Ask Janice
A NEW KIND OF NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION
This New Year I would like to suggest a different kind of resolution. Instead of thinking of ways in which you can improve yourself, I suggest make a resolution that each day you do a random act of kindness and work towards improving someone else’s life.
Our New Year’s resolutions are often born from thoughts and feelings about ourselves; things we don’t like and want to change. I have noticed in my own life that when I am feeling bad it is easier for me to act in ways that are not so good for me, like eating the wrong things or drinking or other ways that actually can make me feel worse. I also have noticed that when I do something good for someone else especially during those hard times I feel better. As a massage therapist and fitness/health trainer for almost 3 decades there has been many times I have not felt like working because I was sad or mad about something in my own life but being work and having that responsibility I had to continue and to my amazement and gratefulness I would start feeling better almost as soon as I started either doing a massage and helping someone else out with their problems. You see we are all struggling and we all share the same challenges, the more we reach out to help others the better our own lives will be.
There was a study (you knew I would quote a study), published in which participants were asked to behave helpfully toward another person for just a few minutes a day. After six months, participants reported a much greater self-esteem and happiness than those in the control group. Not only is doing good deeds sure to spike your happy meter, but more and more research proves there are physical benefits, too. Studies have found that people who make a habit of helping others report better health than those who don’t, and seniors who do volunteer work may actually live longer. In 1890 William James (brother to author Henry James) wrote a two-volume magnum opus The Principles of Psychology and is still required reading for students of behavioral science. James paid attention to the relationship between emotion and behavior. Conventional wisdom tells us that your emotions cause you to behave in certain ways. James became convinced that this commonsense view was unfinished and he proposed a new theory which took 6 decades to become accepted. He hypothesized that the relationship between behavior and feelings is a two-way street. By changing behaviors you can change feelings. As Aristotle said “we are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
I found an article written by Dr Oz and DR Rozien, they explain that when people give to others, whether it be money, time, or some other act of kindness, they experience a rush of endorphins similar to a runner’s high. Even just thinking about helping people can boost positive emotion, strengthen your immune system, reduce stress, and decrease pain. In one study 20 percent of the people lost weight after they started volunteering. . Creating small acts of kindness is behaviors that can improve your feelings of self. It has been scientifically proven to have therapeutic that it can help those with depression disorders.
On Friday December 14th we as a nation had our breath knocked out of us. The grief is more than words can describe and it is almost beyond our abilities to know what to do or even begin to breathe again. A suggestion made by the wife of the Rabbi in Sandy Hook CT appeals to me. “What we need is a good flood – a flood of kindness, of caring, of compassion, of goodness, of warmth, of benevolence, of support, of reaching out. There are, thank G-d, enough of us on this planet to make sure that not one human being ever feels lost. We need a Flood of connections. Not just the trickles that come from time to time, but everywhere, all the time. We need to be at least as aware of the ecology of human behavior as we are of the ecology of the physical resources of the planet. It has to penetrate all aspects of our world – the worlds of business, the media, education, culture, science, the arts, medicine – we need a flood, a good flood. Every single one of us has to know that we can make a difference, and we need to put serious thought to how we can best do that.”

THE HOLIDAY GIFT YOU DON’T WANT

We all know about the holiday weight gain syndrome; they say “10 to 15lbs from Thanksgiving to New Year’s”. I wanted to find out if that was really true, so I did some fact checking. In my research I came across some pretty alarming “statistics” about the average American’s holiday-season weight gain. I found reports of everything from 3 to 20 lbs. Howe

ASK JANICE

This time of year is the “primo” time of year for getting outside, taking a deep breath and going for a walk. Summer and all its commotions are over and winter is just around the corner.

Time to slow down a bit and be reflective and maybe think about how you want to end 2012 with some new habits and begin 2013 with a healthy bang.

