What is your health worth to you??

This was such a great blog I had to re-post and share with everyone. So many people argue with me about ordering Shakeology because of the costs, so I hope this helps answer a lot of questions people may have.
In the end, you have to ask yourself... What is your health worth to you?

How Do I Really Know If Shakeology^® Is Worth the Money When Everything Else Costs Less?

There are many protein shakes and meal replacements that are less expensive than Shakeology. But comparisons based on the simple "protein shake" or even "health shake" are usually off the mark and don't stack up to Shakeology.
Shakeology was designed for people who want more than protein, and for people who want the health benefits being represented by the ingredients on the label. To really know whether a product measures up to Shakeology, you need to keep some things in mind:

How much is enough?

We are proud of Shakeology's 70+ ingredients. Other shakes will trumpet the number of ingredients they have too. But are the ingredients they are counting actually good for you? Are there any artificial flavors or colors listed in those ingredients? Not in Shakeology!
Are they derived from whole-food sources? They are in Shakeology! Too often the "magic ingredient" has been isolated from the enzymes and phytonutrients that actually make the ingredient useful when consumed.
And does the competition formulate for the synergistic benefits between the ingredients, or just slap together whatever is hot in the media? Shakeology was specially formulated for the collection of ingredients to work together like a symphony; this combination is so effective, some people report dramatic benefits within the first week. Other supplements point to one or two individual ingredients and build a "story" around their superfood attributes.

Protein

Pay attention to a product's protein source or blend. Protein sources like whey protein hydrolysate have been shown to trigger a much higher insulin response in the body. That's not an outcome we would tolerate in Shakeology.
Our protein source is whey protein isolate, which is more than 90 percent pure protein. Plus, Shakeology is loaded with digestive enzymes and lactase—that's the enzyme that breaks down lactose and is found in over-the-counter products like Lactaid^®. Don't confuse whey protein concentrate with isolate. Whey protein concentrate is the least pure form of whey protein made. The benefit of isolate versus concentrate is that the fat has been removed to achieve isolate. The fat in whey protein is what carries toxins consumed by the animal. That's the reason Shakeology can be used by so many people who are lactose-intolerant—because those toxins have been removed through the isolate process.
For our vegan formulation, we use sprouted brown rice protein, not soy. Does the competition use ANY soy in their formulation? Soy protein contains estrogen, mimicking compounds that can interfere with your hormones. On top of that, most of the soy in the marketplace is GMO (genetically modified). These are two important reasons why we don't use soy in Shakeology.

Glycemic index tested . . .

In terms of sugar, many protein shakes contain 1 gram of sugar or less. This is because they are using artificial chemical sweeteners. (Check the label for sucralose, aspartame, or sugar alcohols.) Shakeology's small amounts of sugar comes from natural sources and whole superfoods like coconut flower nectar and luo han guo, which are easily processed by the body and, in fact, have been tested and certified by an independent lab to have a low glycemic index of 24—that's lower than most fruits! (An apple is 36, and an orange is 43.)

What's not in the base, they may suggest you add later

Other shakes don't cost as much as Shakeology at first glance, but they also don't contain the full profile of the recommended daily allowance (RDA) for some vitamins and minerals, or whole-food sources of antioxidants, phytonutrients, adaptogen herbs, prebiotics, probiotics, or digestive enzymes. We've seen competitors make you buy a separate vitamin pack for $150 per month! Once you add it up, this is hardly a "good deal," and it's usually hardly even a good product.
To achieve the benefits of Shakeology we've seen, competitors charge between $250 and $335 per month! $120 doesn't seem expensive when you realize all of the benefits Shakeology delivers.

SUMMARY:

Formula: 70+ of the healthiest ingredients from whole-food sources from around the world VERSUS protein, fillers, artificial coloring, and isolated glamour ingredients
Winner: Shakeology
Protein Source: Shakeology's pure whey protein isolate or plant-based sprouted brown rice protein VERSUS soy, hydrolyzed whey, and/or whey concentrate blend
Winner: Shakeology
Taste: Rich Chocolate, tangy Greenberry, or fruity Tropical Strawberry Shakeology VERSUS chemically-derived, artificially-flavored competition
Winner: Shakeology
Price: $120 for Shakeology VERSUS—Oops! It's impossible to compare lesser formulations on price. But if you add in all the separate vitamins and flavoring agents the other companies ask you to buy to match the benefits and nutritional content of Shakeology, you would easily spend over $300 every month—that's 2 and half times the cost of Shakeology!
Winner: Shakeology

But the best comparison is results. From weight loss, to reduction in cravings, to regularity, to healthier cholesterol levels, to increased energy levels, to an overall sense of well being . . . We give a bottom-of-the-bag guarantee on Shakeology because we KNOW people will be amazed by how they feel. Shakeology is the winner by a total knock out!

