Comparison - The Thief Of Joy

What do the pictures of different fungus have to do with comparisons, or joy I ask?

Firstly, let me ask you this question, which of these fungi are doing the better job?  I’ll answer at the end of the post……..

Then, let me tell you my story……………..

I’m not sure when I first heard this saying, but it has become such a part of my headspace over the last few years that I wanted to share with you why it is so valuable to me.

As a society we are taught to compare from an early age.  For instance, do you remember being at school and told you must do better with your test results? That little Johnny or Suzie got better marks than you, they ran a faster race than you.  How did this make you feel? Did it make you strive harder, or shrink further away from trying any more? For me, it made me feel embarrassed, it made me wish I could disappear, that the floor would open up and swallow me up whole! I particularly remember one teacher who used to sit us in rows according to our test results.  If you were near the door, you were on the ‘way out’ and had the poorest results.

As an adult, I understand what he thought he was trying to do, as a teenager, it was just plain embarrassing, as if we didn’t have enough emotional junk to deal with at the time, he was making us feel less than we were in front of our school mates. Man, if he only knew what he was really doing!

How many times do you see advertising that shows impossibly slim models, female or male, or buffed bodies, magazines are plastered with the ‘beautiful’ stars. We are rammed every day with pictures of what is deemed to be ‘beautiful’ until we see that as a goal to strive for. The perfectly beautiful picture.  Social media seems to be making this worse too, the instagrammers who live through their following, the picture perfect poses that are posted, the perfect food, the perfect pout and it goes on.

I’m not sure about you, but I do feel that most of these are photo shopped, the makeup and preening takes hours to accomplish before the camera is turned on, and they are posed. They are not honest representations of the reality we all live in. Yet we still feel the need to draw comparisons to where we currently are, whether that is at the kitchen table in the morning, no makeup, head in hands, hair yet to be brushed, because we weren’t up at 4am getting ready to get ready to take the ‘instant perfect’ photo! STOP IT!

The truth is that comparison to others does more damage to your own self than it does to drive you further on to achieve greater and better outcomes than you are currently getting.

Comparing our body shapes, our height, our curves seems to be second nature.  For me, I often catch myself saying, ‘if only I was a few inches taller’, or ‘if only I could be as disciplined in my walking as……’  Do you find you are doing this too?

Now that you are feeling the pain of not appearing perfect to the external world, and because you’re comparing yourself to your social media friends, the ‘stars’ or your ‘got it together’ workmates, how can you change this?

Does it have to be this way? Can you change how you are feeling and seeing?

YES, absolutely you can. Be warned though, it takes some persistence, some consistency and some dedication on your behalf.

I know, because it’s what I have done for myself over the last few years. It’s still a work in progress, as society makes it very easy to slip back into old patterns. Recognising those patterns is one of the steps.

Step 1: Ask yourself where you want to be

This is a process of understanding where you actually want to be, not what society is dictating to you. I sat with this step for a while. I thought a lot about my body shape and size. What did I feel comfortable with, not what I looked like to others. Did it give me joy to have some curves? Did it give me joy to have the energy to do the exercise I wanted to do (for me that is going bush walking regularly). What style of clothes did I enjoy wearing? Do I feel good in those clothes?  What are all the positive things about where I want to be.

Write up a list of 25 things that make you feel happy and give you joy, about where you want to be. This is very important. This allows you to step into feeling your emotions when you are at your happiest. What is giving you joy at that time.

Step 2: Mirror work

I found this quite uncomfortable to do when I initially began this process. I can assure you, it is worth every moment of uncomfortableness when you are at a point where you see yourself quite differently than you do now.

Mirror work involves writing up a few sentences about what you love about your body.  For example, you may include a sentence on who you are, your values, such as “I am a loving and generous woman and my family and friends see it every day”. Or it may be something about your body that is beautiful to you, such as “I have gorgeous blue eyes and they are my shining feature”. The joy of this step, is that you get to choose what you love the most about you.  Remember to be impeccable with your word, to ensure you are only saying to yourself, what you would say to your best friend. Be positive, be joyful, be you.

