2 Kinds of People in This World

There are two kinds of people in this world: Those who use themselves to benefit others and those who use others to benefit themselves. 

When you envision your future, how do you plan to get to where you want to be? Many people plan to achieve their goals by first looking to see who can help them, rather than who they can help. Anne Frank profoundly said, “No one has ever become poor by giving”. When you are inwardly focused, thinking solely about who can serve you, it’s likely that you become trapped in a detrimental mindset that leads to destructive thoughts and actions. 

When you make the choice to be the person who uses themselves to benefit others, you can create a chain reaction that extends far beyond your own reach. In doing so, you will most likely begin to notice the benefits that you, yourself will gain, by simply giving. Even if those benefits are not completely tangible, the worst case scenario is that you created a connection with another person and impacted their life to some degree. Not so bad, is it?

Ask yourself: Which type of person am I and which one do I want to be? What can I do right now to benefit someone else?

10 Principles of Intuitive Eating

In light of National Eating Disorder Awareness Week, I have decided to write this week's post on intuitive eating. It is essentially based on the fact that our bodies have their own mechanisms to alert us when we are hungry or when we are satisfied, and if we listen carefully, we can become more in tune with what our bodies are trying to tell us. Imagine a baby, it cries when it’s hungry and it stops eating when it’s full. We are innately intuitive eaters, but begin to neglect intuitive eating when we place restrictions or rules on the food. When we eat intuitively, we allow our bodies to gauge when, what, and how much to eat, rather than our emotions, external influences, or our thoughts. In their best selling book, Intuitive Eating, Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch outline several principles to making peace with food.

10 Principles of Intuitive Eating:

1. Reject the Diet Mentality: The phrase “yo-yo dieting”, is used to describe the act of repeatedly going on and off a diet. However, this seems to be dieting in general. How many times have you or someone you love been on a diet only to “cheat”, restart, quit, restart, “cheat”, and continue the cycle? This tends to cause guilt surrounding food choices and shame toward what is attributed to “lack of willpower” (which is false, by the way). When you realize that diets do not benefit you long-term, you may find that your thoughts and emotions surrounding food will begin to serve you rather than control you.

2. Honor Your Hunger: Begin to recognize hunger as your body’s way of telling you that it needs fuel for energy. Respect that request.

3. Make Peace with Food: Food is nourishment for the body that is meant to be enjoyed and savored.

4. Respect your body: Rid your mind of judgement calls that accompany rules when it comes to food. Fill your plates with mostly whole foods and as few processed foods as possible. However, sometimes a pizza is the move. Learn how to love your brain, mind, and body and allow yourself to enjoy nourishing foods often and indulgent foods more sparingly.

5. Respect Your Fullness: In the same way that you recognize and respect your feelings of hunger, do the same with satiety.

6. Discover the Satisfaction Factor: When you eat, take the time to be mindful of the various aspects of your food: it’s origin, the preparation behind it, the smell, taste, texture, etc. Food is meant to nourish and eating is meant to bring satisfaction and pleasure. When you’ve realized that you’re satisfied, you may begin to become more in tune with your satiety meter.

7. Honor Your Feelings Without Using Food: Allow your emotions to come and go as they do throughout the day. Instead of mindlessly eating when you’re stressed, sad, or even elated, be mindful of your emotions and your triggers. This will encourage you to become more aware of the difference between hunger, appetite, and emotional cravings.

8. Respect Your Mind: Let any overly critical or unrealistic expectations or thoughts dissipate from your mind and accept your body as it is. It’s okay to have goals, but remember that “healthy is an outfit that looks different on every body”.

9. Exercise - Feel the Difference: Exercise is beneficial to many functions of the body and we are more likely to exercise when doing activities that we enjoy. Not only does movement affect our aesthetic, but it also impacts our organs and mental health. Exercise with the intent of feeling (accomplished, energized, etc) rather than looking (ripped, skinny, etc).

10. Honor Your Health: Keep your health in mind, as your physical, mental and emotional health are all directly connected and should not be compartmentalized. When you become more mindful of your emotions, of how your food tastes and how your body feels when you eat, you may start to notice how certain foods make you feel better than others. Find what works for you, every body is different.

