Dropping major pounds and keeping it off

I would like to challenge the idea that losing a large amounts of weight is about 10% exercise and 90% nutrition. Though this is idea can get you far and it can alter negative behaviors, and certainly create huge changes.

However, I believe that losing a large amount of weight (and keeping it off) is more about: 10% exercise, 40% nutrition, 50% facing what you've been avoiding. This is what is commonly branded as behavior modification and/or change; but I want to take it farther and delve deeper into the specifics.

Regarding disease in this matter. Disease complicates, but it does not stop these efforts.

~ It is a cumulative affect not and immediate result. ~

10% Exercise
Simply getting up and reducing your sedentary lifestyle can work wonders. Then image what could happen if you added purposefully exercise bouts via specific cardiovascular  efforts, strength efforts, flexibility challenges, or all of the above.

Humans are amazing and most of us only use 10% or our brains. What would have if we really devoted 10%  of our efforts to fitness - it is amazing what changes this can bring. Simply making plans to be slightly more active during the day in some way would go very far to making some big changes.

40% Nutrition
If you put crappy fuel into a performance vehicle, in a very short time the performance vehicle would start to run like a rusty Volvo from the 60's with broken windshield wipers. Likewise, if you eat poorly or imbalanced you break, swell, barely inching forward, with very little ability to assist others around you - let alone yourself.

The absolute biggest issue I see in this area as a fitness professional is inadequate hydration, crazy high sugar intake, and sodium intake that is off the charts.

50% Facing What You've Been Avoiding
Addiction: Obsessions.
Anger: Grudge.
Betrayal.
Fear (selfishness).
Habit.
Laziness (a.k.a, disbelief).
Trauma.
Memories of what "used to be".
Being motivational hampered by too much futuristic thinking.

The root of many of the problems I see clients (and myself) facing, seem to stem from one of the following:
Lack of perceived social acceptance.
Lack of commitment or motivation = no follow through.
Poor or unrealistic goal making.
Pride.
Persistent negative self talk.
Unexplored and unresolved issues.
Not using support resources.

Now, of course there are many serious medical issues that some of this doesn't apply to. However, the greatest of all interruptions that I have professionally seen on this topic, have not been from major health issues. I strongly encourage those in the pursuit of serious weight-loss, to also companion their efforts with a mental health professional, support group, or a highly supportive confidant, while perusing such "weighty" matters.

Let It Be

Have you ever had to wait for something that couldn't be hurried along? Did the waiting require sitting in complete discomfort of the unknown? Did the waiting require unrelenting prayer?

At moments did you find yourself scrambling for any amount of control in absolutely anything, because what mattered most was well beyond controllable?

When in this state, do you hold your breath frequently? Clench or grind your teeth maybe? 

How about your stomach, is it in knots and the entire world seems to keep turning while you're somehow stuck in a state of pensive stasis?

Are you filled with anxiety, panic, or being so overwhelmed about the future that you can't live in the present.
                                  
I've found that I frequently have to surrender, in order to move beyond this state of mind and physical stress that it can cause. It is very difficult to do.

I have to stop forcing and seeking control. I have to surrender to what is and fight myself from creating a negative interpretative spin. 

Instead, I have to search and seek for the simplest and most non-ego based answer and then surrender to it.

I find that when I am in this state of internal struggle, I often think of The Beatles song, "Let It Be" or Now We are Free from the Gladiator soundtrack.

We are stronger and more capable than we think we are.

What helps you when in this place?

Coming Clean

It happens to ALL of us. Stress, major life changes, death, deployments, disease.... too much too fast and that creates a loss of perspective and wavering self-discipline.

What is most annoying about these circumstances is that it becomes incredibly easy to fall back on habits that you thought you had gotten rid of. 

Even the strongest people are not exempt from being challenged in this way. My response to these situations are very much inline with thoughts expressed in Healthy Lifestyle Part I and Part II.

