It’s Tigger Time! May 19, 2013
Posted by nrhatch in Amazing Animals, Animal Welfare, Humor.Tags: Animals, Cats, Diabetes in cats, Health, Humor, Pets, Tigger
44 comments
I checked the archives and realized it’s been five months since my last update on Tigger ~ Eat, Drink, and Be Hairy!
Well, our little guy is still with us ~ a full year after his diabetes diagnosis. Yay!
Since January, we’ve been able to maintain his weight and energy level with frequent feedings.
We like big butts and we cannot lie . . .
Tigger also needs constant “watering,” letting us know he’s thirsty by crying in the middle of the kitchen (right next to his FULL water bowl) or by hanging around the (KEEP IT CLOSED!!!) toilet bowl.
My precious . . . my precious . . .
When he’s not eating, drinking, or sleeping, he helps us around the house.
Let me help you organize those photos . . . I’m an exceptional bookmark.
Oh, catching up on correspondence? I’m a stellar paperweight. See?
After his thrice-daily nap, he enjoys seeking out secret Hide-y Holes.
Or playing Tigger-in-the-Box.
Hey, let’s play “Put your hand across the threshold of my hideaway.” C’mon. I double dog dare ya! Wait! Where ya going? Don’t be such a scare-dy cat!
In addition to his other fine feline attributes, Tigger excels at guarding treats against would-be intruders.
Mine! Mine! Mine!
When it’s not too hot or too cold or too rainy or too sunny, Tigger likes to hang out on the deck, but he refused to pose . . . he was too busy hunting lizards!
When I told Tigger that he would be the featured post today, he lifted one eye in my direction, “Fine. But I don’t give interviews. Or sign paw-tographs.”
He’s quite the fuzzy furry feline fella!
Aah . . . that’s better!
The Zen of Eating April 23, 2013
Posted by nrhatch in Food & Drink, Health & Wellness, Mindfulness.Tags: Diet, Food, Health, Mindfulness, Weight Loss, Wellness, Zen
23 comments
Want to lose weight? Without feeling deprived and frustrated?
Practice The Zen of Eating.
Be mindful of the tastes and textures of the food you prepare.
Focus on the nourishment it provides.
Be thankful for the abundance and variety of food in your life.
Say a blessing for your blessings.
Express loving kindness for all who contributed to growing and harvesting the food on your plate:
May you be happy
May you be healthy
May you be peaceful
May you be safe
Explore your pantry.
Note the origin of ingredients from differing cultures and traditions around the globe: Curry from India. Olive Oil from Greece. Pasta from Italy. Cheddar from Cheddar. Maple Syrup from Vermont or Canada.
Savor the sensation of . . . enough.
Aah . . . that’s better!
From Amazon:
When it comes to weight loss, the emphasis today is shifting away from fad diets and compulsive workouts toward sane, sensible techniques that incorporate both the mind and the body. This is the first book to apply the 2,500-year-old principles of Zen Buddhism to the modern struggle with the vicious cycle of dieting, losing, and regaining weight.
From a Buddhist perspective, overeating is a disorder of desire. This book will teach readers how to find freedom from eating problems and the tyranny of desire that triggers them. Filled with concrete, practical exercises and the wisdom of the ages, The Zen of Eating provides, at last, an alternative to ineffective diet programs, products, and pills.
Quote to Ponder: These words are simple. Mastering them is hard. ~ Tao Te Ching
Appreciating the Absence April 9, 2013
Posted by nrhatch in Gratitude, Happiness, Health & Wellness, Mindfulness.Tags: Gratitude, Happiness, Headache, Health, Migraine
56 comments
Health is a precious commodity, often overlooked, ignored, and taken for granted when it’s good and missed terribly when it’s bad.
Take the garden variety migraine ~ a debilitating companion, to be sure.
We all know how much better we feel when our head is not exploding due to blinding light slicing through cellular walls.
Right?
But do we notice the absence of pain on days when there is no migraine pounding inside our heads?
As a general proposition, I don’t.