My Shakeology Website

Running Rut

I have found myself in so many running ruts over the last year I found this article very informative. I love to run on the roads, but I know that to improve my running I have to constantly change my running areas.

Someone recently stuck this magazine on my on my desk and I absolutely loved every article in it. Check out the website www.running.competitor.com for more great running articles and nutrition information.

Are you stuck in a running rut? Take your running where it’s never been before–quite literally.

Runners, by our very nature, are creatures of habit. Anything and everything related to our running – from the shoes we wear, to the food we eat (and when we eat it), to the races we run year in and year out – is regulated by routine. Think about it. When was the last time you missed your annual Thanksgiving Turkey Trot? Probably the last time you switched shoe brands or failed to spread a tablespoon of peanut butter on half of a bagel some 35 minutes before jumping on the third treadmill from the far window at the gym.

The bottom line is that for runners, routine rules–and where we run is no exception. Whether you’re a runner who prefers to pound the pavement, tear up the trails or trot on the treadmill, chances are you’re tied to your terrain like a dog on a leash. You’re scared to stray too far from your usual stomping grounds and play in some new puddles, so to speak. Well, it’s time to break up the boredom, put an end to the mind-numbing monotony and start treading over some new terrain. It’s not only good for your mind, but beneficial to your body and paramount to improving your performance.

“Changing running surfaces works different leg muscles which, will lead to physical benefits,” says Eric Blake, head cross country and track and field coach at Central Connecticut State University. “And different scenery in your running will lead to mental benefits.”
For the road warriors out there, get off the asphalt every once in a while. Retreat from the roads and seek softer surfaces to run on – some of the time, anyway. Your feet, shins, knees and hips will thank you!

While the roads are always readily available for running, they’re not the best thing for your body. If possible, find a softer surface to run on at least once a week, be it a trail in the woods, grass field at your local high school or path through the park. Aside from steering clear of troublesome traffic, the off-road impact is significantly easier on your body. Let’s explore a phenomenon I like to call it the golf ball effect.

Throw a golf ball at your driveway. What happens? That’s right; it takes off into the atmosphere. Now throw that same golf ball at your front lawn with the same velocity. Where did it go? Yep, it’s still there on the ground, where the grass has absorbed most of the impact. Now imagine that golf ball is your body and the above process gets repeated a couple thousand times over the course of a 5-mile run. Which surface is treating your body better?

If you guessed the grass, or some other similarly soft surface, you guessed right. Not only will you keep those everyday aches and pains to a minimum, but you’ll recover quicker, strengthen your ankles and develop your lower leg muscles more rapidly.

“The softer surface of trails and gravel roads that I run on keeps the impact stresses down and allows me to recover from workouts faster,” says Kevin Tilton, a two-time member of the Teva U.S. Mountain Running Team. “Plus, running on the trails makes you use a lot of little stabilizer muscles that you may not use running all of your miles on the roads. I also find the trails more interesting and that allows me to get in more training.”

Staying soft doesn’t always make the most sense, however, especially if you’ll be racing on the roads. You’ll need to harden your legs to the harder surface, and the best way to go about doing so is to pound the pavement every once in a while. Aside from not worrying about rolling an ankle on a root or dodging some other unforeseen obstacle, you can work on your race rhythm much more effectively and get your fast-twitch muscle fibers firing that much faster.

“My road racing helps keep me in touch with speed that I may not normally find if I did all my training and racing on the trails,” Tilton admits. “Plus, getting my butt kicked in big road races gets me fired up for my trail and mountain races.”

Racing on the weekends isn’t the only recipe for getting your butt kicked and running on the roads isn’t the only way to work on your rhythm. Taking it to your trusty treadmill every so often will do the trick as well. Even for competitive runners, the treadmill doesn’t have to be synonymous with dreadmill. Blake, a two-time winner of the Mount Washington road race, does a lot of his training on the treadmill, a somewhat surprising circumstance for someone who’s a regular winner on the road-racing scene. Aside from the impact being easier on his body, training on the treadmill from time to time allows Blake to closely control his pace, increase the incline when necessary and monitor his effort level continuously.

