Stress Buster Getaways

Written by Michele Webb


Research has shown that taking a short trip, or getaway, hasrepparttar same effect on reducing stress and relaxing us asrepparttar 114320 long trips. The Stanford University psychiatrist noted that our minds are generally more relaxedrepparttar 114321 FIRST couple of days of a trip as compared torepparttar 114322 last few days.

So, if you are feeling tired and in need of a getaway, here are a few planning tips:

1. Close to home. Stay close to home – don’t spendrepparttar 114323 entire time away in transit to and from your destination. For example: if you live in Dallas, don’t go to Miami Beach. Find somewhere that is in close proximity for this “mini” getaway. Think about where you have always wanted to, places you have not visited yet or places where you know you can get away to and relax and have fun.

2. Checkrepparttar 114324 season and weather. Not all of us can getaway only to warm and sunny locations, and you may need to take a break now instead of waiting for good weather to come about. If you likerepparttar 114325 beach, but it is off season, just plan and pack accordingly. Instead of basking inrepparttar 114326 sun’s rays you can stroll throughrepparttar 114327 antique shops or bookstores, layer onrepparttar 114328 warm clothes and take a walk alongrepparttar 114329 shore, or get a table inside your favorite seafood restaurant instead of outside onrepparttar 114330 patio.

3. Pamper yourself. A getaway is a time to pamper yourself. Treat yourself to a top-of-the-line hotel. Explorerepparttar 114331 city or local area, visitrepparttar 114332 spa, and indulge yourself in those activities that you normally do not takerepparttar 114333 time for. Order room service, read a good book, get tickets torepparttar 114334 local theatre or playhouse … gettingrepparttar 114335 picture?

Unrealistic expectations can cause failure

Written by Caryl Ehrlich


Weight gain is an evolutionary process. Some people call it creeping weight. The scale turtles inexorably upward – a tight skirt, a belt notch, a can’t-zip-up-my-pants inch at a time. Yet you expectrepparttar scale to go down as rapidly as a high-speed elevator. This erroneous thought pattern – practiced and perfected as with any bad habit – is an unrealistic expectation. Dangerous to be sure with any endeavor, but deadly when it comes to weight reduction. I could have, I should have, I didn’t, I wanted to, arerepparttar 114319 loud laments ofrepparttar 114320 perfectionist. Perfectionism is an illusion, however. Since you’ll never be perfect, in your mind you don’t ever succeed. Then you think: I failed, I blew it, I’m weak, or bad, or whatever you say to beat yourself up, and you stop trying altogether. Why not acknowledge small incremental improvements, times when you did better at one meal, one day, or one event than you might have? Focus only on what you did, not on what you thought you should have done. The inclination to focus onrepparttar 114321 negative is part ofrepparttar 114322 all or nothing addict mind. You think that if you can’t do it perfectly for an entire week – even though it is unrealistic to think you can – you won’t do it at all. It would be more pleasurable to look forrepparttar 114323 positive and see that list grow. All-or-nothing thinking is far more destructive to your weight loss goal than a friend baking brownies and leaving them on your desk. Even if you eat one brownie but manage to giverepparttar 114324 rest to co-workers and friends, you think you’ve blown it. A better way of thinking would be to realize you only ate one, when inrepparttar 114325 past you probably would have eaten several, if not all. Unrealistic expectations give substance, heft, and power to an unrealized goal. They quashrepparttar 114326 budding crocus of success as it pushes throughrepparttar 114327 thick asphalt of failure. Unrealistic expectations killrepparttar 114328 flowering of dreams, because you become so disappointed that you give up hope. Thomas Edison never stopped trying. “I have not failed 10,000 times,” he said. “I have successfully found 10,000 ways that will not work.” The only reality is where you are today – perhaps 50 pounds and where you were a week ago – perhaps 155 pounds. And even if your weight remainsrepparttar 114329 same, there are other questions to ask: Did you keep a food log? Did you drinkrepparttar 114330 requisite amount of water? Did you do better at an industry function than you might have? Did you eat less than usual at your mother’s? Yes? Then you’re ahead ofrepparttar 114331 game. Marcia S, an unrealistic thinker, lost seven pounds in two weeks. The third week she lost one pound. When I asked for a positive story, she said: “Nothing good happened.” She was miserable. “But you lost eight pounds,” I reminded her.

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