Are Affirmations VooDoo?

Two things happened this morning.  A friend called asking for some insights into how to handle her teen son who is indulging in bad behavior after a couple years of psychological therapy.  A personal trainer was on TV talking about how 'affirmations without change are the beginnings of delusion'.

Hmmm.  The mom had used some affirmations in front of the mirror with her teen telling him he 'was enough'.  I have no argument with that.  He is 'enough'.  He's perfect in his imperfection - or so says John Legend and I believe everything he sings about.

However, I've had a problem with affirmations for a long time.  I like positive thinking, but when I look in the mirror to talk to myself, I see an old woman looking bad and I'm not her!!  And, I have gotten nowhere with affirmations myself.  OTOH I believe that negative self talk is totally evil and disabling.  We do tend to believe the negative about ourselves much more easily than the positive, unless, of course, we are narcissists - and I know who you are ;-Q

But one thing the trainer got right is that if all you do is talk about change, even positively, but take no action, you are merely deluding yourself.  I'll start exercising tomorrow.  I'll start dieting after the holidays.  I'll start a budget when I get that raise.  Not gonna happen.

As with all change, jumping in with both feet and trying to make major changes today or tomorrow is a prescription for failure.  Taking a tiny positive step today is much more valuable - and much more likely to pay off for you.

So, as with all real change, we start with a very small positive action.  Turn off your computer and walk for 5 minutes - outside or around the house or on a treadmill or marching in place.  Repeat tomorrow, adding 1 minute per day.  In about 2 weeks, you've got a whole new exercise regimen in place and you never had to spend a penny, work up a sweat, or leave the house or neighborhood.

Try it.  It works and you're worth it!






*************************** Remember my 100% GUARANTEE. Should you decide to stop walking and resume your old habits, I personally guarantee that you'll get back 100% of your former life - your pain, your lifestyle, your attitude. You can trust the information you find here. It's from a dedicated walker. Trust me and your life will get better! I promise.

The Gym Calls

I finally broke down and joined a gym!  I hate the gym.  What caused me to pay money to join a place I don't like and don't want to be?  Two things.  First, it's been dreadfully cold around here and with the Christmas rush at the malls, there's really no sensible place to walk.  Second, a friend joined with me and we walk together and work on a few other pieces of equipment too.

That said, I've been dragging in a way that is unusual for me.  The gym has almost become a refuge.  My asthma has been giving me mucho problems the past couple weeks, causing me to not be able to walk outside in the cold wind.  That's an asthma trigger for me and I am pretty conscientious about avoiding wet, cold wind.  But, it or house dust (yes, I have a legitimate excuse to not dust or vacuum!) got me and I've been suffering.

Too bad that my legs don't know the rest of me is sick!  If I don't walk at least 20 minutes each day, I cannot sleep at night because I get terrible leg cramps.  But, that 20 minute walk seems to be the cure for my version of restless leg.  So, even with no voice and crummy breathing, I've been able to get my 20 to 30 minutes in on a treadmill at the gym.  Kris joins me and we chat.  I croak and she tries to hear me from her treadmill 12 inches away.  Good thing she's patient and tolerates my croaking and complaining.

I've always heard that if you're sick from the neck up you can continue your regular workout regimen and if you're sick from the neck down, you should not.  Well, my chest is definitely lower than my neck and my neck and chest have been sick.  But, walking has made me feel better.  Every. Time.

So, my advice for you is to WALK.  No matter what.....well, quietly, I'll whisper that part.  Shhh.  No matter what.  Not, no matter what - but if you can stand and put one foot in front of another - get a friend to poke at you til you get off your derriere and walk some.  Whatever amount works for you.  But, some is better than none.  At least for me - and I'm the writer around her, right?

BTW, that picture above is NOT me!  She's way cuter - and younger - and leaner - and....



*************************** Remember my 100% GUARANTEE. Should you decide to stop walking and resume your old habits, I personally guarantee that you'll get back 100% of your former life - your pain, your lifestyle, your attitude. You can trust the information you find here. It's from a dedicated walker. Trust me and your life will get better! I promise.

Are You Part of the Seven Percent?

