Extend Your Limits By Exceeding Them!

Learning a new skill or rising to a new challenge can inspire enthusiasm. Therefore, it is a good idea to try your body at something new during the time of year that you are most likely to fall into a fitness rut. Don’t drudge yourself to the gym to perform the same tired old weight routine, and get on the same tired old stairmaster. This will only breed a sense of resentment and irritation toward your workout program which will ultimately lead to gym-backsliding. Instead, get excited about the challenge of finding a new kind of strength within you. If you are a boot camp devotee, try a yoga or Pilates class. Conversely if you are a hard core yogi, shake things up a bit with some high power Kwando moves. Sure you can bench 115lbs no problem…but can you hold a Bakasana (crane pose) in a 110 degree yoga studio? That might be something to work toward!

When you take yourself out of your normal comfort zone, you will experience greater results and expand your horizons both mentally and physically. Always push yourself to the point of slight discomfort, and your gains will be exponential. You will break through plateaus. You will finish this year out stronger and more formidable than ever! Trying out new things may even reinvigorate you about the old things.

Best of all, when you challenge your mind and body to something new, not only will you get excited and break through plateaus (and then get more excited because you are breaking through plateaus!), you will also encourage your body to produce endorphins. High levels of endorphins in the brain produce a sense of euphoria, enhance pleasure, and suppress pain both physical and emotional. If your endorphin levels are low, you may feel anxious or depressed, be more aware of pain, and experience increased cravings for fatty foods. Indeed, the correlation between depression and the holidays is no coincidence. As activity levels drop and sugary/fatty food intake rises, endorphin levels are sure to taper off. By staying active this holiday season, you will not only stave off endorphin drop, you will actually increase your endorphin levels. Chances are good that by doing this, you will have the best holiday season ever!

What new thing will you try? Let me know by commenting back to this post!

**Nutrition tip for the week** Don’t miss a beet! Beets are a great addition to any meal all year round, but especially during the holiday season. As a root vegetable, they are a great way to add variety to your plate when other fresh veggies are less plentiful during the colder months. Fresh beets come in many different colors and can be roasted alongside carrots, potatoes, cabbage, onions, garlic and rosemary for a colorful addition to a tray of roasted veggies. Add canned beets to salads for extra color, nutrients and flavor. Also, the juice from canned or pickled beets is a great alternative to fatty, sugary, or salty salad dressings. Bon Appetit!