Time Waster Number 3

Television

Viewing Television is a huge time waster. We need to take back the time TV viewing is stealing from our lives.

Examine what you are really doing when you sit down to watch TV. Is this television viewing really a good way to spend your time? Is it really necessary to have it on every night? Are those programs really that good that you want to sit there staring in a state of hypnosis?

I have learned various tricks to shorten the time television takes from my daily life.

• Enjoy the wonderful benefits of TiVo and recording. You don’t really have to watch a show when it is broadcast. Taping it and watching it later can give you back 15 to 20 minutes when you zap the commercials.
• Pick some shows at the beginning of the week that will really be fun to see and only watch those. Become more discriminating about what you watch and plan ahead. Teach your children to do the same.
• Stop watching all the news broadcasts. Remember, the news business is a business. Most of the time, that business seems to be to scare us with fear-promoting TV news. You can get your information in print or watch the news for one telling of the story. You do not have to listen all day.
• Limit your television viewing for one week. See if you can have a couple of nights with no television at all. You may be very surprised with the results. Notice how much time you suddenly seem to have. You are creating space and time in your life!

Time Waster #2, Definite Stress Inducer!

Time Waster Number 2: Getting Dressed in the Morning!

Why are we so confused in the morning about clothes? Every day, we have to get dressed. Every day we have to decide what to wear, based on where we will be and what we will be doing. Still, we wait until morning, staring in a stupor at the clothes hanging in our closet, wondering what we should put on.

The typical morning for many people goes like this: Where is my (fill in the blank)? Is my (fill in the blank) clean/ironed/still in existence? Do I have the sock that matches this one? Where did I leave my (fill in the blank)? Sometimes we are asking ourselves this question, sometimes other people, much to their annoyance. All of this stress and time wasting could be avoided by planning ahead.

• If you do not have time on the weekend to do much more than get laundry caught up or pick up the dry cleaning, you could at least prepare each night for the next day. •
• Even if all you wear are jeans, tee shirts, or work-out clothes, it can make your whole morning routine go much more smoothly. • Having everything laid out, clean, ironed and organized, can be so calming in the morning. Children benefit from doing this just as much as adults. (Warning: Teen-age boys will laugh at you if you suggest this.)
• Starting the day this way can create a huge difference in your morning.You will feel the benefit of creating this space when you realize that you have time for breakfast or a cup of coffee sitting down

Time Waster: Food Preparation

Wouldn’t you love to have more time? Here is an idea how to make time in your day without adding more work! I will add four more tips in upcoming blogs!

Time Waster: Trying to decide what to eat when you are in a hurry, already hungry and you have other people to feed. Planning ahead can make the whole food hassle easier. Many times, we have no time to fix dinner because we are running around like nuts to the next activity, meeting or practice. A lot of wasted time can be avoided with some simple preparation.

• Planning ahead for the shopping and the food prep creates hours of time a week. Once a week, make your list and at the same time, plan dinners and lunches so that you make sure the needed items are on the list. This will give you huge amounts of time later in the week.
• Keep a grocery list on the refrigerator where everyone in the family can write down items as they notice supplies running low. A good idea is to have a standard list of necessities you buy every week. Run off copies, leaving spaces to fill in other items. (These can be grouped the way the grocery store is set up so you can follow your list with minimum backtracking.) If you hate shopping, take turns with your partner/spouse, or hire someone to do it (If this is not possible, make it as efficient as possible so it takes the minimum of your time.)
• An extra person helping with just a few tasks in the kitchen can make the preparation time so much shorter! Even a young child can help with setting the table and as they get older they can be your “assistant,” and get out pots and pans. Older children can take one turn a week to make dinner. Don’t be too picky about what they fix. Soup and sandwiches can be a great meal if someone else prepares it and it gives you time to sit together as a family. As children grow into this responsibility, they will start planning ahead and helping with the grocery list. If meals are ready to be made, you will find you are not stopping to grab fast food which is so unhealthy and a money waster to boot. •
• Keep fresh food in the house already washed and ready to go. Make lunches the night before, for you and your children.
• Keep food in your car, so you always have something handy in times of delays and long appointments. You can keep meal replacement bars, a can of nuts, water, and other healthy snacks handy in your car if you plan ahead. You won’t get hungry and feel the urge to stop by your local fast food joint. Think about the time and money saved!
• Try to find recipes to double and freeze. If you are going to put in the work and the time, double what you do. Freeze half and you have created extra time in your life. (How nice would it be to open your freezer in the morning, transfer the evening meal to your refrigerator, and let it defrost while you are working?)
• When you make a salad, make enough to have for the next day’s lunch. Instant healthy lunch—no prep time in the morning!

It Finally Happened–They thought I was his Mother!