Taking in the colors of autumn has continuously been one of life’s simplest pleasures. Here on the Oregon Coast we have great fall colors, maybe not as they do inland but what we do have some of nature’s other magic. Fall offers particular tones of light and the distinctive way it falls (pun intended), through the trees and across the ocean. The coast also offers an amazing air quality and there is something extraordinary about it this time of year. The combination of these three characters offers an amazing gift of nature that is so accessible and affordable to us. All we have to do is walk out the door.

Beside the pure mental therapy of going for a walk this time of year there are some fantastic health benefits. Wow all that for the low price of $0.

The consequences of walking!

• Walking is a mode of transportation that gets you from one place to another.
• Walking is easy and you can do it alone or with friends.
• You will be healthier mentally and physically.
• Improves your sex life. J

Harvard Research says: “Later in life, walking becomes as much an indicator of health as a promoter of it. After age 65, how fast you walk may predict how long you have to live. Walking, or gait, has long been recognized as a proxy for overall health and has been measured in many studies. Researchers have found a remarkably consistent association between faster walking speed and longer life.” This statement was made because a number of studies done. One study conducted at the University of Pittsburgh and published Jan. 5 2011; issue of The Journal of the American Medical association found a remarkably consistent association between faster gait speed and longer life. They calculated that people with gait speeds of 1 meter per second or faster lived longer than would be expected given their age of gender. (1 meter/second is equal to 2.2 miles/hour. That is just a bit slower than the speed needed to cross the street at most timed traffic lights.)

So does this does not mean if you are older and you work on going out there and walking faster you will live longer. One cannot draw that kind of cause-and-effect conclusion from this study. But on the other hand countless studies undisputed conclusions that walking and walking faster results in better health and a longer life.

Counting Steps

How about counting steps to make it a bit more interesting and to be sure you are walking you’re way to a longer healthier life?  I suggest adding in a pedometer. They can help you set and reach goals, offer motivation and accountability. Just clip it to your waistband and of f you go, you won’t even know its there. You can even use it in your daily life to see how many steps you are taking.  Other studies show that distance counts too! In addition people that wear a pedometer walk about 2000 more steps a day, (about a mile), then those that don’t.

• Fewer than 3,500 steps: very sedentary.
• 3,500 to 5,000: sedentary.
• 5,500 to 7,500: somewhat active. You’re headed in the right direction but need to step it up.
• 7,500 to 9,000: doing better, but still not meeting the minimum recommendation.
• More than 9,000 steps: active. Stick with it and keep moving.
• 10,000: the minimum goal recommended by health experts.
• If your goal is to lose weight, you probably need to work up to 12,000 or more steps a day.

Forgive me for seguing from the beauty of autumn on the Oregon Coast to research studies to pedometer technology.  I am a bit of a nerd in that sense. Never the less this is a great time of year to go out and enjoy the outdoors, and get a jumpstart on the winter. Nature is a great motivator; it wants you out there enjoying it!

 “If sugar were to be put on the market for the first time today, it would probably be difficult to get it past the FDA.”

Of all the foods consumed today, refined sugar is considered to be one of the most harmful to our bodies!

Sugar is a simple, edible, crystalline carbohydrate. The history of sugar dates back thousands of yeas. The process of making sugar from sugarcane was developed in India around 500 BC. Sugar production has a dark ugly history, intertwined with corporate fights for profits at the expense of third world country slavery and enormous environmental impacts. To this day sugar production still uses exploitative labor practices. Sugar manufacturers are aggressive in defending their product and have a strong political lobby, which allows them to continue selling a deadly food item that by all reason should not be allowed in the American diet. However this article is not about the politics or history of sugar.

Sugar meets the definition of a drug.

Refined sugar, by some is called a drug, because in the refining process everything of food value has been removed except the carbohydrates – pure calories without vitamins, minerals, proteins, fats, enzymes or any of the other elements that make up food.

When you take a substance out of nature and refine it to maximize its chemical surface area and biological activity you are creating a drug with intentions of a desired bodily affect. Cocaine is a drug that’s refined from coca leaves. Opium is a drug that’s refined from poppies. And sugar is a drug that’s refined from sugarcane.

