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DYNA-FORMTIME & BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
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Health
Maintain good
health to promote positive thinking and higher energy.
Why
include health as a topic in time management? Because of all the behaviors
that we can change
and receive the greatest benefit from, health is my number one choice.
Less illness means more productive time, more enjoyment time, and
more meaningful time. Striving for good health can give us a wonderful
sense of purpose. For instance, I would like to share my twilight
years with my partner in life. I would like to be at my grandchild’s
wedding. I would like to beat my son at tennis when we are both senior
citizens. I would like to visit another 25 countries before I leave
this planet. Will I be able to do all these wonderful things if I
am not in good health? There is probably less chance if I am not in
good health. And if you one does get sick, maintaining the best health
practices you can will give you a faster and 'better' recovery.
The attached picture
shows a relationship between the body and the mind. What you eat affects
your brain. Be conscious of foods that provide real body energy and
support brain functioning.
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Nov. 6, 2006
From the New York Times article on food
ratings by Hannaford Brothers stores.
July 17,
2006 Long term consequences, poor choices impact children's
health.
Health and Time management written by Fred Pentney:
Is good health
a matter of genetics or lifestyle? Is health a factor in accomplishment? Biographies
reveal many people who were afflicted by sickness, or had lifelong problems
with health, but still managed to have meaningful and accomplished lives.
I don’t want to suggest that good health guarantees greater accomplishment
in our lives. My suggestion is, that by being aware of our biofeedback, and
making sensible choices in response, we reduce the risk of poor health and
the resulting costs in time and money that occur. What
would you like to accomplish or be part of many years from now? How will your
health affect these choices? Remember, time management is a life long process
and so is maintaining good health.
Which behaviors and attitudes do you have to change to increase the probability
of achieving your dreams or goals? These pages will provide realistic foundations
for good health. Yours truly is a triathlete who swims a mile once a week,
runs 8 km on weekends and goes for a brisk one hour bike ride once
a week. Is age a factor here?
No. Getting into the habit is the key. Start with ten minutes three times
a week if there are restraints. Add time on as the habit becomes a routine.
Nature’s way of telling us that it is time to slow down or change our behavior
is to make us sick. The sickness period forces us to focus on our bodies and
give it the attention that it really needs on a daily basis.
Years ago I developed a
health check monitor, which a person completed each day and recorded health
affecting behavior, consumption, and activities. I did have the chart as a sale
item on this web site. However, I have decided as a public service to provide
health guidelines on this web site. As I observe a decline in the fitness and
health of the general population in North America, I see the pervasive influence
of poor choices related to health, such as the excessive consumption of potentially
harmful foods, the lack of exercise, the erosion the daily fundamental foundations
of good health such as sleep and low intake of water
vs. sugared and caffeinated drinks. There are other signs that the population
is getting unhealthier. The increasing billions of dollars that are spent on
pharmaceutical drugs, the consumption of antacids, the increase in diabetes,
and the general shift in values toward a philosophy that anything that makes
you feel good is O.K. Think of all the prescriptions issued that tamper with
the body’s efforts to self regulate itself. I will stick my neck out here and
suggest that before the doctor prescribes pills for non life threatening illnesses
he/she might ask for a certificate of completion from his/her patients.
Did you attempt to get
at least seven hours of sleep a night?
Did you eat three nutritious well-balanced meals a day?
Did you complete three forty-five minute periods of exercise this week?
Did you drink the minimum daily amount of water your body needs for good organ
hydration and proper elimination?
Do you have at
least two non-work activities to look forward to that make you feel good?
Did one of those activities include other people?
Good health can be the foundation
for longevity, well-being, mental stability-especially during times of severe
stress, a stress reducer. These are just the major benefits. Think of the time
consuming secondary costs of poor health maintenance. Visits to the doctor,
low productivity, time spent in the pharmacy, lack of focus, low energy, anxiety
from worry about health, time and money spent looking for alternative cures
and medicine. The irony is if you went for a brisk walk during the time that
you were waiting for the prescription to be filled you may have improved your
immune system as much or more than the prescription benefits. (May in the above
sense means a greater probability).
Good time management includes
preventive measures such a planning, organizing and controlling. We can include
terms such as benchmarks, early warning indicators, red flags, sensitivity and
remedial action. From a health perspective I want you to consider the following
quick checks as to whether there is some room for improvement in your health
management. Let's call these benchmark tests.
Check one: stand upright.
Let you head drop forward. Look down at your feet without moving from the
natural position. Check: Can
you see your toes? I realize that we are all built a little differently (endomorph,
ectomorph and mesomorph), so the degree of visibility may be different - use
a previous optimum as a benchmark. At one time you probably could see your
toes. Make it a long term objective not to have to bend quite as far to refamiliarize
yourself with your appendages.
Check two: Is your posture sagging? This question is not related to # 1. Are
you maintaining some light exercise for muscle tone? The muscles help pull
the skeleton back into the right position. This helps relieve pressure on
some of your organs. This in turn helps blood flow to the organs. The blood
carries the oxygen we need to cleanse and revitalize the cells. Think, 'the
hips bones connected to the thigh bone', etc. a stimulus for action.
Check three: are you maintaining
flexibility through some stretching exercises each day? Try not to leave the
house in the mornings without at least reaching for your toes and the ceiling
about twenty five times, while keeping you legs straight? You'll have a bounce
to your step all day. You can does this exercise while waiting for the coffee
to perculate or the toast to pop up.
Minor revisions Oct. 1, 2011
Note: Aug. 2, 2005. Please
refer to the sleep article as above for more health
tips.
Return
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Email:
Fred Pentney
