Taking Care of Number 1

“It is always darkest just before the day dawneth." – Thomas Fuller

It has been a lousy winter in the Midwest. For the vast majority, it is no fun going out or driving. We have had more than our share of highly unusual traffic accidents since the first of the year. As a result, we are probably spending more time indoors and over-medicating ourselves with food and drink. This is a good time to write an essay about taking care of Number 1 through self-care. Here is my version of what it looks like.

Food and Drink

Stay hydrated – mostly with plain water. Throw in some lemon juice or lime juice for flavor. Be careful of soft drinks in cans or bottles with 37 grams of sugar in each 8-oz. serving. Heavy sugar drinks are a prescription for disaster – weight gain, Type II Diabetes, and food cravings can be the consequence. From what I read, diet drinks are no bargain and can be even worse in terms of weight gain. If you are drinking more fruit juice, make sure you take a look at the label to see how many grams of sugar are in a standard serving size and moderate your intake accordingly. What about alcohol? My answer is to monitor and keep your intake low, for the same reasons as stated above. Plus, I know many bad things can happen when you have too much. Coffee, tea, and wine are fine in moderation, but I don’t think they should be your primary sources of hydration.

“One cannot think well, love well, and sleep well, if one has not dined well.” – Virginia Woolf

One of the things that I think occurs in cold temperatures, is that we have a propensity to eat more (probably thinking it helps keep us warm). Maybe so, but it is not always clear that we will burn off the extra calories we take in during the winter. All things being equal, it may be better to keep it off than to take it off later. I also think putting on pounds doesn’t really help our self-image and may even lead to self-loathing, a burden that does not enliven the spirit.

Make sure your eating routine includes fresh fruits and vegetables. I realize the selection may not be as varied in winter, but if you spend more time looking you will be rewarded. A good practice is to focus on multi-colored vegetables. Examples would include Kale and Collard Greens. When it comes to carbohydrates, concentrate on complex carbs in nature rather than those transformed through production techniques such as potato chips and nachos. Low glycemic foods prevent the spikes in blood sugar and the attendant cravings to calm you down.

I recently came across an interesting idea about the proper mix of protein and carbohydrates—it should be a one-to-one ratio. That proportion suggests a 16-oz. steak would not be a good idea. It would also be a bad idea from an animal fat ingestion perspective. Yes, we do need fats in our diet but fats derived from nuts (almonds, walnuts and pistachios come to mind) and cold-water, non-farm, seafood would be better substitutes. Overall I like the formula in EAT TO LIVE, by Joel Fuhrman:

Health = Nutrition/Calories

Lastly, I am mindful of the words of my good friend, Dr. Alok Kalia: “If it has a label, don’t put it on the table”.

Exercise
“A fit, healthy body – that is the best fashion statement” – Jess C. Scott

Shoveling snow is not enough, and that’s assuming you shovel your own snow. It is great to get outdoors and do something, preferably when the sun is still out because it has a way of brightening the rest of your day. The key here is movement – move things around inside your body by moving the outside of your body. Several of my clients have pedometers to make sure they take anywhere from 5,000-10,000 steps per day. Others run in the winter, take spinning classes, go to yoga or enroll in exercise classes with enticing names like “Boot Camp.” This is all well and good, but the most important thing is to get up and move around every 30 minutes. It’s good for your mental and emotional states, in addition to being a healthy thing to do. Feeling better and looking better are probably more motivating factors than health factors, but the bottom line is that movement accomplishes all three. So whatever gets you up, and out, ride that horse. Summer will be here sooner than you think, and the heat may slow you down (just like winter has a way of slowing us down and restricting movement).

Harmony – Within and Without

Think about your inner state. It is easy to hate this weather. Most everyone is telling me they are sick of the cold, the snow and the wind. Not everyone, but a significant number feel this way. This sense of dissatisfaction with our current environment can be contagious (especially if you aren’t conscious of the negative environment being created around you), so it will be easy to let your spirits get down in the dumps.

I have always found it a lot easier to work longer hours during the winter, operating under the assumption that there weren’t many things I wanted to do outside. So if I could avoid slow-moving traffic on the roads, going to the office early and going home late were easier to do than facing rush hour traffic. The thing is that this behavior allows life to get out of balance pretty quickly, especially if you have an important home life. While an early-in orientation is good, think about the working late piece to avoid the unpleasant aspects of a cold winter.

“Eat healthily, sleep well, breathe deeply, and move harmoniously” – Jean-Pierre Barral

Another tool for coping with winter...Meditation has numerous positive benefits – helping to calm us down and achieve inner peace – but not everyone finds it easy to do. That said, there is one thing we all do: we breathe. We can always do more conscious breathing to help achieve a calm inner state. If you can couple meditating with breath work, you have a 1-2 punch in enhancing your mental and emotional health during the winter.

Now is a good time to keep a journal and give your inner thoughts the light of day. I find the more I write, the calmer I get. Like having a good discussion with someone, the ability to let it all hang out on paper helps me get more focused and realistic. Writing allows for examination in a more detached fashion. Those negative thoughts or situations that you journal don’t seem so bad once you put them on paper. The other idea relating to writing is to keep a gratitude journal going during winter. Most of us live in some pretty warm houses with good access to friends, family, and food. There are a lot of good things to say about all three of those. Think about all the excellent literature, movies, and television programs (many new ones on cable but also think documentaries if that helps), plays, concerts, upcoming events (Valentine’s Day, St. Pat’s, the first flower, the snow melt—let your imagination run wild on this one).

In six weeks we will notice that spring has sprung. Will you be ready or will it take all of summer before your spirits and body are ready to enjoy it?

And, there is more, there always is.

Be genuine.

Copyright 2014 © John J. Trakselis, Chicago CEO Coaching

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