Once you have your list of sentences that give you joy, look into a mirror at least twice a day, and look deeply into your own eyes, repeat the sentences.

Notice that when you first begin doing this, your eyes will shift, they will move up or down, rather than look directly back at you. This is your uncertainty, your insecurities at play. Persist, be consistent and in time, you will notice that you are smiling and looking straight back at yourself, while your inner feeling of love and joy expands. It’s a great experience!

Step 3: Triggers

Establishing something that will remind you on a daily basis of your inner mantras, of your beauty and joy, is a tool that I use every day on my life journey.

I use butterflies.  Why butterflies? It comes back to a book I read, Pam Grout’s E-squared. It’s a manifestation experiment, and I notice now, every day when I see a butterfly, it reminds me that I am unique, that I am manifesting everything that occurs in my day. Having a butterfly sticker on my mirror for my mirror work is my connection.

Finding a trigger is a great thing, as it takes you to the place of remembrance. Use this trigger when you are undertaking your mirror work, then, throughout your day, when you hear your inner voice begin to compare you to others, pull out your trigger, to take you to the place of no judgement.

Step 4: Always Doing Your Best

This is the best advice I ever received, always do your best.  If you believe that you are doing the best you can, given your circumstances, given what you set out to achieve in a day, then you are moving ahead in a positive manner. Only you can know if you are doing the best you can. You doing the best you can is not comparable to anyone else you know, or think you know. Only you can know this.  Only you can achieve your best.

We are all individuals, and as such, we achieve different things on different days and in different ways. No two people are the same, no two women have the same desirable weight, no two men wish to have the same physical goals, whatever it is that you are striving to achieve, it is your goal, and your goal alone. This is why you cannot compare your desired outcome to anyone else. Why your joy is your joy alone.

A good book that I used along the way on my journey to achieving my improved outlook on how I wish to be is The Four Agreements, by Don Miguel Ruiz. One of the agreements is “Always Do Your Best”

Step 5: Be Gentle

Learning to not beat yourself up if you don’t achieve your outcomes on a particular day is an important part of doing your best. If you don’t have a great day, accept that it wasn’t the best day, and that tomorrow you will strive to improve on your performance. By creating a story around why you didn’t achieve an outcome, or what happened to stop your goals being completed, gives emotion to the poor outcome, it gives it life. 

Instead, simply state “I didn’t achieve……., tomorrow I will do my best to improve on that”. FULL STOP. Don’t add anything further to this sentence. That will give it life and you will continually use it to berate yourself and to pull yourself down.

FULL STOP.

Remember, only you can improve on what you have achieved, only your goals are important to you. The only comparison you can successfully do when you are on a life journey is to compare yourself to you, never to anyone else, they are not you.

Finally, the answer to the fungus question.

Neither fungus is better than the other. All are doing their unique role in the breakdown of the logs, in their own way, for themselves, providing the right nutrition that they need to grow, to live and to ultimately play a role in the relationship they have with the rainforest, the logs and the animals.  Both are the best they can be. You can be too.

Day 2 - Cleansing, Headaches & Struggles

Day 2 of 30

Today was influenced by a struggle to enter that wonderful world of sleep last night! Yes, on Day 1 I was overthinking and overstimulated. This resulted in a difficulty in falling asleep.

Now, I like to think that I live my life in a field of no excuses. You stuff up, you stuff up, there is no excuse, just get on with it. So, today has been a day of working on myself to step into my self belief of commitment.

Yep, you guessed it, the late night and the lack of sleep culminated in a distinct desire to remain in bed this morning.  So, I did succumb to this. All the while thinking "30 days of commitment, 30 days of commitment".  I have decided that tomorrow morning, I will go for a 2 hour walk, that keeps me in alignment with my commitment to 7  hours of exercise per week.

I continued with all my other plans for today. Today was Day 1 of my cleansing. Hence, the Headaches! Normally I don't have headaches when I'm cleansing, so this is a new experience for me. However, I've just realised that I've not been drinking my water. Soooo, I'm now onto my 3rd glass of water in about 15 minutes! That will certainly take the edge off the headache.

