CALM ENERGY
Calm energy is a state of low stress and high controlled energy. Small issues remain small and do not develop into more than what they really are. They therefore do not get in the way of things that are more important. Your physical and mental reserves are at a high level, giving you the serene confidence of an ideal flow state where you feel in continuous control.Your sense of well being and a positive outlook are in place. Due to this positive vantage point, your perception of attaining a successful result is much greater.Everything you do seems to go easily and smoothly. This is by far the energy you need to have on a regular basis.

TENSE ENERGY
Tense energy is the opposite. It can be the result of artificial stimulants such as caffeine, a situational effect of anger, stress or by merely being in a general rush. This type of energy cannot be maintained without a price. It interferes with the optimal neurotransmissions in the brain and in the long run leaves you exhausted; depleted mentally and physically. Continuing on this way will have negative consequences on your overall performance and will also erode your health over time. This type of energy is commonplace in many people’s lives, so much so that it seems normal. It is a sad testament to our current fast-paced culture that this seems to be the case. But this does not have to be. Here are ten steps to a positive, productive flow state that will support your efforts, making your life easier and more fulfilling.

THE TEN STEPS

1) Start with a good nights sleep, eight hours if possible. Without proper rest, it is difficult to maintain any kind of consistent energy level the next day. Be sure your bedroom is as dark as possible. Any light will interfere with your sleep cycle by suppressing the production of melatonin, a hormone released at the end of the day that signals your body that it’s time for sleep. Avoid a heavy meal at the end of the day, the process of digestion forces your body to stay active, not allowing it to settle into a good sleep pattern. Likewise, avoid caffeine or alcohol close to bedtime.

Let go of any worries and frustrations you may have. It may be helpful to come up with an affirmation you can say to yourself as you settle in each night. Something to the effect of: “This day is finished. I release any worries or concerns to my higher power and I am allowing myself to relax into a peaceful, healing sleep”.

2) When you first wake up in the morning, train yourself to think about what you will be looking forward to for the day, not what you are dreading.Focus on thoughts of gratitude for all the good things in your life, feel the warmth of this emotion glowing inside you. Give your day a positive purpose from the start.

3) Stretching is one of the most important things you can do each day. Stretching  energizes the body and makes you feel great. When you first wake up each morning allow yourself a few minutes before rising to slowly and gently arch your back, stretch your arms and legs and turn your head from side to side. When you get up, leave your arms loose at your sides and shake them. Do the same with each leg, first one than the other. For me I like to also lay flat on the floor and stretch my back arms and legs. If you have ever had a back or neck energy stretching as allowed by your physician makes daily movement so much easier.

If you are up to it, drop down and do a few pushups, stand up and do a few kneebends or forward lunges. Then take three to four slow, relaxing breaths. Imagine breathing in energy that instantly courses throughout your entire body, invigorating and strengthening every cell. As you exhale slowly, breathe out all tension, fatigue and negative feelings. Any activity for just a few minutes first thing in the morning triggers your brain to produce signals to release tension and to begin the process of increasing your overall alertness. Try it, it’s amazing how little it takes to jump start your day with these simple movements.

4) Do not skip breakfast, no matter what. It does not have to be anything elaborate. For those of us that have had weight loss surgery the word is protein.  A balanced protein diet as prescribed by our physician keeps us buzzing with energy. Perhaps it will be some cheese, cottage cheese, a protein drink or one of many other protein foods. For the traditional dieter starting each day with a low-fat, high fiber breakfast is critical to continuing to develop the calm energy to carry you through the day. A toasted multi-grain bagel with low-fat cream cheese can provide a quick tasty meal, for example. Another easy to prepare breakfast is muesli. Before you go to bed, put 1/2 cup of old fashioned oats into a bowl and add just enough water to cover them.Cover the bowl and put it in the refrigerator overnight. The next morning, add 1/2 cup of your favorite low fat yogurt and one to two teaspoons of brown sugar or honey. Top it off with pieces of apple, banana or any other fruit that strikes your fancy. This is a delicious, satisfying breakfast that has everything you need to start your day off right.

5) For the traditional dieter eat 5-6 smaller meals throughout the day. If you are a weight loss surgery patient like me, you will find that some physicians also like several smaller meals and others will encourage you to stick with breakfast lunch and dinner. For me, I have found that several smaller meals have kept me best energized as is keeps the body’s energy furnace stoked without overwhelming it with fewer, “larger” meals that leave me sluggish. If you are a gastric bypass patient or lapband surgery patient you know that you need to get your protein first and then we can do like the traditional dieter and include a mix of carbohydrates, protein and healthy fats such as those found in fish and nuts. This combination will provide the fuel, maintain your energy and will leave you feeling satisfied. Also be sure to keep yourself well hydrated through the day by drinking plenty of water.

6) Focus for a few moments on your normal breathing pattern. You’ll notice that while you aren’t in an active state, your breathing may be quite shallow. Throughout the day take a couple of minutes to do some concentrated belly breathing to take more oxygen into your system. By doing this you will be assisting the oxidation level of your metabolism. First, sit up straight and face straight ahead. Take a slow, deep breath through your nose, expanding your abdomen first rather than you chest, but don’t force it. Exhale slowly and evenly, try to take twice as long breathing out as breathing in. Again, don’t force it. Repeat this sequence four times.

7) You can change your energy level instantly by ACTING energetic. Quicken your breathing pattern slightly, move more quickly and speak at a faster pace as if you’re really excited about something. Your body will respond with a noticeable surge of energy. Try this, you may be surprised at how well this works. Emotion is indeed directly influenced by motion.

