How To Have a Peaceful and Relaxing Vacation- Guest Blogger- Kendra Thornton

Today I have a guest blogger here to share her tips on how to have a peaceful and relaxing vacation.  Since summer vacation season is wrapping up below are some great tips by Kendra Thornton.  Get ready to relax and enjoy your vaca! 

When I go on a vacation, the last thing I want is to be stressed! I like to exercise and stay healthy at home, and it is important for me to continue that habit while on vacation.  I've developed some ideas and tips that have helped my family have relaxing vacations while having a great time. 

Tip 1: Look for a hotel with amenities you can use.  I use Gogobot to read reviews of hotels from former guests.  Using this, I've found that the Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants in San Francisco offers yoga mats in each room and their televisions have free fitness programs to use whenever you need to. With this hotel, I can get an early morning workout in before my children wake up!

Tip 2: If you are searching for a way to stay healthy and save money on vacation, consider packing half of your restaurant meals in a to-go container.  Do this immediately when you receive your food so you are not tempted to eat all of it.  Most restaurant meals are bigger than the recommended portions, especially in the United States.  This is a great way to save money on vacation and still eat healthy. 

Tip 3: People who experience frequent back pain may benefit from a yoga strap to put around their upper thighs.  This device helps a person to hold his or her upper legs together when they relax.  It also helps develop rotation to the thigh bone, which in turn helps rest the lower back. 

Tip 4: Experiencing jet lag or different time zone affects? My tip is...don’t take a nap or rest when you get to your destination! Grab a coffee and get sightseeing, you can always catch up on your sleep and you don’t want to throw your bottom off balance anymore than it is. 

Tip 5: At the end of the day on vacation, I like to unwind.  Days filled with sightseeing or chasing after my kids can be exhausting, and I bring my own tea packets on vacation just for this reason.  My favorite is Yogi tea, and sometimes hotels do not carry this type. Depending on where your vacation destination is, you may try foods you are not used to.  Sometimes these do not sit well in my stomach, so it is nice to have a cup of tea to help settle it.  When I drink my tea on vacation, I like to light some tea light candles to add to the relaxing atmosphere.   

Even though I try not to plan too many details of my family vacations, I do try to incorporate these ideas into our tertiary.  Having basic ideas such as how to relax and be comfortable on vacation really increases the quality of my vacations.

 

 Kendra Thornton

As always check out www.safiretraining.com for more fitness tips and inspiration!  

In good health,

 Andrea

Mindful Walking Mediation

A lot of people dislike running and want to relax and have a stress relieving workout.  This is a great idea for those who need to focus on the present moment and still move and burn calories.  What is meditation?  Meditation is staying present in the moment not focusing on your to-do list, being one with nature and being present with yourself.  While your on your walk you should be in tune with your body, notice what hurts or what doesn't, notice how your foot strikes the ground as your walking.  Pay attention to your senses what do you hear, see, smell, touch your probably not tasting but you get the idea.  

Now below are some cues and questions for you to contemplate while on your walk.  I recommend walking for 30-60 minutes to get a stress relieving, relaxing all while still working out walk.  Try to squeeze this workout into your weekly routine.

Body Image Relaxation:

• How does your body feel? Scan your body for a moment now, starting at your feet, simply noticing how your body is feeling.
• Notice your feet... ankles... legs.... hips. Continue scanning your body, moving upward to your stomach, back, chest, sides. Mentally scan your hands, arms, and shoulders... your neck, head, and face.
• Where is your body the most tense? Where is your body the most relaxed?
• Just notice the state of tension and relaxation in your body.
• Notice how your body relaxes... bit by bit.... without any effort on your part. See how your muscles become a little bit looser... less tense.... naturally, just because you are taking a moment to sit quietly and relax. Without any effort or input from you... without you even trying... your body becoming slightly more relaxed with each passing moment.
• Think about your body image... what is body image? Maybe you think about the picture in your mind you have of what your body looks like. Maybe it's the ideas you have about your body... your feelings about your physical self. Perhaps body image is is a vision of how you think your body should be. What does body image mean to you?
• Take a moment now to consider your thoughts and ideas about your own body. How are you feeling right now, thinking about your body image? You might feel neutral, content, comfortable, uncomfortable, satisfied, dissatisfied, happy or unhappy, angry, afraid, accepting..... maybe a combination of things.... contradictory feelings are common.... and it is okay to feel however you are feeling.

The above meditation and more are located at www.innerhealthstudio.com

Enjoy and start relaxing during your workout this week.

As always check out www.safiretraining.com for more fitness information.  

In good health, 

Andrea 

Meditation

Meditation is something I came across recently.  It is all about relaxing the mind.  If you have a thought you acknowledge it and than clear it from your mind.  How is one to do this one might ask? It is quite difficult and if you have never done this before start with a 5 minute meditation and work on increasing a minute every week.  You can meditate up to 30 minutes or an hour if you wish.  Who has time to meditate that long?  Well if  you think that stay in the 5-10 minute range for meditating.  Below is a list of benefits to meditating courtesy of ineedmotivation.com

Physiological benefits:
1- It lowers oxygen consumption.
2- It decreases respiratory rate.
3- It increases blood flow and slows the heart rate.
4- Increases exercise tolerance.
5- Leads to a deeper level of physical relaxation.


Psychological benefits:
36- Builds self-confidence.
37- Increases serotonin level, influences mood and behaviour.
38- Resolve phobias & fears
39- Helps control own thoughts
40- Helps with focus & concentration


Spiritual benefits:
80- Helps keep things in perspective
81- Provides peace of mind, happiness
82- Helps you discover your purpose
83- Increased self-actualization.
84- Increased compassion
85- Growing wisdom

Are you getting enough zzz's?

Notice when one gets a full night of sleep how much better you feel the next day.  With today's go, go, go society sleep is a necessity but often gets overlooked.  An adult needs to get between 7-9 hours of sleep each night, children more up to 10-11 hours.  If your noticing your fitness goals are slipping away because lack of sleep your not alone.  Millions of Americans are sleep deprived.  It's time for us to take a look at why we are not getting enough sleep.  Is it because you are watching tv?  Are you up late night eating?  Are you working out to close to your bedtime?  Do you have a set routine every night before bed?  Personally I like to read before I go to bed.  It's my way of unwinding and it stays the same every night so I mentally know I need to start winding down and get a good nights rest.  So try to go to bed an hour earlier if you don't usually get enough sleep.  You might toss and turn but eventually your body will give in after you quite your mind and you will get a good nights rest.