One of the other things I was to implement for my 30 days was my Gratitude diary. I started that last night, and it's always great to get back into a place of gratitude, for the small things as well as the large.  By the small things, I mean things such as being grateful that I had time out with my husband over a coffee where we discussed how I am going to implement my 30 days of commitment, and how he figures into that plan.  Because, he is not going on this journey with me, it is about me, and how I commit to myself. He understands that, and is ready to support me in any way he can (yes, he's my coach, I've given him permission to ask the tough questions!).

I've also kept up with my commitment of no scales. I hear you titter and laugh, yes, it's only Day 2, BUT I've been weighing myself daily for the last few years as a way to be aware of my maintenance. There was an article I read a few years ago that highlighted that those people who regularly weighed themselves were more likely to maintain their goal weight than those that don't. It made sense to me at the time, as you can correct any out of control upward spirals if you're aware of them happening, before they become out of control!  Now, it's just a morning routine habit, so keeping away from those scales is a mission!  I'm already looking forward to 2 June, when I get to step onto them again.

However, weighing yourself isn't the only way to measure your journey, and it's not the only way I measure mine. I also take measurements of myself when I'm monitoring where I'm heading too on a journey.  This is because I've been caught up before in the whole "omg, I've worked so hard this week and I've not dropped an ounce" routine. This is because, back then, I didn't understand the relationship between fat and muscle.  Fat weights lighter for the volume it holds than muscle. So, for example, a kg of muscle is smaller in volume than a kg of fat. Soooo, when the scales don't move and you've been pumping the iron, exercising well, it may very well be due to the loss of fat, and the gaining of muscle!  Now, I'm much more aware of measurements - oh yes, and the loose waistband is the BEST measurement ever!

Well, I've now got to continue on with the rest of my daily commitments with my work, and that includes my study, so I'm off to do some learning.

30 Days Of Commitment

30 Days Of Commitment

What does it take for you to be true to a commitment?  I've committed to goals in the past, and they have generally slipped away. Why you ask? Well, to be perfectly truthful, I'm a great and energetic starter, and a poor finisher. This can be seen often in my work, I am full of enthusiasm for new projects, for new ideas, and after some time, they fade, I lose interest and the completion date comes around more quickly than I realised.

Now, don't get me wrong, I do always finish! I'm a great last minute finaliser of projects in work (in fact, here I am at 6pm at night writing a blog I promised myself I'd get done today, at 8am this morning I promised this!).

So, I'm working on changing this. 

How do you do that? With a plan!

Thinking I'm strong enough to do this alone is a bit silly, I've failed at it before, and no doubt, without a mentor, a coach and self belief, I'd continue to fail at it again.

So, this time is different.

I have a coach on board, they will daily be questioning me on whether my choices fit in with my set goal and plans.

I have a mentor on board, a group of like minded individuals all cheering each other on (I believe there are over a thousand of them, but all supportive and with some great ideas). This group offer tips, hints and motivation on a daily basis, my coach will be asking me if I have looked at them every day.

I have my gratitude diary set up and ready to complete on a daily basis.

I have my blog, and a commitment to write on it every day, revealing the difficulties I encounter and how I overcome them, as well as the good times, the gratitudes I want to share.

I can see that this is different already.  For starters, I am writing this instead of closing up my clinic and heading up to the comfort of the lounge. That is a bonus for me.

So, what is my 30 day commitment? It is specifically this:

Healthy Eating on a 5:2 plan for 30 days

No alcohol for 30 days

Writing on my blog for 30 days

Exercise for a minimum of 7 hours per week (can be 2 hours in a day)

No weighing on the scales for 30 days (Day 1 and Day 30 only)

Always see my body and send it love on a daily basis

When I first began my journey, I was committed and lost 23 kg over 8 months. Consistency won the day, and for the following year, consistency allowed me to realise that I can maintain my weight. Holidays and a failure to be consistent reminded me that I do love food, and wine, and the consequences are a couple of kgs!  

