I’ve queried seniors about whether they feel “elderly.” Whether the respondent was 70, 80 – I even got to ask someone who was 99 – the answer was almost always identical, “I pretty much feel like I always have.’” [...]
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September 1, 2010
I’ve queried seniors about whether they feel “elderly.” Whether the respondent was 70, 80 – I even got to ask someone who was 99 – the answer was almost always identical, “I pretty much feel like I always have.’” [...] August 24, 2010
Research has actually proven that humans are “hard-wired” to assume things will go cattywumpus rather than not. Given the opportunity to attribute a random event to either good new or bad, we will usually assume the road has more potholes than flat patches. [...] August 18, 2010
The study suggested that we not only need to encourage healthy eating habits for young children, but also need to set a good example by refraining from making negative comments about people who are overweight. Children of course, are mirrors of us and they pick up our attitude, which results in bullying behavior. In effect, we indirectly teach our children to bully. However, there is a bigger picture. We need to remember that each and every person has habits about which he or she is not proud. The difference is that if over-eating is the habit, it cannot be hidden. It is on display for all to view. [...] August 11, 2010
This begs an urgent question: Do we control our thoughts and feelings or do they control us? In effect, are we victims to the synaptic firings and hormone-driven changes of affect; or do we create them to serve our needs? Who is the master — and who is servant? [...] July 14, 2010
With appropriate disclaimers admitted, if we accept that we are standing in our own way, it begs the question, “Why would we do that?” Why do we NOT reach further, dream larger, and believe better? The primary answer is: Fear; Fear of Success, and its dastardly sibling, Fear of Failure. [...] June 23, 2010
When the baby boomers started being born shortly after World War II, the entire population inhabiting this third rock from the sun was 2.3 billion. Therefore, if we lived in 1947, and we were facing this same predicament, every single, solitary, person would need to be on a diet. [...] April 7, 2010
It’s unrealistic to assume you won’t screw-up now and then, especially if you’re trying new things. So without mistakes, there is no reason for adjustment, which means we’re not learning anything; therefore nothing changes. So, one could say mistakes are actually step one in improving our life. [...] March 17, 2010
What began as extremely unfussy and obtainable intention – eating better and moving more – has erupted into a full-scale mega-production requiring learning how to cook differently, shopping with new eyes, rearranging schedules, altering relationships, and devising self-inflicting intimidating goals. Building such blockades makes the procedure ridiculously difficult and horribly unpleasant. [...] March 11, 2010
Our body can’t perceive the difference between “saber-tooth tiger stress” and the “IRS is on the phone for you” stress. All it understands is that something is a kilter; we are under pressure and it reacts to deal with the problem. [...] February 17, 2010
As I watched the drama, it dawned on me that this process of learning does not end when we move away from our parents. It is a sequence that presents itself continually: Frustration. Lesson. Acceptance. Progress. Repeat cycle as necessary until learned. [...] January 7, 2010
Stop! Don’t do it! I know it’s the “new year,” that ritualistic period whereby we become fixated on ridding ourselves of that sluggish, bloated, overloaded blob-like feeling in which we wrapped ourselves for the previous two months. Whipped up by cartons of cookies and bags of breadstuffs; flavored by truckloads of turkey with gravy, ham with glaze, or both; coated in tankards of eggnog (with and without rum); we are just darn-near ready to put on the brakes and embrace our “new me.” It is a cultural happening. As ubiquitous was “Have a Holly Jolly Christmas” last month are now the signs of this new year’s dawning. Full-page gift ads have converted to double truck spreads promoting six-pack abs and shriek, “Have the sexy glutes you’ve always wanted!” Even jolly old Saint Nick has shifted his routine. Two weeks ago, singing elves warmly patted their bellies after consuming plates of iced cookies. Today? Santa’s helpers wear sweatpants and can barely let forth a hum as they aspire to get heart rates into the target zone while pounding away on the treadmill in the new North Pole gym. Continue reading The only resolution that works December 17, 2009
The next morning, I raced downstairs, not knowing what to expect. I surveyed the living room. Nothing. Then the obvious became apparent: “He was an eccentric geezer who cashed in his penny jar, that’s all.” I started to exit when I noticed a simple envelope adorned with an embossed snowflake and a monogrammed “S.C.” Slitting it open, I pulled out a handwritten note on parchment: “Henceforth, you will realize how fortunate you truly are. Your life is full even when it seems not. Enjoy your blessings. Thanks for the help.” [...] December 10, 2009