It's the darn sixth element of "struggle" that I spoke of in those two blogposts that is the motivation behind this entry. 

It is totally normal to face the Struggle Phase and experience a loss of perspective. It is also absolutely normal for waving discipline to completely frustrate all of your well thought out plans. 

It is also normal to sometimes feel like the Struggle Phase is lingering well beyond the amount of time that seems "fair"... shouldn't someone else being having their turn? No! Never wish that - ever!

What this really means is that you now find yourself needing to regain perspective and discipline...what do you do? 

I don't know about you, but what works well for me is to create a specific goal. In order to motivate myself to reach the goal I listen to certain music or reread things that make me feel good, like:
Continue In Patience (Uchdorf Video)
IF
Personal Dignity
10 Years Ago Today
Abiding Love

So, in order to overcome the desire for caffeine... AGAIN, I am going to follow my own advice right now.

R.I.P. In Life and Death

In the last two weeks my younger sister, Rebecca (age 35), passed away and my husband was deployed.

During this time I have had some of the sweetest moments of my life.

God is good to me. Life is beautiful, no matter how ugly people can be to each other. 

So often we hear the term "rest in peace" (R.I.P.) in reference to the dead, but it has a greater application. We should be able to rest with a peaceful heart in life as well as in death. 

Yes, this has been a tough time for me, but peace has been ever present during this time as well.

I would give more detail if I could articulate it. But the details aren't as important as the take home message noted above.

Turn it off!

Have you ever been so surrounded by the white-noise of life that you feel a constant nagging and yet undefined agitation?

This is what happens to me when I don't get quiet time to simply reflect and think. This time is sacred and requires being unplugged and push notifications turned off. 

For me, the best meditation and reflection time typically occurs either running or with my favorite pen in hand, paper nearby and either on a beautiful walk or sitting in an awesomely comfortable chair.

If I don't get quality time like that I feel lost, frustrated, and internally angry. I don't think I realized how critical this time is for me until recently. 

Having just spent time on a little vacation to Mexico at beautiful resort, I had some of this reflection time. It came in fits and starts while still needing to be a mom and a wife, but I was able to get more of this reflection time than normal.

I learned something during this time that was critical to know. Yes, I need a moment in time for inner reflection and it can certainly happen in 5-10 minutes. 

I just need to be more willing to surrender to that time, rather than fighting for more - thinking that quantity is more valuable than quality.

I also learned how I have used stupid apps to numb the void I feel inside when I don't take a quality 5-10 minutes to myself. That constant numbing wastes so much time and makes us oblivious to amazing experiences that can only be seen after pressing the off button.

These are important things to learn and rediscover throughout life. This practice is a good mental health check. 

Death, Divorce, and Same-Sex Marriage

Wow, I have been contemplating life so much lately. This last little bit with my cousin's wife (five months younger than me) passing away really has thrown me. 

Here's my take home message from all my pondering:

This life isn't about you or me, rather it is about what we do for each other. Live, love, serve, be faithful, and repeat.

I've also seen several families fall apart this last year. In each case it was due to one of the following: "irreconcilable differences", disease, or infidelity (physical, mental, or emotional). I've been torn watching how kids are affected by this.

Here's my take home message from pondering these individual situations: 

Live, love, serve, be faithful, and repeat.

Then there's been a great deal in the Utah media about same-sex marriage. The big issue here is the assumptions that people make about what I must think about it, after all, I am: 

• "Mormon" 
• part of a military family
• have a homosexual sibling.

I am sorry but that's a complex and contradictory combination (military, Mormon, homosexual sibling) and my answer to this topic is actually quite simple:

Live, love, serve, be faithful, and repeat.

Healthy Lifestyle (Part II)

In reference to Healthy Lifestyle (Part I), I believe there is a sixth element to the Model of Change. This element (not stage) is struggle. 

To struggle isn't a phase that we come in and out of identifiably; rather struggle is present in each of the five stages because it is a fact of life. 

