Balance8life In Motion
Balance8life in motion is simply that. It is always changing, evolving, moving, shifting, and never is one position of balance maintained for a long period of time before another one comes in to take its place.
Balance8life is actively engaging 8 expressions of health to our daily routines for true completion. It’s a dance. It’s a touch and go. It will always be in motion, and you will never stay in one place for too long, or the balance will slip away.
Balance8life is an orbiting cycle of balance and harmony within our minds, our souls, and our bodies as well as our emotions.
REST
It doesn’t seem that important, especially to teenagers, who, ironically, need more sleep than adults. There are so many things that distract all of us from getting the recommended 6-8 hours of sleep.
To name a few: caffeine, alcohol, eating too heavy of a meal too late into the evening. A new relationship, sports, TV, partying, school, worry, anxiety, health issues, snoring, poor air quality, light, noise, or lack of, etc.
Read this article for tips on how to have better quality sleep.
Once you’ve truly had a good night of sleep, the next thing to do, the first thing in the morning, is . . .
WATER
Start on your first 32 ounces of water as soon as you get up. You’ll be surprised how quickly you can get through that much water in the morning.
EXERCISE
Some people have a very difficult time hitting the gym first thing in the morning, so this is only an example schedule, but not the only way to work this.
My boyfriend and I head to the gym before the sun is up, and really enjoy it as an energizing start to our day. When you hit the gym in the morning, you don’t need coffee!
NUTRITION
When I get home from the gym, I eat. And breakfast is supposed to be the biggest meal of the day. I admit, I don’t always make it the biggest, but I do always have a nutritious meal. It’s simple and definitely not overly complicated.
I typically have granola with soy or almond milk, topped with berries or other fruit. I make my own granola and load it up with nuts and seeds. Oats are great for lowering cholesterol and for keeping it in check.
My typical breakfasts look a little like this: granola with soy milk and fruit, and maybe a bagel or toast. Scrambled tofu (vegan egg substitute), homemade muffins, pancakes or biscuits and gravy. All whole wheat, all low in sugar and very high in protein, fiber, and carbs for energy. (You gotta have carbs y’all, it’s a total must!)
MEDITATION
This is my weakness and simultaneously one of my favorite things to do. The reason is, I have a difficult time just being still. I feel like if I’m not doing something productive, then I am being lazy. So I probably need this the most out of all of these. The others, for some reason, just aren’t that difficult for me to do on the daily.
The thing I have to keep in mind, is meditation is being productive. It is being productive in the way of strengthening and rejuvenating the spirit and emotions.
Meditation centers our self in a way that protects our thoughts, our emotions, and our positive vibes!
I don’t know about you, but I really need this a lot. When I do meditate, my day always goes so much better, uplifting, and all around I tend to be more focused on the good in others rather than the negative.
Something else that I love about meditation, is that it doesn’t take long, and you can do it along with the the next two components of health: sun and fresh air
SUNSHINE
We need our vitamins, and we get these in our veggies and fruits, but vitamin D comes from the sun! And vitamin D is what enables our bones to absorb calcium. We kinda need that; I like the idea of being up in the gym still well into my 70’s and beyond without broken hips and such.
So while you’re meditating, all you need is 10 minutes in the sun to get all the Vitamin D you need in your day. That’s it!
For more about the benefits of sunshine, read my article What is the 8 in Balance8Life? And, The Bright Side of Sunshine.
FRESH AIR
Fresh air is calming, it cleanses our minds and gives us perspective, plus it cleans out our lungs and our homes. Fresh air is the perfect setting for elevated meditation. Combine meditation in the sunshine and fresh air, and you’re accomplishing 3 things at once without much effort at all.
MODERATION
At the end of my day or week, or both, I like to do something for me. This is when I do lazy, or indulge in a cheat day, activity or food. Or whatever it is that I normally wouldn’t do.
Moderation has to be applied to everything in our day, all day long. Work, (ehem… talking to me here) the amount of food we eat, the treats we indulge in (and when we indulge), the people we are around, the thoughts we have, the amount of time we sleep, and how much we play. Without moderation, we simply can’t have a balanced lifestyle.
And this, my friends, is balance8life in motion.
It doesn’t matter how you go about fitting these things in your day. You can exercise in the sun and fresh air, you can sit and work in the sun and fresh air, you can exercise in the later part of your day, the point is, all 8 elements need to be incorporated daily for the ultimate balance experience.
And keep in mind, it is a dance; a touch and go experience. You will have perfect balance in a moment, and your next moment could be complete chaos. But the more you incorporate these 8 methods into your day, the more you will find yourself in moments of balance, and the moments will last longer, the more you bring them back around.
Have fun, don’t stress. Stress will break the momentum. Just do it.
I’d love to hear how you make this work for you! I’m a real person and I like real people, too! So hit me up on any of the social media platforms you enjoy the most. I’m on (almost) all of them. . . Facebook, Instagram, E-mail, Twitter, Pinterest and balance8life.
