Image by: Adam Baker
By Bobby Williams
We hear all the time that when we’re happy on the inside, our external appearance will reflect it. Guess what, it’s true. But forget the spiritual and kinetic energy crap we hear so much about on Oprah. Let’s talk biology. As men, our lives can be incredibly stressful – especially when we’re running companies and have control over so many people’s lives.
The way mother nature programmed our bodies is to work through cause and effect. The way we feel, think and view ourselves and the world will ultimately effect our nerves and sensory transmitters, which then create issues with our metabolism, weight and overall health. Bottom Line? If you love yourself, so will your body – let’s fix the kinks!
Life can be whatever we want it to be. That’s the premise of the bestselling book “The Secret.” One of the secrets that health enthusiasts know is that our bodies can be whatever we feel it to be. I know this might seem like a bit of stretch, but there is some serious research that backs this up.
Don’t Make Your Life Harder
We all want to be successful, but there comes a time when we realize that maybe we’re pulling ourselves too short. Don’t let yourself get to this point. It’s fine to be driven, but once it affects your sleep patterns, social life, eating habits and mental health, it’s time to rethink your priorities.
Men’s Health reported on a Canadian study that studied over 2,000 employees and found that the people who thought a poor job performance could impact the company or other coworkers had more stress. In the professional world, there is always pressure to prove yourself, but too much stress will lead to heart problems and complications with the immune system.
Be smart. Don’t overload yourself. Here’s a hint: give yourself a schedule. Only work within the 8-hour day in the office, after that, forget about the damn thing. Let work be at work, and home be at home. Trust me, with this in mind, you will work twice as hard during this time frame. You might find that you get more work done with this strategy than before.
Free Your Muscles
Men carry their stress in the neck and back. When our body gets tense, we aldo collect fat in our bellies due to the malfunctioning nerves. Give yourself a minute during the heavy work day or home life to stretch! If you’re sitting at a computer for 8 hours a day, give yourself 3 – 5 minutes every hour to stretch.
Reach up, reach down. Touch the floor and slowly straighten up your spine as you rise to a standing position. Face forward and bend your neck to both sides, feeling the stretch from your ear to the shoulders. Release all the tension, and don’t give your metabolism an opportunity to slow down.
Eat Something Every Couple Hours
Food is the main fuel source we give to our bodies and brains. Obviously when we are stressed, our brains work much harder. We think too intensely, we over analyze, we assume things and get comfortable in our own paranoia. This constant working mode will burn our brain out if we don’t feed it.
Have you ever notice when your stressed, you either eat more or eat less? This is because the area that targets stress in our brain is not too far from the area which targets hunger. Depending on how your biology is, it can work both ways. By maintaining a healthy eating pattern, you can save your brain from exhaustion.