“You know exactly your pace and distance,” Blake said. “And the treadmill is one of the only places you can run on a 10-12 percent grade for a long time. Training on a treadmill at an incline is very specific to the event.”

So, regardless of where you run, take a break from your regular routine, switch up your surface every so often and literally take your running where you’ve never taken it before. As the miles add up, not only will your risk of injury be lower, but the fun factor will be that much higher.

“I don’t get too burnt out by doing the same thing over and over,” says Tilton. “Running is supposed to be fun after all, right?”

Metabolism

Well I have seriously become addicted to this website www.cutandjacked.com. I could read every article on it over and over again. Here is one that I found because so many people wander how to speed up their metabolism.

A Simple Guide To Speeding Up Your Metabolism

Over the years I have received numerous questions from men and women who have tried to lose weight by drastic measures in order to try and achieve the body shape they desire; including those who have essentially starved themselves for months, if not years.
When you cut your calories drastically it’s actually very restrictive on your body, and prevents your body from loosing fat. Your body goes into ‘starvation mode’ and starts protecting its fat stores making it very difficult to shift any weight! If you continue in this way your body will start using your muscle stores, and we know that the less muscle we have the fewer calories we require, all contributing to slowing your metabolism down!
So, without spending too much time on the science, I will give you a few suggestions on how you can start firing up a slow metabolism!
Firstly... as mentioned our metabolism is somewhat measured by how much muscle we have, generally if you have more muscle mass you will have a faster metabolism. Muscle also burns more calories than fat! So, a good first step would be to start a weight-training program. An intense weight training session can burn far more calories, and obviously engage many more muscles than what you would train if you were opting for a cardio workout only.

Eat More Often

Try planning 5-6 meals per day, little and often. When I commence a competition diet the first changes I make to my regular diet are to begin splitting my meals up more throughout the day. Often during my diets I can eat up to 7- 8 times per day... every 2-3 hours depending where I am in my diet plan. You should never let yourself feel hungry, and eating every few hours will prevent this. Be mindful that if you do start eating like this you must exercise portion control with your food. I personally weigh my food so that I don’t make any mistakes. However you don’t have to be this strict about it. But keep in mind that portions should be small!

Breakfast

Eat breakfast!!!!! This is a sure fire way to kick-start your metabolism! I take on the majority of my carbohydrates during this meal, and add some protein. It’s normally my largest meal of the day and one I would never consider missing!

Protein

Eat more protein, it contributes to building muscle and will also help you feel full – which is a feeling that many people dislike about ‘diets’, that they never feel full! If you start eating protein with every meal you will definitely feel fuller for longer. Additionally it actually helps the body release the stored fat so that the body can use it as energy!

Drinks

Be mindful of what you drink... Remember juices from concentrate, alcohol etc are all packed with calories. However a coffee in the morning can help increase your metabolism.

Relax

Try and take some time out to relax... increased stress levels give rise to cortisol, and too much can slow your metabolism. Stress can also cause cravings, and you might find yourself wanting to eat fatty and sugary foods.

Sleep

Ensure you’re getting adequate sleep each night; sleep helps our bodies repair and grow. Some theory suggests that if you continually go without enough sleep your ability to process carbohydrates is lowered; your body will also struggle with the ability to function properly during the day meaning that it could struggle to burn calories if you’re trying to follow a diet.

One Last Point...

If you were looking to speed up your fat loss my best tip would be to exercise on an empty stomach before breakfast. There is a huge body of research to support this tip but in short, upon waking from sleep your body is depleted of glycogen (energy stores), so in theory if you do some form of exercise before breakfast you can utilise your fat stores. This method seems to promote more effective weight loss, although I’ve read other theories that contest this. However if I recall each diet I’ve followed to compete I have always done some steady low impact exercise before breakfast and it certainly works for me!

Written by Louis Rogers at www.cutandjacked.com

Men in the Gym

Yesterday I posted about what women shouldn't do in the gym so I figured why not end the week by telling the guys what not to do. This is a great read for everyone.

