Work Smarter Not Harder and Take The Reigns Of Your Schedule

Wouldn’t you like to achieve more and work fewer hours? Personal time management skills are an absolutely essential part of anyone who wishes to rise above the masses. Those who are experts at time management can adapt quickly to a varying “playing field” and can work with utmost efficiency under stressful conditions.

So… ask yourself the question. Do you control your workload? Or does your workload control you?

If you answered yes to your workload controlling you then it’s time to take responsibility and act NOW!

Concentrate on results!

Many people spend their days in a frenzy of activity, but in actual fact they achieve very little. Quite often they are sidetracked by early morning banter, unnecessary email responses, unrelated phone calls and texting all with the aim of setting up the day. In most cases however, there is very little which is aimed at achieving a result.

So, look at your upcoming day and instead of writing the long list of to do’s with little intent, look at things practically and assess which items are of utmost importance and set a target of completing them come hell or high water by a set time. Then break down the task into sections looking at what is required in incremental steps in order to reach the goal. Who do you need to call? Do you need to delegate menial tasks? Who in management do I need to see to get everything over the line?

The result is the focus, not the enormity of the task. Multitasking is over rated!

The 80:20 Rule

The Pareto Principle, or the ‘80:20 Rule’ is one of simplest yet most relevant principles for all aspects of life. It basically outlines that typically 80% of unfocussed effort generates only 20% of results. This means that the remaining 80% of results are achieved with only 20% of the effort.

When you think about it… How much of your day is spent focused on activities that really are not relevant to achieving big picture results; ie all those emails, calls, filing, meetings etc may be important but may take up at least 80 per cent of your day and achieve only 20 per cent of your ultimate goals. How can you then minimize the peripheral activity and focus only on activities that will deliver maximum payload on that task?

Think about it… when you are given a deadline how quickly do you get down to the task of achieving the best result in the shortest space of time? Like when you know you are going on holidays and you have a million things to do before you go away. You don’t want unfinished tasks bugging your conscious when you are trying to lay on a beach so you knuckle down, turn back the irrelevant calls and focus only on the task to get the job done. So how can you do this everyday?

Create a Time Log

Before you move forward you need to know what you are doing now. Spend a bit of time at the end of each day in the next week to create a time log. Divide up some space in your diary to honestly look at what you do and achieve each day. Write down every task no mater how menial and write how long it took for you to complete it. Include the chat you had at the photocopier or the few minutes you took to read an unrelated email someone had sent. BE HONEST… and straight away you will notice where you can improve.

Next week… we’ll look at time management tools!

We all know that drinking water is important, sometimes, however, we need to be reminded exactly we we must remain hydrated.

How much should we drink?

The amount of water that we need varies from person to person. The general rule is that you multiply your body weight by 0.0333 and this will give you the amount in litres to drink. For example, if you weigh 65kg then your water intake per day is 2.2 Litres. An easy way to tell if you’ve drunk enough water is if your urine is a light colour (clear to very pale yellow). Your urine will be a dark colour if you need to drink more.

Objective tests for hydration include the color of your urine (it should be light colored) as well as a blood test.

When you exercise, your water requirements will increase. You will need to drink more water during and after training and this will help maintain energy and aid in recovery. Also, water makes your metabolism burn calories 3% faster!

Water and weight loss

If you are trying to lose weight, water will help you achieve your goals. Besides helping you burn calories, water can slow down your hunger sensation. The sensations of being hungry and thirsty are triggered by the same part of the brain. This means that often when you are hungry, you might actually be thirsty. Try having a glass of water when you feel the pangs of hunger, wait 10 minutes and then see if you still crave a greasy hamburger!

After you’ve had your glass of water, and you find yourself still hungry, aim to eat food that has high water content. Such foods are fruit and vegetables, soups, smoothies, salads, fruit salads and veggie sticks. Steer clear of heavy, salt laden foods such as anything that is processed or over cooked.

Water for health

Besides weight loss there are a swag of other ailments that water can abate. Water helps alleviate headaches, helps reduce blood pressure, helps reduce cholesterol, decreases the risk of some cancers, reduces your risk of getting kidney stones, cushions and lubricates your joints and muscles and reduces your risk of disease and infection. Water can also help with depression, heartburn, ulcers, diabetes, asthma cramps, dizziness and back pain. Let’s not forget that drinking plenty of water will help rehydrate sun-weathered skin.

Ways to drink more water

Sometimes it’s difficult to find ways to drink water and many people find plain water very boring to drink. Here are some tips for making water drinking more pleasurable.