I will be honest and admit that I have rebounded by 6 kg over the last 2 1/2 years (they do say that on average an adult increases in weight by 2kg/year).  However, I am still in a body I love, one that is healthy and exercised regularly. I do wish to do this for me.  I want to stop the sometimes/wishywashy/it'll be ok/oh, next week is fine attitude. For me and my self worth, I am committing to 30 days of routine!

Healthy Mind & Body - Days 26 - 32

Weight Loss Help

We all fall off the wagon at times, and in my journey, I have done it often enough.  BUT, the important thing in any journey is to get back up onto your feet, brush yourself off, and continue forwards, without negative self talk, and with a positive attitude.

Well, after a stint of completing the daily tasks in the program, I had an event that dumped me off the wagon unceremoniously!! A night out with friends, that turned into an affair bigger than Ben Hur, as the sayings go! Consequently, I was exhausted after staying up until 3am drinking red wine, and then waking at 7.30am (it's hot and very sunny here at that time!) thinking I'd had plenty of sleep - what a joke that was!!  By the time I got home later that afternoon, my mind wasn't on my program, or my healthy eating at all.  So, another glass of wine and an early night followed.  What happened to my committment? Well, truthfully, I slept through it!!

Then, it was about getting back into the routine.  How easy is it to find excuses not to do something, even though you know how good it is for you to be doing it?  The self talk is always full of excuses.  Well, it took me until Thursday to step back into my routines, just the program, as the healthy eating resumed very quickly on Monday, followed by a full cleanse Tuesday and Wednesday - boy did I feel so much more energised for doing it!!

On Thursday I completed days 26 - 29, then the storm hit! Well, it was a fairly heavy thunder and lightening show (very pretty too, sat outside and watched it until the rain became too heavy and my shelter not dry enough!), so all the computers and modem were switched off - end of that day's committment.  No excuses, it was done, but the blogging wasn't complete.  Never mind.  

Now, here I am, on Day 32, finishing up days 30 - 32 and finally blogging about the journey.

I found it interesting that the first topic discussed was mindset on Day 26

Your mindset is fueled by your thoughts

How you feel is associated with the thoughts you choose to accept

YOU GET TO CHOOSE HOW YOU FEEL

Your actions & your attitude create your reality

Then we looked into the excitement factor.  When you begin a new way of eating or a new exercise regime, or even a new mindset programme, there is an element of excitement that carries you through the first steps of this isn't there?  Then the excitement drops.  What happens then?

Quite often, this is the time most people QUIT.  But, if you keep doing it anyway, then you are beginning to develop a sub-conscious habit - that is what you're aiming for when developing new habits - to be able to do it without having to feel forced, to think actively about it, it just happens!

Do you plan your day?  What happens on your day off, especially when you have no plans?  Yep, pretty much nothing right?  Well, having a plan, even a simple one, will keep you focused on your tasks for the day ahead.  Plan it out the night before, make it one of your last tasks you do before you go to bed at night - what is it you want to achieve tomorrow, and when will you do it.  It can be as simple as "I am walking for 20 minutes at lunchtime" - notice the language? You are saying I am.  This tells your body that you are doing it, not that you should or you might, but that you are doing it!

For more information on how you too can get started on your journey, contact me through the attached form, or go to my website, www.SandraVenablesHealth.com

Healthy Mind & Body- Day 24

Weight Loss Help

Done! 

After a long day, I made the effort and completed Day 24. Support is important on any journey, and having a partner hold me accountable has helped me complete today's entry, even though my eyelids are almost closed after a day of driving around 250km!!

Healthy Mind & Body - day 19

Weight Loss Help - Quick Tip

Seriously feeling fantastic. Up at 5.30am as I was running a market stall, picked up my friend at 6am, tea in hand (thank you my darling man), arrived at our stall around 7am, set up and ready to go by 8. Feeling invincible!

Washed out late in the day, creating some cleaning. As t was a Sunday, all thoughts of business commitment faded dramatically.

Now, at bed time, I realised I could spend a few moments to create a response in my course, AND a blog!!

Yay!!,,,

How many day now, oh yes, let me count, 6!!

Feeling pretty darn happy, and consistent!