We can't escape struggle altogether, it is impossible - 

we are imperfect human beings.


The influence and impact of struggle throughout the five stages of the Cycle of Change is generally due to our perspective about what is happening within each of these stages. 

If we take charge of our perspective while struggling in these phases, I believe that two things can occur:

1 - Your attitude improves causing a more stable, accurate, and improved self-image.

2 - You spend more time in the Action and Maintenance Phases with less volatility and greater success each time you are in these phases.



Perspective as a Tool

How then can perspective possibly become a tool rather than a viewpoint? 

With regards to "getting healthy", we often associate this concept as a period of restriction rather than embracing a lifelong change.

In this light we have already failed before we even begin. If I am devoting massive amounts of time and energy for a period of restriction, then the results will only last for that period of time as well; seldom do changes last much longer than that.

Going into change with the realization that you aren't perfect, struggle is generally always present and you embrace it still, then perspective somehow becomes more accurate. We become increasingly more patient with ourselves, which has the effect of being more disciplined and focused.


Example 1 (Perspective not as a tool, i.e. the way most of us do it.): 

During the last week of December I decide to buy a fitness program or a gym membership with the intent to start up on January 2nd. 

At this same time I decide that the way I eat is unhealthy, I also drink too much caffeine, and so the list of things to change builds. Come January 2, I begin to change all of my habits at once. 


Jumping full-steam ahead into 90-day program or gym membership I last somewhere between four to fifteen days because I have in that time already over trained and have reached burnout, maybe even injured myself. 


To make matters worse I get on the scale and see that I haven't lost the 20 lbs. that I had planned on losing that week, but instead I have gained weight 4 lbs! 

This frustrates me because I don't understand the phenomena as to why I have gained and not lost. I don't care anyway because I am burned out and so I quit.

Example 2 (Perspective as a tool): 

During the last week of December I decide to buy a fitness program or a gym membership and I have a lot of goals I want to meet and a lot of habits I need to change. 


Understanding that a true lifestyle change isn't established overnight I make a S.M.A.R.T plan with a single specific goal to improve my heart health. 


First, I take measurements of my body and current weight and log them in a record book, then I go for a 1.5 mile walk (outside or treadmill) and see how long it takes without losing my breath and without being too slow. 


Then I set an attainable goal to improve my 1.5-mile walk/run time and endurance by 30-seconds or so within a month. I understand that this initial effort is relevant to the goal of improving my heart health. 

I create a calendar of a daily fitness schedule and put it on my mirror. Each day I cross of the workload as I complete it.


The aim of the improved heart health goal is to have a more solid foundation to start from at the end of my first 30 days (time-bound). 

At month end, I will review my goals again and adjustment efforts accordingly. That adjustment may be the addition of just one thing or the removing of just one thing, not both.


During this 30 days I don't weigh myself at all because I know that it is normal to actually increase in weight, as muscle is more dense than fat. Instead, it is more important to track measurements than weight, so this is what I monitor for the first 30-40 days.


Also, I anticipate being somewhat sore during this period because muscle that has otherwise been lying dormant is now in use. As muscle breaks down, in order to be built up, there will be some soreness. 

If I am sore beyond 36-48hrs at a time, then I know that I am pushing myself too hard and not allowing enough time for the muscle to recover before exercising that particular area again.




With this plan in mind, it permits my perspective to be focused on something other than, "I hate my body." It is now focused on measurable realities like:

• My lungs don't burn in my 1.5-mile walk like they used to.
• I'm comfortable with 1.5 miles, maybe I will go further or maybe I will run for 30 seconds then walk for 30 seconds and so on, for the full distance.
• Hey my pants fit better now.
• I'm starting to get the hang of this. 

In time, creating this foundation will reduce my risk of injury and increase my probability of success. Also note that struggle is still present. 

