I was speaking to one of my clients the other day. He was having great difficulty following his eating plan and exercise program, which is why he hired me as a coach. Often times, the only "exercise" an executive or professional person has is "climbing" the corporate ladder. As their professional life is soaring, their wellness is crashing and burning. Deadlines, appointments, "flash" meetings, and traveling often create extreme difficulty in pursuing a balanced life. The saddest reality is, however, that once something happens to "us", our companies continue to make profits and operate as if we were never an integral part of the machine in the first place. How sad. Sometimes, I believe that we place more value on our roles in our companies than our companies do. What we don't place value on is our own, personal health.
So, what type of mindset do we need to embrace in order to ‘keep on keeping on' when everything around us is pulling us in the opposite direction? Well, for starters, I'd open up the obituary portion of your local newspaper. Notice the ages of the people depicted for whom their families are eating at the funeral lunch. Next, I'd like you to think about how YOU feel the moment you step foot out of your bed and onto the floor in the morning. Are you just totally excited about living out the day? Or, would you prefer to either crawl back into bed OR turn the clocks back 20 years?
Well, if you're like most of us — you really can't do either one. You could call off sick, but you probably won't because if you called off sick every time you felt this badly…well…you'd never go to work. As far as turning back the clocks — well — good luck with that one! So, what kind mind game can we play with ourselves to help us along?
For starters, realize that there is no doubt about it. We are all going to pass on some day. I wish I could say that lifestyle plays no part in our life-span. But, let's face it. If we habitually ride a motorcycle like a maniac without a helmet, we have a pretty good chance of having an accident and not surviving. I believe in miracles and I know God can intervene where-ever and whenever He wants. But, He also gave us a brain and we make our choices. Although, bad things can happen to careful people, bad things can definitely happen to reckless people. The most sobering idea I will share with you today is that many of us are killing ourselves slowly over time instead of quickly while being reckless. Yes, getting old DOES happen over time. But, we can actually "be" 15 to 20 years "older" in age than we really are just by making poor lifestyle choices as they relate to our eating habits, exercise habits, and sleeping habits.
Learning to prepare foods with little or no fat content, choosing a piece of fruit over a piece of cake, doing cardio and strength training 3 to 4 times per week for at least 30 minutes a day, and getting 8 hours of sleep a night will greatly improve the way you feel. In fact, if you implement the first three suggestions here, you'll see an improvement in your ability to sleep, as well.
Now, please do NOT misunderstand me. You can do everything right and still die what seems to be an untimely death. This is a universal truth for which no one has an answer. God is in control and sometimes we don't understand the things that life throws at us or our loved ones. But, this universal truth does NOT alleviate us from our accountability for our own health and wellness.
Think about it this way: We're all gonna die; but, I wanna feel good until I do.