…Dr. David Reuben, author of Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Nutrition says, “…white refined sugar-is not a food. It is a pure chemical extracted from plant sources, purer in fact than cocaine, which it resembles in many ways. Its true name is sucrose and its chemical formula is C12H22O11.

Sugar is, essentially, a legalized recreational drug that’s socially acceptable to consume. And yet, just like other drugs, it destroys a person’s health over time, rotting out their teeth, disrupting normal brain function, promoting heart disease and directly causing diabetes and obesity. The argument that “street drugs are outlawed because they’re dangerous to a person’s health” falls flat on its face when you consider what sugar does to the human body.

If you have any doubts as to the detriments of sugar (sucrose), try leaving it out of your diet for several weeks and see if it makes a difference! You may also notice you have acquired an addiction and experience some withdrawal symptoms. 

…Studies show that “sugar” is just as habit-forming as any narcotic; and its use, misuse, and abuse is our nation’s number one disaster.

Sugar is now 20 percent of the American diet. More facts: the average American eats 22 teaspoons of sugar a day, in 2003 we ate 142 pounds on average of sugar (much more for teenagers), and sweeteners, 46 gallons of soft drinks but only 8.3 pounds of leafy vegetables.

Hidden sugars: Sugar has many forms and is hidden in our food. You may have stopped adding that teaspoon of sugar to your coffee and cut back on your afternoon candy run, many not-so-obvious foods are chock-full of hidden sugars. Anything from bagels to yogurt can contain a high amount of added sugars.

Deciphering Labels

It can be confusing to try to find out how much added sugar a food contains. The sugar listing on a Nutrition Facts label lumps all sugars together, including naturally-occurring milk and fruit sugars, which can be deceiving. This explains why, according to the label, one cup of milk has 11 grams of sugar even though it doesn’t contain any sugar “added” to it.

Read the ingredients list. Learn to identify terms that mean added sugars, including sugar, white sugar, brown sugar, confectioner’s sugar, corn syrup, dextrin, honey, invert sugar, maple syrup, raw sugar, beet sugar, cane sugar, corn sweeteners, evaporated cane juice, high fructose corn syrup, malt, molasses, and turbinado sugar, to name a few.

Sugar means beat and cane sugar, white or brown, fructose and corn: the biological effects are all the same. The point is sugar is poison!

For more information I suggest watching a lecture given by Dr. Robert Lustig called “Sugar: The Bitter Truth” posted on YouTube.

You may not believe it. “An athlete? Ha, Ha!” you say. But it is true! That athlete lives in your head. Your body is only the instrument your mind uses to take more steps, lift more weights, run faster or do any other physical activity. That is, of course, when and if the inner athlete in your head chooses to come out and take action

• Believe in yourself:  find that athlete inside you and attitude is the key! When it comes to reaching any goal in life, attitude is important.
• Expectations for yourself: this means self-efficacy, which in this case is the belief that you can do something successfully.

Put the two together and you have a formula for success. However the question may really be: Are you afraid to find your inner-athlete? Many of us get fearful when thinking of taking fitness on and looking for that inner-athlete.

While I’m sure some of us are lazy at times, I’m convinced that one reason we don’t exercise isn’t laziness, but a feeling of dread at the thought of exercise. Physical exertion can be scary if you haven’t done it in a long time and, for some people, moving the body to the point of increased heart rate, heavy breathing and excessive sweating may seem as foreign as flying pigs.

Most of us are afraid to fail and, when it comes to exercise, that failure can be experienced in so many ways-failure to lose weight, to make it through a workout, to stick to an exercise program, to do the right thing, etc.

Do you want to get old fast? Do you choose to retain your flexibility and strength? In your mind’s eye, can you picture yourself running at the beach or playing volleyball? Does it interest you to be able to roll around on the floor with your children or grandchildren?

