YOUR LIFE A-Z:ZEALOUS

FOCUS ON YOUR GOAL

ZEALOUS

What are you ZEALOUS about?  What makes you care?  What gets your adrenalin going and get up off the couch to make a difference?  I am a child of the sixties and everything mattered, the Vietnam War, racism, personal freedoms and those causes rocked the world as we knew it.  Then I noticed that in the nineties when I was teaching that it seemed to me that no one cared.  During our first war with Iraq, not one college protest made the news.  During our second war of “Shock and Awe,” young people didn’t seem to notice that for the first time in our history, we invaded another country.  But finally, a change seems to be brewing.  Alicia Keys, the thirty-three year old singer is showing a ZEALOUS spirit with her knew song, “We Are Here” Her ZEALOUS spirit is raising a voice of compassion, connection and caring.  Her ZEALOUS energy is taking political action and beginning a grass roots movement to make a difference. Let’s face it, Maya Angelou is gone and most of the activists from the sixties are dead.  It is time for a new ZEALOUS energy to take over and bring America back and make it even greater than it ever has been.  Moving the mountains of apathy and greed is going to take thousands of ZEALOTS with ZEALOUS energy that will not be stopped until change is accomplished at the very basic heart and soul of humanity in this country.  Give yourself permission to be ZEALOUS today and join a cause, any cause, with all of your heart. 

YOUR LIFE A-Z:YOUTHFUL

YOUTHFUL IS A STATE OF MIND

YOUTHFUL

 Being YOUTHFUL has its privileges.  YOUTHFUL is important but not paramount.  The goal as you age is to stay YOUTHFUL and happy.  Being YOUTHFUL does not require plastic surgery nor Botox.  Being YOUTHFUL is a state of mind and activity. The more active you stay the more YOUTHFUL you will be.  Movement is the key to maintaining YOUTH. The phrase, “act your age,” is intended make kids act like adults, so perhaps you think acting YOUTHFUL is showing immaturity.   A little immaturity won’t hurt you.  If you want to wear clothes that are intended for younger people, wear them proudly and with taste.  For instance, let your capris take the place of your shorts but be stylish with them.  Get a YOUTHFUL haircut.  Practice a YOUTHFUL walk.  Be around YOUTHFUL people.  If you are feeling like an old person then it is time to get out and be around YOUTHFUL people to help you remember life can be fun. Life can be fun if you get off of the sidelines and into the center of it. Rejoice in whatever number your chronological age is and live it well.  Your age number should never define you.  With each year you add wisdom.  As long as you keep moving, stretching, walking, dancing, and exercising you are investing in a YOUTHFUL presence.  If you are bored perhaps it is because you are not acting YOUTHFUL or trying new ideas.  Trying something new that you have never done before and let your YOUTHFUL self help you explore new territory. 

YOUR LIFE A-Z: ZUMBA

MOVE YOUR BODY 

ZUMBA

ZUMBA began by accident when Beto Perez was teaching an aerobics class and forgot his music.  After digging around in his bag he pulled out a CD of Latin beats.  The class loved moving to the music and thus the rage began (source Web MD by Samataro).  The great thing about ZUMBA is that you do not have to practice any choreographed dance steps but can allow your body to feel the music and move to the music, keeping pace with the rapid Latin beat.  ZUMBA can be done in the privacy of your own home for thirty minutes prior to stepping into the shower in the morning or you can join a ZUMBA group at a local gym.  You usually don’t have to worry about injuring your back or overworking a muscle group.  However, if you have healthy issues that concern you about physical exercise by all means obtain your doctor’s permission. Also, reportedly ZUMBA burns more calories in an hour than an intense yoga class or other aerobic exercises and the added bonus is that the time flies by.  Walking or working out on a machine such as a treadmill or an elliptical can be an hour of pure will power where a ZUMBA class moves fast and the time flies right by.   The exhilaration and energy you   feel as a result of letting your body move empowers you for a longer period of time post workout.  If you are exercise phobic, try downloading some Latin music and dancing to it in the privacy of your own home. 