But today I shall.
I will appreciate the absence of a headache.
Join me?
Aah . . . that’s better!
The Pathway To Timelessness February 28, 2013
Posted by nrhatch in Books & Movies, Health & Wellness, Meditation.Tags: Ageless Body Timeless Mind, Deepak Chopra, Health, Meditation
24 comments
Even if we can’t literally turn back the hands of time, might we erase the ravages of age by the thoughts we think?
In Ageless Body, Timeless Mind, Deepak Chopra summarizes a growing body of evidence which supports the conclusion that we can reverse certain signs of aging through application of mindful awareness.
Nothing holds more power over the body than the beliefs of the mind.
We can harness the Mind-Body Connection for healing and making other positive changes in our lives.
By renewing our intention to live active lives, we can improve our motor abilities, strength, agility, and mental responses.
When we insert an intention into our thought processes, such as, ”My energy and vigor is increasing every day,” we control the beliefs that govern the aging process . . . instead of letting our beliefs control us.
What else can we do?
I expect you already know the answer to that question.
Enjoy regular physical exercise, lift weights (or do some form of strength training), eat right, get 7-8 hours of sleep, stay positive, explore new interests, rush at each day with open arms, maintain an attitude of gratitude, foster alert curiosity about life, and . . . meditate.
Pressing the “pause button” does our bodies good.
Meditation is a pathway to timelessness.
* Meditation produces profound relaxation and significant changes in breathing, heart rate, and blood pressure. (Id., p. 163)
* Meditation reduces hormonal imbalances associated with stress, causing the aging process to slow down, pause, or slip into reverse. The biological age of long time meditators may be 5 – 12 years younger than their chronological age when measured by blood pressure, vision, and hearing. (Id., pp. 32, 164)
* Levels of cortisol and adrenaline are often lower in meditators and their coping mechanisms are stronger than average. (Id., p. 162)
* In a study of 2,000 meditators, benefits were noted in 13 major health categories, including 80% less heart disease and 50% less cancer than in controls. (Id., p. 165)
* Sitting in meditation with the eyes closed induces the nervous system to enter a state of “restful alertness” ~ the mind remains awake while the body goes into a deeply relaxed state. (Id., p. 164)
* In the timeless present, the eternal now, we free ourselves from time constraints and experience ageless body and timeless mind. (Id., p. 31)
* * * * *
Meditation allows us to access our eternal core of inner silence. In this state of pure awareness, we find creative inspiration, knowledge, and stability. We experience a space beyond time.
Only let the moving waters calm down, and the sun and moon will be reflected on the surface of your Being. ~ Rumi
Be Here Now.
Aah . . . that’s better!
Rush At Each Day With Open Arms February 27, 2013
Posted by nrhatch in Books & Movies, Gratitude, Happiness, Life Balance.Tags: Ageless Body Timeless Mind, Deepak Chopra, Happiness, Health
22 comments
Even if we can’t literally turn back the hands of time, might we erase the ravages of age by the thoughts we think?
In Ageless Body, Timeless Mind, Deepak Chopra summarizes a growing body of evidence which supports the conclusion that we can reverse aging through mindful awareness.
One experiment involved a sort of “inner time travel” with elderly participants.
In another “anti-aging” experiment, geriatric patients started a weight-lifting program with remarkable results ~ when beliefs change, aging changes.
In a third study . . .
Well, let’s save that for another day. Instead, let’s discuss a few observations gleaned from the book as a whole.
Nothing holds more power over the body than our beliefs.
* Our cells constantly eavesdrop on our thoughts and beliefs. A remembered stress, which is only a wisp of thought, releases the same flood of destructive hormones as the stress itself. (Id., p. 5)
* Our cells map our experiences. Stresses forgotten on a conscious level are imprinted there, emitting signals like buried microchips, making us anxious, tense, fatigued, apprehensive, resentful, and doubtful. (Id., p. 12-13)
* Transplant patients may report an uncanny experience after receiving a donated kidney, liver, or heart ~ without knowing who the donor is, they begin to experience the donor’s memories and beliefs. (Id., p. 22-23)
* When we focus on the positives, we send positive signals to every cell in the body, drowning out negative signals from the distant past.
