Pillars of Health & Happiness - November 2014

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EternalTruth
EternalTruth Posts: 491 Member
in Motivation and Support
Pillars of Health & Happiness is a monthly group that begins on the 1st of each month. The group not only has weekly weigh-ins but also incorporates other aspects such as gratefulness, kindness, meditation, and exercise. You don't have to post every day but I encourage you to post as much as you can.

Mondays: What are you looking forward to?
Post about something you are looking forward to next week. If you can't think of anything then create something in your life to look forward to. Examples could be; booking yourself a manicure, buying yourself a new book, setting aside some 'me' time to do one of your favourite activities, or visiting with a friend.

Tuesday: What are you grateful for?
Each day write down something that you are grateful for and post about them here on Tuesday. This means you will be posting 7 things you are grateful for (except in the first week of the month or if you joined at some other point during the month).

Wednesday: Meaningful Meditation
Whether you meditate for an hour or two a day or you try to squeeze in fifteen minutes here and there it is an important aspect of health and happiness. You can post how many days you meditated, how you find meditation helps you, or some other topic related to meditation.

Thursday: Kindness Counts
"No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted" ~ Aesop
Report on acts of kindness that you performed in the last week or post acts of kindness you plan on performing in the coming week.

Friday: Let's get Physical!
Post about your exercise goals, what you have accomplished in the last week or discuss physical activities in general.

Saturday: Mind over Matter
Post about what have you done or what you will be doing to exercise your mind this week. You can also do things like posting trivia questions, riddles, answer other member's trivia, or topics about how to stretch the mind.

Sunday: Weigh-In Day
You don't have to weigh yourself on Sunday, you can choose another day of the week (as long as it is the same day each week) but post your results on Sundays. You can report in whatever way you want whether you share your current weight, target weight and weight change or you can just report something as simple as that you lost the weight you wanted to for the week.

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  • EternalTruth
    EternalTruth Posts: 491 Member
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    1 day to go. I hope to find some like minded people who would like to improve their overall health which includes working towards a healthier and HAPPIER lifestyle. Any takers?
  • heathengirl
    heathengirl Posts: 8 Member
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    I'm in, though I travel the first week of the month for work so I may miss the first week.
  • EternalTruth
    EternalTruth Posts: 491 Member
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    :) No problem. Even though I encourage you to post as much as you can, this will be a no pressure group where you post when you can.
  • EternalTruth
    EternalTruth Posts: 491 Member
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    Saturday: Mind over Matter - How are you exercising your brain this week?

    So why is this important to a holistic health approach? Research has proven that keeping your brain engaged and learning new skills can help prevent or delay onset of brain health issues such as Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

    Tonight I am going to a trivia night with a couple of friends to support a local charity. The last charity trivia event we went to we finished in second. Woot! When I get back home I'll post some trivia questions.

    I love reading the magazine 'Mental Floss' and watching its online (you can find episodes on YouTube) segments of 'lists' featuring John Green or his brother or other guests. Mental Floss is a great source of stories that are interesting, factual and often times quite unusual.

    Happy 1st Day of November and I wish you all Health & Happiness!

    ~ True
  • vanessa40
    vanessa40 Posts: 328 Member
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    Good Morning..
    I would love to join this group and thank you for reminding me about Mental Floss. I believe i use to subscribe to that magazine. I look forward to seeing some of those questions.
  • EternalTruth
    EternalTruth Posts: 491 Member
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    My weigh-in for yesterday was
    LW: 291.4
    CW: 284.6
    Change: -6.8 lbs
    Note: That will be mostly water weight since I just restarted eating better again and I always lose a big number the first week when I restart.

    So onto Monday's post and what I am looking forward to this coming week. On Satuday, if weather permits, I am going to go for a hike which will probably be one of my last ones of the season before it becomes too cold and snows and then a friend and I are going to have a cooking day where we try out some healthy recipes that we can freeze. The meal I want to learn most is a low sodium chicken soup.

    I don't really cook so this will be a new and challenging experience for me.
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
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    Mondays: What are you looking forward to?
    Post about something you are looking forward to next week.

