If you’re like me at all you don’t keep your New Years Resolutions. Yet I make them year after year. The reason I persevere in the face of yearly defeat makes me the person I am today. To set goals ( such as; post my blog every week, read a hard text book, lose 30 pounds, run a 5k or take a trip around the world) keeps me moving toward the person I want to be. I try to be. Do I meet all my goals? No, but I feel successful, because I keep improving and changing and that’s good enough for me.

3 steps to insure success when writing your resolutions

1. Be realistic

2. Keep it simple

3. Keep the goal in mind

I want to do something “big” for my 60th birthday. Really push myself physically. I’m not a runner at all- unless something is chasing me. My resolution: to run a 3K. That’s a realistic distance, keeping it simple I could run 3x/wk, and keeping my goal in mind to celebrate my Bday with a stronger body. Even if I don’t run a 3k I’ll have added running to my exercise routine and thus I’ll still come out ahead of where I’d be if I didn’t have a resolution in the first place “n’est-ce pas”?

Doing your walking in the snow this holiday? Let this simple stretch help with your “shin splints”.

It happens to everyone. Sometimes rarely, more often frequently. Stress in all forms can cause the same problems in most people. Stress is the way you respond to a demand, good or bad. We release chemicals into the blood to help strengthen us for the “flight or fight” response. Keeping your body keyed up in case you need to run for it. The problems arise from not having the time you need to let your body relax between bouts of stress.

Keeping your body under stress (something as simple as driving to work everyday- anyone drive 94 into Detroit?) can cause and contribute to:

High blood pressure
Blood sugar problems
Ulcers
Headaches
Heart disease
Irritable bowl
Fibromyalga
Countless other problems we have yet to identify

How can you relieve stress?
Meditate
Yoga
Exercise
Breathing exercises
Guided visualization

I do a breathing exercise where I slow my breath and close my eyes for 2-3 minutes and keep my exercise routine going during times of stress. This is one of my favorite before bed/ slow me down stretches.

Keep Moving!