* And vice versa. When we focus on negatives, we send negative signals to every cell in the body, drowning out positive signals from the present.
We can harness the Mind-Body Connection for healing.
* Given placebo pills (“dummy drugs”), patients can kill pain, reduce gastric secretions, lower blood pressure, and fight tumors. The pills are meaningless; the power that activates the healing is the suggestion alone. (Id., p. 18)
* If the mind is given the appropriate suggestion, the body produces the needed biochemical response.
* “Belief creates biology.” ~ Norman Cousins
* Inserting positive intentions into our thought processes, such as, ”I want to improve in energy and vigor every day,” allows us to assert control over the beliefs that govern the aging process. (Id., p. 19)
When we change our underlying beliefs, our bodies respond.
* Despair and hopelessness raise the risk of heart attacks and cancer, thereby shortening life. Joy and fulfillment keep us healthy and extend life. (Id., p. 5)
* By renewing our intention to live active, purposeful lives, we can improve our motor abilities, strength, agility, and mental responses. (Id., p. 19)
* The Mind-Body Connection allows positive affirmations to work.
Physical exercise is the fountain of youth.
* When we give up physical activity and stop exercising, we invite a whole host of health problems into our physiology ~ heart and arteries deteriorate, bones become fragile, muscles atrophy, the risk of obesity increases, depression sets in, and aging accelerates. (Id., p. 85)
* Regular physical exercise can reverse the most typical effects of biological age (high blood pressure, excess body fat, improper sugar balance, decreased muscle mass, etc.). (Id., p. 67)
* Adopting a healthy lifestyle delays symptoms of aging by as much as 30 years. (Id., p. 60)
Rush at each day with open arms.
* Every cell in the body is seeking fulfillment through joy, beauty, love, and appreciation. (Id., p. 99)
* Learning new things and acquiring new knowledge and skills enhances our ability to stay young at a cellular level. (Id., p. 25)
* We benefit physically and mentally from the intention to experience more energy, alertness, curiosity, wonder, enthusiasm, and creativity.
* “People grow old and die because they see others grow old and die.” ~ Shankara (Ancient Indian Sage)
Rush at each day with open arms ~ awake, aware, and filled with awe.
Aah . . . that’s better!
Tomorrow . . . the pathway to timelessness.
Related post: When Things Go Terribly Right (Raptitude)
What Are You Weighting For? February 26, 2013
Posted by nrhatch in Books & Movies, Exercise & Fitness, Health & Wellness.Tags: Ageless Body Timeless Mind, Deepak Chopra, Exercise, Health
18 comments
Even if we can’t literally turn back the hands of time, might we erase the ravages of age by the thoughts we think?
In Ageless Body, Timeless Mind, Deepak Chopra summarizes a growing body of evidence which supports the conclusion that we can reverse aging through mindful awareness.
One experiment involved a sort of “inner time travel” with elderly participants. This landmark study established that so-called irreversible signs of aging could be reversed using psychological intervention.
To read more . . . Ageless Body, Timeless Mind, pp. 92-94.
In another “anti-aging” experiment, geriatric nursing home patients started a weight-lifting program with remarkable results.
Gerontologists from Tufts University visited a nursing home, where they put a group of the frailest residents on a weight-training regimen. Rather than exhausting or killing them, the increased exercise caused them to thrive.
Within eight weeks, wasted muscles came back by 300 percent, coordination and balance improved, and overall a sense of active life returned.
“Subjects who had not been able to walk unaided could now get up and go to the bathroom in the middle of the night by themselves, an act of reclaimed dignity that is by no means trivial.”
The youngest subject in the group was 87 and the oldest 96!
These results were always within reach of the residents; nothing new was added to the inherent capacity of the human body to reverse the effects of aging.
No . . . Lance Armstrong did NOT stop by to distribute steroids.
