New Years Resolutions must start before New Year

New Years Resolutions MUST start before New Years! Or just start them today!
As we are blessed to begin a new year, it is important to realize that some very small and simple changes in your life will have profound and dramatic effect on your health and wellbeing. Eat a little smarter, exercise a bit more often, and learn to become the master of your mind... and watch and see how fulfilling life can be. In fact fulfillment is seen to be your true nature.

Begin the new Year with a resolute determination to exercise very day. That will begin the powerful positive feedback cycle whereby you will get stronger every day and your Will-Power will naturally increase and express itself in more intelligent choices throughout your life.

Daily exercise is one of the most dramatic changes you can make in your life. In short, exercising strengthens your body, burns excess calories and promotes good circulation in all of its flowing systems. It’s the first and most important step to getting healthier and happier and it’s really not so hard to pick up.

Virtually any type of physical activity is good for your body so if you are exercising at all you are off to a great start. However, certain exercise practices are infinitely more beneficial than others. The best exercise, the exercise you should be doing daily requires the following:

It is vigorous (assuming it is safe and the right pace for you and your body). It is the sustained, vigorous workout that exercises the heart. And as it strengthens the heart, it sends blood through the filter organs more rapidly cleansing and detoxifying it. Sustained vigorous activity can unburden us of previously un-eliminated waste and toxins. Because poisons are almost fully responsible for disease, lack of energy, and degeneration, the multitude of benefits that accrue go far beyond keeping us fit.

It involves the entire body. Every part of your body needs daily exercise. Unlike your car and your shoes and a lot of other things in our lives, our body improves as we use it. When it is underused it actually deteriorates. Hips that are underused now become brittle later and break later. Muscles that rarely engaged become flaccid, skin sags and systems become blocked. So the exercise you are doing everyday needs to engage the entire body. Strong biceps are great, a strong heart and bones to go with them are even better.

Like I said, virtually any type of exercise - assuming it is safe – is good for you but the exercise practice to which you will be introduced over the next few pages is great for you. The Power Yoga sequence that I teach is one of the best ways to attain all the critical components of an exercise I just described. One more thing: it can lead to spiritual enlightenment. I’m serious. Yoga involves an intense mental/spiritual element that is accessible to everyone who practices regularly. You will begin to notice it yourself as you practice but I will address this further later.

Why do I say happier? Because if any of the functions of the internal organs like digestion or excretion are impaired, the brain will also be impaired. The brain is the organ of the mind. An impaired brain equals depression. There is an inseparable relationship between the mind and the body. If there is an imbalance in one, they will both suffer. This is why the value of exercise can never be overemphasized. Exercise can decrease nervous tension as it vitalizes the body, balancing the mind-body dynamic. Vigorous activity literally eliminates the internal conditions that give rise to qualms, worries and stress.

In order to feel physically well, emotionally balanced and spiritually aligned, we MUST exercise everyday. That is just how it is. No animals in nature take a day off of being themselves.

Vigorous activity strengthens the nerves and steadies them so you are less likely to feel edginess or nervousness. The body secretes noradrenaline and norepinephrin after sustained vigorous activity. This provides a perpetual feeling of well being.

Almost everything we make in life deteriorates with use. Edges dull; paint chips; motors fail. It is a paradox, but what nature makes, bodies are the opposite to a degree. With use, they improve. With exercise, they perform longer and better. This is because movement is essential to good health. Like all organisms, our bodies are made up of free flowing systems. Life is literally flowing through us. Movement is an underlying principle of our digestive, our reproductive, cardiovascular and respiratory systems. It is required, as that is the design.

In the digestive system, the blocking of the flow is called constipation. It is very common and very unhealthy to be blocked. We need to get moving and get everything moving.

It amazes me how often blockages in our flowing systems are overlooked or their effects are blamed on some other ‘problem. In our society, many of us are more vigilant when it comes to maintaining the free flowing system in our cars than the ones in our bodies despite the fact that most of us are more prone to constipation than to a clogged fuel line. A blockage in any of your bodily systems is a serious health emergency. Keeping our systems flowing freely is essential to good health and it can be achieved through regular, vigorous exercise.

When you exercise, you also build strength. A comprehensive exercise program strengthens the entire body and encourages the coordination of various muscle groups. Rarely do we depend on just one muscle group for anything. Strength is more appropriately determined by how well our muscle groups work together.

Although exercise does help us “look good” regular exercise promotes good health in a deeper way too. Like other muscles, the heart can be strengthened or weakened depending on the degree to which it is used. The more blood your heart pumps to the aorta, the stronger and more efficient it gets. Your bones are the same way. Many of us perceive our bones as inactive and lifeless, but our skeletal system is as alive as any other part of your body. Exercising it builds bone strength and density. Even the nerves are strengthened with exercise, becoming steadier.

Author Fred Busch is the owner/director of Miami Yogashala
Fred leads international Yoga Teacher Trainings and Retreats www.miamiyoga.com