Goals and Positivity
Goals and Positivity
Goals
Take some time now to write down your goals for a healthy lifestyle. What is your reason for wanting a healthy lifestyle and to lose weight? Why is it important to you? Whatever your reason is write it down. It doesn’t have to be something for someone else, because I want to be around for my kids or because I want to set a great example. Those are great reasons don’t get me wrong, but if it is just because you want to look good naked that’s all good. No harm in that, if that’s your reason, use that as motivation to get moving. Do you need help you on this journey? Who will support you, help you and keep you on track? Write it down. Surround yourself with these people. Ask for their help. Lets think now about what’s really important to you……… Here are some possible answers: I want to learn to eat clean so I can prevent disease and illness and to live longer for my family I want to feel better so I can play with my kids I want to look great in clothes I want to look great out of clothes I want to have more energy I want to sleep better I want to learn how to cook healthy food for my family I want to lose weight so I feel comfortable with myself I want to be confident to wear a swimsuit on the beach this summer I want to spend more time with my kids and my partnerWhat do you need to do today to achieve everything you want tomorrow?
5-10 Year Goal
How do you see yourself in 5-10 years; what is your lifestyle like? Are you happy, healthy? Are you full of energy? Is that extra weight gone? Are your relationships good? Are you leading a balanced life? Are you doing what you enjoy? How do you look? How do you feel? Be descriptive. Hear the laughter of your children, feel the sun on your back. Feel how good it is to be rocking your new body.1-Year Goal
What do you need to do this year to get to the long-term goals? Where do you need to be in a year’s time? What can I do this week to get closer to that one year goal? Write it down, it will happen then.Weekly
What do I need to do this week to achieve my goals? What time do I need to wake up each morning? What time do I need to go to bed each night? What food do I need to prepare each night for the next day? What day do I do my weekly prep? What workouts am I doing and what time am I working out? What day do I do my grocery shop or order online?The mind is powerful put your goals everywhere, write them down. Read them aloud every day.
Write them on your mirror in the bathroom Write them on your blackboard or splash back in the kitchen. Stick them to your fridge. Print your goals and put up on a message board Write yourself a future vision letter. What will your future look like in 2 years? Read it to yourself every night before you go to sleep. Dream big as if nothing is impossible.Start your journey from Square One and take these steps. Don’t put it aside, make time and you will reap the benefits. This new journey is about so much more than just losing weight, so write it all down and put it up in your home and become accountable to yourself. Just Do It.
Positive Thoughts
Our thoughts affect everything that happens every day. Our lives and health depend on taking control of our thoughts and moods.
We can change how we feel by transforming the negative moods and beliefs that hold us back.
In order to have positive thoughts, you need to know what you want in life, what makes you happy, what gives you energy and what do you want to achieve?
What are your values and beliefs?
Once you know your core values and you have written them down, you are then able to take better control of your thoughts.
If you are surrounded by negativity, then you are continually being bombarded with negativity. Do not surround yourself with negative people or things. Make your thoughts positive and reflect who you want to be. Look in the mirror, look differently, and take notice of what you love about yourself.
Many of us have a nearly continuous stream of self-talk going on in our heads. These thoughts are so familiar to us that we rarely stop to examine them. Change these thoughts to positive ones! Get rid of any negative thoughts and replace with good thoughts about yourself. We wouldn’t talk to anyone we care about the way we talk to ourselves. Care about you! Banish those thoughts and replace with self-love and an “I will do this” attitude.
If you’re feeling stuck, having trouble reaching your health goals, or you’re plagued by depression, anxiety or dark moods, become aware of these destructive thought patterns and learn to see them for what they are. They are simply stories that we tell about ourselves or the world around us. You can rewrite the story; you are the author of your own life.
When we give these stories power and believe they are real, we suffer. But when we see that they are simply thoughts, we become free to behave and respond differently.
Having been though years of negative experiences and people myself before I got out, I understand how hard it can be, but life is too short to remain stuck in suffering. It’s never to late to break free of old patterns that are holding you back.
If you need any help and support with this, contact me I’m just an email away and I would love to help you.