Attitude Adjustment – The simplest way to deal with this fear is to set a goal you know you can reach. It’s nice to have long-term goals to work for but, for right now, you need to do what you can handle. If you set the bar too high, you also set yourself up for failure and that could become an excuse to quit altogether.

Anytime you do something out of your comfort zone, you’re taking a risk. But, just the act of taking a risk can be all the success you need to keep you going.

“Okay, so I’ll join a gym,” you say. Sure, it’s what we want to hear … but starting an exercise program is kind of like starting a diet. Sticking to either is the difficult part.

It takes work to stick to your resolve and establish self-efficacy. One thing to watch out for and I know because it is something I am guilty of, perfectionism.

At the risk of sounding trite: “live in the moment”, one of those overused phrases that sounds good but, for perfectionists, may feel as impossible as growing another nose. However, paying attention what you’re doing allows your worries (“Am I doing this right? Should I be doing something else?”) to fade away as you immerse yourself in the movement of your body. Practice focusing on your workouts. When your mind drifts, bring it back to the exercise you’re doing with a remind that this is your exercise time. Find the value in your every effort and be proud of your accomplishments. Tune out the negative self-talk.

Here are some other tools that you might like: goal-setting skills, motivation and imagination. Choose images to help you keep going – Put some “before” pictures in plain view. Add some more recent ones of your more active lifestyle. Choose a “hero” (someone whose active life you admire) and put his or her picture up along with yours.

From time to time you may find that your inner athlete has stalled. You can help get it going again by calling upon that part of yourself to direct the action in your “mind’s eye.” You won’t burn any extra calories doing this, but the imagery you create may just get you going … and keep you going.

Close your eyes (leave them closed for 20 minutes) and imagine a limber and flexible “you” go through whatever paces you have designated as helpful and fun.

Now, create a picture of yourself the way you choose to be.

Visualize all the benefits that the exercising is creating for you in the rest of your life.

Remind yourself how good it is to feel comfortable in your own skin…how you are almost there and how you deserve to succeed and maintain you resolve.

You have taken the plunge into a healthier lifestyle. Congratulations!

Fall is officially here and we all know whats coming for the next eight months. It’s exciting, we do love the storms high seas and big winds it is one of the many reasons we live here. But something I hear over and over again is the moaning about winter weight gain and depression. That does not have to be. Why not make a vow right now to not let that happen this year? Let fall of 2011 be the beginning of a new way to do the winter on the north Oregon coast.

We are having our first storms of the season and it can be a bit shocking, we spent the last couple months enjoying lots of light and warm temperatures. We walked on the beach, went for bike rides and sat outside. That made us feel better, we all have smiles on our faces, but now it’s changing, it is dark in the morning when we get up, and it is getting darker earlier. If you start your new habits now before the weightlessness of summer leaves you then you will be ahead of the game. Please don’t wait until you are feeling miserable and low to inspire yourself to do “something about it”. You can still have that summer kind of smile throughout the winter.

First you need to ask yourself “who is in charge of your life”. Then when you answer yourself that you are and no one else then you are on your way to taking control. Your thoughts control your actions and in turn affect your behavior and thus your moods.

Focus on doing one thing at a time. If it is your time to exercise then do it and think of nothing else that you “need” to do because you already decided that this is one of those things. Accomplish that and it will set you up for feeling focused all day.

All of us on the coast get hit with the dark day blues but even if you do not suffer from depression, you will benefit emotionally from half an hour of exercise; feeling instantly invigorated, lighter and happier. You need to get out and exercise every day to help keep your body and your brain healthy. Exercise is useful in controlling feelings of depression and anxiety for a number of reasons;

• While exercising your body produces endorphins or feel-good chemicals which make you feel instantly better and happier; effects last for some time after you stop exercising. These chemicals may also help combat depression.

• Exercise removes the build-up of stress hormones in the body which can undermine wellbeing, causing problems such as headaches, fatigue, and loss of concentration, problems sleeping and many other mental and physical symptoms.

• Exercise can provide focus; having new goals provides direction, and obtaining those goals however big or small breeds a sense of achievement and self confidence.