Enjoy my storm photos and video. This was one of the things that postponed my routine, but, yes, I still managed it!!  Looks like I will have to post the videos tomorrow as technology isn't playing the game. Won't let that stop me today x

Healthy Mind & Body - Day 18

Weight Loss Help

More consistent action has occurred. Yet again, I have logged in and completed my course work, I woke and did my planking exercise, before going for an extra long walk, and now I am here sharing.  

Today is about focus, and the laws of focus.  

What You Focus On:

• you find

• seems real to you

• grows

• ultimately, you become

  
  

  "Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life"

  - Steve Jobs
  
  
  
   

Healthy Mind and Body - Day 17

Weight Loss Help

I'm beginning to believe that procrastination is flying out of the window.  Here I am on Day 17 of my course and I've now been consistently completing it every day for the last 4 days, a record. I have done my dreaded planking exercise every monring for 4 mornings.  And best of all, I overcame my procrastinating mind this morning, it was all 

• "oh, you've already done 2 workouts in a row, have a rest" 
• "oh, do you really want to get up and do weights?" 
• "are you sure you want to get up?"

BUT, I DID IT!!!

I got up and went to my gym area to lift weights, thought I'd only do one set and give up, BUT I didn't!!

I started to enjoy doing it after all, awesome!  Listening to the sounds of the birds gave me such gratitude for being in this special place. A great way to begin the day.

By getting to this stage in my 60 day journey, I have come to the realisation that my mindset closely follows the beautiful quote by Henry Ford

"Whether you think you can,

or you think you can't

You're right

Healthy Mind and Body - Day 16

Weight Loss Help

Here we are, another day, another day of committment and completion!

Wow, oh wow, the feeling of excitement, knowing that I have got up, done my plank exercise, gone for a walk, and now completed another day in a row of my healthy mind and body course - feeling very proud of myself (yes, it is okay to be proud of your achievements, remember, I did say that you must first love who you are now? This applies)

The sense of purpose, knowing that after two weeks, things are starting to come together for me, enhances how my mood is, it enhances my motivation levels, and definitely reduces the procrastination!

Today is a day of purpose, gratitude and love for all around me.

Yesterday, my day started differently, and then it lifted, the changes that occurred because I took some actions, in both my business day and my personal day, were all positive.  I made the decision to work more efficiently, and I still managed to complete my tasks even when 'obstacles' arose (yes, they were positive obstacles, and they changed my routine, but I still completed my tasks!).  I even made a decision to turn off the tv and read a book, instead of fridge hunting when the ads were on, do you know what? When you read a book, there are no boring ads!! How incredible!!

Haa haa, feeling very positive about the journey forward.   It will always be a journey, never forget that!

Come and check out some of my daily motivation and tips on Facebook too

Healthy Mind and Body - Day 15

Weight Loss Help

Day 15 - two days in a row now, and I've been doing my coursework - Woo Hoo!!

I also made a committment yesterday to do one exercise for the next week, choosing one I didn't particulary enjoy.  So, this morning, before my walk, I got up and did a plank, raising alternate arms, 10 times each - phew! Done. Now, to repeat for another 6 mornings

It's all about making changes.  These changes will help you to condition your mind, and attitude, to taking steps towards your goals.

Thinking about how you want to be.

Asking yourself, why do I want to create that body?

Remembering that you are responsible for all your choices

You are therefore responsible for your transformation

Remember, in order to step into change, one of the first steps is to remember to love yourself first, as you are now.  It's not the external that we/people see and love, it's what's inside.  Take a look, honestly, at yourself. List what others see, that they love about you (yes, I know it's hard, I've come from a place of disbelief in self, a place of not thinking I'm worthy), and then take that list and agree with it!

Be grateful for who you were, before wanting to make a change, lovingly step towards where you want to be.

Self talk that empowers you is important. Here are some examples:

• I am strong enough
• I am on my way
• I am worthy
• I am enough
• I am able to do this
• I am moving forward
• I am loveable and loving
• I am............

As you can see, there is a pattern - taking responsibility for where you are, for your choices, means that you step into that responsibility, with love and gratitude.

Now, once you've written a list, stand tall (I call it WARRIOR POSE - hands on hips, straight back, feet shoulder width apart) and speak your list out loud, with confidence, 3 times - YES 3 TIMES!!