About a year ago, I warned my co-author, Weston Lyon, that if anyone ever thought I was his mom, we couldn’t hang around together anymore.  Well, last week, it happened.

We hugged when we met for lunch, as we were happy to see each other.  We had not been able to get together for a few months.  We happily ordered and ate our Thai food.

As I returned from the rest room, I noticed Weston talking to the waiter and I asked him what they were talking about.  He told me that the waiter had asked if this was an early “Mother’s Day” celebration.

Aaaakkk! It finally happened!  Of course, I am old enough to be his mother, but, that is not the point. I smiled and said, “Oh, that’s too bad, I was going to leave him a nice tip!”

When our young waiter brought the bill, I said, “I’ll get it, son,” to Weston. The waiter freaked out a little, and said in a slightly panicked tone, “I’m sorry!  You guys have the same noses!”

I just laughed.  He looked relieved when he realized that I had still given him a tip.

I hope Weston enjoyed his lunch as we will only be talking on the phone from now on.

Have an Attitude of Gratitude and Reduce Your Stress!

Have you ever noticed that when you are enjoying yourself, you don’t even think about stress, fatigue or being anxious?

That’s because you are concentrating on a happy event or perhaps, enjoying someone’s company.  You are grateful at that  moment, though you may not even think of it in terms of gratefulness at the time.

Being grateful is a wonderful way to reduce your stress and help you to live in the moment.  Being present and looking closely at all the wonderful abundance in your life could be the greatest stress reducer that you have at your immediate disposal.

Be grateful that you are breathing and that you are alive. Be grateful for every person who has entered your life because each one has been there for a reason and has helped you become the person you are. Be grateful for the sun and the rain and the food you eat. Be grateful for the feel of your clothes on your body and for the fact that you have clothes.

Your list  can go on and on and you will be amazed how much fun making such a list can be.

You will relax and de-stress. That is a healthy and happy place to be.

Guest Blog: Jonny Bowden

When I read Jonny’s article, I had to ask him if I could post it!

Sugar as a Health Food?

By Jonny Bowden, PhD, CNS

Sugar’s about to show up on food labels, all dressed up as a new “natural ingredient” sugar and a better alternative to the demon du jour, high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS). Never let it be said that there are no “second acts” in the marketing of junk food.

OK, in case you haven’t been paying attention, HFCS has gotten quite a whipping in the press. The Corn Refiners Association tried fighting back, most notably with a series of commercials showing a clueless mother unable to explain why the stuff was so “bad,” but even the best PR campaign wasn’t able to put out the fire.

And the death blow was delivered recently by Michelle Obama who declared any product with high-fructose corn syrup to be off-limits at the White House.

So now sugar — plain old white table sugar, the poor little guy that got displaced by HFCS, is being reinvented… this time as the “natural” healthy alternative to HFCS. Oh, brother. Let’s recap for a moment. Sugar is one part glucose and one part fructose (50/50). HFCS is very close to the same formula, marginally higher in fructose — 55% fructose, 45% glucose — but probably not enough to make that much difference (or at least that’s what the proponents of HFCS claim).

But the point is moot and the argument about which is “better” diverts our attention from the real problem, which is this: The more damaging half of this dastardly duo of glucose and fructose — regardless of whether it occurs in table sugar or HFCS — is clearly fructose.

Numerous studies have shown fructose raises insulin resistance, raises triglycerides in the bloodstream and contributes to fatty liver disease. Pure refined fructose is bad news, whether it comes from HFCS or from sugar. The big problem with HFCS is the fact that it’s so cheap and widely available that it’s now in products that were never sweetened before. And the fact that it’s so cheap means that manufacturers can use a ton of it, sweetening everything in sight.

The result is that we now consume more fructose than we ever did when manufacturers used plain old white sugar. Going back to “natural” (give me a break), white sugar accomplishes exactly nothing. Refined fructose is metabolic poison, and whether we get it from the old-fashioned sugar or the cheap and abundant HFCS matters not a whit. We’re eating too much of the stuff.

And lest there be any confusion, let me add that I’m quite aware that fructose is found naturally in fruits. But fructose in fruits — surrounded by fiber, vitamins, phytochemicals and other good stuff — is a very different “animal” than refined fructose — as different as an animal’s fur is from a fur coat in the store window. You don’t need to avoid fructose when it occurs (in small amounts) in whole foods. When it occurs in refined sweeteners — be they “natural” sugar or high-fructose corn syrup — run the other way.

Dr. Bowden is a nationally known expert on weight loss, nutrition and health. He is also a life coach, motivational speaker, former personal trainer and author of The Seven Supplements You Need Now. His new book, The 150 Most Effective Ways to Boost Energy Naturally is available now.

Thanks Jonny!  Good information and lots to think about!