Live Life Well,
Holly
Finding Balance
Sunlight, Sleep, Stress
Sunlight
Vitamin D
For years, we’ve been told to avoid the sun. Stay indoors between 10am and 4pm and slap on sunscreen. Hey…….wait a minute, we evolved outdoors. Regular sun exposure was an important aspect of life. As such, we evolved to require a minimum dose of sunlight to ensure optimal health. How’s that work? Well, UVB rays from the sun interact with cholesterol in our skin to produce Vitamin D. Vitamin D isn’t actually a vitamin; it acts more like a hormone in your body, affecting a whole host of organs, tissues, and functions. Our immune systems need vitamin D to function. What does vitamin D do, exactly? It improves insulin sensitivity and increases fat loss. It reduces systemic inflammation. It plays a role in protection against many cancers. It’s essential for bone mineralisation. All you need is a little bit of sunlight. Start off with getting 15 minutes exposure to as much of your skin as possible, but go easy at first, since we haven’t been living outdoors we probably aren’t ready for a full session, yet. Gradually increase your exposure by a few minutes at a time until you’re getting thirty minutes of full sun each day. Oh, and sunblock prevents the creation of vitamin D, so go easy on it. If you’re going to use sunblock, apply it after you’ve already gotten your 20-30 minutes of sun exposure. If you can’t find time to get in the sun, or you live in a place that gets very little take a Vitamin D supplement. It’s almost as good as getting it from the sun, and it’s a hundred times better than getting none at all.Sleep
Just a few days of inadequate sleep can wreak havoc on your mental and physical health. I can’t stress enough the importance of good sleep for everybody, but it’s especially important for people with poor mind health. However, sleep can be elusive when you are feeling down. I’m convinced that there is a relationship between lack of sleep and depression. It’s a negative feedback loop: if you can’t sleep, you can get depressed, and if you are depressed, it can be difficult to sleep. We all know how important sleep is, but despite knowing this, so many of us remain chronically sleep-deprived. If you’re depressed, sleep is like a superpower. Getting enough good quality sleep is essential for your mind health and your long-term physical health. Deep sleep rejuvenates and repairs. When we get poor sleep or not enough of it our insulin sensitivity decreases, reducing our ability to tolerate carbs and burn fat, and making it harder to lose weight. When we get enough sleep our carbohydrate tolerance increases and our exercise performance improves. Get an adequate amount of sleep (around 8-9 hours for most people). 6 quick tips for a better nights sleep: Go to bed by 10pm each night. Make sure your bedroom is dark and cool. Get blackout curtains or blinds. Leave a small crack so you wake up with the daylight. Turn off all blue-light at least one hour before bed (tv, laptop, tablet) Unwind with the day and let your body slow down when the sun goes down. You can do this by dimming lights or using lamps or candles. Avoid drinking alcohol before bed as this affects the quality of your sleep and inhibits your body’s ability to fix and repair itself. Take a magnesium supplement to help regulate your sleep. Good sources of magnesium naturally include green leafy vegetables, pumpkin seeds, almonds, avocados and bananas. Establish a routine so that you can get the benefits of true deep sleep.Stress
Our bodies aren’t made for chronic stress. We’re designed to handle short-term, acute stress, not long-term, chronic, unrelenting stress that has become so common in modern times. When we become stressed cortisol is released. Cortisol is a hormone that is secreted by the adrenal glands. Cortisol regulates blood pressure and regulates the body's use of macronutrients. Cortisol also affects the release of insulin and your body's ability to convert sugars into energy. At natural, healthy levels, cortisol provides sustained energy and even improves memory. In stressful situations, extra cortisol is released to provide an immediate, easy-to-use energy supply. While this reaction is helpful in life-or-death situations, that we may have faced way back in the day, like getting chased by a lion or hunting for our next meal, it becomes harmful when it occurs in response to minor everyday stresses like traffic and financial worries. Excess cortisol inhibits your body from burning fat for energy. Without an optimal ability to burn fat, sustainable weight loss becomes very difficult. Also, high levels of cortisol cause your body to be out of balance, leaving you feeling fatigued and exhausted all of the time. It can make you feel tired when you wake up and wired when you go to sleep. All of this affects your body’s ability to function optimally. This is also why people who do all the exercise in the world and run on coffee and a muffin struggle to lose weight. The key is reducing those stressors or finding a way to relax. Meditation, getting out in nature, prayer, talking with a friend or loved one and journal-writing are all healthy, natural ways to cope with a stressful day. A small, mild amount of stress can be a good thing during those moments in your life when you need motivation, maybe to study for an exam or prepare for a speech. This kind of stress is usually defined by the anticipation and excitement of overcoming an obstacle or challenge. On the other hand, prolonged periods of stress can leave you feeling worn out, tired, and unenthusiastic, and could make you more vulnerable to depression and other health issues. You may feel that stress is caused by outside influences and that it is something you can’t do anything about. The thing is, you have to perceive a situation to be stressful for it to be so. This makes it a thought. That’s it—a thought. If that’s the case, then we have some control over stress, for it’s not something that happens to us but something that happens within our minds. There are definite outside influences that can cause us to feel stressed, like financial troubles, relationship problems, and work issues, but how we react to these external stressors determines how we feel. What really matters is how we view a situation. Stress comes from the way you respond to events, not the way life is. Train yourself to watch your thoughts, and when a stressful or negative thought comes into your head, stop, take a deep breath, and adjust your response. If you can change a situation, then do; if not, then let it go and do something productive that you enjoy. Be gentle and kind to yourself, channelling your energy into thoughts and actions that actually benefit your life. We can become so attached to the way that we think, our beliefs, and our attitudes about the way things should be that it can make us sick. Try to just be; experience the moment, let it wash over you, and then move on. Show yourself love and affection. Find what creates calm for you and practice it regularly, whether that is a quiet place to contemplate or meditate, spending time with friends, getting to that yoga class, making a healthy meal, or getting to bed early.Remember the three S’s
Get out in the sun, get good quality sleep and remove that stress (or reduce the effect it has on you if you can’t completely remove some of it)
Getting Started
Getting Started
Do these activities weekly. Commit to them and make them part of your lifestyle.