What changed? Their beliefs. When beliefs change, aging changes. Once the residents believed that weight-training, even at age 96, would do the body good, they changed their daily habits and choices to accommodate those new beliefs and manifest the desired change.
Source: Ageless Body, Timeless Mind, p. 58
For more on the mind-body connection . . . tune in tomorrow.
In the meantime . . . stop waiting and start weighting!
Conceive it.
Believe It.
Achieve It.
Aah . . . that’s better!
* * * * *
Suzicate has pressed PUBLISH on her book ~ Stepping Into The Wilderness. It’s available from Amazon in Paperback or Kindle.
Or you can take your chances and enter to WIN a FREE copy!
Leave a comment on her most recent post, Here’s A Piece For Inquiring Minds, and you’ll be entered into Wednesday’s drawing.
* * * * *
Col is running a Caption Competition! Think of a winning caption for his FUN and FUNNY photo and post it in the comment thread on his Blog.
Turning Back The Hands Of Time February 25, 2013
Posted by nrhatch in Books & Movies, Exercise & Fitness, Health & Wellness.Tags: Ageless Body Timeless Mind, Deepak Chopra, Exercise, Fitness, Health
53 comments
Even if we can’t literally turn back the hands of time, might we erase the ravages of age by the thoughts we think?
In Ageless Body, Timeless Mind, Deepak Chopra summarizes a growing body of evidence which supports the conclusion that we can reverse certain signs of aging through application of mindful awareness.
One experiment involved “inner time travel” with elderly participants invited to a retreat where nothing published after 1959 would be admitted . . .
In 1979, Ellen Langer and colleagues at Harvard effectively reversed the biological age of a group of old men by a simple but ingenious shift in awareness.
The subjects, all 75 or older and in good health, were invited to a country resort for a week-long retreat. They were not allowed to bring any newspapers, magazines, books, or family photos dated later than 1959.
The resort, set up to duplicate life twenty years earlier, included issues of Life and the Saturday Evening Post from 1959. In keeping with the flashback, the only music played was 20 years old.
Subjects used 1959 as their “present tense” ~ “I wonder if President Eisenhower will go with Nixon next election?”
The research team made extensive measurements of the subjects’ biological age before and after the study, including markers such as physical strength, posture, perception, cognition, and short-term memory.
The premise of the experiment was that seeing oneself as old or young directly influences the aging process.
The results of this play-acting were remarkable. Compared to a control group that went on the retreat but continued to live in the world of 1979:
* The subjects improved in memory and manual dexterity. They became more active and self-sufficient.
* Impartial judges asked to study before-and-after pictures detected that the men’s faces looked visibly younger . . . by an average of three years.
* Measurements of finger length, which tends to shorten with age, indicated that their fingers had lengthened.
* Stiffened joints were more flexible. Posture started to straighten as it had in younger years. Muscle strength, measured by hand grip, improved, as did hearing and vision.
Professor Langer’s landmark study established that so-called irreversible signs of aging could be reversed using psychological intervention.
Source: Ageless Body, Timeless Mind, pp. 92-94
In another “anti-aging” experiment, geriatric nursing home patients started a weight-lifting program with remarkable results . . . to learn more, tune in tomorrow!
In the meantime, enjoy some inner time travel and turn back the hands of time.
Aah . . . that’s better!
* * * * *
Suzicate has pressed PUBLISH on her book ~ Stepping Into The Wilderness. It’s available from Amazon in Paperback or Kindle.
Or you can take your chances and enter to WIN a FREE copy!
Leave a comment on her most recent post, Here’s A Piece For Inquiring Minds, and you’ll be entered into Wednesday’s drawing.
* * * * *
Col is running a Caption Competition! Think of a winning caption for his FUN and FUNNY photo and post it in the comment thread on his Blog.
Enjoy Every Moment You Can January 25, 2013
Posted by nrhatch in Happiness, Health & Wellness, Life Lessons, Mindfulness.Tags: Cancer, Happiness, Health, Mindfulness, Parotid gland, Tumor
59 comments
When I had a parotid gland tumor . . . I had to wait 3 months for the surgeon I wanted because he was changing hospitals.