Looking for something to help wind down at the end of a hard day clogging your arteries with Monster Pies? How about the McNuggetini? This festive drink (?) consists of a chocolate milkshake mixed with vodka, rimmed with barbecue sauce, and garnished with half a chicken nugget. “Hey bar-keep! Gimme a double will ya?” [...] November 27, 2009
Quoting Cassius, “The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves…” It’s easy to pronounce and pontificate about what “they” should do, it’s quite another little something to step to the platform, roll up our sleeves, and actually take action. Irrespective of legislation regarding “single payer” or “pre-existing conditions,” we must each make a difference in our own lives by establishing good health as a higher priority in day-to-day decisions. [...] November 23, 2009
Although food is definitely a means by which we celebrate good fortune, I must note that nowhere is “stuffing oneself until sick” listed as a tradition. Quite the contrary, I would go so far as to say that uncomfortable, pained, hyper-expanded feeling that follows so many Thanksgiving celebrations actually detracts from the appreciative sense of gratitude one would hope to experience. Maybe, that’s one tradition we can drop this year. [...] November 11, 2009
Watch what you say, it could become your life. Therefore, when we say, “I’ve lost my motivation,” it presupposes that motivation is some foreign entity residing in a distant land. Yet, we are the source of our motivation. [...] October 29, 2009
Positive thinking is not blind, naive, magical wishing. I cannot rub a crystal ball, site solemnly my affirmations, and assume that all will go exactly as I foresee. It does not materialize nirvana. What it does is gives me a stake in my own outcomes; so my life becomes mine, for better or worse. [...] October 15, 2009
At the end of the line up, the inn has two dispensing machines that provide two different types of cold cereal. In the front of each dispenser, there is a picture of the box from which they come. I presume they do this so you can tell which cereal is which. However, at first blush, the decision to the health-conscious appears obvious. Note use of the word, “appears.” [...] October 7, 2009
People, please, can we take a breath? Let’s slow down long enough to step back from the brink and move distant from the precipice of righteous anger. Let’s put the “go-ahead-cross-this-line” bravado on the back burner long enough to hear what someone has to say before we puff up, poke our finger in his chest, and give him the piece of mind we think he deserves? [...] September 30, 2009
Oh yes, once in a while, something great does cross my computer screen, and it’s worth telling others about. The RULES FOR BEING HUMAN, by Cherie Carter-Scott, fits that bill, consisting of ten brilliant lessons on how to manage your time on Planet Earth. [...] September 16, 2009
Due to the long lifespan of people and the rigors of the diet, studies of calorie restriction in humans are ongoing and have yet to show that people live longer. Nonetheless, thousands of individuals now follow calorie restriction diets, hoping to discover what Ponce de Leon did not. [...] September 8, 2009
“I realized things weren’t going to get any better until I made them better. I’m tired of feeling bad all the time. I felt like I was trapped. I was always angry. I was ruining my relationships. It was just time. Any of the above; all of the above, you name it.” [...] September 3, 2009
Most of our stream of consciousness flowing between our ears is emotionally neutral. However, periodically, for better or worse, we draw a thought from the current and focus on it. The longer we drill, the more emotional the thought. Emotions drive change. Change affects our future. So, put two and two together and one can see that thoughts actually do manifest themselves as our lives. [...] August 26, 2009
They – whomever “they” are – have erroneously told us that confidence is acquired as the result of years on the planet. Yet, after observing this energetic, welcoming, unabashed toddler, I wonder; maybe self-assurance is our birthright – not the self-doubt with which we saddle ourselves. [...] August 19, 2009
After two months in the Andes, unable to “take it any more,” and losing all hope of rescue, Parrado and a teammate – adorned merely in jeans, t-shirts, and make-shift shoe shoes – trekked, hiked, crawled, and dragged themselves 70 miles down the mountain, eventually finding help, and rescuing the 16 remaining survivors. I know I was not the only person who pulled from its holster a cell phone. I tapped into it my wife’s number, and left a message telling her how much I love her and what a blessing she is in my life. [...] August 5, 2009
