2889: Do you Lack Energy and Motivation AND The Benefits of Muscle by Chalene Johnson

[00:00:00] This is Optimal Health Daily. Do you Lack Energy and Motivation? Here's How to Pull Yourself Out of the Funk AND The Benefits of Muscle, both by Chalene Johnson of ChaleneJohnson.com and I'm Dr. Neal, your host and narrator. Welcome to another Tuesday edition of Optimal Health Daily. This is just one of a bunch of podcasts where we read to you from blogs for free so that you don't have to read them yourself, except on Fridays.

[00:00:28] That's where I usually answer your questions. Now to check out our other shows, just search for Optimal Living Daily, wherever you're hearing this. Now today, I'll be reading two shorter posts for you. So it's like you're getting double the information today than you normally would. So let's get right to them and start optimizing your life.

[00:00:51] Do you Lack Energy and Motivation? Here's How to Pull Yourself Out of the Funk by Chalene Johnson of ChaleneJohnson.com. Everyone has those days where they just can't seem to find motivation. Maybe you aren't looking forward to your workout, or have a day filled with meetings, or maybe you woke up feeling extra tired and even simple tasks seem too large. These tips will work in any area from fitness to family and are easy to apply to any lifestyle.

[00:01:22] Set yourself up for success. Many people don't succeed or can't find motivation because they've set their goals too high for that day. You know the feeling when you write out a to-do list and then feel like you didn't do anything just because you didn't complete it? That's what I mean by setting yourself up. If you make a goal of running five miles and haven't run one mile, you're going to lack motivation when the time comes to run those five.

[00:01:49] Setting yourself up for success means setting goals that are attainable. When you're writing out that to-do list, only write down those things that you think you can accomplish within your time frame. Running five miles is a great goal, but by simply completing a half mile without stopping first will help build confidence to then tackle all five. Another way to set yourself up for success is to look at how you structure your day and what your daily schedule looks like.

[00:02:17] I know it's difficult to say no to events and activities sometimes, but make sure you're scheduling items that are the most important to you first. If running is a goal you want to accomplish, don't push it out of your schedule because your friends want to do dinner or your office needs someone to work late. It's okay to say no, and you should, when the activity or event you're saying yes to may not align with your personal values.

[00:02:43] If you value yourself by putting your goals first, you'll start to better yourself. In this shift, you'll start making better decisions for you and your family, and we'll see that your choices align with your goals and values. Exercise It might seem a little strange that exercise is a motivation tip, especially when you might be lacking motivation in this area in the first place. But exercise is very important for your mood.

[00:03:10] If you get the blood flowing at least 5 times a week, you'll see an increase in your productivity, your mood, and your energy. When I say get moving, I mean something moderately active that gets your heart rate up. This could be power walking or active house cleaning. Something physical, but not over the top. If you make it a habit of moving your body deliberately 5-7 times a week, you will start to see a difference in yourself and will probably start getting more done throughout the day.

[00:03:41] Accountability Holding yourself accountable can be difficult, especially if you're trying to accomplish a goal on your own. That's why it's important to identify your main goal and then break it down into smaller goals. Taking a large goal, like running a marathon, and breaking it into 5 smaller goals will help you focus your efforts and will help build confidence to reach that large goal.

[00:04:04] This works for any goal, like opening a business, trying to increase sales, or wanting to run your household more smoothly. Another way to increase accountability is to get a friend or family member to help you. This can be as simple as just telling them what you want to accomplish and why. If you want to stay off of social media, for example, give someone permission to call you out if they see you on Facebook. Or even allow them to take the computer away if it's too distracting.

[00:04:31] Enlisting someone you trust to help you stay on task and accountable will remind you of your goal and why it's important. The Benefits of Muscle by Shaleen Johnson of ShaleenJohnson.com I think it's fair to say that everyone wants to reduce fat and build lean muscle. But with so much advice and guidance out there, many have no clue where to start.

[00:04:57] In this post, I'll provide very productive ways to burn fat and gain muscle with your daily workout. Burn more fat. This doesn't mean workout longer. Instead, I mean find a workout that's more efficient. We've been taught that cardio will help you burn calories, but there's a better way to burn even more. Things like high-intensity interval training or HIIT and heavy lifting will help you burn more calories,

[00:05:25] not only while you're working out, but for upwards of 24 hours after your workout. The most successful fat-burning workout is a little bit of everything, like high-intensity interval training where it combines cardio and lifting. Doing these exercises will help your body have a longer calorie burn, which may help it burn more fat. Many high-intensity workouts are also high-impact, so make sure you add some low-impact moves or exercises as well to avoid injury.

