Four Ways to Get You to Move More Within Your Day

Jeffrey works out three times a week. He kinda watches what he eats too. But he finds himself with little to no movement most work days.

It seems like he’s always sitting down and feels the weight just climbing on to him in his chair. He’s simply become a little lazy sitting on his desk throne and relying on his three workouts to do all of the work. It’s simply not enough and he knows it.

The topic of fitness can be misleading. It can assume only working out. You know, one of the following:

• going to the gym or fitness center
• doing a home workout
• running or biking

Yet someone who is “fit” looks at fitness with more of a broader perspective.

A “fit” person looks for every opportunity to add movement within their day.

Huh? Don’t I move enough?

Sadly, this is what most people believe and most people are overweight and far from “fit.”

Here Are Four Ways to Get You to Move More Within Your Day

M – Move More Than the Average

According to Tom Rath’s research in Eat Move Sleep, on average we now spend more time sitting (9.3 hours) than sleeping in a given day.

Consider the person’s average day:

• Sit for breakfast
• Sit commuting to work (national average, one-way daily commute is 25.5 minutes according to the US Census Bureau in 2011 via USA Today)
• Sit a majority of the work day at their desk or in a meeting (minus a bathroom break)
• Sit commuting back from work
• Sit at dinner
• Sit watching TV in the evening

Do you see a theme? The point is we sit most of the time and far more than we even realize which makes movement a rare event.

So, how do you compare? Do you sit with the average or move more than the average? Not sure? Then…

O – Observe Your Movement

Awareness is rare these days. Most people are simply not aware of their behavior. It goes on auto-pilot moving from one day into the next without a passing thought.

And this could not be more true than in the area of movement. Just being aware of how much you move within your day sets you up for the ability for change.

Now that you’re aware of how much the average person does NOT move and sits a majority of the day, it’s time for you to observe your own routine.

You know your day better than anyone and your habits.

Then begin to get creative on ways to implement movement into your day.

Personally, I need to create two average days: home office / travel because those days are completely different and my goal is add movement to both average days not make excuses for the routine change.

V – View This as a Daily Challenger

I love challenges. Yeah, one of those guys. But more in personal challenges that can improve me. And this is exactly that kind of challenge by answering these three questions:

Where can you walk when you normally would call or email in the office? – sometimes we could simply get up from your desk and walk to get the answer instead of calling or emailing. It would be a quick break and add movement to your day.

When can you walk further than you normally would walk less? – this hits the parking button. If you’re like the average person, you’ll spend more time driving around to find a parking spot a few feet closer than finding a spot further away and adding movement not to mention possibly even saving some time! Choose to park further away and add some much needed steps.

When can you walk when you would normally ride? – if you see an escalator or an elevator this should be a trigger for you to consider the stairs. It will instantly add movement (and quality movement at that) to your day and can become a great new habit.

Could you take a walk for a break or lunch? – when I worked a corporate 9-5 job in a business park, I would log some miles on the corporate park track especially over lunch. It was amazing what a 10 minute walk over a break or a 30 minutes walk over lunch (of course listening to an audiobook) did for my mood, mental state, and my energy.

The point is there is movement within your day but you just need to look, get creative, and willing to make some changes.

Traveler Tip: When I stay at a hotel, I take the stairs every chance I can to add movement within a travel day.  When I first started, I would request the 2nd floor so I can knock out the stairs easily. Now, I don’t mind a few set of stairs and often it’s actually quicker than waiting for the elevator.

E – Evaluate Your Day

This initiates the Tony Robbins acronym CANI which means Constant And Never-Ending Improvement. I’m so much of a CANI believer, I wrote THIS POST.

IF most people actually add something into their lives, even fewer take the time to evaluate if it’s working and how to make it better.

Here’s your chance to implement CANI in a very simple form: Movement.

When I look either at my day ahead or back at the day, I almost always see areas where I maximized movement or took the easy way out. This daily evaluation allows me to make the necessary changes to MOVE.

If you’re not in the habit of reviewing your day, this may be a mini habit into a powerful tool to CANI. You can do it. Just try it for a week.

Closing Challenge…

Choosing to MOVE is actually a mini habit and has been a recent focus for me after reading the book by the same title, Mini Habits by Stephen Guise.