• Exercise gives a feeling of release from problems; you can abandon responsibilities and concentrate on the purely physical; controlling your breathing, running for that extra half a mile, following a class etc.

• Exercise can provide a change of scene, getting people out of their homes and routines, meeting new people and feeling less isolated. Group exercise can provide a sense of belonging, even if it is just smiling at the other runners or walkers in the park. Joining a team or class provides opportunities for social contact beyond the normal sphere of your life and its attendant stresses, and can make a refreshing change.

• Exercise can boost self-esteem, gaining new skills, improving body image, becoming fitter, and looking healthier.

• The benefits of exercise last longer than quick-fixes such as comfort-eating, smoking, or drinking tea or coffee, all of which may contribute to the problem.

Walking is one of the best ways to get in extra exercise throughout the day. Start a new habit!

· Get up 15 minutes early and start your day with a brisk walk around the block. Use this time to think about your day and what you want to accomplish.

Hiking in the fall is by far the most wonderful time to be out there.

· Research some great places to hike nearby, so on your next day off have field trip day planned. That will give you a goal and something to look forward to.

Indoor strength training is perfect for those really stormy days.

· It’s time to look into getting home gym set up or joining a local facility. My next article is going to cover that topic.

Fall is a time of year to recommit yourself to exercise; it is good for the mind, the body and the soul!

A couple years ago I was riding my bike down 101 into a head wind and a friend drove by.  I did not see him at the time, but later he said to me “you looked so serious”. I have actually have heard this comment a few times in my life and I had to give it some thought. What my friend had seen was in fact just a face void of emotion. To tell you the truth, often when I am running or riding or weight lifting (if I am in the “zone”); I am not really present at the surface and somewhat absent. I am meditating!

As a long time educator of fitness, nutrition and healthy lifestyles,  my goal has always been to help my clients and friends and anyone else that will listen, understand the spirituality of training and fitness. The experience one has, no matter what sport or action you choose is so much more than purely a physical event. There are elements to training that go far beyond that.  And there lies the hook. I will admit of course there are times when I go for a run or workout in the gym when it just does not sync and the pistons are not firing. I call those times utility workouts. These are dues that must be paid because I know there are the payoff days.  This part of the discipline, which in itself is a form of mediation- the ever existing balance in life and in training, the Ying and the Yang.

The beginning is difficult. We tend to mostly experience fitness in the left brain and the body seems uncomfortable. I want to convey to you the need to allow that experience, and move through it. Allow yourself to be a beginner, knowing that with the consistency of the discipline you will begin to reap rewards. And it can happen very quickly. When you begin your training it is important to let go of some of the images  you have in your mind of what your body “should” look like or the mind chatter of how “out of shape you are” and so on. Training is more than vanity and more than looking good. Yes you are there to improve your health by becoming more fit but the real catch is the sense of self and well-being. A transformation occurs through training that leads you to discover who you are and a time to commune with yourself, a time to self-reflect.

TRAINING

I personally love strength/weight training and have been hooked since I was 17 years old. For me, it’s something I enjoy doing for its own sake apart from the results it gives me.

• Weight training allows you to communicate precisely with every muscle in your body, to send blood and vitality to every space.
• Weight training lets you lose track of time. You go into a flow where you become absorbed in the moment-by-moment process.
• Weight training develops physical intuition. You get a gut-level sense, an instinct of what your body needs.
• Weight training is ever changing and you learn to be flexible and receptive. You learn to let go of preconceptions of how you think you will train on any certain day. You go with plans but they do not always happen.

Another love of mine is running. It allows me to experience myself like nothing else. I do not see running as a social event.  Usually I run alone. I don’t like to talk and breathe at the same time when I run. Personally I like to focus on breathing, and natural awareness that puts the world on hold. Thoughts come and go from my mind and all I can really do is breath and tune into the effort and surroundings. I love running trails and I don’t mind if they are uphill, (that just means I go slower and think of breathing even more). Nature and running go together like peanut butter and jelly, another one of my favorite things.  But that’s for another article about nutrition.