Did you know there is a Seven Percent Solution that you are probably not a part of?  What Seven Percent, you ask?  The Seven Percent above age 50 who engage in regular exercise.  Are you one of us?

I am a Seven Percenter!  It was nice to read that I was so special.  But, sad to read that the number of people in my age group - Baby Boomers - is so sedentary! 

If you walk 20 minutes a day, you are a Seven Percenter too!  How easy is that? 

Again, it's not rocket science.  It's plain old common sense.  Especially for us Boomers, remaining physically active is keeping us healthier, living longer with better quality of life.

I see sick people every day at work.  Very, very few of them, regardless of age, has serious health problems if they are physically active and get in their 150 minutes of exercise each week. 

If you are still taking baby steps toward this goal of 150 minutes a week, keep at it.  After a few weeks, it becomes so much easier that you'll find yourself looking forward to the break from your other activities and be encouraged to increase your activity time or intensity.

Good for you!  For the Ninety-Three Percenters, the evidence is clear.  You need to join our team and get walking!





*************************** Remember my 100% GUARANTEE. Should you decide to stop walking and resume your old habits, I personally guarantee that you'll get back 100% of your former life - your pain, your lifestyle, your attitude. You can trust the information you find here. It's from a dedicated walker. Trust me and your life will get better! I promise.

Comments

Several recent comments sent in by readers have given me pause.  I get a lot of encouragement from the things my readers post.  While my blog is not widely read, I like to think that it is having a positive impact.  Well, at least for a few people it is.

Denise sent this comment:

Your my hero. I was a dedicated walker then jogger for years. I am trying to get back into walking ( I stopped to due a trama with our adult daughter.) I knew If I kept up I would feel better but I decided to lock myself up in the house. I just cannot seem to get outside..Now in my defence I work most days 7a to 7p... 6 days per week. I am motivated by your blog and happy to have found you! on Is It Work?

WOW!  The idea that I am a hero to anyone is amazing - and humbling.  I, too, am happy that you found this blog and that I can offer a bit of encouragement for you.  You have triumphed and your words will inspire others.  Thanks for writing!

Another comment, this one from Sage:

 Hi! You have a really great site! I'm glad to have stumbled upon it! I was wondering if you feature guest postings. Thanks and have a great day! on Patty's Great Idea

Sage, I'd be happy to have guest posts to feature.  If you have some ideas to share or know another writer who should be read here, please let me know.

I also need to thank the others who post comments from time to time.  It's always nice to get feedback.  Not everyone has to agree with me!  Please feel free to share. 

*************************** Remember my 100% GUARANTEE. Should you decide to stop walking and resume your old habits, I personally guarantee that you'll get back 100% of your former life - your pain, your lifestyle, your attitude. You can trust the information you find here. It's from a dedicated walker. Trust me and your life will get better! I promise.

More Goals, HabitForge

I just ran across this website a couple weeks ago, checked it out, and immediately signed up!  It fits perfectly into my philosophy about walking - and what I've written before.  Charting your progress, marking on a calendar or elsewhere each day you've walked, is a great way to motivate yourself and have a clear picture of your progress - or lack thereof.

Since I walk 29 days a month, sometimes more than once a day, I have no need to track my walks, distance, or other data.  I threw away my pedometer when I was routinely getting in 10,000+ steps per day.

But, when I'm trying to instill a new behavior in myself, I find this sort of basic tracking is very useful.  Say I get up on a Thursday with no motivation to perform my new 'skill' or 'habit'.  I look at the calendar and see I did it every day that week - so I'm loathe to let Thursday pass without putting that X on my calendar when I've completed the activity.  Competing with myself is my best motivation.  If there's a genuine reason for not performing (like this asthma that's messing with me right now), I can write that down on the calendar too.  That acts as a reminder that I had a valid reason besides laziness or busyness for not performing.  Remember, you must be first on your own list so busyness is not an excuse.

In addition, this website offers another real plus.  The opportunity to encourage others with brief comments regarding their progress or words to remind them of their goal if they are faltering.  As with my Twelve Step work, I learn the value of service.  Service takes me out of my own head and gives me a better perspective.  If I'm encouraging someone else, I am also encouraging myself.  There is no loser in this process.  Everyone wins.  It's simple, free, and persistent - as the emails arrive in your inbox each day prompting you to plot your progress.