As it gets easier, I do more (struggle still being present). As I do more, I get excited what I can do (struggle still being present). The cycle continues as growth and development occurs (struggle still being present).

It is when there is plateau that means you have really achieved something and it is time to switch things up. Now it is time to review my progress, make sure my tracking log is current. 

Reviewing my tracking log, I see awesome things. I now have proof that I have improved my cardio health. I went from a 40min 1.5-mile walk, to a 15min 1.5-mile walk/run and then over the course of few months I am at a 11min 1.5-mile run. During this time I have completed a 5k charity run and look forward to more.

At this time I revamp and create a new goal and increase my workout resistance. Based on the new goal I create a new workout schedule and print it out for my mirror. As this becomes a habit, it takes less and less time and the effort to be consistent becomes easier.

Now that I know my heart is ready to roll, I am ready to focus on flexibility, balance, and strength improvements. Also, while looking forward to maintaining and improving my heart health.

But what about those with limitations? Stay tuned!

Healthy Lifestyle (Part I)

I oftentimes talk about perspective as a tool, rather than a habitual individual vantage point. It is a tool that I believe shines best amid struggle. 

I would like to explain my thoughts on this concept. In doing so, I will pick on the ever popular concept of creating a healthy lifestyle, also known as getting healthy.


Setting the Stage

About this time of year many people start thinking about changes that they want to make for the coming year. Oftentimes this plan involves toying with the idea of getting healthy and improving your fitness efforts. 


Real changes won't begin until after the Holiday's of course, because you crave certain things during these next few Holiday's. Maybe there is no time to devote to fitness, or maybe you associate getting healthy with being outdoors and you don't like being outdoors during the winter.


Whatever the case may be, this effort is often viewed as a big job with huge changes. Seldom do people that are seeking big change, change just one thing at a time. Usually they try to change everything all at once. 


These huge changes may stay in effect for a few days or a couple of months, but eventually the efforts fail your perceived standard or goals and then you revert back to the path of least resistance (i.e., old habits). 


The perceived standard is usually you measuring what you feel is the worst about you and comparing it to someone else's best.

The silly thing about this is that oftentimes that "best" is chronically under horrible scrutiny by the other person and seldom accepted as good.

Stages of Change

I really like James Prochaska's Transtheoretical Model of Change¹. I like the Model of Change because it has so many applications to human behavior. 

The pre- and post- Holiday's desire to become committed to change and "get healthy" really puts things in perspective for me. 

According to the five stages of the model, Group 1 (most people) vacillate roller-coaster style between the first four stages and lose it most often in the fourth stage (Action).



Group 2 is where the majority of the people that succeed past the Action Phase tend to linger; bouncing between Contemplation, Preparation, and Action as they lose focus or discipline not long after they start the Maintenance Phase. 


Group 3 are the people that we usually compare ourselves against. Group 3 houses the people that generally live in the Maintenance Phase, when they slip out of that phase, they seem to speed through the first four phases in very little time and then they return to the Maintenance Phase rapidly. They make everything look so darn easy.


In my own personal opinion, I believe there is a sixth element to the Model of Change; which is Struggle. I say Struggle and not the Struggle Phase. Struggle isn't a phase that we come in and out of identifiably; rather struggle is present in each of the five stages.


The influence of struggle throughout the five stages is generally due to our perspective about what is happening within each of these stages. I will explain this in more detail in the next post.

                                                        

¹Prochaska, JO; DiClemente, CC. Stages and processes of self-change of smoking: toward an integrative model of change. J Consult Clin Psychol 1988 Jun;51(3):390–5. Accessed 2009 Mar 18.

IF

I have forced entertainment to numb the white noise of my brain. Loud music, movies, and sometimes both at the same time. 

A few different times, I've even had both music and movie going at the same time in order to occupy the rowdy part of my brain, in hopes that the distraction would permit me to focus on reading a book that I needed to understand.

There have been a small handful of times in my life where I was over-numb though. Gosh those are freaky and surreal moments. I was so numb that I was oblivious to everything happening around me.

