Remember Your Victories and Bounce Back

I am grateful for my many life Victories!!!   We all have memories. We have memories we enjoy and  memories we like to keep in our past...and not recall. Are you being held captive of your own negative memories, not able to forgive and let go yet? I know how hard it can be to forgive, thinking that once you forgive it's like saying it's ok. Forgiveness frees you. Forgiveness does not equal forgetting what happened to you.

In the midst of your life challenges and obstacles, it can be easy to allow the darkness to take over. It can be easy to turn our focus to and expend our energy on our negative memory of what we feel pushed us into our unstable emotional dark hole.  STOP! I encourage you to REMEMBER how many dark holes you have climbed out of. How many VICTORIES can you celebrate? How many blessings have you received overcoming what you perceived to be impossible?   

Have FAITH in yourself. Have faith in God! "Your greatest weakness shall be your greatest strength." (Robert Tennyson Stevens) This remains one of my favorite quotes to meditate on. My health has been one of my greatest weaknesses and is in the process of becoming my greatest strength! I have overcome many health obstacles, making me wiser and stronger. I give praise to God for his graces. I accept and know that my fight for optimal health has more to come. 

This summer, I have been faced with a painful flareup in chronic pain with Piriformis Syndrome. I have also been hit with unexpected weight gain, which I believe is correlated with my Hypothyroidism and PCOS. Body image and fear in weight gain has been one of my weaknesses for years.  So, after putting in several hours a week of physical activity, bodybuilding, and healthy eating and not achieving my desired results...I have felt defeated. 

Today I choose to NOT let defeat keep me down. I choose to REMEMBER my Victories, and how far I have come with creating my healthiest version of self. When I choose to reflect on my blessings and achievements, I am strengthened in my Faith and propelled to move forward.          

So, no matter what challenges you face with health, relationships, work, kids, etc.. Choose to remember your victories, and take your first step forward!!!

One of my recent and unexpected blessings has been with receiving another new job as a Fitness

Instructor at Altitude Trampoline Park in Katy. Not only has it been fun, but rehabilitating for my health! Check out this article, and explore Rebounding Exercise! 

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_56fd70e4e4b0daf53aef23ae

    

Shaping Our Future

How Do You Desire to Transform???

 In times of stress and when you know you require calming down...just breathe. Within the world we live, we live in a state of flux. We live in constant change. Do you desire that change to transform your behavior into a new that will empower you? Or, do you react out of fear and cravings to which are not being met and wind up falling back?

The quality of our life is determined partly by our inner peace, and our ability to love and accept love. When our mind and heart are directed in one direction, it gives our actions great direction; known as intention. It is when our conscious mind and conscious heart align to a single purpose, that our subconscious begins to support our vision. Our subconscious begins to filter how we perceive our world. 

There is nothing that happens in our mind that does not happen to our body; for they are one. The vehicle we travel in, our body, must be kept in order to travel. When our vehicle is not in order, the travel becomes difficult, then painful, and then it appears impossible. (Max Strom)

To keep our vehicle in order and with change always occurring, one must reflect on their stressors and life experiences to grow. According to Psychology Today, stress is simply a reaction to a stimulus that disturbs our mental or physical equilibrium. As a health enthusiast and a daily overcomer, I am constantly seeking clarity through my life experiences. I have been fortunate to have a passion within for an active lifestyle. Even in my lowest points of living with chronic pain my heart longed to be active. However, my relationship with food and how I choose to cope with my life stressors have not been my areas of strength. I am growing.

What is your relationship with food? "The way we do food is the way we do life. Slowing down with meals, then is symbolic of relaxing into our body, our career, our fears and desires, and anything that life presents." (Marc David) Wow! That is so true! Stop reacting to your stress and turning to food, now! According to the American Psychological Association, "one in four Americans turn to food to help alleviate stress or deal with problems." When we are a stressed eater, we are creating our digestive shutdown. When we are a relaxed eater, we our activating our digestive system full force. 