Whether you are a runner or a walker, the solitarily aspect of that event allows each of us a uniqueness. It is what Ralph Waldo Emerson called our “individual genius,” our special way of being in the world. George Sheehan the famous running guru phrased it nicely when he said, “I know of no better way to find my own genius than running with no companion except the rhythm of my breathing.”

STARTING YOUR PRACTICE

I suggest that you mix it up, use different forms of fitness so you get to experience a variety of feelings and environments. Strive to do something that involves you being in nature. Something outdoors that you love to do and that can lead to a need to do other physical things that support that. Let’s call that the “physical domino affect”!  Stay positive, I know that sounds cliché but try and let go of negative thoughts and chose to simply stay aware of your physical experience, with practice and with the physiological changes that will occur it gets easier!

Training is not a destination it is a place that you can find in within yourself and spirit!

JOINT PAIN?

What is a joint? I think we need to understand that before we can go on to discuss why it hurts.

What would you be like if you had no bones? You’d be floppin’ around like a Raggedy Ann or Andy doll. You wouldn’t even be able to stand up, walk or even sit up in a chair. Without your bones you’d simply be a pile of organs, guts, skin, water and biochemical goo on the floor. When your muscles contract, they act as levers and pull on the joint between two bones creating movement. Look at your finger and then move it. The muscle contracted, pulled on the joint between two small bones and bent your finger. If you didn’t have bones, a muscle would have nothing to attach itself to.  The end of a muscle turns into a tendon before it cross a joint; it is actually the tendon that actually pulls on the bone.

You have 206 bones in your body and about 230 moveable and semi-moveable joints.

A joint is:

1. 1. Cartilage: the end of each bone is covered with articular cartilage. This stuff cushions and protects the end of bones. When it breaks down, arthritis symptoms occur. Muscle weakness can be a cause.
2. Synovial Sac: this is filled with Synovial fluid which serves to lubricate and nourish the joint.
3. Bursa: the bursa sac is not actually part of a joint by close by. It has fluid that lubricates the movement of muscles across bones.
4. Muscles: these allow motion across the joint and provide muscle balance.
5. 5. Tendon: Tendons are cords that attach muscles to the bones. Unlike muscles which change length (contract), the tendons are unable to change length. However, as the muscle moves, the tendon to which it is attached also moves. Muscles run the show!
6. Ligaments: are short fibrous cords that attach go from bone to bone. Typically, ligaments are located around the joints. They provide for the stability of a joint and hold the adjacent bones in the proper alignment.

Freely movable joints move in many directions. The main joints of the body — found at the hip, shoulders, elbows, knees, wrists, and ankles — are freely movable or not

Dysfunction: Abnormal or impaired functioning, any malfunctioning part or element in a system. What if one of your or more the muscles around a joint was dysfunctional? Wouldn’t that cause a problem?

In order to heal from an injury or a pain (acute or chronic), one needs to evaluate and consider why these pains exist. Rehabilitation from injury or pain and correction of muscle imbalances and joint dysfunction should be priority number one priority. If you are in pain, you can rest assured that the muscles crossing any joints in pain are being shut off, resulting in even more instability in that joint. When this type of compensation occurs, there is a direct effect that leads to more dysfunctions which then leads to more pain, degeneration of the body as it compensates for faulty movement and posture. The stress can take many forms. It may cause unnecessary work or movement in another part of the body, placing greater stress on certain muscles and tendons (strains). It may create unnatural motion of the spine or limbs, placing greater stress on joints and ligaments (sprains). It becomes a cycle of injury where one dysfunction leads to another, which in turn leads to another and so on. Wow that all sounds quite unpleasant!

STOP – Let go back to the beginning and start over, I don’t want to go through all of that and I am sure you don’t either or maybe you have already begun this journey. What do we have to do so this does not happen or if it has started what can we do to fix the “problem”?

