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SMARTsteps, a wellness program that emphasizes stress reduction, weight control, and life fulfillment, is going digital! Check out my first video blog at http://youtu.be/mmo7AHCKEKo.
If you are interested in walking with me check out the SMARTsteps page. To learn how to register and fill out the online Citizen Report Card, demonstrating “the power of one candle”, click here for a short tutorial video.
peace…
In recent years I have become fascinated with the observation that we tend not to make the best decisions when we are angry or fearful. In fact decisions in this state tend to make our lives worse. This is a bit odd because if something is too hot you add cold, too cold add heat. Making bad decisions when you are angry is like adding heat to hot, which does not make much sense. Its as though the anger finds or even creates a like energy to interact with, to feed off of, and our souls get taken along for the ride. To combat this tendency in myself, I have been trying to practice mindfulness, living in the present moment, without much future or past were fear and anger live respectively. And I must say that it does help me make more decisions that seem helpful vs harmful to me and those around me.
After watching the movie “After Earth” with Will Smith, my thoughts about the benefits of present moment living have gone beyond the effects on my own behavior. In this movie was a monster I think called Ursa, a wicked ugly thing that sought to seek out and kill all around it. The interesting thing about this monster, is that it can only see you if you are afraid. If you were mindful, and very present (where fear/anger does not exist), Ursa can’t see you. Ursa also had the strategy that involved putting those killed on display to insight fear in others. This allow Ursa to find (see) those in fear and attack them. To be able to combat this monster, Rangers needed to train and learn to “go Ghost”, a state where the ranger was very present and without fear. In this state they could be right next to Ursa and undetectable, a ghost.
As I reflected on this movie, Ursa seem to represent life itself. I thought of all of the people in the world in various states of fear and anger, looking for someone to interact with, to increase these states of negative energy and feed off of it. For those who are able to go Ghost, they can walk in the midst of those seeking to cause more pain, and be invisible. The opposite of this is the person that seems to have a “black cloud” over them. If something bad is going to happen it usually finds them. Often these individuals have an air of anger, or deep pain about them. The black cloud will always find them, until they address the pain that they carry internally.
I’m not foolish enough to think that living in the present, being calm, and without fear and anger, will keep one from all challenging situations. There are some Goliaths that we are to face. In fact, these Goliaths may have been placed in our paths to make us stronger. But I do think that the practice of mindfulness allows us to be in a place were we can better assess our situations, and apply a truly “authentic” helpful response, rather than one that is associated with more pain and suffering. That is the “power of now”.
So for me…
… I’m “going Ghost”.
Much thanks to the writers of After Earth for this revelation.
be blessed
-james
"Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food"
There are just a few dozen nutrients compared to the thousand or so chemical reactions that depend on them to make sure that your body functions properly and efficiently on a daily basis. For many nutrients, they are not used in just one cell, in just one body system, but multiple reactions, in multiple cells, across different systems. Think of the implications. If you are deficient in a nutrient, it is very possible that multiple cells, and systems could be affected, throwing your body out of balance, with some dysfunctions more apparent than others.
So lets say nutrient x is deficient and causes fatigue. What do we do? Get an energy drink or coffee. Now here is the question; has the deficiency been corrected? No. In fact you have now covered up the one warning that your body was deficient, and so the deficiency continues until the next system starts to fail. Perhaps now your vessels can’t relax and you end up with high blood pressure or headache. What do you do? Go to the doctor and get a pill to lower you blood pressure or take a pain pill for the headache. Here is the question… has the deficiency been corrected?? No… However you have taken away the signal letting you know that your body was out of balance, which allows the deficiency to continue. Now another system begins to fail, perhaps interfering with the ability of you muscles and tendons to heal from the daily challenges of life, and you develop a strain, or tendon rupture. No problem, go to the surgeon and get stitched back together, or get a joint replaced. Here is the question while you are trying to recover from the surgery. Has the deficiency be corrected???? NO. So the deficiency continues as we cover up our warning signs with more medicine and more procedures. Our medicine cabinets fill with “cures” which aren’t really cures. What they should represent are supports that help us function, while we correct imbalances to help our bodies restore themselves, but that’s not how we use them. When we look at them as cures and not supports, we don’t look for practices that may be creating deficiencies or toxicities in our lives that we need to correct. So the problems continue until multiple systems have failed, and our “health-care” system can do no more to help us.
There is a better way. Look to wellness behaviors for cures, and medicines as support while we find the cure in our life routines (rest, stress reduction, good nutrition, and regular exercise). Take inventory of your symptoms and if they are gone because of pills, your medicine cabinet, and ask yourself what deficiency (or toxicity) could be the cause. And then begin to implement the change.
As a place to start consider the following:
I don’t have all of the answers, nobody does, but if we share our successes and insights, we can make our collective journey much easier. I am reminded of the quote from Hippocrates “let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food”.
Does this make sense?
Peace.
-jb
When using these strips pay attention to the top row (just beneath the numbers). You only note the second row when the first row is confusing. Note that as your urine becomes more alkalotic (basic), the color changes from a light green to blue.
When I first started my colors where in the light orange (@6.0), now I am consistently in green area (7.5-8.0). I do seem to be doing better with a little more energy but this may all be in my head. I will check in after about a month and report out on how I feel : )
-jb
I have gotten feedback from others that there are challenges registering at BetterME and filling out the Citizen Report Card on-line. The comments below should help. There is also a short video that describes the process.
The way the process should work:
If you have problems, please write a comment below. This will be the best way to make improvements in our process.
If you would like to share your experience with the reportcard and also learn from others, join the following two groups which are at Linkedin:
