Well there's the motivator so now it's time for the lesson. I wrote a while back on taking care of yourself and some of the things that I do to take care of myself. What I've learned is that there are only a few things that you have more control over than anything else in life. Your morals and principles. Your health. And your personal hygiene.
Health, attitude and hygiene are all intertwined. This is hitting home for me more and more recently. I've had two folks that I work with be admitted to the hospital for some form of heart disease (and I use disease very lightly). Don't get me wrong, they're in a bad spot health wise and it's not a joke. Not only are they sick but I suffer production wise as well. I spend more time with them than I do with my family so yeah, I care. I see the fear in their face. I see how they carry themselves and the level of effort they put into their work performance. And it's their fault. They ask for help and don't follow through and wonder why this is happening to them.
People generally eat like crap and the end result is a lot of things or conditions that can be easily prevented. Poor diet and no exercise equals low energy, poor health and injuries. And for me, I'm grumpy.
A few months ago, my wife got the genius idea that she wanted to do a body building competition. Although I genuinely disagree with what those folks do to their bodies, she needed something to focus on and focus she did. I am very proud of the discipline that she showed with her diet and working out. I ate the same things she did with the exception of the "blood" that runs through my veins....beer. I cut way way back on that though.
End result, both of us shed unneeded body fat, felt better and we actually saved a lot of money. She looked fantastic and I cannot begin to tell you how much her attitude changed. I, on the other hand still looked like I got beat with a bag of nickels but I was in great shape and felt awesome. See, cooking for yourself is rewarding and batch cooking, then packing your meals prevents you from buying garbage snacks or lunches. Winner Winner, chicken most of the time for dinner. And I'm not a tree hugger by any means but the amount of garbage that we produced dropped by almost 2/3's. Yes, I did the math.
So, here's some advice. Diets don't work. Don't believe the hype. "Oh but Susie lost all this weight in 30 days"....how's she doing now? Probably fat again, starving and lost as to why it happened. Eat fresh food, lots of green veggies and cut out the sugar and fat. Educate yourself on what is actually in your food. Processed generally means garbage. If you can't pronounce the long list of ingredients....chemical poo storm.
Can you cheat and eat the bad stuff still? Heck yeah you can. Just not all the time and not in huge quantities. Food is fuel and that's it. When you eat what is also just as important as what you eat. Eat consistently throughout the day. If you starve yourself or cut too many calories, you're body is going to start wondering when it's gonna get food again. Then it starts storing fat to protect itself.
Water is good. Gatorade, supplements, Mio's, whatever....garbage. Think about it, it's not sugar but tastes like sugar. Why? It tricks your mind into believing it's sugar. What do you think your body is going to do with it? Use it like it would sugar that's what.
Getting up and moving or getting on the elliptical for 8 hours then "pumping iron" on a machine that has a rubber belt is crap. Put in the work. If you lift weights and you don't go to failure...not going anywhere.
The idea that there is a quick fix or a miracle product for being healthy is a marketing ploy. It'll lead to nothing but an emotional roller coaster and for some folks, that's the exact opposite of what they need. What works is a solid plan executed through hard work and discipline. There are no short cuts in our previous professions and there aren't any out here.
The focus here is that you are in control. And there are two simple ways that you can start moving in a direction that will have direct and indirect impacts on how you feel mentally, emotionally and physically.
I'm happy to say that I'm back to eating right and working out. And studying, cooking, cleaning and getting beat up by my 4 year old son after I work a full day. I'm more energetic and even tempered. It really is up to ourselves. I like quotes, so here's one by I don't know who. "The only respect that matters is self-respect". When you accomplish something, it means more than if someone had given it to you.
People treat you differently when you are confident and happy. Why? Probably because you're treating them in a positive way. Food for thought.
There's a stud Ranger out there right now that has a mission. He wasn't doing so hot a while back. PTSD cannot be seen and it's tricky to deal with to say the least. He got off of his duff, went and saw some friends, drove across the country and went sky diving. He's fired up now and I'm sure he's gonna do just fine. In fact, I'm pretty sure he's gonna take one hell of a lead on fighting PTSD. And that's what it is. A fight. When in doubt, attack. He's attacking and from what I can tell, he's enjoying the hell out of it. It's amazing what changing your environment and being with good folks will do for you.
Work hard. Play hard. Look good. Feel good. Get moving. Take care of yourself and if you need some help on whatever, just give me a shout.
listen to www.blogtalkradio.com Friday afternoon to hear more about the Ranger that changed the direction of his life. km
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