Fit Your Own Oxygen Mask First

One of the most important lessons I learned, while training in New York, was the importance of managing my energy.

I was training solidly for two hours a day most days, from 1 - 3pm and two mornings a week was 7am Bootcamp, which was "only" an hour.

I was also out and about seeing galleries, museums and everything else that great city had to offer. With this schedule, I worked out pretty quickly that eating appropriate food, resting when I was tired and paying attention to how I was feeling, physically and emotionally, was very important.

When your energy levels are low, don't try to "get things done" until you've taken care of yourself first. You will still get everything done.

I call this the "airline oxygen mask" situation.

During the safety demonstration on a plane, the reason you fit your own oxygen mask before fitting those of children or other people who rely on you, is because if you fit them first, you will pass out from lack of oxygen and can be of no further use to them.
Managing your energy means getting enough sleep, drinking enough water, eating enough good quality food and keeping your body fit & strong.

Paradoxically, the more you use your energy, the more you have to live your fabulous life. Most importantly is noticing when you need to do each of these things; check in with yourself, assess how you are feeling and take appropriate action to restore yourself.

Managing your energy takes a little more thought and planning than just scrambling through life wondering why you always seem to be exhausted.

The pace of life may not slow down, but taking care of yourself leaves you feeling calmer, more in control and nurtured in the face of anything life throws at you.

Taking time to look after your Self is entirely necessary. Start today.

Food Is Not The Enemy

Our relationship with food is primal and complex.

We need to eat to live, but modern convenience combined with sedentary jobs means we often eat more than we need or food which does not nourish us.

As children, our mothers and others often "loved" us with food, or we learned ways to satisfy emotional needs with food and if those habits continued into adulthood, we find ourselves eating not for hunger, but for other reasons.

If you have been 'dieting' for many years, you may be surprised at how quickly you regain weight after the 'diet' has ended and how you manage to gain a little more each time.

You have effectively been teaching your metabolism to become more efficient at fat storage.

For long-term, sustainable fat-loss that you can maintain once you reach a healthy weight range is most effective when you examine your relationship with food and make some changes about the way you think of food in your life and in your body.

Non-Hungry eating plays a big part in weight gain and as the name suggests, happens for reasons other than hunger, boredom, anxiety, sadness, tiredness, for example.

Working with a food diary, initially without making any changes to what you usually eat, gives you a more accurate map of what you're currently doing. 
Don't judge, just record.

Imagine using a map of Sydney to navigate your way around Melbourne - impossible!
A food diary helps you to get an accurate picture of where you're at, and better equips you with the right map to get to where you want to be. 

Eat mindfully, slowly, focusing completely on each mouthful of whatever you are eating, without distraction. Put your fork down between each bite & really take your time, checking in with your body to see whether you are still hungry.

Eating until satisfied is not the same as eating to fullness and it takes time to become fully aware of the difference.
You may be used to the following kind of thoughts:

• food is a temptation
• food means being out of control
• food means gaining weight
• food means wanting things I can't have
• food gives me comfort
• food makes me guilty
• food is the enemy.

Well stop right there!

Shifting your thinking around food will shift your experience of food.

Try these thoughts for a week and notice the difference you experience:

• food means energy
• food means strength
• food means having enough vitality to work
• food means not getting tired before the end
• food means brainpower
• I am doing my best to eat slowly and enjoy will all my senses.
• I can have it if I want it, but do I really feel like it?

For a more detailed consultation on mindful eating, contact MET Fitness.