I found this on www.cutandjacked.com by Brandon Fokken. Check more out at Cut and Jacked

Men: 6 Things You Should Never Do In The Gym

1. Sweat all over the place and just leave it for the next person to worry about it !!
This is something that is just plain wrong. Who in their right mind would ever want to sit in, or clean up a strangers sweat? I know I don’t. It’s disgusting and something you should never do, yet it happens all the time. If I came over to your house after a run outside, sat down on your couch and got sweat all over it and didn’t clean it up, how would that make you feel? I’m sure you wouldn’t be very happy along with every other sensible person out there. So take the time and clean up after yourself. Others will thank you, and you won’t be viewed as the sweaty jerk that doesn’t clean up after themselves in the gym.

2. Cardio or Bull Riding?
People will tell you all day long how hard and intense their cardio regimen is. The truth is they put the incline up as high as the can get it, and then hold on for dear life as if they’re about to get bucked off the machine. This is cardio, not bull riding. These people throw their back out of alignment, stress their shoulders and the rest of their body, and really don’t get much of a cardio workout. Set your parameters in the realm of what you are actually capable of doing. You won’t look ridiculous while doing your cardio, and you will actually benefit your body.

3. Don't Be The Tough Crowd
Everyone is at a different level in the gym. You have beginners all the way to experts in the gym at any given time, but you are all trying to do the same thing- Better yourselves. So many times someone will walk around like a tough guy, and try to get the attention of everyone else. They will stare people down, and make people feel uncomfortable in a place where they belong just as much as anyone else. It’s even worse when this is done as a group. You give serious lifters a bad name and make yourself look like a jerk. You belittle others, take away their confidence, and make a place that should be a sanctuary a very uncomfortable place. Treat everyone with respect; you were once where they were. This will offer a better gym experience for everyone.

4. Leave The Phone In The Locker Room. Can you hear me now??
Save the cell-phone conversations and marathon text sessions for outside the gym. Most people see the gym as a chance to tune out from telephones, work, etc. You will take upwards of three times longer on equipment if you’re playing on your phone. This will annoy people, delay them from finishing their workout, and will keep the person using the phone from having a productive workout themselves. If you need your phone for an emergency that’s understandable, but nobody wants to hear about your weekend plans, what you’re having for dinner, or how much you love your significant other while they are doing cardio next to you. To make matters worse some people like to have a photo shoot while they workout. I couldn’t agree more with keeping a photographic record of your progress, but this can be done at home. Be courteous of others in the gym and keep phone usage to a minimum.

5. Noise Makers
No matter what rep he's on, or what weight this guy is using, they feel the need to share their pain with everyone else in the gym. This is a major distraction for everyone in the gym. Some people go to the gym to relax after a long day, some go to better themselves, some just want some peace and quiet and a get away from a hectic home life filled with the noise of children. The constant noise maker takes this away from them and puts all the focus on them. They distract others from their own workout, and could quite literally cause someone to injure themselves due to causing a lack of focus. A certain amount of noise is understandable, and even expected on certain movements, but nobody wants to hear you yell through 4 sets of arm curls. So keep the yelling and grunting to a minimum.

6. Let's Do This Together
You will see two guys working out together to lift the same weight. This is almost always on the bench, ez bar curl, or squat rack. The lifter will load up the bar as heavy as he can, and when he starts he may get one maybe two reps, but the training partner will help them through another eight or so reps. After the workout if you were to ask the lifter what their max lifts are, they will tell you a number far above what they can actually do. This method does not only hinder your progress, but it just plain makes you look like a rookie in the gym, and nobody is going to take you seriously. Take the time it takes to work yourself up to the weights you want to use. Set goals and in time you will get there.

Women in the Gym

Its been over a month since I started going to the gym three times a week, and I am already noticing a huge difference. Although, I may not see it in my reflection I see it in the heavier weights I am able to lift. So many lose faith if they aren't physically seeing the changes happen, but people have to remember that it's more than the way you look.

I found this article at www.cutandjacked.com by Laura Jeanne and found it very interesting, especially since I see so many of these things happening when I'm at the gym. Sometimes.. the gym can be  great place to people watch :)

WOMEN: 6 THINGS YOU SHOULD NEVER DO IN THE GYM

1. Run Your Mouh
Gym time is not social hour, ladies. Saying hi to friends or fellow gym goers is fine; standing around (or worse, sitting on machines or benches but not using them) and chatting for 20 minutes about how your day went, how your weekend was or playing catch up on the latest reality shows is not. If you notice dirty looks directed at you while you're blabbing away, chances are it's because you standing around taking up space talking is getting everyone around you… you know, the people who are there to actually train and use the equipment you're sitting on… really, really annoyed. Pick a different time or place to talk one another's ears off, please.