Evaluation is the key or as we say in the trades “assessment”. That means stop and think, notice and appraise. If you have had your “pain” for awhile (more than a few weeks) then you are already into the world of compensation. That means that some other players (muscles) are involved. More simply put you need to learn what muscles are working incorrectly on that joint involved. Typically overactive (shortened) muscles become tight and under-active muscles become weak or stretched. Look at a telephone pole the next time you are driving. The wires on either side of the pole must possess equal tension keep the pole vertical. If there is more tension on one side, the pole will lean. The body works the same way with regard to length/tension ratios between agonist and antagonist muscle groups, (in other words the muscle which oppose each other, for example biceps and triceps.)

The key to reversing this type of joint pains is to rehabilitate the muscles surrounding the joint. Can you guess where I am going from here? That’s right exercise! In case of injury or pain work it is best to get an expert to assess the imbalances. You want to evaluate the way the joint and the muscles surrounding it are working or not working together. Being proactive is the key here!

Are You Tsunami Ready? The unkind truth is: it’s a physical event!

We have all had our eyes opened up to reality, actually twice in the last couple years. We know we live in a vulnerable area, but who doesn’t. Living means being in danger of dying! So what’s new? It does not mean we have to live in fear.  In fact it’s the opposite. The question becomes one of awareness.

Being prepared will eliminate fear!

In order to be prepared for an emergency, one must think about what this really means. I was chatting with someone the other day and I asked her if she had an emergency supply kit ready to go. The response was yes; she and her husband had packed a large container with all the right stuff. I asked her if she could carry that up a hill, since driving your car will most likely be unavailable. You can probably guess her answer.  Now, can you imagine this scenario? You are in your home or office, an earthquake occurs, windows crash, dressers fall over, beams fall down etc…I think you get the picture. You are okay but you now have to grab your back pack that has your supplies and get going up the hill! Your heart is racing. You are now tapping into your “Flight or Fight” response system.

This is a natural part of our nervous system. It can help you respond to a dangerous situation.

• Mental clarity of mind is more acute if you are prepared, i.e. you visualized or lived the situation before it happens.
• Pupils dilate to take in as much light as possible.
• Veins in skin constrict to send more blood to major muscle groups; which means less blood to the skin to keep you warm.
• Muscles tense up since they are being energized by adrenaline and blood glucose.
• More oxygen is sent to the lungs
• Non-essential systems shut down, like digestion and immune. This allows more energy to go to the emergency functions.
• Your mind will have a hard time focusing on small tasks (like finding your keys or eye glasses). The brain is directed to focus only on big picture in order to respond to the immediate threat.

All of these physical responses are intended to help you survive a dangerous situation by preparing you to either run for your life or fight for your life (thus the term “fight or flight”). This is an instinct that every animal possesses.  But what every animal does not naturally possess are fitness, strength and endurance. If you don’t think you will need these abilities, you may want to reconsider.

I want you to imagine the possible scenarios and try to visualize your course of action.  Consider these things:

• Are you strong enough to pick up the bookshelf that fell between you and the door?
• Can you carry your child and the pack on your back?
• Could you dig and lift heavy objects from a pile of rubble?
• Do you have the cardiovascular fitness to make it up a hill for a mile or more?
• Can you do that while carrying your pack?
• Do you have the endurance to then build a fire, a shelter and help others?

If not, a fitness program would serve you well. The benefits are not only that you will be prepared for emergencies, but you may be able to help someone else you care about that is not.

If you never had a good excuse to exercise (which is hard to believe), you now have a dandy.

1. Your first workout:

From every usual place you spend time make some concerted efforts to walk fast,  jog or sprint your way to your safety zone. So that means 3 to 5 or more places depending on your lifestyle. If you do this once or twice a week you will not only gain familiarity and confidence with your basic escape routes but will enhance your cardio vascular strength.

1. Your second workout:

Get your emergency evacuation pack ready, pick it up, put it on and walk around for a while. Do your legs feel strong and secure? If not you are going to need to find a way to strengthen your lower body.

