Sunday Story…Happy New Year!

It’s that time! Envisioning your next year, clearing out the detritus from the last year (or more!), cleaning up to make room for what’s new and exciting, and generally making merry.

 

Here’s my single recommendation for the new year…Show more gratitude and let yourself experience more gratitude. It’s simple, doesn’t cost a dime, and is the single thing that will improve your state of mind and your overall life experience.

 

Look it’s not hard. Every day make it a point to show or experience gratitude at least 3 times. More would be better but 3 is an easy place to start. You eat 3 meals…do it then. Or when you get up, go to bed, and at noon…again simple to remember.

 

It’s not hard. Here’s an example…as I write this, I am grateful to each one of you who gives up a few moments in your precious human existence to read the words I write every week. Thank You from the bottom of my heart, thank you.  Here’s another…I am so thankful I live in a time and place where it is so easy to have the time, the ability, and the wherewithal to express myself this way. I am truly blessed.

 

The practice of gratitude…both for your self and others is simple and powerful. It will change your attitude and the attitudes of the people around you. If you don’t make any other change this year, make 2023 the year of gratitude. You will be happy you did!

 

John Mariotti

www.crossfitodyssey.com

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

775-338-2412

Sunday Story…Sleep More

 If you, like me, bought into the idea that you can get by on 4 hours of sleep all those years ago, I have bad news. You were wrong. Arnold Schwarzenegger, in a famous quote, exhorted us to “sleep faster”! Most of us (me!) need to sleep more not less. And we need to sleep better (more efficiently and consistently).

 

First and foremost is to have a consistent bedtime. Remember when you were little? Your parents made sure you were in bed by the same time almost every night. Staying up later was the exception, not the rule. And the second thing? A consistent wake time. In bed at 9, up at 4 gives you 7 hours in bed. If you need or want 8 hours…adjust one or both of those times. This simple idea will help you fall asleep faster and arise with less effort. You and I are creatures of habit. We crave the familiar and thrive on ritual.

 

This brings up the next point…have a consistent bedtime ritual. A ritual that excludes stimulating activities as you begin your transition to rest. A ritual that tells your body and your mind it is time to grow and rejuvenate. A ritual that prepares you to let the stresses and trials of your day fade away.

 

More on this next week!

 

John Mariotti

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com 

www.crossfitodyssey.com    

775-3338-2412

Sunday Story…More Food

It’s that time of year…the treats are out, alcohol is in abundance, and holiday meals are on their way. It’s easy to lose sight of your goals, the big picture. Let’s be honest, deprivation is no fun and if you feel deprived you won’t be a lot of joy to be around.

Whatever shall we do? Give up? Go off the deep end and vacuum up all the goodies in sight only to live January in regret and recrimination? I bet some of us have done that a time or two. It doesn’t have to be that way. Nor do you need to hide out for the next two or 3 weeks practicing your hermit impression. What we need is a strategy! We need to negotiate with that part of you that loves all those things and is willing to sabotage the last 11 months of progress.

Here are some strategies to help you navigate the temptations of the season:

Eat before you show up at the party. Choose to eat some healthy and filling food before you go. That way you can limit the amount of food you will eat. And you will be more likely to make a choice to indulge in only the things you really want.

If you are abstaining completely from alcohol, choose to be the designated driver. This way no one is going to push a drink on you (I’m driving is a valid reason not to drink by the way). If you are imbibing have water or a non-alcoholic beverage between your alcoholic drink. And don’t forget to eat!

Most of all…whatever you choose, choose it mindfully and intentionally. Eat and drink slowly enjoying and savoring all the tastes, smells, and energies of the indulgence.

Then get up the next day guilt-free and get back to your plan!

 

John Mariotti

www.crossfitodyssey.com

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

775-338-2412

  

 

Sunday Story…Eat, Sleep, Move

You are a human (I know that’s an assumption, but…). To enjoy life as a human you need to do at least those 3 things. If you want to age well, you need to do those three things well.

 

Eat. Real. Food. Real food doesn’t come with a label and the source is readily available. I still haven’t seen a Dorito tree or an Oreo bush. Eat enough to fuel performance but not so much as to store fat. Eat lots of variety and colors and keep it simple.

 

Sleep. Often. Deeply. This is the easiest place to get the most bang for your buck. Your body and mind need to rest. Sleep is where growth happens. Babies sleep a lot. They also grow a lot. And eat a lot. There might be something to that!

 

Move. Fast. Slow. Often. The point is to move. You were not made to sit on your duff for 8,9, or 10 hours a day. If that was your purpose in being, your body would be constituted much differently, and your metabolism would function much differently. So just move.

 

This isn’t rocket science, boys, and girls. But there also isn’t a magic pill that is going to make everything better. You are going to need to attack this like your life depends upon it.

Because it does.

 

John Mariotti

www.crossfitodyssey.com

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

775-338-2412

 

 

Sunday Story…How Old

Is Old? I have heard it said that Old is always 20 years older than you. Now, I don’t know about you but way back when I was a wee child, I remember thinking my parents were Old and my Grandparents were really, really Old. These days my perspective has shifted.

 

I bring this up because lately, I have been seeing several “famous” people I grew up reading about, listening to, and even admiring seem to be passing away. In some cases, my reaction to hearing of their passing is “Wow! I had no idea they were That old.” And in many other cases, the reaction is the opposite, “wow! They were only that old?”

 

We loudly mourn the passing of someone young. The potential is unfulfilled. The lost gifts are never to be shared with the world. The talent is not explored and never matures. Those who leave us after a body of work has been shared often leave us remembering all the gifts skills and talents, we were so lucky to see flourish and grow.

 

Age is a funny thing. You are a certain age, chronologically. You have seen x number of rotations around the sun. Every one of those rotations has the same number of hours in it for every one of us. How you fill your hours has more to do with “age” than the number of years you have survived.

 

It isn’t the number of years in your life…it is the amount of life in your years.

So…how are you filling your years?

 

John Mariotti

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

www.crossfitodyssey.com

775-338-2412