2. Be A Stalker
It's one thing to have a training partner and chat with them in between sets. It's another thing entirely to follow your boyfriend/husband/gym crush around the whole time you're at the gym, never leaving their side and not actually training yourself while they're trying to do work. I've seen this happen plenty of times and always feel bad for the guy, having his training session constantly interrupted. I'm not saying you need to or should be completely ignoring your significant other or whatever cute guy you're interested in, but you should be aware that you're interrupting their training and, honestly, wasting your own time by just following them around and not actually training yourself.

3. Worry About Your Appearence
This is a serious pet peeve of mine. I know women like to look good and a little primping here and there is necessary sometimes. But come on now, you're at the gym to train. Who the hell do you need to impress while you're there? I see ladies show up with their hair and makeup perfectly done and then proceed to walk up to the mirror in between EVERY single set to check and make sure everything's still intact. Or there's the girls who get right up close to the mirror while doing bicep curls with 5lb dumbbells, then proceed to turn to the side and stick their butt out as much as they can while curling the weight (using completely improper form, mind you) and using their free hand to adjust their hair. And of course, they're looking around to see if guys are noticing them. Stop this nonsense, please! No one is going to take you seriously if you keep preening like a peacock in front of the mirror. And guess what - no one really cares what you're doing! So stop strategically positioning your made up self in front of the mirror while a guy is doing an exercise in hopes he'll notice you and say something. It's not going to happen.

4. Obsess Over Cardio
I cannot stress this this one enough. PLEASE don't come to the gym just to spend hours on the treadmill, elliptical, or any other piece of cardio equipment and consider that a legitimate workout. It's not. It's a waste of your time and energy and, more importantly, is NOT going to give you the results you want to see in your body. The more cardio you do, the more you're going to have to do over time to see the same benefits. Not to mention, hours of cardio every day is just plain boring. Learn to train smarter. Be bold - pick up the weights! I wish everyone would start adding weight training to their gym routine. I'm not saying you need to pick up massive weight, but just don't spend your time there every day on a walk to nowhere on the treadmill. If you want to do cardio, consider adding high intensity interval training (HIIT) to your routine. HIT gets your heart rate up and the fat burn going in half the time. And as for that idiotic misconception that women will get bulky and jacked like a dude if they lift weights...STOP using that as an excuse to just do cardio. I train my butt off and I'm a whopping 115lbs. Bulky? I think not. Lesson to be learned here? Just say NO to endless hours of cardio!

5. Dress Inappropiatley
This is true for all women, from young girls to little old ladies. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for wearing cute gym clothes. My point, though, is that you should do yourself and everyone else at your gym a favor and dress appropriately. No one needs to see you prancing around half naked, especially if you've got some extra fat or things that really shouldn't be exposed or seen prancing anywhere. If things aren't covered up or you can tell they're oozing out, cover them up pronto. If you can tell something is too tight on you, don't wear it, or at least not in public. I've seen older women who look good for their age, but that's no reason to walk around in a tiny sports bra and short shorts with half your booty hanging out. It's definitely a distraction to the guys at your gym, but not for the reason you're thinking. They aren't looking at you thinking "Wow she looks GOOD." Trust me.

6. Act Like You Own The Gym When You Don't Know The Proper Form
If you see someone doing an exercise you think looks interesting and want to attempt it yourself, I applaud you for having the motivation and desire to try something new to improve your training. Most women I see in the gym live on the cardio machines, so anytime I see someone venture away from the cardio equipment and try training on the machines or with free weights, it makes me happy. However, don't assume you're doing the exercise correctly and using the proper weight just because you've eyeballed someone else doing a few sets. Don't be afraid to ask someone exactly how you should be performing the exercise, what weight you should start at, etc. It's only to your benefit to start off doing things right from the get go. And drop the attitude, too. The other day there was a woman who had NO clue what she was doing, wandering around from machine to machine and carrying her workout sheet from one of the trainers. I was using the lying hamstring curl machine and halfway through my second set, I noticed her standing next to me. Instead of asking if she could work in, or saying anything to me all, she just stood there, glaring at me and tapping her foot impatiently. Really, lady? Don't act like just because someone showed you how to use certain machines, you're running the joint. Lose the 'tude.

