Are You Talking Yourself Into Failure?

A couple of days ago I watched a fascinating You Tube clip about mantras. Mantras are the things you say to yourself in your head, over and over again – and they have the power to impact how you feel and act in the short term, which ultimately impacts how your life turns out in the long run.

The clip I watched was presented by Gretchen Rubin of The Happiness Project, and you can view it over here (http://www.happiness-project.com/happiness_project/2011/05/re-evaluate-your-mantras.html). Gretchen spoke about some of the mantras affecting her life, and I could straight away relate. I think you might as well. For example, how often have you said to yourself something like the following? Read the Rest of This Article »

5 Smart Nutrition Tips To Deal With Holiday Excess

It’s the HOLIDAYS! Isn’t it just brilliant?! If you’re anything like me then you’re rapt that finally, you have time away from your normal routine and the chance to engage with family and friends. Finally, you get to unwrap those Christmas gifts that have been taunting you all month and (even better) you get to rest assured in the knowledge that you don’t have to worry about Christmas shopping for at least another 11 months. 11.5 at a stretch. And FINALLY you get to eat, drink and be merry – and all without the usual serving of guilt. Right?

After all, it’s the holidays! A time to indulge and enjoy! Dieting and exercise be damned – yes?

Well, sure. Like it or not, indulgence tends to go part and parcel with this time of year. Which is fine and dandy, but wouldn’t it be just excellent if you could enjoy your holiday merriment without the residual, how should I say it, well enhancement of your figure?

I’m all for eating, I’m definitely all for a few extra glasses of red at this time of year, and I most certainly won’t say no to a bit of merriment, but if there’s one thing I can’t stand it’s knowing I’ve undone (or at least feel as though I have) a year’s hard work in just a few short weeks of vacation.

Here are five simple but very very smart nutrition tips that I use to avoid just that. I think you’ll like them. Read the Rest of This Article »

The Power of Gratitude

Cultivating An Attitude Of Gratitude: Why You Should Bother

If you regularly find yourself feeling stressed, are constantly running against the clock, often wonder if there’s any point to it all anyway, and occasionally contemplate just burying your head under the bed-sheets and refusing to face the day then you might want to try something that’s worked wonders for me.
I’ll warn you – this might come off as a little corny at first, and you may wonder how it can possibly change anything. But the truth is that since I’ve employed this very simple 5-minute technique my life really has changed for the better. Not just my career as a blogger and freelance writer, but my health and fitness, and even the quality of relationship I have with my partner and my baby daughter.

But before I start to sound too salesman-y let me tell you what I’m talking about. Read the Rest of This Article »

5 Ways To Escape Overwhelm

Ever had one of those days when you’ve got such a ridiculous amount of stuff to do that even the idea of unpacking the groceries makes you feel frazzled and teary? When you frantically flit from task to task, never quite completing anything and in most cases not really doing anything useful at all? When by night-time it’s hard to escape the somewhat depressing fact that although you’ve been stupidly busy all day you’ve actually accomplished precisely zip? Read the Rest of This Article »