Adding movement seems like such a small thing and in and of itself, it is just that, a small thing, which ironically should make it easier to implement. But the results add up over time.

As motivated professionals, we need to look for small ways and small wins to improve our lives and reach our potential.

I challenge you to:

M – move more than the average

O – observe your movement

V – view this as a daily challenge

E – evaluate your day

Closing Question…

How will you add movement to your day?

How to Create Your 12 Relational Core Connections

Through our lives we’ve met thousands of people and many have become friends at some point along the way. From high school and college to work, neighborhood, and church, there is never a shortage of relationships.

Then you add social media and the ability to connect with people from the past and far away and the number of relationships just continue to climb.

Anyone at anytime can have hundreds or even thousands of Facebook friends, Twitter followers, and LinkedIn connections. It’s great for the ego!

But the reality is you can only be around a certain number of relationships that can really add genuine value to your life.

What if you narrowed your hundreds of relationships in your life down to a specific quantity and really concentrated on developing those relationships?

Some relationships are seasonal. If I move or change jobs, those proximity relationships will be altered by distance.

I’m at an age where I want quality relationships in my life. Been there and done that in the quantity, I want depth.

And as a result I’ve spent focused time creating my 12 relational core connections. Here was my process:

Step 1 – Set a Time

I found a block of time when I was fresh and could focus thinking through my relationships.

This process mattered to me so I wanted to give it focused time with a Time Block to make the most of the process. We need Think Space for projects like these that are important.

Note: I revisited this Time Block a couple of times for this process.

Step 2 – Start Writing Names

I went old school and took out a blank sheet of paper and began to think through all of the people that really mattered to me throughout my life.

Think through different locations and seasons of your life. Look at your contacts, social media connections, etc.

It was actually fun coming up with the names. It was a stroll down my life memory lane and it reminded me of the number of people that have come through my life at key moments.

Step 3 – Narrow the Names

Now it gets personal. I want you to get the list under 20 names. There’s a reason so begin getting the list down.

Remember, your friends are NOT seeing your list so you’re not offending anyone.

Some of those names that “didn’t make the list” will be used in other ways soon.

This is a fluid process. I circled the names that started to climb the priority list to reference in the next step.

Step 4 – Choose Your 12 Finalists = Circle of INVESTMENT

Since you have a limited amount of time in your day and week, you want a focused group of pre-chosen connections.

These 12 names are people that you want to invest and continue to develop these relationships.

They’re also people you want to invest into your life because of the richness they bring to you.

These names may even be couples and encouraged.

Note: people will come in and out of this circle and that’s okay. I suggest revisiting this list yearly.

Step 5 – Choose Your Top 3 = Circle of INFLUENCE

Now it really gets personal. From the 12 names, I want you to pull three people who have the most influence on you.

These Top 3 have the most influence on you and your Inner Circle for right now. Not at some time but right now.

These are 3 influential people you will update first when something happens. You go to them for advice and counsel. You call them when something goes wrong and you need depth.

They hold the most influence in your life right now.

Step 6 – Choose the 1 = Circle of IMPACT

You knew this was coming. This is the guy. Everyone needs “a guy” (gender neutral) that is “the person” in your life.

This person has the most impact on your life. No matter what, you need them not only in your life but on your side and in your junk. The good, the bad, and the ugly.

But you may say, I don’t have “just one person”. You’re allowed two because it’s YOUR list.

The goal is finding the person(s) that have the most impact in your life.

Now What?

Determining my 12 Relational Core Connections was very revealing to me. It gave me a snapshot of the people that really mattered to me. Here is what I did next:

Confirm the List –  If I’m going to invest my time into 12 people, I want to be sure of the names. This took me longer than I expected probably because of how serious I took the assignment.

Send a Message – I sent a message to each person on the list letting them know how much I appreciated their role in my life and specifically let them know I considered them part of my “circle of investment”, “circle of influence” or “circle of impact.” Every person responded that the message meant a lot to them.

Begin Scheduling Time With Each Person – Since you’ve focused on only 12 names, you can begin to intentionally insert them into your schedule. If you only have a certain amount of time this week or month, choose the 12.

