You are here: Home / Archives for Thriving Health Principles / Awaken

The Healthy Entrepreneur

February 10, 2012 By 2 Comments

The healthy entrepreneur? Or is it more like this.

 

In the start up phase…

  • Cash it tight, very tight.
  • College style diets of kraft dinner.
  • No time for fun and games.
  • Physical activity declines.
  • Stress begins to mount and sleep is affected.
  • The path to unhealthy is set.

 

In phase 2 as business grows…

  • Day, night, and weekends are focused working in the business trying to be sustainable.
  • fast and easy choices for food are the norm.
  • The drive through server knows you by name along with your usual order.
  • Physical activity (never mind structured exercise) is gone, long gone.
  • Stress continues to climb and sleep continues to decline.
  • The java jolt rises to prominence, often throughout the day.
  • But business is growing so it’s all OK!

 

In phase 3 business success is achieved. Wahoo, you’ve arrived, finally!

  • No time to celebrate though as there is more work to be done.
  • Gotta take it to the next level.
  • The thinking of once I…(insert any number of financial goals), then I… (insert any number of lifetstyle goals or dreams) enters your thoughts all to often.
  • Perhaps its out of fear for your future, retirement, kids well being, etc.
  • Perhaps its related to a “keep up with the Jones’s kind of dream” and the carrot is always dangling just beyond your reach.
  • Bear down, work harder and longer and it will be yours.
  • It never is, though.

 

Not so healthy, is it? You forget about actually living your dreams, now and every day. Forgotten is the need to take care of yourself so that there will be a someday. Unhealthy eating, limited physical activity, rising stress, and poor sleep leading to obesity dominates the picture. This lifestyle has simply become “normal”.

The train that is you and your life are squarely on a track picking up speed towards a massive wreck with your health that will significantly impact your dreams of once I…, then I, perhaps ending them permanently.

Okay, wow, heavy stuff, right. You might be thinking ya but that’s not me. Maybe not but the pattern starts early and the actions leading to this end result unconsciously take hold over several years. You might not even see it coming. Take a look right now. Are you an entrepreneur who might be falling into this pattern of life? Even if you are not an entrepreneur but can resonate with this pattern in your working life the time to begin to change is NOW, before it’s too late!

 

The good news is that SHIFT HAPPENS! Health can be reclaimed and sustained forever.

I get that time is a factor. So is your life and having one when you want it most. For the most part time is an excuse! Here’s a simple step that you can use to get started in reclaiming your health.

Use strategic abandonment to remove one action that you know does not help your health (i.e. 30-60 minutes of daily TV, facebook, or other time wasting things) by replacing it with one that will help your health (i.e. exercise, recreation, mindful dinners at the table). Net time impact – ZERO. It works, really. It can be that easy. Get used to that then do another, then another. Baby steps to sustained change. There is no better way to integrate change in your busy life and make it stick.

 

For so much more on how to achieve this change consider my book “Make It Stick”.

“Life is meant to be embraced, enjoyed and fully lived, not merely endured!”

 

Yours in health,

 

Brent

 

Be an advocate of Thriving Health. Forward this to anyone you feel would appreciate receiving this message. Thanks for your support. I appreciate it.

Filed Under: Awaken, Thriving Health Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Overlooking Lanakai

January 9, 2012 By Leave a Comment

The parking on the street near our newly rented home on Lanakai Beach seemed pretty crowded. I figured the beach was pretty popular and parking was at a premium, but the people were walking the other direction and they carried camel back water systems, and wore light hiking shoes. Where were they going? I soon found out the trailhead to the panoramic pillboxes of Lanakai was just around the corner. Those are the things we saw atop the nearby mountain. They were WWII bunkers for looking out over the sea and protecting that part of the island of Oahu, Hawaii. We decided that we gotta go check them out. What a view we’ll have.

The Goal... up there on top!

The guidebook says its a pretty step and difficult hike in parts. We haven’t hiked in a long while and we’d have a 3 year old along with us. Could we do it? We should have been better prepared. Are we fit enough? Would it be safe? Questions each of us had before we agreed to go and at several points along the way.

The trail was a hard packed dirt and rocky path. It was dry and a fairly hot day. A bit hazy from volcanic ash blowing in from the Big Island. The trail started steep with plenty of tree roots and rocks to maneuver around. Okay for us adults but a bit big for little Maya. What am I getting into here? An so began the game of froggy? Boing, boing, boing, as I lifted her up over the bigger rocks and roots. We alternated her walking and me helping her climb.

We reached a ledge overlooking the bay. Wow was it ever breathtaking! A panoramic view of Kailua beach and Lanakai beach that stretched on for miles as well as Kailua town and the mountains to the west. Maya just looked on in wonder and asked all kinds of questions about everything below. We sat a moment and took it all in then continued upward. Others looked at little Maya charging up the mountain and smiled as they struggled for a breath but seemed amazed at what she was doing and the experience she would have. I loved it. Maya loved it. We all loved it. Atop the mountain we sat a long while, ate some snacks, drank loads of water, and soaked in an even better view of all that was below.

The path down was interesting, especially with Maya along. It became another game of monkey jump and pass downhill between me and a friend of mine on the steep parts. Lots of fun for Maya, a lot more work for us. She loved it. Finally as the path flattened out a bit Maya was tuckered out. Time for dad to carry her the rest of the way down. When we got back to the house the only thing I could think to do was to jump into the pool to cool off and rest.

Me and my WHY!

What an amazing adventure! An adventure that happened out of the blue. An adventure that could not have even been considered without having at least a moderate level of ongoing Thriving Health.