[00:05:55] Lift heavy. Many people, especially women, are afraid of lifting heavy or even trying weightlifting at all. The fear is that they don't want to get too big. With images of bodybuilders in their heads, it's no wonder no one wants to lift a free weight or try to bench press. The reality is that lifting heavy won't make you bulk up. Testosterone is the hormone that builds muscle, and men have more of it than women. If you aren't supplementing with artificial hormones,

[00:06:24] chances are you won't bulk up or get big just by lifting. In fact, lifting heavy may help reduce your body fat and make other workouts easier. By lifting heavy, you'll be able to reduce your body fat and burn more calories to help you maintain your figure. Nutrition. Nutrition. The saying, abs are made in the kitchen, is true for a reason. Nutrition is a key component in building muscle and maintaining the body you want. Take the abdomen, for example.

[00:06:54] People think that they can do a million crunches, and then they'll have a six-pack. The reality is that a six-pack comes in many parts. Strength training, cardio, core training, and nutrition. You have to not only build your ab muscles up, but also reduce the fat in front of those muscles. And since you can't spot-reduce fat, the best way to get rid of it is with nutrition. A diet free of processed foods is a great place to start. Think of the television show Survivor,

[00:07:24] but in a healthy way. No starvation diets here. By eating things like lean protein and tons of vegetables, you'll be well on your way to building muscle and reducing your overall body fat. You just listened to the posts titled Do you lack energy and motivation? Here's how to pull yourself out of the funk. And the benefits of muscle. Both by Shaleen Johnson of shaleenjohnson.com. And I'll be right back with my commentary.

[00:07:55] Überlass deine gesunde Ernährung und die Gains nicht nur deinem Bauchgefühl. Denn bei der Ernährung gaukelt uns unser innerer Schweinehund manchmal ganz schön was vor. Sag stattdessen Hallo zu deinem neuen Coach, Yasio. Yasio ist die meistgenutzte Ernährungs-App Europas, made in Germany. Egal ob Massephase oder ein bisschen abnehmen, tracke Kalorien, Proteine, Carbs, Fette, Bewegung und Intervallfasten. Und mit den Tasty-Rezepten bist du ready für deine Ziele. Let's go! Lade die Yasio-App jetzt herunter.

[00:08:24] Dr. Neil here for my commentary. In her first post, Shaleen mentioned that exercise can improve your mood. She discussed how there's an increase in blood flow to the brain. This is absolutely right. This increased blood and oxygen delivery to the brain can allow us to think more clearly. Plus, exercise stimulates the release of good-feeling hormones in the brain. You've probably heard them called endorphins. These endorphins make us feel more calm and relaxed.

[00:08:53] If we happen to be outdoors while exercising, the fresh air and sunshine may enhance some of those feelings. And when Shaleen discussed the benefits of muscle, she talked about how some folks are afraid of lifting heavy weights because they might get quote-unquote too big. Look, I wish it were that easy to get too big. People pay trainers good money to get quote-unquote too big. And for most people, it still doesn't happen. Now, I've shared this story many times on this show before.

[00:09:22] But years ago, I would brag to people about how I had been working out diligently for 10 years, hoping for their response to be, oh yeah, I could totally tell. It shows. Instead, their responses were the exact opposite. There are three specific moments I can remember where, after proudly announcing that one of my hobbies was working out, the person looked me up and down and said, really? Three different people had this exact same response.

[00:09:50] I'm not bitter or anything. Anywho, my point is that I was trying to get too big, and it didn't happen. Getting too big takes a lot of work and dedication. And as Shaleen said, it also takes the right amount of the right kind of hormones, with a splash of good genetics thrown in. So if getting too big is your concern, trust me, it's not something you need to worry about. All right, that's it for today. Thank you so much for listening.

[00:10:19] Thank you for being a subscriber of the show. Thank you for sharing the show with someone. I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day, and I'll see you back here tomorrow, where your optimal life awaits.