    Im making cloud pendant lights for my new blue bedroom!
  • EternalTruth
    EternalTruth Posts: 491 Member
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    I have never heard of pendant lights, what are they?
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
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    they hang from invisible wire from the ceiling and they are filled with tiny lights inside that run on battery. This one I am making into a cloud, with artificial snow and batting :D
  • vanessa40
    vanessa40 Posts: 328 Member
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    That sounds lovely yoovie.. i may have to look into that.. Thanks
  • EternalTruth
    EternalTruth Posts: 491 Member
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    Tuesday Post - What are you grateful for?

    My family of course but I will try to write something that is not as obvious.

    As a big scale item, I am grateful for the health system we have in my country (Canada) even if it means ridiculously long waiting times in ER. There are too many in this world who do not have access to basic health care and medicine.

    As a small scale item, I am grateful for a day that has crisp air but isn't too cold and there is no rain or snow. I love being wrapped up in a warm sweater and watching the leaves fall.
  • EternalTruth
    EternalTruth Posts: 491 Member
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    yoovie wrote: »
    they hang from invisible wire from the ceiling and they are filled with tiny lights inside that run on battery. This one I am making into a cloud, with artificial snow and batting :D

    I would love to see a picture when you are done if that is okay with you. It sounds lovely and something I might like to try.
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
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    Tuesday: What are you grateful for?

    1. stolen moments of peace and happiness in the morning before anyone wakes up but us, tangling our legs together and giggling and kissing for 2 hours.

    2. being able to tear myself away to get in a solid 20 minute OHP workout instead of skipping it.
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
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    They look like this:

    60abea826694ac64ca8a6f1779ba7586.jpg

    here's how to make!

  • EternalTruth
    EternalTruth Posts: 491 Member
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    Thank you, those are so cute!
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
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    Wednesday: Meaningful Meditation

    My meditation is actually slow deliberate weight training. I got in 20 minutes yesterday and today at the beginning of a much longer workout.
  • EternalTruth
    EternalTruth Posts: 491 Member
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    Wednesday: Meaningful Meditation

    Some people shy away from the word 'meditation' because they think it involves sitting in the lotus position and chanting strange syllables surrounded by candles and incense. Certainly that is a technique that can be used but it really is about 'mindfulness' which is being in the moment and focusing inwards to try and find calm and centering yourself. There are so many ways to do that and lots of resources out there that almost everyone can find something that suits them and makes them comfortable.

    I have tried a few different meditation techniques and have found a couple that help me. One is called Sohaja Yoga (I don't think I spelled that correctly) which there are free classes near where I live. Unfortauntely it is on Sundays and I work most Sundays. I can do it at home but it doesn't seem to work as well, maybe it is the collective energy in the class that helps and that I don't have one family member of another knocking on my door every ten minutes wanting something...lol.

    The other one I try is called Spinning Your Chakras which is just a technique a couple of friends of mine showed me which also works but finding time to go out to a field or something to do it is difficult at best with three jobs, volunteer work, two kids, and a hubby.

    Now that I have this weekly reminder though, I am going to put time in my calendar for it.


    Thursday: Kindness Counts

    Kindness is an important aspect to me in my life and it makes me feel good to perform random acts especially when the person doesn't know it is me and I have no expectation of something in return.

    So this week I brought in some fruit for my co-workers the one day. We are going through a major software change which has stressed most people out in my workplace so I am doing what I can to help make moments of destressing.

    Tomorrow in my geographical area it is 'Random Acts of Kindness Day' so I am trying to figure out what to do. I know I will give out some gift cards to Tim Horton's to strangers but I would like to do something for work as well, maybe the same thing in a few random people's mail slots at work.

    Final Thought: Have a mindful and kind day everyone!

    ~ True
  • cahf
    cahf Posts: 137 Member
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    I just found this group and love the idea so I'm hoping anyone can "join". For today - thursday - I guess I did the wednesday meaningful meditation by going to my yummy gentle yoga class. Kindness - I'm a biology professor and it is advising season (students registering for the next semester). This is part of my job that never "counts" for anything - I can do a terrible job and be mean to students and no one will ever know or care. But, even with as much time as it takes to talk to the students who usually end up in my office for an hour discussing everything under the sun, I find myself taking on the mantle of a kind, caring, concerned, helpful adult for this kids who are away from home. Then tonight I will make jewelry for an auction for our local food bank. Finally, I did not kick my newly minted teenager out of the house this morning despite his incessant arguing and talking back. I think that counts as well :)

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