YOUR LIFE A-Z: MOVEMENT

ENJOY THE PLAYFULNESS OF MOVEMENT

MOVEMENT

MOVEMENT is absolutely essential to your wellbeing.  Whether it is touching your toes ten times or walking around the block ten times, it is important to MOVE.  Physical MOVEMENT also increases your resistance to depression, increases your immune system, and keeps you younger and agile as you MOVE through the stages of your life.  It is impossible to maintain a sour attitude if you MOVE your body and focus on letting breathe and life within.  MOVEMENT requires that you focus your attention to your body and often in our Western culture we forget we have a body.  There is a mind-body disconnect that can be healed via MOVEMENT and focus.  Focus on your body and MOVE it slowly and purposely.  Stretch your body with MOVEMENTS that require you to focus on “further” than before.  Stretch upward and MOVE downward.  MOVE to the right and then to the left.  MOVE for your enjoyment and health.  Swimming is also a great way to MOVE your body with little effort.  If you will MOVE for 10 minutes a day you will gain more energy.  If you change your position and MOVE to the back of the room you will gain a different perspective.  If you re-arrange your furniture by MOVING it around it will elevate your mood and give you a sense of newness.  If you MOVE a plant to different location you will smile at the change of attitude in a room.  MOVEMENT is key to changing your mood in a matter of minutes.  MOVE your body or MOVE your environment around and notice the internal change. 

YOUR LIFE A-Z:ENERGY

ENJOY THE POWER AND LIGHT OF ENERGY

ENERGY

Wow, there are so many forms of energy that it becomes hard to focus on one with a 250 word maximum.  What was the first thought that came to mind when you saw that ENERGY is the Twenty Minute Coach’s word of the day?  Was it kinetic ENERGY? That is ENERGY that moves an object.  Get up out of your computer chair and do 10 jumping jacks.  You have just practiced the use of kinetic ENERGY by moving your body.  If you walk outside and stay in the light for twenty minutes you acquire your vitamin D for today from the radiant ENERGY of light.  If you lift weights, you use gravitation ENERGY.  If you wrap up in a blanket you are using thermal ENERGY.  If you purchase a Starbucks you are exercising economic ENERGY.  If you brew your tea outdoors you are using solar ENERGY.  If you touch your toes or reach for the stars you are practicing elastic ENERGY.  If you are pulled toward another book, most likely magnetic ENERGY is at play.  If you eat a healthy lunch you are providing your body with metabolic ENERGY to fuel your afternoon activities.  If you observe a lightening strike you have observed 500 megajoules of electric potential ENERGY converted in light ENERGY, sound ENERGY, and thermal ENERGY.  ENERGY surrounds us and available and potential ENERGY is at our beckon call.  It cannot be destroyed nor can it be created.  It is there for our use always.  In the meantime take a nap and practice resting ENERGY. 

YOUR LIFE A-Z:YARDSTICK

                          

YARDSTICK

A YARDSTICK is commonly a flat wooden stick measuring a yard (3 feet) and subdivided by 1/8  or sometimes 1/16 inches throughout its length for measurement.  Sometimes it is easy to get focused on the full yard and forget that every small effort of a 1/8 or 1/16 of an inch helps us achieve our goal.  Thus, when measuring your progress do not allow yourself to slip into an all or nothing mentality.  Don’t focus on your lack of success; focus on the 1/16  inch of success along the way.  Maybe you have not reached the full YARDSTICK of accomplishment but maybe you are 1 and ¾ of the way to the full 36 inches that a YARDSTICK measures.  When we focus on the positive it builds our morale and energy and it becomes easier to say I can do another sixteenth of an inch right now.  Tomorrow I can do a full inch.  Inch-by-inch I will reach my goal.  This is a good time to re-evaluate your success and the definition of your goal.  It is not enough to say I am going to eat healthier.  It is important to have a healthy daily eating plan and then it will be easier to measure the YARDSTICK of your success.  Once one Yard has been accomplished then the YARDSTICK gets moved and your start on the second YARDSTICK.  Interior designers depend on YARDSTICKS to help them furnish a room perfectly.  Think of yourself as the interior designer of your life and focus on the “look” you want to accomplish with the YARDSTICK of your life.