Due to the tumor’s proximity to facial nerves, it could not be biopsied.
Odds were in favor of it being a benign tumor, but . . .
Anyway, I decided that if I had cancer, if I was going to die, I was going to enjoy the time I had left without worrying about the future.
It worked! Those 3 months were among the BEST months of my life.
When people asked me how I could be so HAPPY with that uncertainty hanging over my head, I said, “If I’m going to die, I’m going to enjoy this time.”
On the morning of surgery, I was chipper and happy despite the early-ness of the hour . . . even without my customary cup of coffee.
The nurses frowned, pointing out the serious nature of the coming events.
I laughed, “I know. It’s serious business, this surgery. I might die. All the more reason to enjoy the NOW.”
“We are HERE and it is NOW . . . what else is there?”
Stay positive. Imagine best case scenarios. Enjoy every moment you can.
Aah . . . that’s better!
Related posts: Hold On To Your Worry Beads (The Folia) * Could We Just Not? (The Ramblings)
Breathe. Relax. Repeat. December 28, 2012
Posted by nrhatch in Exercise & Fitness, Health & Wellness, Life Balance.Tags: Anxiety, Health, Mental Health, Stress, Stress management
36 comments
Holidays are FUN . . . but they can add to our stress levels as we struggle to shop, wrap, decorate, cook, clean, entertain, and meet the expectations of others.
Now, it’s time for some serious STRESS relief:
* Exercise is a great stress buster. Go for a brisk walk around the block. Boost your heart rate while lowering your stress rate.
* Take the dog and/or kids to the park or playground. Play tag, dodge ball, or monkey in the middle.
* Volunteering two hours per week can reduce stress and provide other feel good benefits. Offer to take nursing home residents in wheelchairs for outings around the neighborhood. Walk dogs at the local shelter.
* Join a tai chi or yoga group in the park. Meditative movements help melt anxiety. Sunshine is a mood booster.
* Some foods are proven stress busters. Chocolate comes to mind. Other options ~ whole grain breads, citrus, spinach, salmon, and black tea. Try a Spinach, Fennel, and Orange Salad dressed lightly with a balsamic vinaigrette (olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and orange juice).
* Play games with friends and family. Laugh. Be silly. If you prefer to be serious, join a bridge club.
* Don’t just do something, sit there. Meditation is a great way to gain clarity and melt away stress.
It’s as easy as 1-2-3: Breathe, Relax, Repeat.
Aah . . . that’s better!
They’re Gone! December 27, 2012
Posted by nrhatch in Exercise & Fitness, Health & Wellness, Humor, People.Tags: Health, Humor, Muscle, Physical exercise, Range of motion
34 comments
Now that your houseguests have left the building, it’s time to put some order into the disorder.
On the bright side . . . cleaning up the chaos left behind by houseguests can help you lose any holiday weight you temporarily adopted . . . provided you don’t clean out the refrigerator by scarfing down all the leftovers in one sitting.
* Dusting, vacuuming, and mopping burn 150 calories an hour and allow you to exercise your whole body. Move briskly. Limit chocolate breaks.
* Reorganize the fridge with healthy snacks (hummus, fruit, raw veggies) kept front and center. Hide baked goods and chocolate in back behind the stuff that no one is interested in eating. Step away from the drumstick!
* Stripping beds and carting laundry helps tone arm muscles. Bending and stretching to pick up misplaced items and tidy up messes helps improve range of motion. Whistle while you work . . . “I like to move it, move it.”
* Sweeping up porches, patios, and driveways provides the bonus of fresh air and sunshine. Wait until Mother Nature offers up a sunny day.
What’s that? You didn’t have houseguests? Your house is immaculate? Not a dust bunny in sight? Holiday decorations packed away? In Martha Stewart approved ornament carriers? With Dyno labels for each carrier?
What’s your secret?
Aah . . . that’s better!
