Old Fashioned Fun

THE LAST BASTION

Some places never change. And that can be a great thing if you just want to go somewhere you know and love like the Palm Tree pub in the east end of London or The White Heart pub in Truro.

Both of these venues offer a beautiful venue that hasn't had the soul sucked out of it through modernisation, aren't trying to be a restaurant and consistently lay on the same great friendly service and entertainment that they do well week after week. 

That entertainment might mean a jazz band with the same antiquated musicians & singers or DJ playing the same 80's and 90's tracks - but if what it offers makes us smile, tap our feet or dance up a storm - making the old feel young again and bringing all generations together for a night of good old fashioned fun - then it's got to be fully recognised for this fantastic achievement - and being one of only a few remaining places to survive the test of time.  

We really have to be thankful to these publicans like Gary & Brenda for their 17 years of dedication and give them our support where we can by turning up, drinking a bit too much, hugging strangers and dancing like it's 1999.

Rising To The Challenge

TOUGHEN UP

Rising to the challenge every morning has taken on an extra meaning for me these days. Getting out of bed to do something physically challenging like boxing - before most have even thought about getting out of bed, has given me a new strength of character and ability to take a lot of lesser taxing challenges on the chin without a wobble, throughout the day. 

Agreeing to commit to this morning's challenge with my boxing trainer and most importantly - keeping this commitment with myself - when I could so very easily have taken a few more hours in bed, has meant other aspects in my life have also been set in concrete. It's tough training but by following it through consistently and always taking the challenge, means other tough challenges have also been risen up to - and taken face on. 

Daily Discomfort

My partner and I now stick to a morning exercise routine every day - come rain or shine. It's usually at 5.30am and involves some tough physical challenges like sustained planks. Sometimes, after a late night with a little too much alcohol involved, it can make this challenge even more uncomfortable than it usually is. It's on these occasions that the extra effort to complete these exercises really strengthens our resolve. By sticking to the plan even though the mind has been telling us not to and having discomfort at such an early point in the day - lays down strong foundations for dealing with whatever the rest of the day throw at us. Chances are, as the discomfort becomes tolerated enough over time, a toughness will be built up meaning everything following on from that will feel like a breeze in comparison!

Daily Intentions

SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT

Watching someone like Lee Holden, who has inspired me to practice Qi Gong every morning - I can clearly see someone who is truly happy with what they are doing in life. Success has followed happiness and Lee, it seems, is becoming the ambassador for an ancient eastern art form that brings health and vitality to himself and into the lives of millions. 

Having partners, family, friendships and work commitments to maintain/keep, means we're compromising ourselves a lot of the time. This means our fun, companionship and family/work relationships and all the responsibilities they entail, can temporarily detract us from where we are aiming to go in our lives. 

Everyone has intentions, but for most, they are not clearly defined. They are led by desires and easily changed through lack of focus, manipulation from others, or lost through intoxication. It takes extra effort to stop ourselves from being pulled off the day's intended path. It's that feeling, waking after an unplanned, late night of alcohol-fuelled shenanigans that the things you'd planned to do, got thrown out of the window. It's these situations in particular that we all wish to be more in control of – always seems like a good idea at the time...

Letting oneself down, feeling weak-willed and a failure - these are very negative thoughts that need to be avoided. Fun is an easy detractor from a path of intention, so there have to be pre-thoughts for the day to make allowances for these times when we're more susceptible to losing track of the day. A simple few minutes to think through possible scenarios and levels of flexibility for the day is all is needed to avoid having those dreaded feelings of self-loathing. There's always going to be other opportunities for fun.

Every evening, I will look at the following day's calendar of proposed events, my intentions and what I want to get out of the day. These intentions will then be discussed with my partner to better understand her intentions for the day too and we'll look at the possible factors that could scupper plans. This way, we will know what it means if we fall too far from our intended paths and already have a plan B to fall back on.  

Come back to it

REFINE IDEAS

Whether it's making plans for an event, designing a logo, sending an email, writing a letter or creating content for a blog page. Work out what you want to achieve, outline the content, jot down some notes, scamp out first drafts...and wait before sending. We're living in a fast-paced, quick-fix, immediate gratification period, brought about by the digital age. All too often, we'll rush things through without really considering what we're really trying to achieve. The quality of what we want to see, feel, portray - is greatly affected by the amount of time we put in. Chances are, the first idea we have, won't be the best one, so we need time to mull over inspired ideas and play with a few options before something that really works comes through to the forefront of the mind.

The writer understands this process of creating over a great length of time - Khaled Hosseini took a long time and many rough drafts to write The Kite Runner. He'd spend weeks going down a blind alley before choosing to rip everything up and start again. This painful process is necessary for creating great bodies of work. It takes patience and periods of discomfort exploring every possible avenue before eventually striking the right path and creating a work of great value.

Going The Extra Mile

INSPIRATION BLOCK

I woke up this morning feeling a bit blank-minded. This isn't something new - I've had this a few times lately. There's been no urge to jump out of bed and write my daily blog and little enthusiasm for getting on my computer in general. Partly it's because I've realised that I do actually need 8 hours sleep every day. Listening to an audiobook on sleep called Night School - it says to sleep when you feel tired and see when you wake without an alarm. So for the last few days, I've tried it - and found that going to bed at 8.30 is gonna lose me a girlfriend and a load of friends. The conclusion - I need 8 hours to perform at my best.