This is just a tool.  If you would like some encouragement or would like to encourage others, then it's a site worth your time to explore.  And, it's not just for walking.  Use it for any behavior you want to change or improve.  I've been using it to cut down on my late night snacks and to lower my carb intake.  Those little reminders in my inbox are great.  It works!




*************************** Remember my 100% GUARANTEE. Should you decide to stop walking and resume your old habits, I personally guarantee that you'll get back 100% of your former life - your pain, your lifestyle, your attitude. You can trust the information you find here. It's from a dedicated walker. Trust me and your life will get better! I promise.

On Focus

I love this article.  It's about changing bad habits, creating new habits, and retaining focus.  Most people who read this article will do so because they want to gain focus on work issues or some other really important things in their lives.  What's more important than you?  What's more important than improving your quality of life?

This article speaks to some things I've written about before:
Start small
Take baby steps
Set goals
Create change
Take care of yourself before trying to care for others.

I'm going to sign up to continue to receive copies of this writer's emails.  I think there's lots of encouragement and inspiration there.  What do you think?






*************************** Remember my 100% GUARANTEE. Should you decide to stop walking and resume your old habits, I personally guarantee that you'll get back 100% of your former life - your pain, your lifestyle, your attitude. You can trust the information you find here. It's from a dedicated walker. Trust me and your life will get better! I promise.

Setting Goals

Can you take a 2000 mile road trip without a map or a GPS?  Well, maybe.  Yes, if you have no final destination in mind.  No, if you have to be at a specific destination within a certain time frame. Yes, if you're just cruising around, sightseeing, with no other obligations or responsibilities.  No, if you have goals.

Now we see the benefit of having a map or GPS.  Even if you have no final destination in mind, no time frame you must adhere to, and no other obligations, you might get really lost, run out of gas and money, or run into all kinds of conditions that could be harmful.  Better to have a map or GPS, right?

So, think of setting goals as opening your map or programming your GPS.  You have a destination - better health, serenity, a happier state of being, fitness, etc - and with goals, you have a map or GPS, tools you would use on any road trip.  Each road trip is a journey.  Each journey ultimately has a destination.  Take the first step.  Then take another...... 


*************************** Remember my 100% GUARANTEE. Should you decide to stop walking and resume your old habits, I personally guarantee that you'll get back 100% of your former life - your pain, your lifestyle, your attitude. You can trust the information you find here. It's from a dedicated walker. Trust me and your life will get better! I promise.

Walking As Therapy

Can you walk off your problems?  Can you walk off your worries?  Can you walk off stress and unhappiness.  Well, yes!  Not ALL problems or all worries or all stress or all unhappiness.  But, a lot of those things will simply disappear as the result of a good walk.

Walking is also a perfect time to have a good conversation with your walking buddy, you dog, or your God.  Really!  Some of my most spiritual moments have come during walks when I thought I was walking alone.  But, I clearly wasn't.

I know that walking with a friend, talking about all that's going on in one's life - with job, kids, spouses, etc. - can certainly give a new perspective that diminishes the perceived problems.  Physical exercise itself can alleviate a lot of the stresses of our lives.

This message has been presented to me lately by two youngsters who attend the Alateen meetings for which I am an adult sponsor.  One is 14 and one is 16 - but both have quickly learned by working the 12 Steps that they want to make their lives better despite the adverse effects of alcoholic(s) in their lives.  Both were physically aggressive before this and have learned that hard physical exercise seems to inoculate them against the desire to be aggressive when they encounter problems.  That's quite a lesson to learn so young!

So, let's jump on that bandwagon and learn that we, too, can learn to cope better with the problems we encounter in the course of our daily activities by destressing with exercise as simple as walking.  It works!  It may not replace a psychiatrist, therapist, or other mental health professional - but it will make things better.  I guarantee it!