There have also been times where I have been surprised that the world didn't stop in observance of how my life had just changed (good or bad): cars drove by, people were laughing, dogs were barking, there was a flurry of movement, people obnoxiously loud on their cell phones talking about nothing.

Some of the greatest moments of understanding though have been in the stillness of chaos. Picture a topspin toy moving so fast it appears as though the very center is perfectly still.

I suppose the reason I stay so busy and active is to search for the moment in chaos when clarity manifests; even a split second of calm and understanding has been worth it. I do this because in that very moment some of the most amazing understanding and healing occurs.

This kind of moment just happened to me three times in one day on September 17th:

1st Experience
I've been worn out and running on fumes. I've been struggling with comprehension and needing to study for some continuing education courses that I am taking. I have a crazy, busy, and HEALTHY fifteen month old son. 

I travelled to speak at an event I was invited to, it was at "the big I.F." as locals call it, otherwise known as Idaho Falls, ID. I arrived at my hotel, walked into my room and found a spectacular view as well as very pleasing accommodations. 

The Clarity Received: I literally stood and communed with God and myself. I found tremendous strength and healing in just a few minutes. I felt an overwhelming feeling of love and a sense that all was well. 

Have you ever experienced a time wherein something happened relatively quickly, but during the moment it felt longer because so much happened in just a small amount of magical time?

The picture of view doesn't do it justice, but I took some pictures of the captivating scene from my hotel room. After a time I couldn't help but go for a run out on the trail shown in the picture.

The building in the picture is the Idaho Falls Temple
that belongs to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

2nd Experience
I met a couple at the event this night. While speaking with them I learned that they had a stillborn child at the end of June and two weeks later the husband had a major exacerbation and diagnosed quickly with multiple sclerosis. 

They were overwhelmed, hurting, and terrified. The Clarity Received: In this moment I felt an overwhelming outpouring and feeling of compassion.

The right words came to me. I don't know what I said, but I knew it had been important and valuable to that couple. It felt good to see that they received a little bit of hope that night.

3rd Experience
The evening closed with perfect temperatures and another amazing view. I sat for the longest time drinking herbal tea in the September chill of God's embrace.

The Clarity Received: It was nice to have the white noise of life quite for a time. I was at total peace and calm. That was a beautiful day. 

To value or not to value? Why is this even a question?

In his 2008 TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) presentation on "Why we make bad decisions," Harvard psychologist Dan Gilbert said something that really resonated with me. He said, "Comparison only changes the value of what's in front of us." He then of course continued explaining the science behind making choices.

In the scientific information presented, the data was from how comparison changes the value of monetary things like entertainment, equipment, cars, and the like. Eventually he broadened the application of it.

The entire time though, that line repeated in my head and I was applying the impact to my personal life.

"Comparison only changes the value 
of what's in front of us."

Every time I think about it, I'm left emotionally stunned.

The concept is applicable to everything, but the image that seems to stick in my mind, with regards to this quote, is me watching and admiring beautiful people while simultaneously conjuring an image of me in my mind's eye. Once I have the image, the comparison begins.

So in this example of comparison, it is my own personal value that decreases. I say decreases because very rarely is it anything different.

In reality though, the value of any person isn't any more or less than another. You are more than a body, a profession, or where you live. We are all of great value to someone. Why not love ourselves for who we are, just as we are. Why not love ourselves? After all, someone else does.

Stimulating Freedom

I've recently memorized a quote that provides serious empowerment. Who doesn't need to be empowered and to feel the energy from it? So here's the quote and my thoughts. If you have anything to share about it, please do.

"Between stimulus and response there is a space. 

In that space is our power to choose our response. 

In our response lies our growth and our freedom." 

~ Viktor E. Frankl 

It's that darn "space" mentioned in the quote that gets me.

