Stress As A Motivator

How do you respond to stressful situations? Do certain situations bring out the best in you or the worst?
Stress can be used to motivate you to new levels. Unfortunately, most people take their stress as something that hinders or blocks them from finding a more positive solution. We tend to think about our situation and wonder if there's any way out. This type of thinking tends to put us in a state of paralysis. I'm pretty sure you've experienced this state once or twice in your life. This mind-set just brings more of it, no matter how hard you try the problem only seems to get bigger and bigger.
Why not try a different approach? A little shift in your thinking may be just what you need to get yourself back on track and getting out of that unwanted circumstance. This may be a little tough for you at first, but with some persistence and practice, I know you can you can do it.
First of all, in any stressful situation, you'll need notice your circumstance and see it for what it really is, just a challenge that's waiting to be figured out. Is your current problem really that bad? Or are you turning it into a bigger problem than it really is? If you take a step back and think about it, every problem can be solved. Take a moment to clear your mind and relax. A clear and relaxed mind functions better than a mind that's fixed on negativity.
That's where the next step comes in, are you using that stress to motivate you to take action to get the results you're looking for, or are you busy emphasizing the problem? Most people are too busy looking and talking about the problem, they're not actually looking for an answer. Focusing on the solution and figuring how to get there is more productive than thinking about how bad your problem is. This will get you to take some kind of action that's in line with what you're trying to accomplish.
Finally, whatever action you take, know that your problem can be solved, you just need to be open to it. Your actions are getting you closer to the answer you're looking for. Being open and having that knowing, that everything can be solved with a little action should bring some comfort to you. Whatever action you take, know its bringing you closer to your answer. You may have to go through certain experiences to get there, but you will get there. Just stick with it. Go out and make that small shift and train your mind to think upon results and see how your life changes. Good Luck.

I know I've been through challenges in my life with stress, and I've found a more productive way of dealing with it. These simple steps have changed my life around for the better.

Moving Towards Spiritual Wellness: The Change Process

Spirituality permeates all aspects of wellness and the change process on the path to wellness. On our journey to obtain spiritual wellness we find that it is akin to having a spiritual imbalance. Whether spirituality is sought within or out of religion, it is the most central discovery in pursing optimum well-being. Spiritual wellness meets our need to experience joy and purpose in this life. When we allow ourselves to embrace the change process we will still have life stressors but we can learn how to welcome them into our lives with the help of a Health and Wellness Coach.
Change is a natural part of life and will be a certainty in most of our lives in our uncertain future. Change is often unforeseen or expected. It may be highly disruptive, startling, have minimal impact, out of control, easily controlled, continuing, or it may even be resisted. How you handle change depends in part on your personality, life stressors, or prior experience in dealing with change. When a life-threatening illness affects our body or when a marriage disintegrates, there may be an overreaction that leads to responses that may be regretted later. On the other hand, changes like these may be denied because you avoid facing the changing reality for as long as you can.
Spirituality is an innate characteristic and so ever present in our lives. Spirituality propagates our personal drive for wholeness. In its healthy state it is not static and embraces change. On the other hand, wellness comes from maintaining balance within our body. This is illustrated by us living a balanced or harmonious lifestyle. Humans have an innate need to feel and be loved thus making love a physiological and social construct. Having an awareness of God's love for us releases these ingredients that support the body in nurturing personal growth, spiritual wellness, and its natural healing properties.
Our maintaining an intimate relationship with God keeps us in that healthy space that supports our vitality and our mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual wellness. Looking at our biochemical nature indicates how our connection to the ultimate expression of Love is the most wellness-producing source we have. Obtaining spiritual wellness is akin to accepting the life stressor event and to hold the belief that we hold the power to change; not the experience but our reaction to it.
It is well-known that optimum wellness may only be found in a close relationship with God. This enables the Health and Wellness Coach to develop your strengths by using spiritual assessment tools in addition to working on issues with scripture/affirmations. This facilitates the development of a spiritual history that fosters spiritual values that helps you handle stress and cope with illness or other life demands. We must remember God's purpose for our lives; "... to give them a rich and satisfying life" (John10:10). The Health and Wellness Coach plays an important role in helping you to overcome, enrich, and empower your lives. Working towards spiritual wellness is to exemplify the opposite essence of what you thought you knew, Love. To accomplish this, the Health and Wellness Coach would educate you about the body being valued as the temple of God. Since the body is a relational tool, it must be disciplined because it affects our spiritual well-being "Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come" (1 Timothy 4:8).
The paramount focus of moving towards spiritual wellness is maintaining balance in your life. One example is the three year ministry of Jesus Christ. Jesus definitely lived a balanced life. His life illustrates how he ministered to others, interacted with people, spent much time in prayer and worship. He seemed to walk everyplace. Jesus rested and even relaxed with friends. Not only did He have purpose in his life, He sought God's help with daily life stressors. Jesus practiced self-care by tending to His spiritual, physical, mental, and emotional needs that represents true balance.
In conclusion, signs of spiritual wellness are manifested when you live according to spiritual teachings. By following these truths, you will still experience pain and misery but it will be essential to your growth. You will finally experience an abundant life. By relying on infinite wisdom, you will learn how to fast, relax, pray, exercise, eat right, and develop a balanced lifestyle. God loves us and has promised those who lovingly serve him rest that equates with you having optimum mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual wellness. This infers that there is no true rest from life stressors outside of God's presence. It must be remembered that the expression of Love is intended to change people who in turn are to change their worlds that will impact the world.

