Water, Exercise and Attitude

Water, exercise, and attitude are health and weight loss supplements that are often over looked for pills, energy drinks, and special foods. The health powerhouse trio are on my mind because I go through these spurts of splurging and ignoring them. Do you ever find yourself doing that?

The last couple of weeks I have been ignoring them and I want to get back on track, so hopefully today’s post will be info and motivation for you and me both. Mostly me, though. No offense. I care about you too. But the carry on bags under my eyes have evolved into full size sets of luggage from lack of sleep (too much caffeine), my body feels sluggish (lack of exercise), and today I actually yelled at a stranger for pushing my buttons. (not good attitude)

Water

In the big picture water is helpful in disease prevention, fighting off bladder cancer and colon cancer.  Of course it does.  It flushes out the toxins and keeps your pipes clean.  That alone is reason enough to drink it.  But we often don’t pay attention to the long term benefits.  Day to day is what gets us.  Let me tell you what I have been experiencing day to day for the last couple of weeks.

I am bloated.  I am extremely fatigued through the day.  I am weak.  Whereas I usually have a spring in my step and bounce from spot to spot, simple movements are almost a chore.  My mouth is dry and I feel like I slur when I talk if I don’t focus.  Speaking of focus, my memory is all but gone.  I have to stop and think really hard trying to finish a thought when I am speaking or writing.  I lose a great idea so fast that all I am left with is the feeling of excitement I had when I discovered it.  These are all signs of mild dehydration!

How do I know it’s from lack of water and not something more serious?  I recognize the pattern.  First I get lazy and stop drinking water.  After about a week I start feeling lethargic and loading up on artificial stimulants.  All the while lamenting, “God I am getting old.  I am so stressed out.  Woe is me.”  Until one day I notice how ruddy my normally flawless skin is and go, “Shit!  I haven’t had water for weeks!  And this is my third Pepsi Max today!”  I ain’t always so smart, I admit.

Exercise

I’m not going to go on about this.  We all know the deal here.  I exercise and my clothes fit.  I don’t and they don’t.  Plus I’m tired and weak.  End of story.  Let this serve as a reminder.

Attitude

Yes there is some mysticism surrounding positive thinking and health.  It goes right along with THE SECRET and THE LAW OF ATTRACTION.  Maybe that’s not concrete enough for you.  But here’s another way to look at it.  Focus instead on the impact of a NEGATIVE attitude on your health.

There have been many studies from respected sources such as John Hopkins University and Rutgers University, that all suggest a positive outlook leads to good health.  You cannot argue that if you were to slip into a depressed, bad attitude it wouldn’t take much to also slip into an unhealthy lifestyle where poor choices are made on many levels.  Bad food, lack of good food, lack of exercise, reckless behavior… these all lead to poor health right?  So there’s proof right there that attitude is important.

When you accept the fact that a poor outlook feeds disease and poor performance of our bodies, it only makes sense that a positive attitude is the only way to combat it!

BONUS

It is impossible for me to talk about things that benefit the mind and body without mentioning chocolate.  Dark chocolate to be exact.  I’ll do a follow up on this soon, but I wanted to mention it right now along with the other over looked weight loss supplements.  Have a bite each day.  Just take my word on it for now how good it is for you!

Of course I am not saying that water, exercise, and attitude are a replacement for your doctor’s recommendations, diet pills, herbal supplements, yoga class, or therapy sessions.  You may need those too.  But the big three supplements may cause you to need less and will always enhance any other health program you do.

Are you in tune with your body?  When it’s not acting itself can you detect what is lacking right away?