*************************** Remember my 100% GUARANTEE. Should you decide to stop walking and resume your old habits, I personally guarantee that you'll get back 100% of your former life - your pain, your lifestyle, your attitude. You can trust the information you find here. It's from a dedicated walker. Trust me and your life will get better! I promise.

Small Steps To Betterness

I heard a sad tale today about a guy I've know for about 40 years.  He moved away about 25 years ago for his work, so I have not seen him regularly although we share enough friends in common that I've kept up with his life.  He married a great gal about 40 years ago and they've been married all this time, living here and there, working, no kids.

A few years ago - probably 10 by now - this guy suffered a health set back which started with back pain.  He's a tall guy, almost 7 feet tall, and large all over.  With his back pain, he began using a walker.  He worked every day, but fell one day, broke his shoulder, lost his job, and things went from bad to worse.

Now, he walks only from the hospital bed in his house to the door where his wheel chair is as he can't fit the wheel chair through his bedroom door.  He sits all day, plays video games (often with another friend a couple states away), eats, bathes in his special tub, and then hobbles back to his bed.  Such a life I would wish on no one.

The friend who told me about the tall guy is heading to visit him in a few days.  We discussed our friend's miserable life - and miserable it is!  He has only his wife and his sister, no money, and a world that is encompassed in three rooms (one of which is a bathroom).  I think one guy is gonna take on the other guy, demanding that he do something with his life besides play video games!  We both think that our troubled friend could improve his life with just a little effort.

He doesn't seem to be depressed.  His wife is a great gal who loves him with her whole heart.  His sister is nearby, but he is almost unable to leave his home.  He owns a converted van to accommodate his wheelchair, but traveling is an ordeal to say the least.

Why did this happen?  How did this otherwise healthy, happy, friendly guy allow himself to fall into a deep well of unhealthy behaviors that resulted in his almost complete withdrawal from his own life?  How can he continue on this downward path when it would take only a few minutes a day to improve both is health and his outlook?

So, what can be done?  We discussed an intervention.  I can't be there physically, but all his friends can bombard him with phone calls and emails on the same subject.  Dude, we want you healthy.  We want you happy.  We want you alive!

Since he is still able to walk a bit, it makes sense to me that he would build on that to improve his outlook.  Walking only a few extra minutes each day - plus the 10 steps from his bed to his wheel chair - would quickly add up to benefit him.  The day might soon arrive when he could more easily walk to his van and fulfill his promise to drive to St. Louis to visit all his old buddies.

We can't make him do it.  We can only inform and encourage.  We can hope......




*************************** Remember my 100% GUARANTEE. Should you decide to stop walking and resume your old habits, I personally guarantee that you'll get back 100% of your former life - your pain, your lifestyle, your attitude. You can trust the information you find here. It's from a dedicated walker. Trust me and your life will get better! I promise.

I'M SO EXCITED!!

Why am I excited today?? It was sunny and not too cold, but I couldn't walk outside. I have any number of Leslie Sansone's Walking tapes/DVD's that I use on days when I can't walk outside. I have several that I haven't gotten around to viewing because I'm far more likely to walk outside or at the mall than I am to walk around my family room these days. But, today, the family room was the scene of my walk.

Nothing too exciting there. Here's what's exciting - Sansone's 'Walk 4 Miles' tape has a bunch of NEW steps on it!! Why did I wait so long to view this tape. Well, one reason is that it's a 4 mile walk -farther than I usually walk. Today, I reached for this one because I have loaned out several of my tapes and this one was at the top of the stack. It's a VHS version, so may not be readily available in that format. But, even if you can't find this exact tape/DVD, I feel sure another of her programs will incorporate these new steps.

In addition to new steps, there were new upper body movements!! I was so pumped. It can get boring if you watch or do the same thing over and over. Sansone is aware of that. She's a high energy, encouraging walker - but always speaks to the beginner who might be using her program. There's always the opportunity to back off her pace, work at a slower intensity, but keep up your heart rate - the key to aerobic training.

So, although I had no intention of walking 4 miles - and didn't walk that far - I learned a bunch of new maneuvers and was rejuvenated! Now, I can incorporate some of these new moves into my regular walks. So can you - even if you're still at the snippets stage - those few minutes of walking during TV commercials or your few minutes outdoors. No reason all of us, at every stage, can't take advantage of Sansone's experience and energetic approach.

