In life, I fe
el that we are either moving ahead or backwards with every thought and decision we make on a daily basis. As humans we are either growing and moving forward or we are regressing. There is no such thing as cruise control(other than of course in a car). In life, my experience is that if we are on cruise control, it means we are regressing and we have taken our foot off the gas. I have witnessed over and over again that in life if you are not moving forward, you are moving backward.
For instance think of your favourite sport or team. How many times have you seen the winning team in the last period or quarter go into “defensive mode” and loose the game in final seconds. This happens regularly because the winning team tries to “protect” their win by going in defensive mode instead of playing offensively. They seem to loose sight of what succeeded in getting them ahead in the first place and therefore they deviate from their offensive game plan and end up loosing the game.
I would like to use a few real life examples of the choices we face every day in different aspect of our life and whether it is moving us forward or backward.
Food Choices – Moving us Forward or Backward?
Think of the food choices you make each and every day. The food you choose to put in your mouth is either moving you forward or backward from a health standpoint. Today I was in a restaurant waiting for my guest to show up for a meeting. While waiting I scanned the menu and there were lots of food options I would have loved to have ordered such as Pizza, Wings, Hamburgers, Fries etc. By making any of those choices, I would be regressing or moving backward from a health standpoint and it would not have been aligned with my goals. By choosing healthy options(Salads, fish, quinoa, rice etc.) it would move me forward from a health standpoint and be more in line with my goal of trying to be healthy every day. Therefore I made the choice to have a healthy dairy free salad and some Wild fish and brown rice they had on the menu. Therefore I made the conscious decision to “move forward” and consume Net Gain food(food my system can use as energy) instead of consuming highly processed, unhealthy food.
Exercise Choices – Moving Us Forward Or Backward?
We are often faced with the decision as to whether we exercise or not and quite often due to time constraints it is tough to fit it in. So the decision typically comes down to whether to exercise or not? This morning my alarm went off very early and it was dark so the easy decision was to hit snooze and go back to bed. However, I made the decision to roll out of bed, go down to the dark basement and do a high intensity(HITT) weight workout. Although I would have preferred to go back to bed, following my workout I felt great and was ready for a great, productive day. Therefore I made the decision to “move forward” from a health stand point instead of doing nothing or moving backward. As we know, exercise is one of the key’s to anti-aging and living a long and healthy life(See Previous blog – Exercise- The Fountain Of Youth http://kevinbradyhealth.ca/exercise-the-fountain-of-youth/
Sleep – Moving Us Forward Or Backward?
With work, family, friends, and business pressures, one of the items that I witness seems to falter is our sleep. We know that a good sleep is one of the keys to long term health as it is during sleep that all of our cells regenerate and provide energy for the following day. Last night I was doing work and emails around 10:30 p.m. and I made the conscious decision to shut my computer down and get a reasonably good nights sleep as I knew I had to get up early today. So again I made the decision to “move forward” from a health standpoint instead of regressing. I could have easily stayed up for another couple of hours doing work and emails however that would have set me back today from a health, energy and productive standpoint. It is another example of how a simple choice can make move us forward or backward.
See previous blog – 5 Remedies For a Great Sleep-http://kevinbradyhealth.ca/5-natural-remedi…or-a-great-sleep/
Business – Moving Forward Or Backward?
80% Rule
As you know from past blogs, I live by the 80% rule which means that I try to make healthy choices 80% of the time. This way even when I choose to indulge in not so healthy food choices I am at least making the conscious decision and am fully aware that I am making that decision. My feeling is that if I am making the right choices 80% of the time, then I will most defiantly be moving forward in many ways. So I apply the 80% rule to the choices I make in life as it is sustainable long term. The reason I believe that diets fail is because there are “rules” and people feel they must abide by them 100% of the time which is not sustainable long term.
When you are making choices today, are you moving yourself forward or backward from a health standpoint? A great question to ask yourself when you are faced with choices all day long.
Have a great Healthy, Love Life Day, Kev
2 comments
Words of wisdom. To add to your 80% rule: Hara Hashi Bu, Japanese for eat till you’re 80% full.
Love the metaphor of the football game, Kev. We have to keep moving forward in all that we do. Thanks for your ongoing encouragement. You are right. It is easy to get off track. ?