Beware of the energy vampires! These are the people around you that siphon off your energy in several ways. Non-stop talking, continuous complaining and whining, asking an endless series of questions, incessant bragging to gain approval are just a few ways this can happen. Except for young children you may be raising, you are not responsible for anyone’s life or feelings but your own. When you can fully accept this and apply it in your life, you will find it much easier to politely end the conversation or walk away from the circumstance that would otherwise sap your energy.

9) Get into a regular exercise program. Go for a walk,develop a stretching routine, get a cardio exercise DVD suitable for your fitness level and follow along with it. Any exercise is better than none at all. Try for at least 20 minutes of activity three times a week to start.

10) Find ways to serve others and express thanks for all that you have during the day. By openly showing gratitude, you will attract more things into your life that will reinforce this feeling further. Likewise, by being of service to others you will give your self esteem and level of happiness a big boost. Either do a Google search for “volunteer” or contact your local church, school or nursing home for opportunities to serve. By taking action to be of service, you will find that good things will come into your life in unexpected ways almost as if by magic. If you continue on this path, your energy level will take on a life of its own and by supporting it with the previous suggestions, any lack of energy for you will be a thing of the past!

Another fun thing is that each person can make his or her own MII. The MII is your character that you see on the television screen. I made mine as a nice thin guy with the great looking red hair I use to have. My grandson made his MII as the little blond kid he is. My son made his MII as a cocky looking gray haired person. Now if you are wondering about the women our house is a bachelor pad. I guess we need to get out there and bring some women into our lives.

Another nice amenity of the game is WII fitness. WII fitness puts you through a routine each day that measures your balance, speed and stamina. Based on the results you are assigned a fitness range. Once a day you are allowed to take a test to determine what WII fitness age you are at. My chronological age is 67 and my WII fitness age was 40. Today I took the test and my fitness age was up to 60 – whoops I kind of went the wrong direction. I guess the 3 hours of sleep I had last night wasn’t quite enough! By the way it appears that I just might be a video game player at least a WII Sports video game player

Check out this video, especially if you are not familiar with the WII Sports.

What Are Your Options

Often people perceive a regular workout routine as spending many hours in the gym and doing weight training every week, but a workout routine can be simple and does not have to be that intense. Many fit people create a workout routine that only has them working in the gym perhaps one or two days a week for only a half hour to an hour time in duration. That kind of light workout routine will not get you prepared for a marathon, but it is a much better approach than going for months of inactivity followed by three weeks of extreme workouts everyday to try to burn some extra weight and get back in shape. Establishing and sticking to a light, but consistent, workout routine, either aerobic or weight training, will help you develop the basic habit of working out and then you can increase that amount of activity on a regular basis, or for a short time period depending on what your fitness goals are.

However, it is not necessary to go to the gym to stay in shape. Many people utilize home exercise equipment to as part of their regular workout routine or for the weight training part of their activities, while others use aerobic videos, walking, yoga, or simply doing crunches or push ups. Whatever the case for you, you will need to find a system that will work for you for the long term.

Many people enjoy working out on a regular schedule, but don’t always feel like doing the same old exercises all the time, or they get burned out. If you can relate to that, then one strategy you can employ is alternating your workouts so that you are using different muscle groups from day to day. This is a good approach because it gives your muscles a chance to rest and recover, but you still get the benefits of sticking to your workout routine. You might also enjoy incorporating a sport or favorite activity that challenge you physically, like racquetball or rock climbing. For most people, engaging in sports seems more fun than lifting a weight over and over or doing some type of aerobic exercise for an hour.

The type of workout routine you decide on is not nearly as important as making sure to incorporate some kind of regular activity into your daily life. Staying active will help you stay healthy and can improve your mood and your energy levels throughout the day.

It’s on these days that we need that extra motivation.

I’ve been exercising regularly for most of my life so I’ve had plenty of those days. To get me through, I’ve compiled a list of tactics to help motivate me.

Read something inspiring!

It could be a biography, quote, poem, or song. Use other people’s experiences to give you that lift.

Start a walking group!

It’s more social and you all get to feed off the motivation of each other.

Think of exercise as a menu rather than a diet!

Make a list of activities and choose 1 each day.

Use a training journal!

By keeping track of your activities you can see the improvements in your fitness week to week.

Start an interest or hobby that requires physical fitness!

It could be bush walking, rock-climbing, tennis, golf, or scuba-diving. If you require physical fitness to enjoy the activity you will be more inclined to train for it.

Increase your incidental activity!

This is the amount of activity you do in your normal course of your day, the activity not generally classed as exercise. You could: walk to work, take the stairs instead of the elevator, get up to change the channels instead of using the remote, or play with the kids for 15 minutes per day.

Try cross-training!

If your exercise program is always the same then break it up with one session per week of swimming, bike riding, jogging, sprints, or circuits. You could even play a different sport and use it as a training session.

Use a Personal Trainer!

Personal trainers can provide motivation as well as training variety.

Use an exercise video!

If exercising in public places is not for you, then try training at home. There are many forms of training available on video including: boxing, aerobics, pilates, and yoga.

Just start!

You will always be able to find excuses not to train so don’t think about it, just walk out the door.

Listen to music!

Put on the stereo or use a walk-man. Music certainly helps the time go faster.

Watch TV!

Most fitness centers currently have a cardio theater where you watch your favorite shows whilst you work out.

Read about the benefits of exercise!

We all know that exercise is good for us but do you know why it is? Reading a reputable publication on exercise can inform you of the great ways exercise can improve your life. It’s more than just being able to walk up those stairs!

Don’t complicate things, make it simple!

You don’t have to find a fitness centre or join a Tai Chi group. Just find a nice park and go for a walk or run.

Create a list of reasons you want to be healthy and read it regularly!

It may be to improve health, play with the kids, or trek through India. Whatever the reasons write them down.