Not having any inspiration is putting a bit of unnecessary strain on myself, taking up the free time in an unproductive way and I've considered staying in bed and skipping the journal altogether at times. I've been dealing with self-doubt and the negative voices - and fighting them back. Pretty much having an even better, more productive day as a result. I don't want to have internal conflicts at 5am, so, I've changed my routine. I now listen to and read something inspirational at night and first thing in the morning, then jot down some notes on things that interest me, I would like to work on or improve in myself. That way, if I'm not immediately inspired to write - I now have a few subjects ready to work on throughout the day. I've got the Blogger app on my iPhone now, which is great. It's perfect for looking at topics for conversation and adding to them when I get those moments of inspiration when I have free time rather than put pressure on myself to finish up posts fist thing in the morning.

Beyond The Finish Line
So it's one of those mornings when I'm feeling a little lacking in what to write - I've just listened to one of Robin Sharma's podcasts about the 'last mile' theory. This talks about not only putting the effort in early on - but carrying on performing at a high level right through to the end. So, I've started this blog and made some promises to myself. I mean to go on as I've started. I've just re-read some of my earlier posts and I can see when the enthusiasm was at a high. We can't perform at 100% all the time but we should aim to have maximum output as much as we can. I believe another good practice for success is to actually aim past the finish line - as the 100m sprinters do, focussing on 10m past the line to stay at peak performance that bit longer. Giving 110% over time is how we make the biggest imrovements. I've been doing this with my rowing warm-ups. It's really tough starting off a work-out with 3x6o second sprints - aiming for a peak level target on each with just 30 seconds recovery in between. It's uncomfortable and I'm doubting myself all the way through, but I've managed to win myself over every time and finish within the target. I constantly amaze myself how effective this technique is and how we're capable of pushing our limits. This is great in sport and will be sure to apply this method in other areas in my life too.

One more point on diets:
Another diet that I'm willing to try at a later date - is the 4 day fast. I've been watching a really informative documentary on the benefits of reducing calorie intakes this morning. This documentary, -'Eat, Fast and Live Longer' is available for a year to watch on iPlayer. Here's some further information on the fasting benefits for prolonging a healthier and longer life.

Water fasting

Boosting immune system

IG-1

Choosing Alternatives

IT'S ALL UP TO YOU

In just a few weeks, I've made some measurable changes that have had a really positive impact to my life path. Removing alcohol from the house, and not going to the pub have helped me to be more disciplined, get better sleep, have more energy, eat better food, use free time constructively and save money. Through adjusting my sleep pattern and resetting my body clock, there's now a couple of extra peak performance hours in my day. Taking certain foods out of my diet has meant I've burnt off some excess body fat and dropped 13lbs (5.8kg). Having a schedule of exercise has meant I'm moving, thinking, feeling and performing better all round. Having the extra time to make assessments on progress in the form of a blog, plus leaving space for creating every day means I am improving my mental capabilities as well as the physical. And all of these changes are happening because of me.

Taking the time to research ways on how to improve myself, I've been presented with lots of new information - digested, understood it and made decisions based on sound reasoning. I've taken action, made good decisions and chosen viable alternatives where necessary. Alternatives to things like: having a few pints of beer and staying out late, snoozing in a warm bed longer, lounging around eating junk and watching trash TV. There are a lot of alternatives that are seemingly easier to do but there are also alternatives that are just as easy, fun, tasty etc. but will show a different result at the end. Alternatives that, if followed consistently, will make us fitter, faster, stronger, brighter and better. 

Here's a reminder for some simple decisions and alternatives:

Eat In More

Buying groceries rather than ready meals - especially in bulk quantities, will save money. We know exactly what's going into every meal so always choose healthy, organic, un-processed and nutritious food over the alternatives.

Plan Ahead
Preparing meals in advance, will also help with discipline and save time. My partner and I now make this part of our quality together time early on a Sunday morning and we're always exited to try new food and look forward to making our meals every week. 

No Alcohol When Socialising

There's so many alternative beverages when you're at home but pubs, bars and restaurants have mostly sugary, carbonated and alcoholic drinks. If you have alcohol - try paleo drinks like Gin, Ciroc vodka (made with grapes), dry white wine or cider and avoid carbonated sugary mixers or juices if possible. I will have fresh press apple juice or an organic ginger beer/ale mixed with ice and water in a pint glass - and add a shot of whiskey or vodka if drinking alcohol. A glass of red wine has also got anti-oxidants and not going to harm you - but so has eating certain vegetables. I've had just as much fun meeting, catching up with friends without the alcohol and been far more controlled when it's come time to say goodbye, eat and get to bed early. 

Move Around More

Walking everywhere and doing it 1.5 - 2 times as fast, will speed your metabolism and burn calories/lower cholesterol. Take stairs up 2 at a time and never stand on an escalator. 

Eat Less Sweets And Junk Food

Swap the crisps for nuts, the sweets for fruit and if you want extra treats - restrict them to 1-2 times a week - ie. The weekend. There's great alternatives to mass-produced chocolates and sweets that are made with raw chocolate, sweetened with honey or maple syrup instead of processed sugar. They may cost a little bit more but you should only need a little bit if you've eaten well. I've removed all snacks from my day during the week and look forward to having with a film on a Saturday night - this is all I need. There's lots of alternatives to diary and if you want bread, try rye or spelt alternatives. Swap out oil and butter for coconut oil when cooking and avoid at all if possible.

Remember to think first: What's the alternative...?

Whatever you're doing, take a thought before acting and ask yourself - do I need this? Is it going to benefit me and are there better alternatives?

Check the Internet and you're bound to find out!