Closing Challenge…

So, have you already began to think of names for your list? Are you an over-achiever and already started writing them down?

The challenge is obvious: create your 12 relational core connections. Go through each of the six steps and work through the process.

Motivated professionals need to focus on their relationships especially that are core to who they want to be and the quality of their lives.

These are the areas of personal development that will make your life better and more fulfilled.

Closing Question…

When will you take the time to determine your 12 relational core connections?

Four Ways to Minimize a Sugar Rush!

     This is a guest post from a new team member, Treva Yaccino.  She’s the CEO & Lead Holistic Health Nutritionist of Living Tree Health and Wellness.

    You can read, learn, and be coached by Treva at: http://www.livingtreehealthandwellness.com/

  Treva will be a regular contributor to Be Physically Better in the area of Nutrition.

We have all heard at some point that we shouldn’t eat too much sugar. Although this great advice may be in the back of our minds when we reach for a soda or cookie, it’s easy to push it aside or justify it. You don’t eat dessert too often so one little cookie won’t hurt, right?

The problem with this thinking is that unfortunately we are getting way more sugar than we even realize in our everyday foods, even “healthy” foods!

Sugar is added to almost everything we eat. Cereal, bread, juice, dried fruit, meat, yogurt, even condiments! With all this added sugar in our diet, we may be eating more “dessert” than we originally thought.

It’s estimated that American’s now eat about 150 pounds of sugar every year, about 22-35 teaspoons a day! This overdoes of sugar leads to so many diseases and simply throws our bodies off balance. The high levels of sugar in our systems lead to the following:

• organ disease
• digestion issues
• diabetes
• depression
• arthritis
• weight gain

A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition noted that sugar affects you on a cellular level. Take your immune system, for example. Sugar decreases the amount of white blood cells that help fend off bad bacteria and infection. Consuming the normal 30 teaspoons of sugar of a day can cut your disease fighting ability in half!

No wonder we feel sick all the time! So, even if you’re not a big dessert person, it’s time to become proactive in cutting out the sugar.

Here are Four Ways to Minimize a Sugar Rush!

1.  Read the Label… Like REALLY Read It!

• How many grams of sugar are in a serving?
• What is the serving size?
• How many servings do you generally eat in a sitting?

For instance, most 24oz sodas are considered 2 servings, so be sure to double the grams of sugar if you are drinking the whole thing.

Reading the label may be a foreign concept for those of us who are busy. You don’t need a biology degree. Simply look at the label and ask the above questions.

2.  Watch Out for Cereal

Most “Kids” cereal can easily pack in 15 grams of sugar in a cup. If you do choose cereal, look for less than 5 grams of sugar a serving, and keep it to one serving!

Cereal is a necessary evil and often because we’re just too lazy to make something else especially in the morning. There are three compelling reasons why breakfast is a no brainer. Check them out here. (and cereal is not on the list…)

Again, if you’re a “Serial Cereal” Eater, look for less than 5 grams of sugar per serving and eat just one serving.

3.  Avoid Sugary Drinks

Soda, Vitamin water, Gatorade, Iced teas, and (dare I say it) Starbucks!

Even fruit juices can have added sugar, on top of the sugar that already comes from the fruit.

Also, don’t be fooled by diet drinks. Sugar substitutes have very similar effects as regular sugar on the body.

Is this true of you? Monitor your intake for a week and make the necessary adjustments.

4.  Buy Food in Their Most Natural Form

If it comes in a box, bag or can it’s mostly been processed and sugar has been added.

Buy fresh or frozen fruit INSTEAD of canned fruit in heavy syrup. Why? because, lets be real, syrup is just another word for SUGAR.

This can be a challenge if we bring food into the office each work day. But it’s possible and worth it.

Think ahead and avoid buying food from the vending machine or sandwich shop when possible.

Closing Challenge…

As motivated, busy professionals, it is SO tempting and easy to justify your actions with a quick sugar fix. But reaching your potential means Making the Healthiest Choice and minimizing or even eliminating sugar.

Here’s a tip! Satisfy your sweet tooth with a piece of fruit, which contains fiber and nutrients or some dark chocolate.

Trust us… your body will thank you!

