Category: Personal growth

Seven Ways To Limit Stress And Have More Peace In Your Life

Seven Ways To Limit Stress And Have More Peace In Your Life by Jennifer Ledford

Everyone feels stressed from time to time.  Whenever your body has to respond to mental and/or physical pressure, stress occurs. That means it’s pretty tough to get through a week or even a day without some type of stress coming your way.

The stress response is the body’s way of protecting you so it’s not necessarily a bad thing in moderation.  When working properly, it helps you stay focused, energetic, and alert. In emergency situations, stress can save your life.  

Everyone’s stress levels are going to be different.  Some people may cope with stress more effectively or recover from stressful events more quickly than others.  For example, some of us can waltz right into the DMV and take our driving test without feeling stressed while others will be sweating bullets.

There are different types of stress.  A stressor may be a one-time event or a short-term circumstance or it can be a situation that continues for a long period of time.

Fortunately, the human body is beautifully designed to experience stress and react to it. However, when a person faces continuous challenges without relief or relaxation, the person almost always becomes overworked and chronic stress-related tension can occur.

Chronic stress can cause a variety of symptoms and can affect your weight, your health, and your overall well-being.  I personally believe that chronic stress is as bad, if not worse, for us than smoking cigarettes so, it’s a good thing to limit the amount of stress in our lives and know how to manage it when it pops up.

Seven Ways To Manage And Avoid Stress

  • Step outdoors.  A recent review of studies published in Environmental Science & Technology that focused on “outdoor exercise” discovered that physical activity in natural areas decreases the risk of mental illness and improves one’s sense of well-being.

One way I like to relieve stress is to take our dogs for a walk.  It allows me to take a break from the environment or stressful situation and take a deep breath.  When I finish the walk, I have a fresh new perspective.

  • Forgive.  Unforgiveness can contribute to anxiety and anger which causes more stress in your life.  Forgiving others does not mean what they did was okay; it simply means you release the offense from your heart and mind so that you can move on in peace.  It’s much better to forgive the guy that cut you off on the freeway than to show up at the office ticked off with elevated blood pressure.
  • Take a vacation.  It’s important to take time off and get away from your day-to-day routine. When you go on vacation, you invest in your health and special memories that will make you smile for years to come.  If budget is an issue, I recommend day-trips like picnics at your local park or at the beach while you are saving up funds for a vacation.  My husband and I went through a period when we were really watching our spending and spent our days off at the beach.  One day at the beach did more for us to relieve stress than any expensive spa could ever do.  Find the things that work for you.  They don’t necessarily have to be pricey.
  • Take action.  Procrastination or avoiding problems  can make situations worse which can lead to additional stress.  When we take the time to discover and solve issues that are causing stress in our life, there is a sense of peace in knowing that the problem is going to be solved and that the stress is not permanent.  Sometimes we can figure out the solutions on our own.  Other times, it’s best to seek professional help for expert advice.  It’s okay and actually wise to ask for help!
  • It’s okay to say no.  Setting boundaries with your time is one of the best tools you have to limit unnecessary stress.  Write your top five to ten life priorities in order of importance. Then, look at your calendar and see how much time is being devoted to each. Is there a balance? Is there something that should be put on hold for awhile? Depending on what that list looks like currently, that may even include formal workouts and temporarily switching to lifestyle activity for your exercise.
  • Pray.  As a spiritual person this is my number one go-to when it comes to managing stress.  I go straight to God and pray.  This doesn’t mean I’m always on my knees praying.   Sometimes it’s a conversation in the car, out on a trail, or on our back deck. Listening to spiritual music and reading daily devotionals that lift me spirit up are helpful as well.

If prayer isn’t your thing, that’s okay.  Find some positive books, music, or affirmations that help you feel inspired and stimulated in a healthy way.

  • Remove toxic people from your life.  This one’s a biggie.  We all know that person that makes us feel bummed out or even worse “slimed” after we have been around them.  As difficult as it can be at times, it’s important for your health and well-being to limit your time with people that stress you out.  If it’s a family member or coworker, you may want to counsel with someone that can help coach you through the best way to handle your situation.

There is no such thing as a “stress-free” life.  None of us will ever completely avoid it. However, I believe that if you use one or all of the tips above, you will be able to minimize it and it will, over time, have less of an effect on you.

Here’s to less stress and more peace in your life!