So, are you a person seeking weight loss whom believes you are doing everything right, but have hit a plateau and feel stuck? "To experience change, you must create change." This is true for ourselves as a whole: spiritually, mentally, and physically. "How we envision our actions, how we verbalize our desires, unconsciously has a massive impact on the quality of our responses." (Max Strom) Evaluate your state of being. Do you live in a state of flight or fight? Do you react to your daily stressors or do you reflect and take time to respond? What is your relationship between food and stress?

Marc David, the founder for the Psychology of Eating reports enlightening facts for The Biochemical Burdens of Stress.

• Nutrient Deficiencies and Absorption- decreased oxygenation and gastrointestinal flow.
• Thyroid Hormone- decreased metabolic activity.
• Healthy intestinal bacteria destroyed.
• Mitochondria- energy powerhouses of the cells are diminished and can lead to chronic fatigue.
• An increase in Cortisol associated with weight gain, inability to lose weight, or build muscle.
• Erratic function of the Lower Esophageal Sphincter causing gastric reflux; heartburn.
• Insulin Resistance- factor in diabetes, weight gain, heart disease, and aging.

Slow down and be mindful. Be mindful in your food choices, in your planning, and in your preparation. What are you thinking about in the process and what are you feeling? While you are eating, breathe; enjoy the flavors; and be in-tune with your feelings in the moment.

"When our mind quiets and the heart opens, change happens, and then Grace happens. As we transform, the whole world around us appears to change; even bloom." (Max Strom)

What is your relationship with stress around you and to you??? Imagine this: Stress is for you, not against you. Look beyond the stress; look at the root of the stress. Do not bypass your experience for something temporary. Seek within. Seek self-awareness strategies and discover...discover your true authentic Self! There is no "one-size fits all." Stop taking the easy way out, and claim your responsibility. You can find new meaning everyday, with every stressor. I am not saying it is easy, and I am saying it is doable. "Let Go and Let God."

Stress is essential for our growth. Do not resist the change; embrace it and see what you can learn to propel you forward. "It is within our present, that we change our future!"

Mindfully Eating and Breathing

               

                                    

A Life Created through Breathing

How many of you desire to speed up your metabolism for the New Year? How many of you have cleaned up your nutrition and not seen the results you anticipated? And, how many of you perceive that you experience good digestion. 

Well, what if I told you that your mood and habitual eating habits effect your metabolism...

Whether you have studied, learned about, or really don't care to learn more about your digestive system, the answer lies within you! 

Growing up, I always felt really drawn to and have remained very inquisitive about our Central Nervous System. Gratefully, my journey through my health obstacles and choice of careers has led me to obtaining more and more wisdom about the functions of our body, mind, and spirit.

I have my strong faith and belief that everything happens for a reason, and paths are crossed with purpose. So, as I teach my students about our body systems in health and continue with my own educational experience, my heart smiles and my mind expands with my new found clarity about Mindful Eating!

On Facebook recently,  I discovered this amazing educational opportunity that speaks volumes to me in my past and present. You can review my shared post from The Psychology of Eating. This is where it all ignited... 

You see through my high school years, I suffered four long years through an eating disorder. Miraculously one day I woke up and stopped actively practicing my bulimic habits. I honestly cannot explain it. What I can say now,  "my mind can still play tricks on me." I knew in my heart that one day I could share my experience with others and hopefully give hope to those that still suffer with food addiction. 

You see...  A very real experience to me, and one to which I wish the wall could be broken between me and you; is that just because I am a fitness trainer, accomplished athlete, and practice decent healthy nutritional habits, my experience is such that most people put me on a pedestal or think that I make perfect choices. 

Well let me tell you..."No one is perfect, I still have mind chatter about my food habits and body image, I have diseases I live with, and I enjoy food. I am far from perfect! I make mistakes, I do binge on food every now and then, I don't have all the answers, I am an open book, I am on my journey, I am constantly seeking and learning, I am passionate about sharing my wisdom and experiences, I am strong and I am soft, and I promise I won't bite!"

So... amazingly enough and as I mentioned earlier, everything happens for a reason. My degree in Philosophy and Psychology, liking of Neurology, and career paths have led me straight to this wealth of wisdom in Psychology of Eating. Not having the finances to seek their certification, I have been viewing, listening, and reading their enlightenment. You should check them out! They have a lot of free resources. 