As a recovering alcoholic who happens to be a life coach, the Big Book of AA gives us our final feedback; "when the spiritual malady is overcome, we straighten out mentally and physically" (The Big Book, 2001, p.64). The spiritual wellness journey is centered in your intimate relationship with God.

The Mind Muscle Connection

What is mind muscle connection?
Mind muscle connection is the connection between your brain and your muscles. Your brain is the starting point for any action that your body makes - your brain sends the signal to the muscles. When lifting weights, or doing strength exercises, it is important to really maximize on your mind muscle connection as this will turn your results from good to great, perhaps even brilliant!
Most people know the positive effects that positive thinking has on our body and the same principles apply with really focusing your mind on your muscles when working out. I truly believe this is what separates the average gym user from the ones people look up to with the great bodies. I have applied mind muscle connection for years now... it is something I used to do before I had even heard of it - really focusing on each individual rep and nothing else! Currently, I only train 30 - 45 minutes, 4 times per week at the gym and believe I am easily in the top 10% of all gym users at any gym that I go to... all for the price of spending just 2 - 3 hours per week in the gym... that's how much I believe this works, plus it's scientifically been proven now!
It is also great for people looking to lose weight, or fat loss due to the fact that when you implement mind muscle connection your brain will recruit more muscle fibres, therefore exert more energy and burn more calories. Mind muscle connection is great for people looking to build muscle, shape muscle, lose weight, lose fat, get ripped - basically it will be positive for anybody to use. As with everything we do in life, I believe it is all 50% body, 50% mind... can't have one without the other!
Benefits of Mind Muscle Connection?
- maximized gym workouts
- more results for less gym time
- more muscle fibres recruited
- more calories burned
- more specific muscle focused workouts
- lighter weights, less injuries
How to Implement Mind Muscle Connection?
- use lighter weights and use much slower, controlled movements
- don't just use physical exertion with your exercises - it should be a psychological workout too
- make sure you are really focusing on the movement you are doing and not using any other muscles that you shouldn't be - good form is key here
- focus on each individual rep, don't think about anything else in the outside world whether it be work, family... block it all out!
- when you start to feel the burn on your reps, really focus on that burning feeling - this will send stronger messages back to your brain
With the mind, the more you practise something, the easier it becomes. As goes with your muscles and muscle memory, your brain also performs in much the same way. I have studied a lot about the brain and NLP (neuro linguistic programming) and I know for a FACT that this works... it's not just my belief, but there's scientific proof behind this subject now. The more you focus on something, the more your synapses (signals) in your brain will fuse together. The stronger the fuse, the easier the thought process becomes and soon it will just become natural to implement mind muscle connection with each and every workout!
It's a complex and slightly controversial subject, but if you have any questions regarding mind muscle connection please leave a comment and I will answer your questions!:)