Distractions are Everywh…Squirrel!

We live in a world that is full of distractions.

Between alerts on our phones, mindless games/apps/TV shows, friends, family, work, etc., we face distractions at almost every turn and in almost every phase of our lives.

I mean, we even get distracted from our distractions. Like when you’re playing Candy Crush and a Facebook message pops up.

Too often, however, the things that distract us from the important issues are often not very important, yet we are rarely able to prevent ourselves from becoming distracted.

Distractions to Your Health

What is more important than being healthy?

Hint, the correct answer is nothing.

Sure, you can make an argument that taking care of your kids is more important, but if you’re not healthy enough to take care of your kids they’re in trouble. So taking control of your health really needs to be number one on your list of daily priorities or getting everything else done becomes more difficult.

Yet how easy is it to give in to distractions and then you end up sacrificing your health because of it?

Unhealthy distractions come in all shapes and sizes, but I’d be willing to bet that most of us have fallen victim to one or more of these circumstances:

• The Lunch Run–Have you ever brought a healthy lunch to work, only to be distracted by someone going to lunch at the awesome deli around the block? Were you able to hold strong and enjoy your salad? Or did you go with your coworker and crush the Philly with extra cheese and a double order of fries?
• The Change of Plan–This is one of my favorites. The plan was to go to the gym after work and get a good 45 minutes in before heading home. But then you get the call saying you need to pick up your son from the babysitters. Or run your daughter to piano lessons. Or worst of all, stay late to finish a project for your boss.

Yeah….

• The Lazy Ass–This is my particular vice. I’ll have great plans of getting up early and getting my run in first thing in the morning. But then I hit snooze. And then I just turn the alarm off. And then I’ve overslept by an hour and a half and I’ve got too much other stuff to do so I scrap the run.

Any of these sound familiar? All three?

Life Happens, and That’s OK

Here’s the thing. All of these things will happen from time to time, and that’s ok. It’s called life, and life happens to all of us from time to time.

The trick to limiting distractions and consciously taking control of your health is simple, you have to be proactive about eliminating (or at least limiting) the potential for distractions to get the better of you.

How? Here are a few ways, but you need to find out what works best for you.

• The Lunch Run–Tell the guy that invites you to lunch everyday that you can only go on Fridays. The rest of the days, eating a smaller and healthier lunch is important to you, but he’s welcome to join you if he wants to pack his own lunch too.
• The Change of Plan–If making it to the gym in the evenings without a distraction is akin to walking across a minefield unscathed, you might have to find a different time to workout. Try the mornings if possible, where fewer distractions tend to be lurking. Or maybe try to workout during your lunch break or later in the evening depending on your schedule.
• The Lazy Ass–It’s amazing how much easier it is to get out of bed in the morning when other people are waiting on you. I was never a morning runner, but once I started running with a group a couple of mornings a week, at least on those days I’m always able to jump out of bed and get going. I can never do it on the other days by myself, but at least I know I have a good reason to not be lazy on Tuesday and Thursday!

Just Make It Happen

Whatever you need to do to disarm your distractions, do it.

Improving your health is so important, but it won’t happen by accident. It requires work, actually it requires hard work. Lots of hard work. So you have to keep working at it a every day.

No matter what comes along to distract you.

Are You Ready for Retirement?

My parents are in town for the next couple of weeks, so we are spending a lot of time visiting with them. Since we only tend to see them a couple of times a year, it’s nice to be able to have the time to catch up and hang out a little bit.

My dad is a financial planner, so when we are chatting the subjects of the stock market, saving, and general financial well being tend to pop up. While we were talking the other day, he mentioned how some clients of his were able to save a substantial amount of money for retirement. They had good jobs, though they never had super high salaries, but when my dad complimented them on how well they had done saving the gentleman replied “It wasn’t that hard. We just spent less than we made every month.”

This conversation got me thinking. With forethought, planning, a little common sense, and some hard work, we are all able to retire with enough money to live a comfortable life.

While many people worry about their finances before retirement, how many people spend an equal amount of time focusing on their health?

What are Your Retirement Plans?

When you are envisioning your ideal retirement, what do you picture?

• Traveling to exotic locations?

• Playing golf or tennis and dinners at the country club?

• Dragging around a cart with an oxygen tank on it?

Pretty sure no one has ever thought of the third option. Yet so few people take the time to improve and/or maintain their health in their 20’s, 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s. By they time they are ready to retire, some of their bodies are ready to shut down.

So much for that retirement you’ve always wanted.

Healthy Starts Now

Instead of waiting until retirement is right around the corner, you need to start planning for a healthy retirement now.

The younger you are, the easier it is to improve your health. As we age, our body systems slow down and dramatic health improvements become more difficult. Changes at any age are possible, but as you get older it takes longer to achieve similar results.

Don’t Wait Until It’s Too Late

My neighbor is 82 years old, and he runs 20-30 miles a week. He is in great shape, obviously, and his health doesn’t prevent him from doing anything that he sets his mind to. I was talking to him a few weeks ago about how healthy he is, and he mentioned how he’s in better shape at 82 than a lot of people 20 years younger than he is.

Sadly, he’s right.

Any it’s not like my neighbor has been a life-long runner. He ran track in high school, but pretty much stopped running from his early 20’s until he was in his 40’s. But he’s been running consistently for the past 40 years, as well as lifting weights and just taking care of his health, and the results are evident.

He knew the importance of being healthy, and he did something to make it happen.

Take Control Now

You may not have any desire to run 20 miles a week when you’re 80. That’s ok. But when you’re 80, you might want to run around the yard with your grandkids. You might want to walk on the Great Wall of China or sit comfortably in an airplane seat on your way to visit friends or family.

Whatever it is that you want to do in your retirement, you don’t want your health to be a limiting factor.

And the best way to make sure that you are preparing for a physically healthy retirement is to take care of your physical health today.

Want to Take Control of Your Health and Set Yourself Up for a Great Retirement, But Not Sure Where to Start? I’ve Outlined 5 Action Steps to Get You Started.

Find Them for Free Here

Define Your Why

Why is your improving your health important to you? Why do you eat healthy foods and make sure you make physical fitness a priority?

Have you ever thought about why you care about being healthy?

Image by BuzzFarmers via Flickr

You Need to Know Why

We’ve talked before about the need to have a picture of what good health means to you. Whether your view of good health is running a marathon, playing golf into your 80s, or setting a good example for your kids, it is vitally important that all of us know what our definition of being healthy is.

But just because you know what good health looks like in your mind’s eye, you still need to have a reason to make the right choices in the kitchen and in the gym.

That reason is your why.

Why the Why is Important

Knowing what your definition of healthy looks like is critical, but it doesn’t get you out of the bed in the morning to hit the gym before work or before the kids wake up. It doesn’t make you choose water instead of Coke. Your why is what keeps you out of the drive-thru after a long day of work and encourages you to make something healthy for dinner when you get home.

That’s why your why is important.

Pick Your Why

Why is your health important to you?

For me, it’s important for me to stay healthy so I can continue to inspire other people to take control of their health everyday. My health is important because I’m 4 months away from being a dad, and I want to encourage my baby to be health as it grows up. Being healthy is important because I want to be an awesome grandpa someday.

I guess you could say that my family and my future are my main whys.

What Are Your Whys for Making Your Health Important?