That space feels so small, but it is actually quite large, yet we oftentimes respond in a quick second. The following are questions I ask myself about the space:

Is the stimulus good, bad, desired, undesirable? If the stimulus is a good thing, then I am going to go out on a limb and assume that my response will be good too.

If the stimulus is bad, then the following thoughts come to my mind when questioning this space.

• Do you willingly ignore that you actually have decision making power when the stimulus appears?
• Do you ponder the stimulus and then relent? 
• Do you talk to yourself to try to understand why the stimulus is  actually a stimulus?
• Do you try to talk yourself out of the stimulus as being tantalizing?
• Do you try to rationalize stimulus so that you can continue with the preferred response?
• Do you ignore the stimulus and let it subconsciously fester?

The list could really go on, but I'll stop there. I don't know about anyone else, but I've found that the largest portion of that "space" is occupied by choices that generally follow the path of least resistance. In other words, giving in. 

If we don't just give in, then within the space there's a sub-space that we use. That sub-space determines so few of our decisions. It's the sub-space we really want to be in as often as we can.

It's not until I persistently rest in that hard to reach sub-space of "the space" that I am able to respond the way that is really the best for me. Those choices are the ones I rarely ever regret.

I've been using the recitation of this quote to change some of my unwanted habitual behaviors. I'm using this quote to help me reach the sub-space more frequently; to make me more aware.

I believe this is a healthy way to retrain my brain to view certain stimuli differently. The effort is to reassign the stimulus to be no longer tantalizing and recognize it for what it actually is, damaging. 

It's efforts like this that have helped me train my brain time and time again with many different habits. I take comfort in the part of the quote where it says that in this effort we can find freedom in our responses. 

Freedom from unwanted stimulus would be awesome. Yea for continually discarding guilt!

It's like Jim Rohn says, "Failure is not a single, cataclysmic event. You don't fail overnight. Instead, failure is a few errors in judgment, repeated everyday."

Caledonia

I'm sitting in my kitchen listening to excellent music. My mind can't help but keep returning to various memories of good times, wonderful places, awesome and very timely friendships. 

At this point in time, I am reminded of a particular song by the Celtic Woman called Caledonia. The lyrics, pleasant performance and such all remind me of these various fond memories; besides that, Lisa Kelly is simply beautiful.  

The concept of "Caledonia" is universal, really. It's not just limited to a particular place in Scotland, but many physical environments, places in time, camaraderie of yesteryear; a specific refuge. 

Caledonia is any time, any place, any person that you repeatedly draw upon in memory - that still impacts your decisions for good.  There may even be a sense of longing or yearning for this time, be it long since past or that you can return to infrequently. 

In some cases, you know you can't return to your "Caledonia", but the longing sure manages to give you strength, perseverance, hope, purpose, and energy. 

Your Caledonia inspires you, still. It may even inspire with a yearning in the background, even as you still manage to push along. 

Here I sit, reflecting. Some bittersweet feelings, some joy, but above all a recognition that I am okay. All is well. Life is good. I am doing my best. 

Sometimes my best is good enough, and sometimes it... takes me to unexpected places in less pleasant circumstances. Then again, sometimes the circumstances are very pleasant, but short lived.

However, as long as I am doing and giving my best, regardless of pleasantries, I always seem to end up just where I should be, as well as with the people I need to be with. 

I am human. I make mistakes. I am far from perfect. Sometimes I make really big mistakes. I suspect I'm not the only one that can say this. I also do good things. 


Regardless, at this time, I am still very thankful for where I've come from, where I am going, and the variety of people that have influenced me. All of which have made me who I am today.

So I hold on to my Caledonia and continue to dream. 