1. Your third workout:

Imagine how much a things weigh that you are going to have to lift or help others lift. Are your arms, shoulders and back strong? If not you are going to need to find a way to strengthen your upper body and core.

1. Your forth workout:

Once a week walk, ride, paddle, dance or whatever works for you (physically), but do it for at least an hour or even better for 2 or 3. This will build your endurance.

Build gradually and slowly, and most importantly be consistent. This will get you the best results in the shortest amount of time.

This is not about living in fear.  This is about awareness, intelligence, and being prepared for what life can dish out. Live your life in less fear knowing you will be ready if need be.

I know these are strong words but I say them because I care and I want to see you at the top of the hill if and when an emergency hits, such as a major earthquake/Tsunami.

Ask Janice

The concept of New Year’s Resolution to actuate change is very popular because there are things in our lives that we are just not happy with. We all have hopes and aspirations to make changes and often the resolution or goal setting works.

Statistics show that each year 40% to 50% of adults make one or more resolutions or goals for themselves. Research shows that 75% make it past the first week, and 45% make it past 6 months. On the bright side while a lot of people break there resolutions, statistics on New Year’s resolutions also show that setting goals for yourself is still a good thing to do, because you are 10 times more likely to attain your goal, rather than people who don’t explicitly make goals.  So this means that if you decide to set a goal for yourself this year, not only will you be a part of the statistics on New Year’s resolutions makers, but you will also be 10 times more likely to attain your goal. Setting goals is a great way to help dedicate yourself to reaching positive change.

On the other hand, glass half empty – 50% of people who make New Year’s resolutions fail to keep them. And as the year goes on that number does increase by 10%.

So, what’s the point if you are more likely to fail then not? As my husband Mike says- “if you aim at nothing, you’ll hit it every time.”

We want to change, but why? Because without change, we are assured of staying just the way we are and doing things just the way we always have.  That is why 50% of us make New Year’s resolutions. Yet as you know and I know it’s hard to make significant changes in our lives but why?  Because change is difficult and there is no magical formula that is quick and without effort, despite the claims of motivational speakers and self-help books- an industry that makes about $2.5 million a year off of those of us that are looking for magic potions or words.

The bottom line is, change is easier said than done. It is a real test, and needs to be taken seriously with full presence of mind and heart. Change starts with a simple, yet powerful, epiphany that comes from a very deep and personal place inside us. A client said to me just the other day “it just became too sad to stay the way I was.” Sometimes it comes down to the realization that you just don’t want to continue down the same road any longer, things must change.

Emotions can be potent motivators for change, whether positive, such as hope or inspiration, or negative, such as fear.

Courage is essential because change requires risk and risk is scary. Courage to change means the willingness to acknowledge and confront aspects of ourselves that we may not know about or may not like. It’s uncertain, and takes a leap of faith that involves a belief in a vision of who, where and what we want to be in the future.

Determination is needed to overcome obstacles, resist the status quo. Determination is needed to pursue our goals. This determination and resolve is what inspires us to engage in the moment-to-moment process of change especially when it is difficult. This is what it comes down to. Those moments that you get add together which then becomes the sum of your efforts. That is the formula for a successful change.

You have a choice. You get to decide for yourself. This is the time to be selfish, the time to create the person you want to be, to compose those resolutions and then be successful.  If you have some setbacks, fine. We all have setbacks on a difficult path. Lance Armstrong is quoted when asked how he dealt with his challenges- “pain is temporary and quitting is not an option.”  The key is to not give up you can restart your resolution any day. While New Years is a great time to regroup and move ahead, any Monday morning or the 1^st of the month or your birthday etc… can serve the same purpose. Tuesday anyone?

Keep in mind that change is not easy. Embrace it.  You could even try cozying up to the concept.

Get tough and stay inspired. Change is a process and not an event, so be patient.

Lastly “keep your eyes on the prize”, visualize.