By breathing self belief into yourself daily, you will walk differently, hold yourself differently, and you will believe in YOU!

Healthy Mind and Body - Day 12 - 14

Weight Loss Help

One of the consistent aspects of undertaking my daily journaling with this study is that I'm consistently inconsistent! 

However, I am still committed to this study, and I'm consistently good at catching up!  Every 2 - 3 days, I take the time to complete my daily tasks!

By day 60, I'll be doing this daily!!

"We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them."

-  Albert Einstein

My plan is to complete my daily tasks

Want to join me on this journey?

Healthy Mind and Body - Day 11

Weight Loss Help

Another busy day today, but the excuses did not override the commitment - time to celebrate!!!!

Here I am - celebrating being ME. Celebrating my commitment

Vision is the focus of today, what keeps you going?  What keeps you on target?

"With a powerful vision and strong desire, you can truly focus on what you want instead of what you don't want. With consistent focus on what you want, you can achieve it."

- Isagenix

Focusing on my energy, my ability to live in the now, avoids the worry of what is to come, the regret or wishes for what was - truly focusing on today, living for today, with today in mind.

Yes, there is always the big vision, where I'm going to, but by living in the here and now, I can see the future vision, without the worry, without the anxiety, without the continual wish that things were different.

My new mindset vision - what I am living into:

I awake with joy and excitement in my heart, running over my Morning 6 to keep me focused on what is to be done today, and the WHY.  During the day, the challenges don't give way to procrastination, they instead give me the energy and the excitement to forge ahead, as I know that this change, and change is exciting and to be embraced.  By focusing on today, on what needs to be done today to take me one step closer to my ultimate goal, makes the day seem so much easier and joyful.  One step closer to being able to help those who need their health improved, but have noone to turn to, no medical system to support them, one step closer to building a home for the homeless, creating an unique space for the homeless that is governed by The Four Agreements (and of course, an area for their pets!). This mindset gives rise to much gratitude that I have been put here to implement these options for those that need the extra help, all deserve love, joy, peace and gratitude in their lives.  

- Sandra Venables

Nov 2015

My WHY - develop your own too, it keeps you focused.

My vision is to impact the health of the children of HIV positive parents, to ensure they have the opportunity to live their lives to the fullest they can, in a healthy and positive manner. To repay Bern for all I have borrowed from him. To build a place for the homeless on the Gold Coast, that will support them, and their pets, in a way that is non-confrontational to them, that helps them achieve what they wish to achieve, that is run on the vision of gratitude and positiveness, and the Four Agreements, that allows others to grow again, to step into the world with love and know that there is a point to this magic life they live. My legacy will be to the chiildren of sick parents and to those without a home  

- Sandra Venables

Nov 2015

 

Healthy Mind and Body - Day 8, 9 & 10

Weight Loss Help

Well, here I am at Day 10, and I've had 'good' excuses for not completing Days 8 and 9 before today.  I have even had some wonderful justification. Talk about learning!!  

Excuses

• it's been a long day
• my mother called me
• I've been working all day already

Justifications

• I'm working on moving forward anyway
• I've been focused on the steps I need to make anyway
• I'm going in the right direction anyway

Notice a pattern? I certainly have while I've been writing this out - anyway. What an amazing word to use for justifying why I've not stuck to my committment.  Yes, I am playing catch up now, so that indicates to me that I am doing the best I can (remember the Four Agreements?), and I am almost committing!

Yes, I have noticed that I have been more focused since I made the committment to this 60 day journey. However, there will always be obstacles in your path (and mine too), and finding excuses is a natural thing to do, BUT, finding reasons to still do it regardless is important!  This is my journey.

One of the first statements on Day 8 is about blocking and resistance, I think this is where I'm at and it's what will be changing.  Let's go for it!

"You will either step forward into growth, or step backward into safety"

- Abraham Maslow

Stop procrastinating about starting - contact me now to find out how!

Healthy Mind and Body - Day 7

Weight Loss Help

When taking the journey through natural weight loss, often it's your will power, the strength of your mind, that will get you through the rough days.