Create a Weekly Schedule (A good day to do this is a Sunday)
Break up your schedule into categories and include work, exercise, household, family, social and you time. This is a great way to ensure that everything that is important to you gets done so you don’t feel overwhelmed about what you should be doing. If you create a schedule those things you are most likely to not get around to, like exercising, you time or meeting with friends will get done.Plan Your Weekly Meals
This saves time, money, and the 5pm “What can I do for dinner?” panic. Instead of needing to think about meals each day, you already have it planned and prepped.Spoil Yourself a little
I love flowers and candles in the home. Each time I pass a vase of flowers I get a little lift. A bunch from the market or some wild flowers from your garden will be fine. Same with candles, find some you love and light them, candlelight is beautiful and relaxing. Spoil yourself with a little something beautiful that makes your heart sing each week. Maybe it’s having your dinner on a beautiful plate or having a cup of herbal tea in a pretty cup.Clean and Tidy
Create a lovely environment and refresh the energy in your home. Having the house clean makes you feel energised and in control of your day. Straighten up in the evening before you go to bed. A little done each day makes it not seem such a daunting task for the weekend. You have other things you would rather be doing on the weekend I’m sure! Dirt and untidiness creates a lethargic energy.Review Your Goals
Set some goals at the end of each month for the following month. Make sure you include all the categories you used in your weekly schedule. Take 15 minutes to go over the goals each week and each month plan new ones for the following month. It’s inspiring to remind yourself of the bigger picture and motivates you to remain on track. I have created this set of rituals that works in my life. They are suggestions that you may like to use or you can create your own that work for you.MORNING
Get up 30 minutes before everyone else in your home. You will be able to prepare for your day easily before waking everyone else. You then can help others rather than rushing around. Drink a cleansing ginger and lemon “tea”. (Hot water, lemon and ginger). This “wakes” you up and is uplifting. Do 5 minutes of awareness meditation. Perhaps as you drink your ginger and lemon tea, spend 5 minutes sitting, eyes closed, simply being aware: your breath, the feel of your skin, the taste of your tea. Write a daily To Do list. Even if you have it clear in your head what needs to be done, by writing it down you’ll feel more organised and in control.EVENING
Straighten couches and tidy up before bed. Maybe set out breakfast things, prepare lunches and pack school bags. Your day will start smoothly without a big rush in the morning and it’s relaxing to wake up to a tidy house. Light a candle by your bedside ½ hour before bed. Prepare your clothes for the next day. Write in your Gratitude Journal. You will simply not be living the same life, if you commit to writing in your Gratitude journal each evening.