"Caledonia"

I don't know if you can see
The changes that have come over me
In these last few days I've been afraid
That I might drift away
I've been telling old stories, singing songs
That make me think about where I've come from
That's the reason why I seem
So far away today

[Chorus:]
Let me tell you that I love you
That I think about you all the time
Caledonia, you're calling me, now I'm going home
But if I should become a stranger
Know that it would make me more than sad
Caledonia's been everything I've ever had

Now I have moved and I've kept on moving
Proved the points that I needed proving
Lost the friends that I needed losing
Found others on the way
I have kissed the fellas and left them crying
Stolen dreams, yes, there's no denying
I have traveled hard, sometimes with conscience flying
Somewhere with the wind

[Chorus]

Now I'm sitting here before the fire
The empty room, the forest choir
The flames have cooled, don't get any higher
They've withered, now they've gone
But I'm steady thinking, my way is clear
And I know what I will do tomorrow
When hands have shaken, the kisses float
Then I will disappear

[Chorus]

Caledonia's been everything I've ever had
Caledonia's been everything I've ever had
Caledonia's been everything I've ever had

Don't Hold Your Breath

Have you ever noticed yourself holding your breath? I became very curious about the effects when I was catching myself doing it. I noticed that I used to hold my breath just prior to a panic attack or when I was feeling stressed. 

In order to combat the panic and stress, I decided, I should learn what the impact of holding my breath might be. Here's what I learned in the simplest way I can explain it.

Every function of your body needs energy in order to work. A simple example of this is your muscles. In order for your muscles to contract, they must burn energy to perform that function. The body gets this energy from combining the food you eat with the oxygen you breathe. 

There are a variety of chemical reactions that occur in the body, like feeding the muscles, and the processes require oxygen. When you persistently hold your breath you interrupt and frustrate all those processes. 

Now, I'm not saying that swimmers and musicians, people who frequently hold their breath in order to perform, will have all their systems shut down and die a miserable death. What I am saying is that those who frequently hold their breath without thinking, as a response to stress, are in danger of very many side effects.

Breath holding during food consumption is also common. Generally it's due to eating too fast. Being so focused with the idea of getting food in you quickly, or eating without thought and wondering where it all went... this is not good. Slow down, consider the food. Let your body register the flavors. 

Also, holding your breath while conscious is not really any different than struggling with sleep apnea. In fact, the effects are pretty much the same.

Our bodies need a continuous supply of food and oxygen to maintain energy throughout the day and during performance activities. 

It's kind of like keeping a pleasant camp-side fire going for cooking purposes; not letting it get too feverish or letting it die down too low for the purpose it was created for.

During the night, the campfire slowly becomes barely existent, but still warm and present. If it dies, it still has enough life in it that it's not too tough to rekindle. When you wake up and feed the body at breakfast, you are simply rekindling the energy of the fire (of your body). 

If you take in too much food too quickly, your oxygen intake is off balance for the task ahead. Essentially you have an out of control bonfire and anything could happen. You've little to no control over the effects. In fact, when your body breaks down the food, glucose is created and as your body breaks that down, the result is the creation of carbon dioxide. 

As we've learned from over-abundant environmental studies, too much carbon dioxide can cause damage to your muscles and other body parts. Many other things can happen, but that's as simple as I can get it.

Now, there are times where controlled breathing can be a good thing for the body; like yoga, managing hyperventilation, playing an instrument, swimming. The difference though, is that this is controlled in such a way that there are real benefits to the body, soul, and mind. 

Controlled burns in the environment can be a good thing. But get crazy with it and unobservant, just like with anything else and...well...anything good can become a bad thing if left unchecked.

Holding your breath can quite literally hinder your weight-loss efforts, emotional well being, panic, performance, attitude, blood pressure, metabolism, brain function, alertness, and so forth.

There's a lot more about holding your breath where science and technical jargon would need to be used in order to delve deeper than my surface banter in this blog post. 

I personally have experienced the benefits of conciously changing my unsteady breathing practices. There's so much benefit to bringing consciousness to your breathing habits.

It's important to strive to correct poor breathing habits so that you don't interrupt the goals that you are trying to achieve. Once again, anything good can become a bad thing if left unchecked.