39 Lindsay Road, LONSDALE 5160 8387 3433 Www.southboundfitness.com.au Spring 2008
Despite our best intentions, it seems inevitable that once the festivities of the season are over, we feel a little jaded, lethargic and heavier! The many indulgences we may have enjoyed seem to lodge firmly around the abdomen or hips and the interruption to our regular routine may make resuming our ideal exercise and eating habits difficult.
Fortunately, for most of us the ‘Xmas-bloat’ is only temporary—a reaction to the different kinds of foods and drinks we may have consumed and the break in our exercise routine. Once we get back on track, the extra couple of kilos (mainly water retention) will suddenly disappear. However, if the ‘party mode’ has been continuing for longer than a couple of weeks, chances are that some of the excess may be fat!
How do we best combat the holiday bulge? The first thing we need to address is our nutrition. As we ought to know by now, diets don’t work! However, if trimming excess fat is the goal, we will need to become more conscious of the choices we make and the habits we are forming in regard to food and beverages.
Begin by limiting refined and processed foods to a minimum—once per week is plenty. Become aware of eating patterns you may have developed that are not directly related to hunger. For example, you may eat to fill in time if you are bored or for comfort when you are upset or anxious.
Estimate your maintenance energy requirement by calculating the amount of calories you consume per day without changing weight, then reduce that amount by 200-300. Increasing the amount of quality protein and vegetables/salad will help, as will limiting starchy carbohydrates in the evening. Eating a breakfast high in complex carbohydrates and protein will fire up the metabolism and help to regulate blood glucose, as will eating small, frequent, nutritious meals throughout the day. A good quality whey protein supplement is invaluable for this purpose unless you have all day to spend in the kitchen! You will need to experiment a little with various foods to determine how your body reacts to them, but generally, the less processed or changed a food is, the more nutrient dense it will be. Protein sources will be a matter of taste, but the best in terms of bioavailability are whey protein, chicken, turkey, eggs, lean meat and fish, followed by dairy, soy and legumes (which give a complete amino acid profile when combined with rice). Eat an abundance of fresh vegetables and choose unprocessed carbohydrates like rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes and rolled oats. Increase water consumption, particularly if you’ve over-indulged in rich foods and/or alcohol over the holidays. For detoxification, you should aim to drink at least 4 litres of fresh water per day—more if you have caffeinated drinks. Herbal formulas that assist live function like milk thistle, dandelion and certain amino acids are a good idea to help the body rid itself of stored toxins that may be overloading the system. A good vitamin B complex would also be of benefit. (try Musashi Red formula, liver support, or Australerba Trim tea)
Now to exercise! Gradually increasing the intensity, duration and frequency of cardiovascular exercise will help create a calorie deficit, improve circulation and kick-start a sluggish metabolism—leaving you feeling lighter and more energetic. Begin with around 20 minutes of moderate intensity aerobics 3 times per week, gradually increasing to 45 minutes even daily. Unlike weight training, aerobic exercise may be performed daily without fear of breaking down muscle or over-training as long as the intensity is relevant to your current fitness level. Try to add variety to your workouts. You might try cycling, the treadmill or stepper, circuit or aerobic classes, boxing or step for a change. Aim to keep your working heart rate between 120-150 beats per minute or 60-80% of your maximum. This will ensure that you are exercising at the appropriate intensity, rather than just coasting along. To assist in the fat burning process, the use of a thermogenic product may be helpful. Usually, the body will exhaust its supply of glycogen derived from the carbohydrates consumed, before turning to stored fat as a fuel supply. This means that for the first 15 minutes or so of exercise, the amount of fat burned is minimal. You can effectively increase the amount of calories burned from fat by using a product such as L-carnitine 20 minutes or so prior to exercise. Other products that increase fat burning potential are those that increase core temperature, such as the various combinations of HCA, citrus aurantium and guarana. There are many good brands of ‘fat burners’ on the market (ask at reception for the most appropriate for your needs) but remember that no supplement is a substitute for appropriate exercise and nutrition. There is no easy way!
Include weight training in your exercise program to maintain lean tissue and so keep the metabolism functioning optimally, keeping weight moderate but repetitions and intensity high if fat reduction is the goal. With a well balanced exercise and nutrition plan, you can win the ‘battle of the bulge’ for good and find yourself feeling lighter, more energetic and vital as a result. It just takes patience, persistence and dedication and the realisation that it is a gradual change in habits and awareness that is required rather than a quick period of deprivation followed by more bouts of excess. Balance is the key. You will need to be patient with yourself and progress slowly, gradually aiming to lose .25—1 kg per week on average. Beware of anything that offers a ‘quick fix’ as this will only mislead you and bring no lasting results. Of particular concern is the use of prescription appetite suppressants which distort the body’s natural senses, are addictive and have harsh side effects—plus the fact that a rebound effect occurs once use is discontinued, with a return of any weight lost plus a few bonus kilos added for good measure.
