10,000 Steps

Soooooo..... 10,000 steps. At first glance you think jeeze that's a lot and then when you figure it out it hmmm, that doesn't seem so difficult...... but getting it done is! The breakdown is approximately 1000 steps for ten minutes of walking. 100 minutes of walking = 10,000 steps! 10,000 steps roughly equals 5 miles/8 km  a day. That is throughout your entire day. Putting it into practice is a whole other ball game! I thought I was active but when I looked back on my steps over the year..it averages out to 4500 daily! Yikes. (I am happy to say I've since managed bumped it up to 9,000) Now I just have to keep it there!

Side note: I don't have a fitbit or jawbone or any of those devices. I have an iPhone! My friend has a fitbit and one day we were discussing how it has transformed her activity level in a very positive way. She asked if I had an iPhone and then told me that there is a health app that comes with the phone, that tracks your steps! I had no idea! I had never even looked at that app. Well I had a look and was so surprised to see it had been counting all along. I realize I don't have it on me all the time but even adding an extra 1-2000 steps to compensate for that did not bring me to what is considered the minimum for good activity.

 This is a view snapped on my phone while walking on the Bayers Lake rails to trails path right in the heart of a busy Industrial/shopping area. I was doing some errands and squeezed in a 10 minute walk. They add up.

So I have been more mindful of my personal activity levels and am trying to get out for a good walk every day, parking farther from the grocery store, getting up from my computer and moving and generally squeezing in action where I can. I am feeling the benefits all ready. This site explains some of the advantages too. Really though.... it is just about moving more. We need to shake that booty! xo

Feeding the wolves....

I am trying to be a better person. I think we all are. Life sure does make it difficult at times! We dodge unexpected blows, jump hurdles we didn't know existed, arrive at dead ends, get confronted with bad news and do our best to keep going in a positive and upbeat manner. It it boils down to decision making doesn't it. 
The way we choose to react to a situation determines the outcome for ourselves. It is how we move forward. The space between the event and our response is where it all happens.  Our thoughts direct the show. We need to pause. I am working on trying to see the positive and larger picture instead of quickly reacting emotionally. It is difficult.
It’s so much easier to do things like complain, begrudge, procrastinate, dismiss, put down, bemoan or ignore. The lazy way out. Those things take almost no energy because they don’t require real action of any kind and don't change anything; inside or out. It is hard to rise above but the benefits are boundless...... a challenge I am fighting daily.

A girl said to her  grandfather, “It feels as though there’s always a fight between two big wolves inside my head”
“The first wolf is full of anger, self-doubt and enviousness. The second is full of hope, empathy and courage.”
The grandfather said, “That same fight is going on inside all of us.”
The girl thought about that and then asked, “Well grandfather, which wolf will win?”

The old man simply replied, “The one you feed.”

Photos taken at Chebucto Head, Duncan's Cove

Ch ch changes....

Malcolm Gladwell wrote a book called The Tipping Point. It is about how things change from one state to another. Life, business, health, anything really.... "that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire. Just as a single sick person can start an epidemic of the flu, so too can a small but precisely targeted push cause a fashion trend, the popularity of a new product, or a drop in the crime rate.." 
In our personal lives, it's that small change that tips you over from making excuses to taking action! How do we do it?

One example in the book comes from a study of tetanus education at a university. They were interested in learning if creating fear about tetanus would encourage more students to get vaccinated against it. The fear education program didn’t seem to make any difference in students getting vaccinated, BUT when they made one surprising change, it did!  Adding a map of the university campus showing the health center and the times vaccinations were available increased the vaccination rate from 3% to 28%! That is huge.
Takeaway from this.....

If you make a tiny change that makes it easy enough to take action , you’ll actually follow through.

So, how can we do it in our lives? 
Here are a few examples to get you thinking (I do these)...

Want to floss more? Buy a LOT of floss, put in discreet places, somewhere near where you watch TV, in your purse, briefcase, next to the computer. If you see it, you are more likely to do it.

Want to exercise first thing? Put your gear out the night before and put it on first thing. (Also set an intention before you sleep,mentally tell yourself tomorrow I will exercise:)

Want to drink more water? Fill a glass and keep on your kitchen counter, drink every time you see it, on your desk, in a water bottle. 

Stay on top of ideas? Buy a small notebook and pen, put elastic around to keep em together( so you always have a pen), and carry with you. I tend to be a "real" notebook person rather than a smartphone note person, but if that works for you, great!.....key is remembering to jot them down!

It is all about making things you want/have to do, easier to do and using visual reminders as cues when you can.  Are there any that you do?

All photos copyright Shelagh Duffett.The sculpture of the man and woman above can be found at the North End Library in Halifax

Passion Planner....

I was sitting in one of my favourite cafes a month ago and at the table next to me was a woman sitting chatting to her partner. In front of her, open and full of intriguing slashes of colour and written words and columns and open space, and squares and lines, was a journal;  the journal/day planner of my dreams! I couldn't help myself and leaned over to ask where she had found it. I have been looking for a planner like that all my life! 

She was not offended by my interruption, in fact she beamed and handed it over as if passing a sacred object from one acolyte to another. "Yes, I understand, I know, isn't it perfect!" 

She proceeded to tell me she bought it from a Kickstarter Campaign Angela Trinidad had created so she could produce the perfect tool for living a productive, organized and creative life. Yes! It was so wildly successful that Angela began donating a free planner to someone needy for every one she sold. I went home and ordered two. One for me and one for a friend. My production road map starts today!

Simple Daily Practices for a Happier Life!

1. Sit quietly in a chair every day for 15 minutes with NO distractions.

2. Floss. Very important this one. Not flossing linked to all kinds of unpleasant things. Keep several containers of it around the house, next to your bed, near TV/comuter, in your purse/briefcase. That way you have a better chance of getting it done. It only takes 30 seconds. Really no reason not to do it.

3. Give someone a compliment or/and do a good deed daily.Something for someone else!

4. Get out and WALK every day for 30 minutes, if you don't have 30 then 15.

5. Make good choices. Every good choice you make reinforces other good choices. Only YOU know what the better choice is.

6. Take a vitamin pill and if you live in the Northern US or in Canada pop a vitamin D.

7. Do some daydreaming. Think about wonderful things....

8. Call your mom or someone close to you every day just to say hi.

9. Drink a full glass of water. More is better but one is great.

10. Make sure your kitchen is clean each night. Makes the start of next day so much nicer:)

11. Have something to look forward to. Make plans to get together with a friend.

12. Think twice before you buy anything.

13. Make your bed

14. Smile

15. Avoid comparisons. You are you!

16 Say thank-you like you MEAN it.

17. Have a goal. If you don't have any, make one, or two or three....

18 Eat some greens. Have a salad.

19. Stop and admire the things that please you.

20. Stretch

21. Suck in your belly button each time you think of it:) Hopefully it is several times a day:)

22.Try not to worry.....
“Worry is like a rocking chair--it gives you something to do but it doesn't get you anywhere."
"Worry often gives small things a BIG shadow"

Anything to add? Please feel free to pass this on.