'The energy of the mind is the essence of life'

- Aristotle

This quote by Aristotle is very relevant to your weight Loss journey. The strength of your mind determines your outcome, it determines how you see the day, and therefore how you approach the day.

Determine your own day. Remember it is your choice how you see the day, your choice to react to situations and food temptations, your choice...........

Today, I chose to have a nutritional cleanse, I was tempted many times to stop it and eat some food, rather than follow my balanced herbal cleansing routine, my mind and my WHY kept me on track. Here I am, at the end of the day, about to make a warming cup of tea to celebrate my success. Thank you mind, for all you do to take me on my preferred journey.

Healthy Mind and Body - Day 6

Weight Loss Help

Do you use the daily tasks as an excuse or as a reason? 

When you are on a Life Journey, it can feel easier to fall back on an excuse for not doing something that takes you a step closer to your goal.

Today, I could've very easily said, oh that's just too hard, let it go, and walk away. It was about getting my phone issues sorted out, but it relates to my Life Journey.

The person assisting me on swapping my intermittent faulty phone with a new one was not able to quickly and easily swap my info from one phone to another. The thought went through my mind

'Oh, you don't really deserve to have your phone replaced, just say it's too hard, walk away and take your almost ok phone with you, it'll be easier'

However, I overrode that thought and stated instead

'I deserve no less than anyone else, I am worth the best, because I am the best'

WOW, what a change for me!! Yes, I deserve the best, so stand up and ask for it!

Are you believing in yourself? And are you grateful for all that happens to you in a day, both positive and negative? All experiences help us to learn. 

Enjoy and embrace your learning as you go on your weight loss journey.

Healthy Mind and Body - Day 5

Weight Loss Help

Though today has been exceptionally full, I've found the time at last to be consistent and committed to changing my attitude.

"Success is the sum of small efforts repeated day in and day out."

-  Robert Collier

Taking a small step every day towards your goal is inspirational. 

Making changes in your current lifestyle will feel difficult, it will make you wonder why you are doing this new thing. That Lizard on your shoulder (your internal voice) will try to protect you and make you remain within your comfort zone.

Remember, all change appears to be difficult while you're transforming your lifestyle. 

Push through these uncomfortable moments, by remembering your WHY.  Why do you want to have a new nutritional lifestyle, that allows you to achieve those things you originally wrote down. Remember what they were?

Things such as:

• keeping up with your children
• sleeping through the night
• having energy at the end of the day
• having energy when you wake up
• wearing a bikini
• wearing that wonderful little black number you have spotted!!

Looking forward to hearing your inner voice telling you this is difficult, celebrate it, embrace it, fight for the change, make the changes one step at a time!

Heatlhy Mind And Body - Day 3 & 4

Weight Loss Help

On my Life Journey, making changes to habits, I can slip up.  Yesterday was no different. I can make excuses for not opening up my Healthy Mind and Body course work, or I can state what actually happened.  What actually happened was that I just plain forgot to complete the task.

Now, in the words of don Miguel Ruiz and The Four Agreements, I am being impeccable with my word (not berrating myself for not doing it) and agreeing that I did the best I could yesterday. And here I am today, completing the coursework from yesterday and also from today.  A little catchup and still the feeling of consistency and committment are strong and true.

"A man is but the product of his thoughts, what he thinks, he becomes"

- Ghandi

This quote from Ghandi is very reflective of how my day went yesterday, I knew it was to be a day of learning, as I was going to a training seminar. My mind was open and I saw different opportunities, including feeling confident enough to offer my services to an acquaintance - and he accepted - first sale done!!  Such joyous feelings from that, and then my mind was so much more open to learning.  Loved the consequences of keeping an open mind, thinking I was learning something new, then seeing it unfold and develop into business.

When you are learning a new habit, often you have an inner voice playing along with you.  This inner voice, which some have called a Lizard, is looking out for you, keeping you in your comfort zone, not allowing you to be hurt.  In doing this, the Lizard is also keeping you from changing your habits.