I stood on my head today. Well, that’s not exactly accurate. Actually standing on my head would require a level of flexibility and dexterity not possessed by yours truly as my feet cannot even reach that big ol’ noggin of mine. Besides, even if they could, why would I choose to stand on it? It would be painful, and I would get footprints on my ears. So, I guess the more precise way to describe it is, “I did a headstand.” Really! There I was: head where my feet usually are and feet where my head goes (except when sleeping of course). I found myself in this most topsy-turvy world because my Yoga teacher says it is beneficial as it helps with blood pressure and reduces stress (well, except for your arms; they were stressed quite the big amount, let me tell you). Since I started Yoga, she has been urging, guiding, cajoling, and coaxing to get me to try this top-is-bottom bizarre configuration. Continue reading Changing the view July 1, 2009
Dinner had finished so they retired to the living room, leaving the pile of plates and cups in the sink. After all, dishes will wait, your daughter’s potential first steps will not. [...] June 25, 2009
Sitting at my usual table, at my usual coffee house, at the usual time, I’m not sure I “read” my newspaper, per se. I glance at an article, absorb a few lines, and then give myself the luxury of letting my mind drift. From this process come ideas for speeches or columns. It’s also one way I get ready for my day. From my vantage point, I observe the line of people waiting to purchase pastries, bagels, and of course, their Morning Joe. I am intrigued by the tide of patrons; why are they here? What brought each of them? What do they do? One can immediately tell the vocation of some by their apparel. Health care professionals are adorned in “scrubs.” Although of various colors, or decorated with animals, at a glance one can deduce, “She works at a doctor’s office.” Of course, public safety employees; fire, law enforcement, ambulance; are easy to ascertain, as is a well-groomed individual in a grey, pin striped suit: “Business Person.” Continue reading Some of what we do is obvious June 18, 2009
That’s when it happened. I won’t lie and say the pain vanished. It didn’t – on no, not by a long shot. However, something changed and, for an instant, I found myself in a mental place where, although I could feel discomfort, I also experienced exhilaration because, until this moment, I was never before able to achieve this pose. [...] June 10, 2009
Just stay off the scale, leave it alone, shut the emotional door behind, and walk into the distance? What a concept. Skip all the fussing and frustrations associated with the ups and downs of my daily weight and lead a normal healthy life? Could that be possible? Can I do it? [...] May 20, 2009
This is not merely an ethereal discussion without real-life implication, similar to “how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.” These terms we toss about: “success,” “failure,” “victory,” “defeat;” manipulate us emotionally; and it is what we feel – far beyond what we think – that drives action. Therefore what we choose to say matters to the highest degree. [...] May 13, 2009
Who dreamt this up? I mean any diet that requires hot dogs has to be a joke. They – and the ice cream – were probably tossed in simply to prevent one from going bonkers while protectively hunkering over and guarding the three saltine crackers and one miserly beet. [...] May 7, 2009
I know what you’re thinking, “There’s a lot of activity but no action.” See! Readin’ you like a book, aren’t I? I saw that coming. [...] April 29, 2009
My internal recovering perfectionist is intrigued by the very concept of a “perfect day.” What would it be like? For that matter, is it even possible? And, of course, since all things in my life filter through the screen of dieting, my thoughts turned toward, “What would it be like to be perfect on my diet for one week?” [...] April 24, 2009
I want to shriek, “Don’t you dare tell me what size I am! I am a professional dieter. I can list the calories, fat, fiber, and sugar content of every food ever invented. Go ahead, test me!” Feeling mall security would not take kindly to a raving maniac in bulging britches, I opt to keep closed my pie hole. [...] April 15, 2009
Why not manufacture a scale for uninspired dieters who merely want to feel good, but don’t want to actually change? [...] April 2, 2009
We engage in these behaviors because we’re looking for the simplest road to our goal. That’s normal; it’s not like life is so easy that we need to complicate it. However, equally true – and certainly more frustrating – is that the less we adjust, the more unlikely we are to experience positive results. Change requires change. [...] |
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Pointing fingers at others
Civility’s spotlight has lately expanded to include the overweight. We shake our heads and whisper to our “normal” friends, “It’s a shame that they don’t take care of themselves. I’d never let myself look like that.” We wag our fingers and click our tongues, satisfied that we are “better than that.” [...]