It’s that time of year again. We anxiously await the stroke of midnight on New Years Eve, filled with anticipation as if something will magically change as January 1st arrives. How many times have we resolved to rid ourselves of a bad habit, to change a destructive or despised aspect of ourselves, only to fall back into those old habits before February comes around? The classic ‘New Years resolution’ is invariably a recipe for failure, which only serves to undermine our self-esteem and keep us stuck in our old habits, procrastinating about making the desired changes—perhaps we’ll do it next year!
Making a resolution is not in itself a problem. The problem is usually that we reserve taking action to bring about a desired change until some future time instead of taking action when the desire arises. We wait until the new year, or next week, or ‘on Monday’. Often by the time the appointed day arrives, we have forgotten all about our resolve!
If there is an area in your life that is stagnant, destructive or unfulfilling, anytime is a good time to start moving towards change. Most resolutions fail because they are too vague or too lofty. You need to be precise and specific about what you intend to achieve and you must be realistic in regard to setting achievable goals. Many small goals will lead you to achieving the ‘big one’ but expecting instant success within a week will set you up for failure and disillusionment.
Making changes require a clear intent, being absolutely certain of what you want, a strong desire for the imagined outcome and a commitment to yourself to put in the required effort needed to achieve your goal.
You need to develop determination and to be persistent. When things are going smoothly, it is easy to remain motivated and to have enthusiasm, but when obstacles suddenly appear (as they inevitably will), many people lose heart and choose to abandon their dreams instead of meeting the challenge.
Making the decision to change something in our lives or about ourselves will set in motion the unconscious blocks that we have been carrying with us—the very things that have been keeping us from realising our goals by limiting and restricting us. As these unconscious negativities are flushed to the surface of our awareness, they will often serve to sabotage our best intentions and remind us of all those things that make us feel foolish for ever imagining we could be better or happier or more successful– sending us falling back into our self-imposed rut. We need to accept that as part of our growth and development, obstacles will arise. It is how we view these obstacles and our response to them that will determine our success. Obstacles are only a problem in that they don’t allow events to conform to the preconceptions and expectations we hold. We need to expand our viewpoint to see obstacles as challenges to meet and as possible catalysts and teachers, opening our eyes to a different approach or giving us valuable information about ourselves that we can work with. A strong desire and persistent determination will enable you meet those challenges and to move through them.
Once you have made a specific decision to achieve a particular goal, you must maintain that initial spark of enthusiasm that flames your desire. To do that, you need to research your goal—to thoroughly understand the steps you will be required to take in order to achieve it. You need to focus your mind in the direction of your goal and recognise when your thinking is becoming distracted or negative.
You need to be aware of surfacing negativities and turn them into allies. You must remain firm in your commitment and determination. You must trust your own feelings rather than allow yourself to be swayed by the opinions of others. You need to be prepared to take consistent actions in order to achieve your goal. All the best intentions in the world amount to nothing without appropriate actions to back them up.
You also need to be able to recognise when you have reached a goal, acknowledge your achievement and then set a new challenge for yourself. Many people have ‘open ended’ goals which they never seem to reach because they do not have a clear indicator of what it is they are actually going for.
Succeeding in changing a habit or developing a new quality takes time and effort, but the results are well worth it. The nature of the Universe is to change, even though we may find a personal resistance to ‘rocking the boat’ or moving out of the ‘comfort zone’. By choosing to change consciously and with intent, we can enrich our lives and open up all sorts of new possibilities for ourselves. Waiting for life to propel us into change leaves us feeling powerless—a victim to life’s circumstances or a mere pawn in the goals of others.
We can disregard the ‘New Years Resolution’ but instead, resolve to be open to our own growth and potential and have the courage to live our dreams every day!
I may be wrong, but I always had a sneaking suspicion that it was something to do with celebrating the birth, life and teachings of Jesus—the Christian tradition’s major religious festival. Interestingly enough, most of the spiritual traditions around the world have similar celebrations, whether it be the Pagan or Buddhist Solstice celebrations, the Jewish Hanukkah, Islam’s Ramadan or the Hindu Deepavali. The rituals may differ but they share a common essence. They provide a time for reflection—for slowing down and noticing the many blessings we have that we take for granted, to honour the gift of Life itself, to give thanks for the abundance of nature and to practice generosity by sharing that abundance with others. When we do that from the heart, we begin to dissolve the sense of separation and isolation that keeps us trapped in fear, doubt and ignorance—what yoga calls ‘avidya’.