I know the depths of the emotions and the immense battles that are eating disorders and do not claim that these ideals and principles will get someone through recovery. However, I do believe that this may help to interrupt some disordered eating patterns or deter some from developing unhealthy patterns. 

If you or someone you know suffers from an eating disorder, please, (encourage them to) seek professional help. Hold on to hope, you can heal.

Click here to visit the National Eating Disorder Awareness help page

NEDA Helpline: 1(800)931.2237

3 Keys to A Champion's Mindset

While watching the 2018 Winter Olympics, I often wonder what goes on inside the mind of these incredible athletes. With these athletes having immense talent, incredible work ethics and skill sets, it’s intriguing to know the secrets behind their success. The spotlights are on them, some have worked their whole lives for a few seconds of competition, there are cameras in their faces, and the entire world is watching. How do they perform their best under such intense pressure? Here are 3 key elements to modeling the mindset of those who come out on top.

Warning: adopting these 3 elements has the potential to result in a competitive edge.

Visualization: Champions visualize their game (run, stroke, match, or race) before they begin. They often begin with the end in mind and visualize themselves going through the motions perfectly and overcoming any obstacles that be present. During a visualization, an athlete sees everything they would in the moment of an event, they may physically move or imagine themselves moving as they would during their competition, and control their self talk throughout the process.

Anxiety Management: Champions, like most of us, might still get nervous before they have to perform; however, they have developed the necessary skills of managing pressure and stress. These elite performers often enlist several modalities to overcome anxiety. Many use music, meditation, prayer, and self-talk to help ease stress and pressure. Self talk can be used for relaxation, motivation, and inspiration. It’s important to speak truth - the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you God - in order to manage your emotions. Anxiety is something that can only live in the future and thrives off of hypotheticals and exaggerations.

Confidence:  After a competition, you will often hear winners say that they simply did their best and hoped for a favorable outcome. Champions are almost always confident. They have incredible knowledge of their sport and their competition, allowing them to anticipate changes that might need to be made and quickly adapt when obstacles are present. They are extremely self-aware and confident in their abilities which allows them to execute their tasks at a high level. We’ve all heard the cliche quote, “If you believe in yourself, anything is possible”, and…well…it’s true.

When Life Doesn't Go As Planned...

When things don’t go the way we intend we can get sucked into a cycle of sadness, depression, fear, or anxiety, replaying questions like “how could this happen to me?”, “what did I do wrong?”, or “am I not enough?”, etc.. No matter how (in)significant the incident may be, the questions are always the same. 

It’s all about perspective. If you believe that everything happens for you, it will open your eyes to something new, to teach you a lesson, or allow you to gain a new perspective. If I were to raise the question, “last time things didn’t go as planned, did it end up being okay?”. The answer will typically be a resounding “yes”. You’re still here, you’re alive, you’re seeking growth, and you’re reading this…

Next time an event or situation does not go as planned, ask yourself a set of different questions, such as the following: What can I learn from this? What exactly can I improve for next time? How can I use this experience to help someone else? What opportunities can I now take advantage of that I may have missed before?

In the same way that your actions and circumstances can influence your thoughts, your thoughts can influence your actions and circumstances. Choose wisely.

4 Tips to Instantly Transform Your Emotional State

Change your physiology.  If you’re ever feeling down, nervous, or insecure, the easiest way to change your state is by changing your body’s positioning. To do this, roll your shoulders back, stand tall, and smile with your teeth. Dance to fun, up beat music, or move your body in a way that makes you feel strong and empowered.

Eradicate negative self talk. Immediately counter negative thoughts with ones that are true and positive. For example: “I look so fat” becomes “my body is capable of incredible things and I have a strong frame that can get me from point A to B!”

Visualize a positive memory. It’s hard to be sad when think of a time when you laughed so hard you almost had an accident, or a time when you were so confident that you may have even surprised yourself. Try by closing your eyes and thinking of a positive memory, feel what you felt at that time, see all that you saw, hear everything you heard, and remember the goodness that surrounded you.

Practice gratitude. Our focus becomes our reality. Focus on everything you are grateful for. Place your hand on your heart and name people, places, and things that you are grateful for, or you can write them down in a journal and do this periodically so that you can keep track of your lists as time goes on. And yes, it’s as easy as that.