Experiencing the amazing views and sharing it with my 3 year old daughter, wife, and good friends is one reason WHY I aim to maintain my Thriving Health.

 

“Life is measured not by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.”  Unknown

I want to be ready for every moment that comes along out of the blue that just might take my breath away.

 

Release weight, achieve thriving health and begin living your Ideal Life TODAY!  

Yours in health,

 

Brent

 

Filed Under: Awaken Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

What Is Thriving Health

May 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment

What is Thriving Health to you?  What will achieving and living with Thriving Health enable you to be, do, or have?

Two pretty simple questions but have you really given much thought to either?  I’d like to share with you my take on each and encourage you to deeply connect with your own vision of Thriving Health.

To me Thriving Health is …..

“Feeling, looking, and being naturally me with the energy, mobility, strength, and endurance to joyfully do ALL I want, when I want, and with whom I want and to do so embracing my health and not living in fear of it.”

To me, some of the things that Thriving Health means include:

Actively playing with my daughter instead of being relegated to the sidelines to only watch.
Being able to SCUBA dive – now, and when I’m 90.
Going on adventures where, because of my health and fitness, I can see and experience things many others cannot.
Being alive and active for years and years to come so I can continue to enjoy
new exciting adventures.
Being able to run a half marathon on my 80th birthday, if I want to.
Being a wonderful role model for my extended family and friends.
Looking in the mirror everyday and smiling.

Reflecting on your personal definition of Thriving Health, and what achieving and living with it will give you, sets a powerful motivation for taking the action you need to take to make it happen.  Surround yourself with reminders of what Thriving Health will give you.  Be inspired, be motivated, and act.

Slow and steady made easy!  As you achieve more and more of your Thriving Health it will stick and be yours forever.

I would love to hear your definition of Thriving Health and what you will gain as it enables you to live your Ideal Life.

Please share your comments below.

Putting your intention out there is a powerful message to your inner negative beliefs and the filtering system they depend on to hold you back and control you.  It’s time to break free of that roadblock.

Release weight, achieve thriving health and begin living your Ideal Life TODAY!

Yours in health,

Brent

Filed Under: Awaken Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Double Dumb

October 15, 2010 By Leave a Comment

The infamous Double Down is rumored to launch in Canada next week and is poised, along with all it’s competition in the apparent backlash against healthy eating, to ensure we maintain the trend of escalating obesity and the growing epidemic of largely preventable lifestyle related illnesses in the western world.

The KFC Double Down

Here are the stats directly from KFC.

Double Down - Canadian Version

Serving Size (gms) – 217

Calories -  540

Total FAT (gms) - 30

Saturated FAT (gms) - 8.2

Transfat (gms) - 0.5

cholesterol (mg) - 150

Sodium (mg) - 1740

Carbohydrates (gms) - 17

Fibre (gms) - 0

Sugars (gms) - 1

Protein (gms) - 50

On his review food blogger Jason Kelley wrote; “This is perhaps the most insane “sandwich” I have ever seen. A fried chicken patty, 2 slices of cheese, 2 slices of bacon, and another fried chicken patty.  Wow.  Sorry I don’t have much else to say, it is like the Monster Burger of chicken.  My mind is boggled.”

There are independent estimates that the actual numbers may be significantly higher.  The Vancouver Sun reported preliminary estimates showing this one menu item can be estimated to supply more than the daily recommended allowance in fat (124%), saturated fat (117%), cholesterol (105%), sodium (125%) and protein (194%), as well as 61% of your daily recommended calorie intake.  That’s just one item, aside from anything else you eat or drink that day.

Unfortunately there are many other similar items out there, and some even worse.  As long as we keep buying them, they’ll keep creating them.  It is great marketing, really. In a way I may be perpetuating it by writing this but my intent is to continue to provide moments of awakening so that you can make an informed and conscious choice with your eating.

Why are these types of items coming on the market in today’s day and age?  Well, the growing emphasis towards healthy eating frustrates some of you.  Your own challenges of not being able to make your efforts of changing to a healthier lifestyle stick leave you angry, depressed, and open to influence.  Some proponents of a low carb diet may be “okay” with this type of item thinking because it is low carb it must be a healthy choice.  Some of you remain stuck in your unconscious lifestyle loop and totally embrace poor nutrition not yet seeing the massive health train wreck coming your way. Others, impacted by the current economy, see little alternative when it comes to cost and a tight budget.

The fast food industry knows these things.  They see the trends and they act to respond by delivering something to speak directly to all of these people.  Unfortunately, if you are one of these people, your inner voice may be repeating a story over and over inside, often unconsciously, that keeps you connected to your bad choices.  Unfortunately the external influences of these companies along with the influence of people close to you, time pressure, financial pressure, and a multitude of other pressures escalates the power of your repeating habit.  The result: the double down or a similar choice.

All of the external influential factors are understandable.  They are a part of our world and we need to deal with them. When we can see them and sift between those that support us and those that do not we can choose.  When we can hear our own inner voice loud and clear we can again determine whether or not the beliefs held deep down are acting to keep us off track or not.

Should we never have a burger or fast food again?  Absolutely not!  In moderation and occasionally we can be fine.  In conscious choice we can be fine.  There can be reasons to try to rationalize something like the double down but… in my opinion the bottom line is that there are several detrimental factors (i.e. saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium) and virtually NO food value whatsoever leading to many reasons to bypass this and all of the other fat loaded fast food choices now available and, hopefully, avoid another kind of bypass!

When the ads hit, be aware of the influences acting over you and make an informed, conscious choice.

In health,

Brent

Filed Under: Awaken
« Older Posts
Powered by WishList Member - Membership Site Software