When it comes to health we all know what we should be doing, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that having the answers makes it any easier to implement into our own lifestyle.
It’s amazing how as human beings we have adopted a culture of putting other people’s needs before our own. I want you to do something now. Write a list of every person in your daily life that you hold some responsibility to, whether it is compulsory or by choice and tasks that you are required to complete.
I will use myself as an example;
- First and foremost I am Mummy, to Joey 5.
- I have an amazing (and very patient, as you will realise as the list continues) partner James.
- My family- I am from a HUGE family.
- Friends- Second Family.
- Business Owner- Daily Tasks to ensure efficient running of the company
- Boss- Keeping staff happy and busy J
- Personal Trainer-Daily Sessions
- Group Fitness Trainer- Daily Sessions
- Treasurer of a Business owner Network- Weekly duties
- Cook, Cleaner, Gardener etc.
I could go on, and I’m sure a lot of you could to!
When it’s all written down in front of you, how much of the time allocated is purely for yourself? If you have a pretty good balance, chances are that you are pretty content in your life, but how many of you would struggle to find the time to squeeze in time for yourself? We freely allocate our time to our responsibilities and people that we love, sometimes advising them on how to live their life, and still not applying the same methods to our own.
More and more often I meet with clients that skip meals due to lack of time, would they let their children go to school without breakfast? I hope not. If your are following any sort of fitness program or if you train here with Potential you should be encouraged to take time out to rest and allow your body the recovery time it needs.
Treat yourself in the same way that you would your nearest and dearest, because you are no good to anybody burnt out, unhealthy and miserable. It is impossible to keep travelling at a million miles an hour forever, at some point the tank is going to run out of fuel. And then we break down. The effects of lack of rest and stress have a huge impact on many aspects of our physical and emotional health and could lead to low self-esteem, Aches, pains, and tense muscles, Low energy and sometimes even Heart conditions and weight gain.
Instead we should try to regularly stop to refuel, allocate time throughout your day that is focussed on you and make it quality time; there is nothing wrong with being selfish as long as the activity chosen is one that will have a positive impact on you. By all means, if sitting in the sunshine with a glass of wine is your heaven then go for it, but do we really need to drink 5 bottles and will this benefit us the next day?
Next to your list of daily tasks you can now write another list of all of your favourite things to do to relax, unwind and get some energy in to balance the equation.
You could Try;
- Doing absolutely nothing! Taking the time to sit and just be in your own company is a great way to recharge.
- Swimming, walking, running, cycling are all great forms of aerobic cardiovascular exercise and get you outside!
- Reading/writing/blogging
- Cooking
- Treatments and relaxation therapies
- Training with Potential PT, I had to throw that in somewhere!
Now is the fun bit, implementation! I’m with you all on this one as speaking from experience of living a busy life, sometimes the wrong things get pushed to one side. The fact is you are not always going to get everything done but the time that you do have to focus on important tasks will be of a much higher quality, producing better and faster results if you are rested, healthy and happy.
Next week Potential PT are launching ‘Potential Prizes’, competitions will run every week and we are giving away some fantastic treatments that will ensure that you take that well needed rest. A few of the prizes up for grabs will be a Full Body Massage at The Urban Sanctuary, Osteopathic treatment at The Perry Mount Clinic and a Cut and Blow Dry with Chealls Hairdressers, all local businesses in Haywards Heath. Keep an eye out for the first competition!