So, over my winter break I committed to learning as much as I could and purchased a book through one of the coaches called, The Slow Down Diet By Marc David. Then, as a Christmas gift from my sister I was blessed with another book called, A Life Worth Breathing By Max Strom. And of course... reading both books together here and there, my excitement climbs and my desire to share with others increases.

So I have these tendencies to start something and not finish it, and to get excited about something and then get distracted...so to perhaps to be less distracted and not too overwhelming, I decided that I would approach my blog in strides. I will invite you all along with me through my journey of self-awareness, opening of my heart, mindful eating, metabolic changes, and more. I will do my best to share my journey through my blog post after I have read and gathered my thoughts periodically. 

Oh' and hopefully you can follow along my ride with ADHD, because when I am excited about something my mind is flooded with ideas and I bounce around...

So, come along into my introduction and clarity of how our body works and exist here in America!

Okay, so let's begin! Here in America most of us have created a life of desperation. We are being emotionally wounded, physically unhealthy, mentally stressed, and stuck in a rut not taking action towards creating our meaningful life. (Max Strom)

Here in America the word metabolism is thrown around excessively, especially around New Years, but few know what the word actually means. You may have said or heard people saying that they want to speed up and/or increase their metabolism. Also, here in America we live on such a fast-pace lifestyle, where we rush through our meals, we multi-task as we eat,and we create a rapid-fire eating habit which locks our bodies into stress mode. (Marc David)

"So I said it...there is the key factor...STRESS." And Gandhi once said, "There is more to life than increasing its speed." 

Okay, so I will try not to get super scientific on you and try to keep it simple...."We can achieve more by doing less." Now, let's go all the way back to my topic of our central nervous system (CNS). We experience our world around through our five senses and into our CNS. There is scientific research to explain clearly that our metabolism is the sum total of all the chemical reactions in the body, plus the sum total of all our thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and experiences. (Marc David)

The key link to help us understand the relationship between stress and our metabolism lies within us all...our CNS. Here goes the science...The portion of the CNS that greatest influences our digestion function is called the autonomic nervous system (ANS). Then, within our ANS there are two subdivisions to help accomplish the dual task to digestion. Trying to keep it simple... 1. sympathetic: activates the stress response and suppresses digestive activity. 2. parasympathetic: relaxes the body and activates digestion. (Marc David)

So, I encourage you to now imagine your rapid-fire eating. Imagine chewing your food as your mind is racing about what is next, or perhaps you are even eating and moving simultaneously. As you are anxiously rushing through your food, you are thinking about everything but food.  The instant your body receives stress, it does not have a clue whether or not you are having a life threatening experience.

Let's now imagine you have had a really bad day, everything seems to being going wrong for you. You are feeling frustrated, defeated, maybe even sad or angered. As you eat, your mind is occupied with images of all your bad experiences.  And once again, you are now eating in an anxious state. So, your brain perceives through your CNS stress and immediately goes into fight-or-flight response.

The crazy and most enlightening thing about both these scenarios is this...there is and always will be physiological changes that occur when your body goes into fight-or-flight. Some of those changes include some degree of digestive shutdown, heart rate speeds up, blood pressure increases, respiration quickens, cortisol is released, and your circulatory system begins to reroute your blood flow away from the midsection and toward the head for quick thinking.

What all of this means is...Eating healthy and having good nutrition is only part of the story. One must create time to slow down with food and their life. Breathing deeply before, during, and after your meals is a good place to start. When you are in a relaxed state, your metabolism will increase and the assimilation of your digestion will occur. (Marc David)

As I lead you through my journey, I will share how to reclaim your metabolic power through practice of eight universal metabolizes: relaxation, quality, awareness, rhythm, pleasure, thought, story, and The Sacred. We will also dive deeper into our self-exploration to find your true purpose.

Stay tuned... and sorry this ended up being super long!

The only exercise I share and encourage to practice is...Deep Breathing!