Nutrition Guide
Depression affects many people worldwide, so it’s vital we start looking after the health of our brains. Nutrition plays a major role in brain health, so we should be selecting foods that specifically nourish the brain. Certain types of food actually contain essential nutrients for good mental health, and deficiencies can worsen mental disorders such as depression. We need mood-boosting fatty acids, proteins, and a full range of micronutrients. The following are the important essential nutrients that helped keep me mentally well.- Omega-3 Fatty Acids
- Zinc
- Folate
- Iron
- Magnesium
- Vitamin B12
- Vitamin E
- Water
- Vegetables, especially leafy greens like kale, spinach, silver beet, and rocket
- Fruit, especially berries such as blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries
- Nuts such as walnuts, almonds, cashews, and Brazil nuts
- Seafood, such as salmon, prawns, shrimp, and oily fish
- Sustainable and organic meat and poultry
- Eggs (organic)
- Healthy fats such as coconut, olive, and flaxseed oils, as well as nuts and avocados
- Fermented foods such as sauerkraut, kefir, kimchi, and kombucha (or take a high-quality probiotic)
Preparation
Be Prepared Prepare, Prepare, Prepare The key to success is having a plan and being prepared. Take some time out once a week (Sunday is a good day) and prep some food. Look ahead at your week and think about what you may need and plan your meals. Take an hour each week to chop up vegetables and prepare some salad ingredients or cook a meal and freeze. You could also do some baking for the week and prepare some cooked protein sources. Roast a chicken or slow cook it in the crockpot (slow cooker). When cooking dinner make twice as much and freeze for another meal or have for lunch the next day. It sounds like work I know, when you want to relax on your weekend or are busy with kids sport or fun stuff. Schedule it in and your week with run a lot smoother. Time spent on that Sunday will mean more time during the week for the things you enjoy ☺ Plan to succeed. Don’t be caught hungry, that’s when you eat the wrong thing, like a bagel or a whole packet of chocolate biscuits. (you won’t have these in your house any more of course.) :) Make sure your fridge and pantry are full of good food for you to eat. Preparation is the key. Get in touch if you need help with your planning.
Grocery Bill
It can be challenging to keep your grocery bill down, but you can eat healthily and organically with smart shopping, baking and food planning and preparation.- Shop around the outside edge of the supermarket as this is where the healthy natural food is. The processed packaged stuff is in the middle aisles.
- Shop at farmers markets. I find the cheapest way to keep your food bill down is to buy your fruit and vege locally at farmers markets and in season. Great for you and great for the planet. Markets are great places to go to as well, especially in summer with live music and a nice community feel.
- Head to the butcher or fish market for protein.
- Once a month head to the supermarket and stock up on your other items.
- Another great way to keep your food bill down is to grow your own veggies/herbs. Get into the garden with the kids, they get a kick out of eating something they have helped grow.
- Buying online is also a great option. Butchers usually deliver and so do supermarkets. No temptation to buy what you don’t need.
- Check out organic fruit and vege delivery, its very exciting to get a box of goodness delivered to your door.
- Shop smart and buy items in bulk that can be stored.
- Buy and freeze any meat and vege on special.
Nutrition Introduction
Lets learn how to fuel your body for good mind health. Your body is like a car, we need to put in good quality fuel for it to run optimally. What you put into your body directly affects how you feel and how you look. You are about to discover why eating real natural food, is the best thing you can do for your mind health and well-being. Every molecule of your physical being is made of what you consume – nothing could be more real than that. What if you could eat your way to good health? What if you could boost your mood and help overcome depression naturally? It might sound strange to link your depression to what you eat, but the foods you consume can have a big impact on your mental health. We often hear about the physical benefits of eating a good diet, but did you know that eating a healthy diet could also have a positive impact on your mood? A diet high in plant foods, with sustainable meat and seafood, nuts, and good-quality fats, could help stave off depression. The bacteria in our guts coexist in a delicate balance, so if our diets are poor and we have lots of stress or get little sleep, we upset the balance and create an environment for less healthy or potentially harmful bacteria to grow. Many different symptoms can present themselves when the bacteria in our digestive systems become imbalanced. Our bodies are systems of systems, and everything is interlinked. I believe that what we eat is directly related to our moods and energy levels. To help depression, we need to embrace real wholefoods and eliminate processed foods that cause inflammation in our bodies and brains. There is a correlation with how healthy our guts are and how we feel—and therefore a connection to mental health problems such as anxiety and depression. I am excited about the idea that our diets can have such a big effect on our mood and emotions. I think it is fascinating that the microorganisms in our guts can influence our minds. I believe that over time and with more research, we will connect many of our modern diseases and mental health problems to gut health. We truly are what we eat, and food is a powerful medicine. I encourage you to truly listen to your body and pay close attention to how you feel when you eat or exclude certain foods. Notice your mood. Notice what foods make you feel good and help you sleep better. In this book, I show you the specific nutrients and foods that worked for me and that I believe will work for you too, but we all have biochemical individuality, so tweak your meals to suit your unique requirements. I experienced major upheavals in my life, and I got really sick and depressed for a few years. I began to take a closer look at what I was eating and the effect it was having on me. The phrase “you are what you eat” began to ring true for me and I realised the real truth of it as I changed my diet to clean eating real food and my energy levels and positivity began to increase. I am on a journey just like you, to the level of fitness and health I once had and beyond that to be the best I can be. Lets do it together :) Holly
Stretch 03
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