Do What You Love to Do

A month into the new year and I realize how often it is that I encourage others to go do what they really love to do. It’s easy to be weighed down by life circumstances. Living in this part of the world, once you have your basic needs met, we all have the same 24 hours each day to live our best life. A good friend once told me that time is our most valuable resource and we should choose wisely how we utilize it. I took that advice to heart and haven’t looked back. Time is also a perception (Einstein) and in the book the Big Leap by Gay Hendricks, there is a chapter where he goes over how we are the source of our time. I will state that once we take ownership of how we use our time we can find more time.

I have said many times that doing what you love to do is actually the most effective use of your time, because it is like having wind in your sails. Time may seem to pass by more quickly when we’re having fun and at the same time loving what you are doing gives you more energy to accomplish what you need to do in life. Nothing worthwhile is easy, it just feels easier when you have a high level of enthusiasm or passion to do the necessary work.

Very often people think about making money with what they love to do. Of course that is possible, but it is more important to make the leap to actually do what you love to do first, then the path is revealed. Often what we love to do is a creative pursuit and that is worthwhile doing just to be healthy! We all have something unique to express in the world and it is energy that must be expressed through the body- go do what you love to do!

Reflect, look forward, practice gratitude

I’ve been thinking the past few days that it is a good plan to reflect upon this year, check on the goals I made at the start of 2023. Look forward to what goals and adventures may happen in 2024, wrap up 2023 with gratitude and move forward with enthusiasm to next year.

I must repeat the message of how healthy it is to pursue creative endeavours. I kept going with music appreciation at all my classes and am so happy to engage everyone in music. I am also furthering my own learning in music and feel very inspired.

Take a moment to feel gratitude for your life wherever you are and best wishes for 2024!

Get into the exercise habit

The dark days of November and December are the time to really get extra serious about regular workouts. There’s lots of celebratory occasions coming up with extra indulgences, so regular workouts need to happen. No magic formula other than intention and commitment. Make a commitment to how much exercise you can realistically do in a week, have some flexibility on when and stick with the sessions even if the time changes.

Weight gain is much easier to prevent than it is to lose. I’m not a dieter by any means, although I do make a few guidelines for myself to follow for indulgences. Here are a few of them:

  • Keep yourself honest with your alcohol intake, record how many drinks you have in a week
  • Make a top 10 list of favourite party foods and stick with it. If it is not on the list, then leave it on the tray. Fried food is one of mine, and perhaps that is too broad a category
  • No sugary breakfasts. Healthy stuff starts the day off right and have fun later

Most of all, I get extra serious about workouts this time of year. Cycling classes have some extra challenges. Stay diligent with weight training. As my colleague told me, exercise really is the fountain of youth-

Halloween- a creative occasion

Love or hate Halloween, I think we can mark the day by being creative. I’ve gone through various phases in life where I was really into trick or treating, coming up with a costume as an adult, and now I enjoy seeing and hearing about the costumes the kids I know come up with. I’ve put together Halloween themed playlists for my classes the past couple years and have really enjoyed the creative process so much.

Better than new years resolutions, Halloween provides an opportunity to be creative in who you want to be for a day! I’ve discussed the book Atomic Habits a couple times this past week and the one takeaway message I carry is to find identity for the habits you want to build. Always a good exercise to consider what kind of a person you want to be- have some extra fun today, Happy Halloween!

Metabolic Typing Diet

I’ve studied nutrition for many years and read so many diet books. The best book by far is the Metabolic Typing Diet, as it offers practical information to find the right combination of foods for optimal energy specific to your metabolism. The questionnaire brings on a level of awareness and attention that is needed for a lifelong habit of eating to fuel feeling energized. I read the book before I studied TCM and the questions very much overlap with TCM questions to understand a person’s constitution.

Here is the questionnaire available online to take:

https://uprightmovement.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/The_Metabolic_Type_Self_Test.pdf

The Metabolic Typing Diet Book: https://mtdiet.com

Essentially, the questionnaire helps you understand the ideal ratio of carbs, protein and fat to eat in order to feel your best. It is easy and it works!!

Falling asleep during meditation…is OK

I was introduced to body based meditation back in phys ed school where we were shown a variety of mind body practices. We did a body scan during the class while lying down and I fell asleep pretty much every time! I was also caught nodding off in class sometimes where my classmates were concerned for the health of my neck in how much it bobbed up and down quickly.

Even with many years of meditation practice behind me, it is still a significant risk for me to fall asleep during meditation while lying down. It amazes me how easily others in the field of yoga and meditation will diagnose me as exhausted and not doing the meditation properly. Having tried for 20 years, I have come to accept the possibility of a little snooze and enjoy feeling great afterward. The point of meditation is to relax, so snoozing a bit IS evidently changing your state to one of serious relaxation.

This month, I shared some meditation recordings at a class I covered and I would like to share them here:

https://music.apple.com/ca/album/celestial-sleep-healing-sound-for-rest-and-relaxation/1538626410

This 20 minute meditation with the crystal bowls is incredibly relaxing and useful if you are ever up in the middle of the night and have trouble falling asleep again.

https://books.apple.com/ca/audiobook/seven-masters-one-path-course/id272362167

The John Selby book is an excellent easy to understand book on meditation. This audio book makes the practice more guided and accessible.

Apparently it is best that you remain awake during non sleep deep rest or yoga nidra, and honestly, sometimes I fall asleep and that’s ok, especially if you wake up feeling great.

The mind needs constant taming, and this is where daily mindfulness practice makes all the difference. Making a daily effort to practice even just for a few minutes IS the way to learn and improve.

