Hard work is important, but it must be balanced with rest. If we do not rest, we do not grow. Resting makes us less tired, and more focused.
Personal Trainers in gyms all across the world are telling people that it's in the "resting phase" when your muscles grow, not when your working them out in the gym, Rest and relaxation is truly important.
Life really can wear you down at times. When you take a moment to properly rest and relax, it can feel like Heaven on Earth.
Sleeping Well
Sleep is one of the most important things we do. Sleeping renews us and restores us for a new day. It is important to get not only good quantity (6 to 8 hours) but also quality.
A good night's sleep on a regular basis will improve things for you physically, emotionally, mentally, socially and spiritually. When you retire this evening, take the following into consideration...
1. Plan to unwind and relax for one hour before sleep begins. Turn off the cellphone completely.
2. Play music that calms you
3. Talk to your Higher Self. Congratulate yourself for another day of accomplishments. Pray.
4. Be sure that you feel connected to your Higher Self. Do not go to bed angry.
5. When you begin to fade into sleep - thing of something positive.
>>>Turn the lights off. When you get into bed at night, avoid using anything that emits a glow, such as a computer, tablet, smartphone or TV. While you may think you’re winding down by watching a movie or checking your email, a study in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism reports that exposure to artificial light before bedtime significantly suppresses levels of melatonin (the natural hormone that helps regulate our sleep/wake cycles), impairing the body’s ability to fall asleep at night. In addition, the light emitted by the face of your clock can suppress melatonin production especially if it is white, green or blue.
>>>Cut out caffeine. Caffeine stimulates the nervous system within about 15 to 45 minutes of entering the bloodstream—a big reason why most people drink it. What you may not know is that, five to seven hours after consumption, about half of the caffeine you’ve consumed is still there, and some people are more impacted by this amount than others. Avoid caffeinated beverages and foods as bedtime draws closer, and ideally after noon, and remember that decaf contains some caffeine, too.
Take A Day Off To Relax (a.k.a. - a mental health day)
Taking a day for yourself is a gift to yourself. It adds depth to your life and allows you to be more effective in other areas on all of the other busy days that keep you going. When you have time to do so, take a day to . . .
-Read and study
-Walk
-Hike
-Pray
-Meditate
-Spend time with friends/family
-Attend Church
-Visit a Museum
-Write
-Be creative/paint
-Enjoy nature
-Make music
Embrace Silence
Life is very busy and we all need time to retreat and get away from people, noise, and activity. Silence is the absence of all of that. Embrace silence when you are able to do so.
Modern life is very loud; traffic, radios, TVs, cell phones, CD players, cinema (surround-sound), computers, and more . . .
Silence is where stresses fade and peace is cultivated. This is why, in such a noisy world, as the one we know today, thousands of people have taken to the practice of mindfulness. Embracing silence, meditating, yoga, Pilates, nature walks, hikes etc.
Social Media, the invention of the internet and the cell phone craze has made life noisy 24/7 and this has caused people to seek silence and methods in practice that bring them silence.
Take a moment to embrace silence each day and your life will soon become enriched in ways you never imagined.
Our mutual goal is to live an abundant life. As you practice living and loving intentionally carefully consider where you are headed and what sort of life you would like to be living. Allow yourself to relax when necessary and it will give you a renewed purpose to forge ahead.
Live and Love Intentionally is a series of chapters in a blog series where we explore all the ways in which we can live and love intentionally. It's through the contrast that life brings our way that we learn what we do not want and what we do want. Each day is significant and it matters how we approach it. Let's work together to make each day extraordinary, and less than ordinary. Our next chapter is Chapter Six| Nurture Peace