Yoga has a term ‘Ishvara’ or ‘Ishta-devata’ which roughly translates as ‘personal God’ or ‘chosen deity’. We are encouraged to choose whatever deity or symbol of the ’Absolute’ most resonates with us and practice devotion to that symbol. In the Christian tradition, the Ishta-devata would be Jesus, Guatama the Buddha would take that role in Buddhism, Allah in Islam, Shiva, Vishnu or any of the numerous Gods and Goddesses of the Hindu pantheon or even a more abstract symbol like the sun, the moon, the earth, or the concept of Truth or Love. Yoga tells us that no matter what symbol we identify with, we are really devoted to tify with, we are all devoted to the same concept—that of absolute consciousness. But because it is beyond the mind, we require a symbol to represent it in order to relate to it. I recently celebrated Deepavali—the Hindu Festival of Lights. The ritual was quite simple—’puja’ or worship including giving offerings (incense, fruit, a flower) to express gratitude, prayers for peace and the sharing of the gifts given by nature. The story behind Deepavali is that of Rama (an incarnation of Vishnu, who expresses the principle of unconditional love) and his victorious return after defeating the Demon army. In Hinduism, the stories are symbolic rather than literal. Here Rama represents Truth and the higher mind (Buddhi) and the demons are the lower mind, the ego and its greed, hate, jealousy, anger, fear and delusion. It is the story of the triumph of ‘good over evil’, of the light of Truth burning away the layers of ignorance, falsity, superficiality and separation—avidya—which yoga refers to as the cause of suffering. The story sounds familiar, perhaps?
To celebrate, I noticed I had not needed to struggle my way through a crowded shopping centre, nor do major damage to my credit card. I felt a deep connection to others, a sense of peace and joy and with no disruption to my schedule or to that of the people around me. If I wasn’t careful, I could believe I had found the ‘Christmas Spirit!’
In contrast, those around me were becoming more and more distracted, more and more caught up in a frenzied rush of planning, shopping, spending, desiring and worrying. There were lists of material desires being handed around, great expectations followed by great disappointments or resentments when some of those desires were denied. There was the fear of financial burden, of having to ‘put up with’ various relatives, acquaintances or ‘friends’. There was the pressure to keep up appearances—to compete with other family members, the neighbors or community. Even the worry over having to buy something for a family member who either ‘has everything’ or whom we don’t know well enough to know their tastes or needs. There were some who were concerned about being embarrassed should their gifts not have cost as much as those they may receive and even some who would buy extra just in case someone gave them something and they nothing to give in return. Not much evidence of the ‘Christmas spirit’ there. Better keep looking.
Yoga encourages us to slow down so that we may have the space in which to consider our thoughts, feelings and actions more carefully. When we try to fit too many things into an already congested schedule, when we rush from place to place, when our minds are full of worry and pressures, we lose track of what is important and in doing so we almost always fail to serve those values that support our relationships and our intentions. A certain harshness can creep into our interactions with others and this is the same harshness that we ourselves find so distressing and so undermining of our sense of peace and connectedness. We can become curt—even rude– with our friends, family and co-workers in a way that belies their importance to us. Perhaps we become so exhausted by all our busyness that we are irritable when we wish to be kind, thoughtless when we want our actions to be considerate. When we find ourselves distractedly hurrying, pushing others out of the way, becoming impatient and rude or being so engrossed in our runaway thoughts that we block communication with others, we might ask ourselves exactly where we are going in such a rush. What are we running away from or what are we running toward? Our perception that we have ‘no time’ is one of the distinctive marks of our western culture. It keeps us perpetually agitated, distracted and caught up in grasping, desiring and possessing.
We continue wanting and desiring under the illusion that if we attain our desires, our problems will be solved. Just as children want a new toy and play with it for a short while before letting it sit in the cupboard untouched as a new object takes their attention, adults have ‘big people toys’. We want the latest computer or a new car when we actually have one that is perfectly good When we have the ‘latest toy’ and we realise that it is ours, there is a moment of happiness before our new object loses it’s lustre and we begin to desire another. The cycle is endless and we seem never to be satisfied. We do this with material possessions, with jobs, even with our relationships.
The fifth yama of Pantanjali’s ashtanga yoga is ‘aparigraha’ - non-greed, non-grasping, desire-lessness. Freedom from greed comes with non-grasping, which is based on the recognition that we are inherently complete and need nothing for our perfection. Our eternal grasping after or seizing of things and even relationships is an expression of the ego’s strategy to overcome a basic fearfulness created by its self-isolation or failure to recognise the true Self (avidya). When people act from attachment, they manipulate situations and others because they fear that they will lose the desired object. We do this in our relationships. We do this when we fight over an object in a shopping centre. Nations do it to other nations.