BONUS! Here is a healthy and tasty recipe to help you avoid sugar! Just click —> Banana Nut Chia Muffins!

Sugar simply affects too many areas of your mind and body within a given day at work and is worth determining its effect on your productivity.

Closing Question…

What healthy decision can you make today to eliminate some form of sugar in your diet today?

For more information, check out:

http://www.livingtreehealthandwellness.com/

What One Area In Your Life Needs to Change Now?

Sara is a sharp woman. The average person would do anything to have her success, her life.

If she were to compare herself to most everyone else, she’s doing just fine. But that means looking backwards.

Sara is the kind of girl who looks forward and inward. And she knows she has a personal urgency on her hands.

The reality is she knows. Oh how she knows. And so much energy is spent not addressing the reality that something needs to change. And soon.

What is a Personal Urgency?

An area of your life that is critical to your success that has deteriorated and needs immediate attention. It’s become personal and now urgent.

What area do you need to take better care of right now in your life? The reality is there is one specific area that if you addressed right now, would make a dramatic difference in your life and potentially affect other areas as well.

It may be your health.

Your nutrition used to be a strength and it has slacked off. Not intentionally but is a far cry from what it used to be or should be in your life. This could also mean drinking too much for example. 

Your fitness now exists of one sit-up in the morning (getting out of bed) and walking to the car to get to work or to the fridge. You want and even need to be in better shape and even know it will help your nutrition goals.

It may be your work.

You simply don’t plan and just attack your day. You claim you don’t have time but you do because of how much time you actually waste if truth be told.

You’re not productive and use busy as a synonym but you know in your heart you could be more productive.

It may be your relationships.

Your marriage once vibrant is now stale. Not intentionally but life has taken over and that relationship needs to be revived.

Your children are not getting the time and attention they need. You’ve justified your actions but you know time is ticking and you’re going to regret not making the most of this time in their lives.

And those are just a few examples. Chances are something in you resonated with one of those examples or another one immediately came to mind.

If you were honest, you never meant for any of these areas to slide but the reality is you’re here now in a personal urgency to improve this key area immediately. And you may even feel you could improve in each of the above.

Yet one needs more attention above all of the others.

But first, why are you putting it off? Possible reasons:

Avoiding the Work – you know there’s going to be a lot of effort. And ironically, because you put it off yesterday, you have more work today.

Uncertainty – you’re unsure how to tackle it. And instead of doing the necessary research and effort to find out or create a plan, the uncertainty continues to push out doing something, anything.

Fear – nothing beats good old-fashioned fear to put something off. Being afraid of the unknown is a very real fear but often only in your head.

How do you know your personal urgency that needs to change right now?

1. You’re Simply Avoiding It

Nobody else may know but one day has turned into one week now into a month…

Unfortunately the thinking is “why do today what i could do tomorrow?”

You may not normally be an avoider but this area has a hold on you and it needs to change.

2. Others Are Hinting and / or Concerned

You not only hear the comments but you feel them. Others may not even know they’re getting through to you but it’s working far more than they even realize.

You may have even had a mini intervention and you told them you would change and meant it but here you are…

Or it may be in their joking that has just enough truth in it for you to get the point. Are you?

3. It’s Only Getting Worse

What used to be only in your head is now becoming progressively worse in a tangible way. Ugh.

It may be obvious by the weight and / or lack of exercise or your wife and / or kids have started to detach. Or it could be less obvious by just skating through your day settling for busy not really productive.

Closing Challenge…

So, has the one area you need to change in your life right now become obvious to you?

Have I raised awareness and a sense of urgency?

I truly hope so. Motivated, busy professionals need to be challenged sometimes especially in key areas that could have have exponential results if improved.

I want you to discover and develop your potential. But often it starts with one key area that needs to be revived and addressed.

Do something today. Right now.

Your decision may need to be to schedule a free 30 minute consultation to discuss making this an other changes in your life to reach your potential. If so, go to this link and I will contact you quickly.

But spend some time thinking today on an action plan to turn this personal urgency key area from a weakness to a strength.

Closing Question…

What is the one area of personal urgency in your life you need to change right now and what is the first thing you’re going to do to address it right now?