Shared with love,
Jennifer

One of the BEST things you can ever do for yourself

Facebook Live video Jennifer Ledford - One of the hardest and best things I've ever done - Blog Post

One of the hardest and best things I’ve ever done for myself and my clients is to challenge a huge portion of the marketing sold to us by the fitness and diet industry.

The notion that, in order for you to be happy, you need to look like a fitness model is pure nonsense and has created endless turmoil in people’s lives.  When we force our bodies to become a size they were not designed to be, it is not only next to impossible to maintain, the process can steal your joy.

You are uniquely designed and I believe that God wants you to enjoy your life. He doesn’t make mistakes and that is exactly what I remind myself of when I’m tempted to go down the slippery slope of criticizing my body and/or comparing myself to others.

Watch the video below. In it, I share how you can free yourself once and for all from the pressures of the fitness and diet industry.  It is entirely possible to lose weight and maintain it for life.  What that looks like on the scale and in clothing will be different for everyone because no two bodies are alike.

This video, by the way, was originally posted Live on my Facebook page and it’s such an important topic I did not want you to miss it so I am sharing it here on my blog and had it transcribed too (see below) so that it may be of help to anyone who sees it.

If you know this video or post could help someone else, please share it with them. This is a message that’s worth passing on!

Shared with Love,
Jennifer Ledford

One of the BEST things you can ever do for yourself

Hey there, it’s Jennifer here. I’m getting to have lunch pretty soon and I wanted to talk to you real quick before I started in on that, on eating lunch. One of the things I want to talk to you guys about today is one of the hardest things – and BEST things – I’ve ever done for my own self image and for my own body. And, that is to focus 100% on exercising and doing the things that are good for my body and keeping my body strong but not exercising necessarily for the purpose of weight loss. Exercising to help maintain my weight but not for the purpose of weight loss but for the purpose of keeping my body healthy and strong and eating food for the purpose of health.

Eating food to sustain my body. Eating foods that I know are good for me. And, keeping my diet diverse so that every cell in my body is being activated. So, that’s eating lots of whole grains, lots of fruits and vegetables but making sure that I’m eating foods that are delicious and good. And then, also, having fun. Making sure that I’m having fun in moderation. That I’m enjoying things I like. I like wine, I like champagne, I like to go out to dinner, I like to go to parties. And, just making sure that I’m having that fun as well.

Make the right decision for you

So, once I decided that I was going to exercise, I was going to eat well and I was going to have fun, then I decided whatever the scale said, it’s what it says. Let the chips fall where they fall. I am not going to be a slave to a lifestyle that I don’t want to have. I’m not going to force my body to do something that’s unnatural for it. I’m going to have fun and take care of my body but I’m not going to strive to look like someone in a magazine because it’s not the lifestyle that I want to live.

Now, if somebody does want to have that lifestyle and they’re not hurting their body to do it and it’s serving them well, that’s fine. That’s totally your business. But, what I want to say is find your own set point, find what works for you. Allow your body to be its natural body type and allow yourself to have a lifestyle that you enjoy. It doesn’t mean you just let yourself go and you just binge on cookies… that’s not what I’m taking about. I’m talking about creating a balance in your life that you enjoy. And then, not getting caught up on what the scale says .

Allow food to be your friend. Allow yourself to have fun. Exercise the way you want to exercise in the way it serves your body. And if that means that you don’t fit the mold of what the magazines and the fitness industry is saying is healthy, then, well, whatever! Your doctor is going to let you know if you need to make any changes. Unfortunately, the fitness industry has turned it into a runway for fitness models and not all of us want to live that way. And some of us shouldn’t do that to our bodies because it would not – it wouldn’t be good for you. And I found that out the hard way – it wasn’t good for me.

Finding out who you are

So, one of the hardest things I ever did was I had to find out who I was. I had to find out what I wanted. I had to find out what my natural set point was. And sometimes that goes up higher than I want it to be and then I have to make some adjustments. But, just letting – just committing to a healthy lifestyle. Having a good time, moderation, and finding out what your real set point is, that can be a little scary because you might find out that it’s not exactly what gets paraded around in the magazines and that’s okay with me!

I have never been more happy and more free in my life.  So, I recommend that you move for fun, eat for health and enjoy your life! Life is way too short to spend it trying to fit into something that a very small handful of people tell us we should look like.

Have a great day! I’m looking forward to talking to you again soon and just go have some fun and eat well and enjoy it. Enjoy life! Talk to you soon. Bye-bye!