Back Fat

Awwww... Back Fat. So many people know exaclty what this is... it is truly one of the hardest parts on my body to get rid of fat. I remember when I was working out with a trainer she was constantly telling me, "if you don't eat more, you will never lose the love handle." I always got so frustrated...
So I did some research and found a great article that has some advice for all those people out there trying to figure out how to get rid of the famous "Back Fat"

How to get a Fatless Back

Your back is made up of the upper, middle and lower section, but excess fat typically builds around the middle and lower areas, creating unsightly bulges near your waist and hips known as "love handles." Stretching and gentle strengthening exercises will improve your flexibility and reduce the risk of injury, but to tone the major muscle groups in your back, you'll need to regularly do a strengthening routine for 30 minutes or more, three times a week, along with doing cardiovascular exercises to reduce the fat and eating a healthful diet.

Seated Lateral Pull-Down

The seated lateral pull-down requires a lifting machine with a cable bar and engages your lat muscles, technically called latissimus dorsi, that spread around the middle of your back like muscular wings. In the seated position, pull the bar down from overhead until it touches the middle of your clavicle, or collarbone, on your chest. When releasing the bar, maintain control by moving slowly and never allow the weight to jerk your arms upward, as this can injure your joints. Repeat three sets 10 to 15 times.

 

Prone Cobra

The prone cobra, or prone scapula stabilization exercise, targets your trapezius muscles, below your neck, along with several of the deltoid muscles, which are near the area where fat bulges around your bra-line or bathing suit tops. This exercise requires no equipment and can be performed anywhere with enough room to lie down and extend your arms. The starting position requires lying on your stomach with your arms stretched out above your head in a "Y" shape. Your head remains pointing down as you lift your entire upper body off the ground for a period of three seconds. The movement in your upper torso will also raise your arms. Hold your prone position for three seconds and slowly return to your starting position over a period of three seconds. Increase the intensity level by holding your prone position and bringing your arms down by your sides so your elbows form a right angle. Your arms return to their starting position above your head before you lower your torso to the ground. Perform this movement sequence movement at least five times.

Single Arm Dumbbell Row

The single arm dumbbell row targets the muscles across the middle of your back, known as the latissimus dorsi and rhomboids, and engages the lower-abdominal muscles that wrap around your lower back, called obliques. The exercise requires holding one dumbbell while bending at the waist and resting one knee on a bench or chair for support. Your back must remain straight while the arm outside the bench hangs straight down your side. As your torso remains steady, your elbow slowly rises and bends until the upper half of your arm is parallel to the middle of your back. Never jerk your arm or allow it flop back down. Perform three sets of 15 repetitions on either arm.

Effective Amount of Weight

Too little weight won't build strong fat-fighting muscles in your lower back, but lifting too much can cause injury. Speak with a trainer or your physical therapist to find a good starting weight for your workout routine. Gradually increasing the amount of weight ensures that your muscles continue growing and burning calories. When you can perform the exercise with minimal effort, you should increase the weight increment by 2 to 3 pounds.

Diet

Without modifying your diet, all the strengthening exercises in the world won't reduce the fat rolls on your back. Lifting weights increases your muscle mass. By increasing your muscle mass, you're increasing the amount of calories your body burns, which helps shrink your fat cells. A diet low in fat and high in lean proteins, fruits, vegetables and whole grains is a necessary component to minimizing your back fat.

Read more: Livestrong Website

Change

Managing Change In Your Life, Fitness Or Otherwise

Starting a fitness program certainly requires a lot of change - both physically and mentally - and how we manage and accept this change will ultimately determine how much success we achieve! Here are some general tips on managing change. Change is something we experience everyday whether we are aware of it or not. On a simple level the bus driver is different this morning or the toll booth operator is on holiday. Maybe our favorite brand of something is sold out and we have to choose a replacement this week. Or maybe our internet connection is down for maintenance (again!) and we have to find another way to communicate. On a broader level we often make decisions to change something fundamental in our life. It might be your job, a change of abode, breaking up or forming a relationship, and (of course) starting a new fitness program to change your health and well being. These are major changes and can cause a lot of negative stress in our lives. How we handle change can have a massive impact on our health and our relationships. These tips below may not help you to LOVE change, they will help ease the ride by reminding you to take care of your most important asset along the way - YOU!

