I’ve learned a lot about what makes me feel healthy and vibrant in the last few years.  I learned a lot, too, about how to suck all the life right out of me.  Am I going to power up my energy or send it packing?  It’s my choice in every moment.  It’s your choice too.  With this in mind, I am sharing 5 of my simple, daily actions that I use to keep my energy humming.  The 5 steps listed here are so easy that I figure you can knock all these off your ‘to do’ list in about 20 minutes.  They aren’t the only things you can do, but they are fast, effective and some of my favorites.

 

Start Your Day with Hot Water, Lemon and Cayenne Pepper

Everyday we absorb toxins in our body through the environment, through what we eat and through what personal care products we use.  Overnight our bodies are busy repairing damage.  Isn’t that a miracle?  Our bodies can withstand a lot of abuse before they start to malfunction.  In the morning, the body is ready to eliminate what it doesn’t need.  Filtered hot water helps grease the pathway.  Instead of lemons I use Young Living lemon essential oil – food grade of course!  Lemon helps to keep my body’s pH balanced, gives my digestion a kick start, increases urination (think UTI prevention) and benefits my immune system.  I have found that lemon oil is cheaper than actually buying the lemons and is a powerhouse as it comes from the nutrient-dense rind, but squeezed lemon is fine too if that is what you have.  Recently, I learned through a juice cleanse about the benefits of cayenne pepper in revving the metabolism.  Now I add 1 shake of organic cayenne pepper to my concoction to heat me up on the inside.  It’s so simple and yet very effective.  I don’t like to say that ‘everybody should do’ anything but starting your day with hot water is a nearly universal winner.

 

Bounce

OK, so in this one you might need to make a small investment if your kids don’t have a trampoline laying around.  I hate exercise.  I avoided exercise my entire life.  BUT, we all know that we take in toxins every day through what we eat, drink, breathe and put on our bodies.  It is unavoidable and the body works hard for us to move toxins out.  The immune system which defends against pathogens and the lymphatic system that cleans our organs and systems of toxins needs our continual support. Chris Wark of www.ChrisBeatCancer.com wrote a solid explanation of why rebounding is so powerful if you are interested in understanding the anatomy further.  To support my body, I ‘rebound’, aka bounce, on a mini trampoline for at least 10 minutes every day, usually in the morning.  I don’t even get dressed for this.  I do this sans bra too.  I want all that lymphatic tissue unimpeded.  I just sing at the top of my lungs and make a fool of myself with my bouncing tatas.  It keeps me ‘regular’, makes me sweat and makes me feel refreshed and ready for my day.  No fancy moves needed.  I have found that a deep bounce with nice straight yet relaxed posture allows me to feel the exercise from my head all the way down to my toes.  Not that this is the priority, but I lost 20 pounds in a six month period simply by ‘rebounding’ for 10 minutes and a few very minor tweaks to my diet.  I think this happened because although I was eating good quality food, I wasn’t helping my body to eliminate the toxins.  You know what fat cells are? Toxin closets!  You have got to clean out those closets regularly.

Cheap, effective and so supportive to your body.

 

Keep 2 Golf Balls Under Your Desk

This is a great little trick related to reflexology.  Reflexology is an intuitive science based on the principles of energy meridians in the body.  These meridians, or energy channels, run from the tops of our heads to the bottoms of our feet.  There are 12 major meridians in the body on which you will find various organs, glands and systems.  You can’t see them but they are there.  If you doubt this, consider that you can’t see oxygen either but you know it’s there.

The foot is loaded with nerve endings.  Every internal body part can be accessed by some point on the foot or ankle.  For example, I often apply essential oils to my big toe as it connects to the brain.  Don’t believe this?  Ask any woman of my parents’ generation (in their 60s and 70s) about applying Vicks vapor rub to the bottom of the feet when they had a cold.  They did this because the balls of the feet are connected to the lungs and the toes are connected to the sinuses.  My particular health challenges have led me to appreciate that the regular pain in my right foot was, in fact, related to my small intestine, digestive disruptions and the brain tumor.  It’s a bit complicated to explain here but it was through intuition that I figured this out and have been proven right.

The golf balls are a wonderful and inexpensive way to massage and activate energy in each area of the internal body simply by rolling your foot over the ball as you sit and work in front of a computer or anywhere else for that matter.  I also keep a couple golf balls in the car for when I am the passenger on long trips.  We spend so much of our day being sedentary.  This is such an easy adaptation to fit in for improved vitality.  It is also a very nice DIY foot massage.

To see a reflexology map of the foot click here

 

Channel Your Inner Wonder Woman

My posture has always been atrocious.  I was the queen sloucher.  My shoulders were always slumped over and my spine was curled.  Then I started to consider not only the body language I was displaying but how my poor posture might be impacting my health.  I believe fully that energy, and oxygen and blood for that matter, must flow freely throughout my body in order to experience radiant health.  When my shoulders are hunched I am reducing the flow of life force energy, particularly to and from my head!

Amy Cuddy, Ph.D. held a TED talk on the subject of posture.  She explained that confident posture stances actually decrease cortisol and increase testosterone and this combination is linked to greater disease resistance and increased leadership abilities.  When we sit up straight we are also actually more likely to think of something positive.

I suggest you practice a power pose for 2 minutes each day.  Amy Cuddy recommends the Wonder Woman: legs shoulder length apart, hands confidently on hips and head held high, many of you are likely picturing Lynda Carter right now and that’s good.  It’s fun and empowering.  Now if only I had a magic lasso and an invisible jet….working on it.

 

Breathe Deeply for 1 Minute

At some point of every day, unless you are living alone on a deserted island, you need a break.  You need a moment to clear the stress that you have already accumulated, even on the good days.  Set your timer for 1 minute, close your eyes and take a deep breath with 3 slow counts in, hold for 6 more, and exhale for 6 more.  And repeat.  As you inhale, your belly should expand.  As you exhale, your belly should contract.  One minute is perfect for re-centering but more is great.  Pick a time to do this every day, like right at the start of your lunch hour.  Also use this tool to keep you from blowing your top with whomever is prodding, poking or needling you. Escape to somewhere you can be alone and breathe.

If you like this deep breathing exercise you might want to download the Universal Breathing – Pranayama app from iTunes.  This will take you through beginner, intermediate and advanced breathing techniques to center you and cool your jets when things get overheated in your life.  I use it often…

 

I hope you’ll find these tools helpful in increasing your energy and vitality.  I am a staunch believer that small changes can make a BIG impact.  With these steps, no pain equals a whole lotta gain.  Please feel free to share these tips with your friends!

 

Wishing you peace, self-love and a vibrant day,

Erin

 

p.s.  I’d love for you to share some of your energy-enhancing tips.  Feel free to comment and share what you do to make each day vibrant!