PDF ISSA’s Adrian Hutber Encourages Goal Setting This Time, and Every Time, of Year.
With the New Year now upon us, we at the ISSA believe that this is an excellent time to work on resolutions that touch upon health, happiness, and character. Did you know, for example, that according to my local radio DJ, the 5th of January is the day that we can officially ‘celebrate’ most of us having already given up on our New Year’s resolutions and ‘gotten back to normal life’? I hope that you’ll agree that there’s not much cause for celebration here! If you are the type of person who prefers a more ‘reliable’ source than my local DJ, you might like to see if you can find some less anecdotal data. Nevertheless, it is unfortunately true that, every year, many well-intentioned people fall off the fitness wagon long before their new gym memberships expire. In fact, I think you’ll find that more than half the people who begin exercising at the start of the New Year quit within 3 to 6 months. If you recently vowed to shape up in the new year, you’ve taken an important first step on the road to wellness. But if you are unrealistic and either start out training too hard or expect miraculous results, be warned that you are a prime candidate for becoming one of the “quitters.” It’s much better to take the time to ask yourself what training and eating habits you are prepared to incorporate into an ongoing lifestyle. Then you can resolve to integrate these ‘permanent’ exercise and dietary patterns into your life. This will set you up for success!
Of course, there really isn’t anything magical about January 1st—you can decide to make significant changes in your life at any time. So, if you haven’t already decided how you are going to ‘reinvent yourself’ (i.e., improve) in the new year, it’s certainly not too late . . . and it is worth it. Or are you one of those people who doesn’t believe in making New Year’s resolutions? If this is just because you are working on goals that you have already set, well done! But if it’s because you don’t really believe in setting goals for yourself, period . . . the reality is that you have set a goal for yourself—to do nothing! So, with that said, the editorial staff here at ISSA have culled the following gems from some of today’s respected authors and hope that the following tips can help make your path smoother in the new year.
Smile more.
Scientists all the way back to Charles Darwin have identified that different facial expressions have corresponding feelings associated with them. So, if you want to feel better, turn on a smile and wait for good feelings to come along!
What the Face Reveals, Paul Ekman, PhD
Take time every day to appreciate what’s right in the world and in your life.
Research scientists at the Institute of HeartMath have discovered that deliberately generating feelings of gratitude reduces the amount of damaging stress hormones in your body. And, adopting a habit of appreciation sets up a positive self-fulfilling prophecy – since you are in the practice of identifying things to appreciate, you are more likely to notice those things.
The HeartMath Solution, Doc Childre, Howard Martin
Be your own best friend.
Think of the advice you give a dear friend in a difficult time – and take that advice yourself! Eat well, exercise, relax, play, avoid cigarettes and alcohol. These practices set up the conditions in your life that will make it easier to be emotionally competent.
Feeling Good, David Burns, M.D.
Listen with your heart.
Creating an emotional connection through sincere listening has positive physical, mental, and emotional benefits for both the speaker and the listener. When you are completely attentive to what someone else is saying, your blood pressure drops.
The General Theory of Love, Thomas Lewis, M.D., Fari Amini, M.D., Richard Lannon, M.D.
Talk back to yourself.
That negative voice in your head can be quite convincing. Persuading you to judge others, be pessimistic, etc. pulls in all the destructive feelings that go along with those destructive thoughts. You can create a louder, more persuasive voice that helps you find an equally believable, more optimistic viewpoint. You’ll be more likely to cut others some slack, you’ll see more options, and you’ll feel better!
Learned Optimism, Martin Seligman, Ph.D.
Tune in to your body.
Notice where and when you feel different feelings. Emotions are a source of information and paying attention to what you feel in your body is a good way to access that information. If you don’t know why you feel certain feelings, ask your body, e.g. “Why do I feel a pain in my neck?” “What’s this shoulder ache about?”
Raising Your Emotional Intelligence, Jeanne Segal, Ph.D.
Increase your feeling word vocabulary.
Most people have a very limited vocabulary for emotion, e.g. love, hate, fear, etc. Getting more accurate in naming and expressing your feelings helps you know yourself and connect better to others.
Emotional Literacy, Rob Bocchicino
To finish this issue’s editorial, I’d like to share with you some recent interesting news and findings to do with fitness and children.
- The journal Pediatrics recently reported that the tummies of US teens and children have 65% more fat than in 1999 according to researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. Why should we care about this? Well, belly fat is more dangerous for health than overall weight gain because there is a much closer link between visceral fat – the fat around your internal organs – and serious diseases.
But the good news is that children can restore their long-term health outlook much more effectively than adults if they make some adjustments to their lifestyles.
- According to the November/December issue of the Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine, more children and adolescents are enjoying the health and social benefits of participating in organized sport but there is also a dramatic increase in problems related to over-competitiveness and unrealistic expectations and alarming increases in sport-related injuries in young athletes.
So, by all means let’s encourage our children to engage in both physical activity and competitive sport, but the key here is to not ‘push’ them—let them find their own level.
- Here’s something interesting. Running and jumping during childhood is more than child’s play—it appears to actually reduce the risk of fractures later in life according to research done by researchers at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. Their study demonstrates that activities like jumping or basketball that stimulate the skeleton should probably be part of every child’s activities. It was also noted that short periods of exercise several times a week are all that is needed to stimulate bone development in children.
From all of us here at the ISSA, we wish you all the best in the new year! I look forward to hearing from you and, keep on training!