Tip 1: When in doubt, go slow and get your bearings before moving on. If you ever found yourself lost while on the way to someplace else then the best thing to do is to slow down and take a look at your surroundings. This is the same for life - once you have a pretty good idea of where you are, it will be much easier to see what direction you need to go in next.

Tip 2: Be grateful for the new opportunities and possibilities that change brings. Change can sometimes bring new lessons and new connections that can help us further down the road, and these things can ultimately make us a healthier, happier human being. There is also a lot of wisdom in the saying that "what doesn't kill you will only make you stronger". While this not always true (repeat stair running is a good example) the tough times in our lives can you a more rounded and balanced person, and might allow you to appreciate the not-so-tough times even more!

Tip 3: Take time for yourself to re-establish your personal foundations. Reconnect with yourself and with your goals and desires. Sometimes activities that take the focus off of the everyday like taking a walk, reading a book, or listening to music help us to reconnect with what is important to us and give us a certain calmness and strength that helps us keep going. Personally we find fitness training is a great way to get away from it all and find some "me time" in our day. A walk, run, cycle or gym session can be an almost "meditative" experience that can clear away negative thoughts and bring some focus back into your day. This is true both mentally and physically, because studies have shown that after exercising people have greater mental clarity and make better decisions. So the next time things are becoming over-whelming or you feel bogged down try taking some time out for fitness.

Tip 4: Allow some room for mistakes. So you chose the wrong direction, or made a mistake, now what? You can be angry with yourself but that might not get you back on track. The best thing to do is acknowledge your mistake and turn around to try something else. Beating yourself up may only slow you down and make you feel bad about yourself as well. Most of the time we allow room for children to make mistakes as they grow and learn - so why not do this with ourselves. People often beat themselves up over missing a training session or having a "bad" meal or snack. Whilst it's not helpful to miss training or eat poorly, it's also not the end of the world and is certainly no reason to stop altogether. Try to let it go, and get back on track as soon as possible. Also, see if you can determine the reasons for why you had a bad patch, and then organize things so they don't happen again!

Tip 5: Make lists of things you need to do as you think of them - keep a notebook with you. One of the reasons change sends us into a tailspin is that we lose control of our regular schedule. We can be afraid of not being able to do everything we want to do. While being organized is not the only method of dealing with change; it can help you remember what is essential that needs to be done like paying the bills or doing the washing. Similarly, stick to a training plan and keep a track of how everything is going. We can often forget what is important when it comes to fitness or eating well, so if we have a plan that takes care of itself it will ensure you keep right on track and wont be distracted by the things that inevitably try to disrupt us.

Tip 6: Stop and breathe when you feel overwhelmed, nervous or unsure, and know these feelings are absolutely normal. It's hard-wired into our biochemistry to be concerned or worried about changes to the environment, because it's what helped us stay on guard from the physical threats we used to experience - tigers, lions, famine, etc!. We're often concerned about change and the unknown but it is perfectly normal to have feelings of fear and uncertainty. The trick is how you manage this stress and ensure it doesn't becoming overwhelming or out of control.

Tip 7: Give yourself several weeks to get used to your new situation, because it can take some time to get fully acquainted with new surroundings. If it is a new job, use the first few months to learn all there is to know about how to do your job on a basic level. If after the first three months you see that you need to make changes then you will have all of the information you need. It's the same with fitness - start out slow and get used to the movements and activities you are doing. It may take some time for it to become natural or even enjoyable, but if you give it some time you'll be surprised what can be achieved!

Tip 8: Keep a positive attitude and find something to be happy about everyday - a new experience or discovery; even something as simple as the color of a wall or a leaf on a tree. Being joyful or stopping to smell the roses helps us to slow down and in the slowing down we can see that we are where we are supposed to be in the process of change. If you are new to fitness, or even an old hand, look for the small improvements at every training session. Rome wasn't built in a day, and it does take time for your fitness program to work it's magic! You need to focus on what you can control - which is the here and now of the training you are doing right now, and let the end results take care of themselves.
For a short but excellent read on the subject of change try "Who Moved My Cheese ?" by Spencer Johnson.