This video originally appeared on my Facebook page here. See more Live videos there and see healthy lifestyle and exercise videos here in my Health & Fitness Video Vault.

How To Feel Comfortable In Your Own Skin

How To Feel Comfortable In Your Own Skin by Jennifer Ledford

As a personal trainer and someone who has overcome my own body image issues, I am relieved and excited to watch more and more people say no to the pressures of the diet culture and yes to becoming their own best body.  Our society has begun to reject the notion that there is only one acceptable or “healthy” body type and is embracing the fact that health and beauty really does come in all shapes and sizes.  As more and more people recognize that they are uniquely designed and no two bodies are the same, the focus is shifting away from striving for perfection and more toward being healthy and positive about our bodies (flaws and all).

One of the first steps toward being positive about one’s body is self-acceptance and/or “feeling comfortable in your own skin.”  It’s important to understand that self-acceptance does not mean you just “let yourself go.”  What it means is that you will be kind to yourself and your body in every season and every stage of your life.  It means that if you do need or want to lose weight, you will choose a healthy path that can be sustained long-term and won’t force your body to become a weight that is completely unnatural for it.

Being positive about your own body doesn’t always come easy.  Most people, by nature, are compassionate and kind when it comes to how they look at other people’s bodies, but when it comes to things like our own cellulite or the extra five pounds we gained over the holidays, we can be way more critical.  Basically, humans can be downright hard on themselves.

It may seem like no big deal to speak negatively about your body; however, over time, it can start to become your identity.  This is why it’s so important to pay attention to the words that you speak when you are talking about yourself.  Do you say good things about yourself or do you tend to be over-critical?  It’s next to impossible to feel good about yourself if you are constantly bashing your body.

One of the best ways to know if you are picking on yourself too much is to ask yourself if you would ever say the things you say about your own body to your friend or your daughter.  If the answer is “no way!” then it may be time to change the conversation with and about yourself.

Five ways to stop the body bashing, Feel Comfortable In Your Own Skin, and encourage yourself:

  1. Avoid comparing yourself to others.  There is no one else like you on the planet so it is completely unfair and unrealistic to compare yourself to others.  Sure, there are similar body types, however you can place twenty people on the same exact diet and exercise routine and they will usually all have different results.  Comparison to others only causes heartache.  Focus on being the best YOU that you can be.
  2. Create healthy boundaries.  Complaining about one’s body parts has become a way that people connect with each other in social circles.  As harmless as a comment here and there might seem, this is not only bad for your self-esteem, it can completely derail you from your healthy weight loss efforts or any other goal you are trying to achieve.  If you notice that the conversation has turned into people criticizing themselves, address it head on with something like “Hey guys, no beating up on ourselves today, okay?”
  3. Hand out compliments.  Compliments are the exact opposite of bashing which is what makes compliments so powerful.  Give yourself and a minimum of one other person a sincere compliment every day for the next thirty days.  You will be AMAZED at how good it makes you feel about yourself and the trail of goodwill that you leave behind you.
  4. Be unapologetically you.  Life is way too short to spend it worrying about what other people think of you.  Focus on being healthy and living your best life.  Just say no to changing yourself for the purpose of acceptance from society, the media, and/or the diet culture.
  5. Create a folder of positive reminders.  Being positive about your body is an on going process and no matter how good you get at  rocking who you were designed to be,  negative and critical thoughts can still pop up from time to time. Just last week I was looking at some old pictures of myself and judgmental thoughts like “you used to be so skinny” began to pop up in my head.  Fortunately, I know better than to give those types of thoughts much airtime.  I quickly reminded myself “yes, I was skinnier but  I also had messed up hormones and my body was broken down.  I am so much healthier and happier now then I was back then.” Positive thoughts are like powerful weapons used for good. Come up with a long list of kind things you can say about yourself.  Then, when a critical thought pops into your head, pull something from your list to counter the negative thought.

FEELing COMFORTABLE IN YOUR OWN SKIN is powerful

One of the most powerful things that you can achieve is the ability to be comfortable in your own skin.  In a society that places way too much value on the external and not nearly enough value on the internal, it can be difficult at times.  I look forward to the day when it is more common than not for people to be comfortable in their own skin each and every day.  Until then, let’s be the bold ones that step out and lead the charge!

Shared with love,
Jennifer