The Barbie Movie

I just saw the Barbie movie, because a good friend asked me to join her. I had no plans to go to this film, but I got into the spirit to have fun with a friend. We wore pink and ate candy! We laughed and enjoyed ourselves. We both played with Barbies when we were kids and have fond memories, although we don’t recall all the different Barbies they referenced. Probably because neither of us had many Barbies. My most memorable Barbie was the one with arms that moved up to head with the push of a button- Magic Moves Barbie. It was a gift from my grandpa when he let me pick any toy I wanted from the toy store- truly memorable.

I most enjoyed putting on the various outfits and shoes on Barbie and I believe it helped develop some creativity and fashion sense, or perhaps just an ingrained love for the 80s. When I learned what the proportions on Barbie translated to real human measurements was it was disturbing. I could see the insidious unrealistic expectations placed on girls/women for an ‘ideal’ body.

I played the Dua Lipa track Dance the Night from the film as soon as I heard it and I just loved watching the dance scene (and others). The music in the film is so well done and the acting with the dolls come to life concept is great. I wasn’t too keen to see the movie and came out pleasantly surprised to see intelligent humour, gender and social commentary, along with a beautiful real life Barbie Land. It’s like a high class music video! Not to mention the Beach with a professional like Ken!

12 hour rest from eating

Intermittent fasting has been a trend for some time. I haven’t done much of it myself, because I notice I perform better when working in the mornings when I have some breakfast, so I eat in order to fully concentrate when I’m with clients. On holiday, I will delay breakfast with ease for the sake of leisure.

A colleague recommended books by Satchin Panda and I read the Circadian Code. Here’s the TED talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/satchin_panda_circadian_code_to_extend_longevity

The science in the book was very compelling in setting up your life more in line with hours of sunlight and ensuring you have a window of at least 12 hours where you are not eating(fasting). If we sleep 8 hours, then it is relatively easy to have an additional 4 hours of no eating. It is more ideal to eat an earlier dinner to ensure the food is digested so the digestive system can slow down at its natural time, which is at night. The concept of ideal times for organs is very much in line with traditional chinese medicine, where energy in the body moves through a different organ every 2 hours.

Minimizing exposure to screens and artificial light at night is helpful for better quality sleep since it mimics natural light conditions. No one will be perfect with these practices living in a big city- compliance most of the time and being flexible makes it work with major benefits to your long term health.

Tina Turner Chanting

I was saddened to learn of Tina Turner’s passing last week. She was a great positive influence. I saw her in concert for her farewell tour. I knew some of her music and decided to get some tickets at the last minute and they were in the last row of the Air Canada Centre. She was an incredible performer, so I looked further into her music and watched the film What’s Love Got to Do with It. The only good part is her resilience and how well she did in the end. I read her book I, Tina, which was even more harrowing. She credits Buddhist chanting as the practice that helped her find her resolve to leave Ike.

I read her other books and additional books she referenced on Buddhism. It does have a positive effect, although I can’t say I’m a strong adherent of the practice of chanting. Either a gentle movement practice or more quiet stillness seems to suit me better. I did listen to a variety of chanting material and put together this playlist a few years ago, featuring Tina Turner:

https://music.apple.com/ca/playlist/chanting/pl.u-KVXBxxvT9zBLym

The main mantra is Nam myoho Renge Kyo and I found a slower, easier to follow version with Deva Premal. The meaning takes some interpretation and I will not presume to truly know, although I understand the repeated chanting aids in purifying the mind and spirit.

Ideal Exercise Program

I was recently asked what an ideal exercise program to be healthy would be and what a great question! I answered the question with the long term goal of staying strong, healthy and fit for as long as possible- which actually requires daily activity that addresses cardiovascular fitness, strength and mobility. I have observed that people tend to ‘like’ certain modalities of exercise more than others and neglect activities they don’t like, which eventually comes at a cost to fitness/well being. Either lack of fitness, strength, mobility or injury.

Personally, I am the biggest fan of hard cardio exercise like running or indoor cycling meeting a performance goal, such as running 5km/3miles in under 25 minutes or cycling as far as possible in 20min. I have neglected weight training at various times in my life, although I got started at age 15, which seems like a head start. I’ve worked with a trainer whenever I became ‘lazy’ on the weights and got back on track. Having experienced the pandemic and the lack of weight training due to gyms being closed, I realized the difference it makes and re committed myself. Strength training improves your metabolism by building muscle tissue, which is the most metabolically active tissue, muscle has insulin receptors. Cardio vascular training ensures efficacy in the utilization of fuel by your muscles and overall circulation. Mobility training maintains the optimal range of motion of your joints, which we need to stay limber and able to move easily with grace.

What does an ‘ideal’ exercise program look like? Daily activity that would be a mixture of:

2-3 sessions/week of strength training

3-5 sessions/week of cardio vascular exercise, some easy some hard

2-3 sessions/week of mobility/yoga/pilates

It is a lot and what is required to be in optimal condition for life, especially later in life. Many of us have limited time to exercise and it is also required to be healthy in the long term. Find 20-60minutes daily to take better care of yourself with physical activity. This will be unpopular, but we need to do the activities we don’t like in order to be in optimal condition. For example, the folks who love yoga and are super flexible, really need to be in the weight room and doing cardio exercise to balance themselves. The cardio junkies need to get stronger by hitting the weights and working on their mobility. The people who only like to lift heavy weights and are super strong, could likely use some work on their cardio fitness and mobility. You need to find the right variation of exercise and balance for you and your goals.

To simplify, cardio exercise like running, biking, swimming improves your circulation. Strength/weight training improves your muscle mass, which is much needed as we lose muscle mass with age. Yoga, pilates and mobility improves your ability to move and has benefits for the mind. We need all 3 areas of exercise to be well rounded and healthy for the long term.