This inner voice will justify and make excuses for why you did not do something, it will justify why you are eating a little more every day, why you stay in bed rather than exercise, why you don't complete your tasks for the day.  All to keep you in the perceived place of comfort.  When the inner voice, or Lizard, is getting louder with justifications and excuses, that's when you know you're on the verge of change.

Embrace this inner voice, and use it to fuel your passion for the change you so desire.  

Your desired change may be that

• you're fitter, 
• you've dropped a dress size, 
• you're able to keep up with the kids without panting, 
• you're feeling comfortable in a bikini
• you're eating because it's fuel for your body, and not smothering your emotions

When you are building new habits, taking one step at a time, in order to reinforce the change, is easier to do than jumping right in and changing everything in one day.

"Becoming is better than being"

- Carol Dweck

Healthy Mind & Body, Day 2

Do You Self Sabotage?

Only on Day 2 of my new 60 day Life Journey committment to consistency and the Universe appears to be conspiring to sabotage me!!  Clients texting wanting products made up for them now, people popping into the clinic in my next scheduled time to do the course, hubby popping in to ask questions, and thoughts of what needs to be done next!  

Finally, I stopped and said, NO, I am doing this and the next important 'stuff' needs to wait for 1/4 of an hour!!

First statement of my course highlights the following:

"Your thoughts shape your day, and you have a choice on what you think and feel"

How appropriate - I woke up knowing I'd be busy, and it's been busier than I'd expected - so my thoughts truly are shaping my day. And, then I made a choice, to stop and breathe, and become more inspired in my path forwards.

I decided to focus on what is important for me - to move ahead on my healthy body goals, and to move ahead in my business!  It's been a busy day, but a day of focus, so that is important to me.

Be Grateful For Your Day & All It Entails

Be Proud Of Your Achievements, No Matter The Size

You Are Doing The Best You Can, Be Gentle & Grateful

Where's Your Head?

When it comes to losing weight easily, there's a lot more to it than just the exercise and the change of eating habits.

It's also about changing your mindset.

Do you agree that sometimes you have what is known as a FAT HEAD?

What I mean by this, is that no matter how much your body shape changes, you still see the overweight person that began the journey?

One of the steps I undertook when I began my final journey into healthiness and ideal weight patterning, is that I began looking at mindfulness.

This includes a lot of different things, initially for me it was about being mindful of what I was eating.

Gradually it developed into being mindful of what I am grateful for, my Gratitude Diaries were born.

Seeing the world differently begins with just one step at a time.

I've found out about how to learn Mindfulness during the month of October, for free - and I want to share it with you here.

Enjoy your journey to Mindfulness

Learn Mindfulness & Meditation

Two Years On

Happy Anniversary!

Yes, realised this week it's now been two years since I last saw my excess weight - how exciting!!  This time two years ago, I made a choice, drew a line in the sand and quickly hopped over it!  How amazing making that decision has been for me! Truly exciting and life changing.

This time two years ago, I was quite the little frump, tyres around my waist, lacking in energy and motivation, really wondering how I was going to be as I eventually headed towards menopause, what was going to happen to me?

Here I am two years ago, makes me quite sad to see this tired, worn out photo, but I think it's important that we remember where we came from!

July 2013

The journey took me some time, it took dedication to my changed lifestyle plan, which included changing my way of eating, my type of foods and my exercise plans.  With all of these changes on board, and a commitment to my goal, I worked hard and arrived at the place I'm in now, 2 years later, past my goal weight, energetic, happy and full of life, sleeping better than I have in years, and happily making healthy choices in my diet and exercise plans, no pressure at all on myself.

July 2014

I've run a half marathon, I've climbed Mt Warning, I've taken to liking my exercise, and miss it when it's not part of my routine.  Do I sweat in the gym for hours? Not likely!  I'm a rainforest walking type of girl now. Love being out in nature, visiting my favourite waterfall, hearing the birds sing their hearts out, watching sunrises and sunsets and just being.

My Favourite Waterfall

Thank you to everyone who reads my blog, your support along my journey has been inspirational for me, I love sharing my journey and all that I find to enable you  to also take a similar journey of your own.  Feel free to contact me if you want to discuss your journey further.