The problem arises when the mind clings to what one thinks ones’ security is derived from. We develop a false sense of security by placing our power in transitory things or by accumulating more possessions than we really need. There is no need to keep or to strive to possess anything beyond what is required for a comfortable life. Security is not possible when there is fear, which is the first product of duality and division—the antithesis of yoga. True security is the love in your heart (the expression of Truth). It is your generosity and your capacity to give. (Sounds curiously like that elusive ‘Christmas Spirit’ again!)
We came into this world without anything and we will leave it without taking anything with us. There is not one thing or person that we truly own. We are simply caretakers of what is available to us and we need to be responsible for its right use in life. This applies to material possessions, relationships, the environment and nature—even to our own bodies! Aparigraha is a comprehensive demand to relate to life in a balanced, non-grasping manner. It implies finding a balance between giving and taking. Most spiritual traditions tell us that ‘it is better to give than to receive’ and that true joy is to be found in the giving. The practice of generosity cultivates humility and selflessness and helps to dispel the myth of duality.
The tradition of giving gifts at this time of year can be an ideal way to practice generosity as long as we are giving from the heart and with no attachment to reward or getting something in return. Giving is not bargaining.
In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna (another form of Vishnu) says “If one offers me with love and devotion a flower, fruit, a leaf or even water, I accept it. Whatever you do or eat, whatever you offer or give away, whatever duty you perform—do as an offering unto me.”
I like to think that the giving of gifts is a symbolic offering to Life—to the ‘Absolute Reality’ - to ‘God’, to ‘Ishvara’. It is interesting that in these times, the offerings have changed from a simple flower, fruit or even gesture to a digital camera, laptop computer of DVD player!
Krishna said that the greatest offering or gift was
The gift of the self. Giving someone your full attention when speaking with them, showing courtesy in traffic by giving up a contested parking space or letting another into the traffic flow. Smiling at a stranger costs nothing but is immensely valuable. There are many ways in which we can practice generosity without expectation or desire or even expense. The goal of yoga is to bring union and to end the illusion of duality and separation. It is only through breaking the endless cycle of grasping and greed—by letting go of desire for what we do not have, that the mind can become quiet and allow the cultivation of inner awareness that leads to the goal of yoga.
It is a widely held view that we in the western world have lost sight of our spirituality and that this adds to the conflict between east and west , rich and poor, exploiter and exploited. Look around at the state of the world and it is clear that what we witness in a mild form at rush hour in the shopping centre is not unlike the large scale power-plays- the need to possess, control and dominate—that is occurs daily in the corporate and political worlds. Carl Jung wrote in 1964:
“Modern man does not understand how much his rationalism’( which has destroyed his capacity to respond to numinous symbols and ideas) has put him at the mercy of the psychic ‘underworld’. He has freed himself from ‘superstition’ (or so he believes) but in the process he has lost his spiritual values to a positively dangerous degree. His moral and spiritual tradition has disintegrated and he is now paying the price for this breakup in worldwide disorientation and dissociation”.
If we look closely at all the spiritual traditions of the world we will see that they all give us the same lesson. George Feurstein writes “ … the Muslim notion of what constitutes a morally sound and virtuous life… are not in contradiction to the core values of Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism or any of the other great religious-spiritual traditions of the world. In all these traditions, including Islam, hatred has no place but love, kindness, mercy, tolerance, generosity and forgiveness are recommended to all. ...When we look at the traditional concept of ‘moral order’ we are looking at moral universals, not culture-specific moral rules or expectations. The morality recommended by Krishna, the Buddha, Jesus of Nazareth and Mohammad consists of the moral values and attitudes that arise spontaneously in any pure heart, whatever the culture or religious affiliation may be. These values and attitudes are intrinsically life enhancing and promote inner freedom and peace.”
Sounds suspiciously like ‘Christmas Spirit’ again, doesn’t it? Perhaps the ‘Ishta-devata’ of our age is, in fact ‘Westfield shopping-town”! Somehow though, I suspect the claims that Myer is where our friend the ‘Christmas Spirit’ may be found, is a little like the WMD’s in Iraq—just a decoy. Maybe if we listen to the messages of the prophets and sages like Jesus, Patanjali, Buddha and Mohammad, we might just discover that there was no need to search—that the ‘Christmas Spirit’ has been with us all along—present in our hearts. We were just looking in the wrong place!
Namaste.