationship with my Savior Jesus Christ. He is my Rock and the One that never changes. He is the One who loved me first, when He came to this earth and paid for my sins over 2000 years ago. He took my place – it should have been me on that cross. But this is how God showed His love for me!
God’s Word says, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16). This verse shows that His love is not just for me, but for the whole “world.”
Just believing that there is one God is not the belief that is being talked about here. The Bible says that “even the demons believe that—and shudder.” (James 2:19) To truly believe in God means to trust Him – to not only believe that He exists, but to actually commit our lives to Him and trust Him to save us through Jesus Christ. That is called “faith” – That is saving belief!
Think about the bottles of oils that you have. Just having them sit on the shelf is not going to do anything for you. If you stand in front of them and stare at them for twenty minutes, they will not help support any systems of your body. Nothing will change. However, if you actually take these oils and apply them to your body, that is when the constituents in these oils can actually make a difference in your life.
So in order to have a relationship with Jesus, a relationship that will make a difference in our lives, our belief needs to be more than just believing that God exists. We need to take Him off of the “shelf” of our lives. The Bible says, “without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6). Just like applying the oils to meet a physical need, we need to apply the sacrifice that Jesus made to take care of our spiritual need.
Don’t be content with a “shelf” belief, but by faith commit your life to Christ and trust Him alone for your salvation. Do this today and let me know!
Please feel free to contact me with any questions!