Without giving away her 'secrets', let me tell you that she has incorporated some new footwork that includes new sidesteps, a 'jazz box', some punches, and double knee lifts. You might be able to learn these without viewing her program, but you'll make greater progress much more quickly if you let Sansone teach you the steps. This is not dance steps to memorize. She coaches you at, literally, every step of the way. Check it out!



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Remember my 100% GUARANTEE. Should you decide to stop walking and resume your old habits, I personally guarantee that you'll get back 100% of your former life - your pain, your lifestyle, your attitude.

WHAT IF I CAN'T WALK??

Are you confined to your bed or mobile only on your scooter or a wheel chair? Don't give up.

Why are you confined? Is it mostly because of weight? Does it hurt you to walk? Are you unable to transfer yourself from bed to scooter?

If these are true for you, consult your physician and ask if you can stand for a few minutes each day. Unless you have an ailment that will be made worse by weightbearing (like a broken ankle), you'll be allowed to stand for a few minutes each day. This counts as a walk.

Get yourself positioned so that if you MUST sit down and can't remain standing for your 90 seconds, you can ease yourself down. Falling is not allowed!!!!! Standing is the first component to walking. Can't walk if you can't stand. Can't run if you can't walk. First things first. Work on that standing.

WHAT IF IT HURTS? Guess what! It's gonna hurt anyway, so why not put up with the minutes of pain to regain your mobility. It can be done. It has been done. YOU CAN DO IT.

Stand, walk, walk faster, walk longer. Do what you can. No one is judging you or tracking your progress unless you post on this site and want to keep track. Tracking is a good tool - but is not required. It's just a tool. Mobility is YOUR goal. Walking will come.

REMEMBER - it's about feeling better. I'm not here to judge or poke. Just to encourage and remind you WHAT IS POSSIBLE. Probable is up to YOU.

A FEW WORDS ABOUT PAIN

Does it hurt you to walk? Do you have pain that inhibits you from walking? Does pain leave you unmotivated?

So what! It'll hurt whether you walk or not - so walk. The more you walk, the farther away you'll push that pain. It may never go entirely away. You may never become completely pain free with your walks. I'm not. I must take analgesics (pain pills) before my 2-3 mile walks each day. But, if I chose to not walk that day, I'll still have the pain.

This is where the Attitude Adjustment (AA) will come in handy. It's all in how you look at it. If you want to get better, to progress, to make your life better, you'll chose walking. If you don't want any of these things, why are you reading this blog?

Remember the 100% guarantee. You'll get back all your pain and sedentary lifestyle - guaranteed. And, for what my blogs cost you - well the relative value is phenomenal!!

WALK IT OFF!

WHAT ABOUT MY SHOES?

Do you think you need special shoes to walk in? Athletic shoe manufacturers would like you to think so. For now, just walk in whatever is comfortable for you. Chose the most comfortable pair of shoes you own and be sure to wear socks or nylons so you don't get blisters. If you have corns, calluses, bunions or other foot problems, consult a podiatrist or other doctor to see if you need something special. Likely, you'll be fine walking in comfortable shoes you already have in your closet.

If you begin walking and develop foot pain, you DO need to consult a physician especially if the pain is localized - that is, if it's in a particular region rather than being more widespread. A podiatrist can work wonders on corns - one of the most painful things you can develop on your feet. Bunions and calluses require other forms of treatment.

But, this is putting the cart before the horse. Walk first. You may well NEVER develop any foot problems. But, for sure, you won't know unless you DO walk. Gotcha!!

So, put on your shoes and move on out. If you put on your walking shoes first thing in the morning, you're more likely to take advantage of those commercials and phone calls to get in your 10 minutes a day (for beginners).

Don't walk barefoot unless you are used to walking a lot with no foot support. It's tempting to stand up from the sofa and walk for 90 seconds to 3 minutes while a commercial is airing. Why not? Because you cause more dynamic weight on your unprotected feet and stand a greater chance of stubbing a toe or sustaining other foot injury. Just put on some shoes so you can walk.