• Get fun to go containers – Always have water with you or in the car. Get good size, fun colored containers. The larger the container, the fewer the refills.

• Use straws, add ice and fresh lemon juice.  Make this glass of water feel like a treat.

• It takes 21 days to make or break a habit. Change your daily habits now! Wake up and go straight for a glass of water. Make it a rule to order water (with or without lemon) when you go out to lunch instead of a diet soft drink or even mineral or soda waters which can be high in salt.

• Always have cold water on hand ready to drink. Make it easy. It is always easier to make the right choices when you have planned ahead and are prepared.

• Try herbal teas or hot water with added juice. Add ginger for improved circulation or honey and lemon for a tasty immune booster.

• Have a shot glass on your desk at work. And on the hour every hour, down two to four shots!

It’s that easy… Stay hydrated and stay healthy!

That is the question.

No matter where you look, the answer is consistently opposed. When trying to lose weight, drinking coffee may be a hindrance or a help. We suspect that moderation may be the key.

Coffee and training

In the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, it was found that a swift cup of coffee pre workout boosted weight lifting ability. The average increase for bench press was five pounds and the reason is that caffeine leads to better muscle activation.

Coffee and Calories

But not all coffee is created equal. Think of the difference between a short black and a chilled slushy style coffee. The short black had only 5 calories/15 kilojoules and 0 grams of fat per serve. The chilled coffee can have as many as 625 calories/2620 kilojoules with a whopping 31 grams of fat per serve.

To put this into perspective one coffee has the potential to be the equivalent of eating 100gms of chocolate! Not great if you are trying to lose weight.

Coffee Stimulation

There’s no denying that you feel more alert after having a cup of coffee. Coffee is a stimulant, which means it that it stimulates the adrenal glands which in turn releases the ‘fight or flight’ hormone in your body. When this hormone subsides there is release of insulin into your body. This then alters your blood sugar levels leaving you craving sugary foods.

Side effects

Over consumption of coffee can lead to a variety of health problems. Indigestion, diarrhea, osteoporosis, cancer, nervousness, anxiety and insomnia are just a few. Drinking too much coffee can also affect the number and size of cysts in fibrocystic breast disease. Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and gallstones, however, may be helped by the consumption of caffeine.

Are you addicted?

If you think you drink too much coffee, or might be addicted, then a good test is if you go off it for a few days and see if you get a headache. If you do, t is a sign that your body is going through withdrawals.

If you want to try going without coffee for a while, then make sure you see your natural health practitioner, as an increase in certain vitamins, especially the B Group, will help relieve symptoms.

Coffee alternatives

It may be difficult to give up coffee, as having a cuppa can be such a social thing to do. There are different reasons why we drink coffee so here are a few alternatives to try depending on your preferred coffee taste.

For a pick-me-up try black teas, or ginseng tea, or bitter chocolate powder. If you like the warm, creamy texture of lattes, try chai rooibos or carob powder. If you are trying to replace the strong bitter taste of coffee then try dandelion tea.

None of the alternatives will ever taste like the real thing, but try them. You may be pleasantly surprised.

It always amazes us here at Lifestyles Corporate Wellness how so many businesses and individuals often operate without a definite plan leading to an ultimate goal. Often when clients ring to enquire about our services we ask them some general questions to determine exactly what level of service they require. And more often than not we receive vague answers in relation to the needs of the company and the business’s ultimate goals. Individuals too, when asked general questions, are very vague about what it is they exactly would like to achieve and by when.

It’s not rocket science that planning is the key to all success. As is repeated time and time again – you don’t get behind the wheel of a car without having the intention of arriving at a destination. And ultimately, to measure success, how do you know when you are there if you don’t know where you are going? Also, with a destination in mind, what are the requirements for getting there in one piece? You’ll need a sound vehicle, which will need fuel. You’ll need a map and you may even want to plan rest stops along the way to ensure you’re not fatigued. The list of needs could go on and on but the point is, you need to work in reverse. Find the finish and then decide on the means needed to get there.

In business the scenario is identical! You need to know where you want to be in one week, one month, three months, one year and five years. Or what is your ultimate  personal goal? Do you want to have five cars in the garage, a luxury yacht, a nice house with water views while only be working three and half days a week… Do you want to be able to travel the world and help the needy. Do you want to write books that will enthrall a generation. Do you want to be a professional athlete? Most of us only dream… and that’s where it ends.

There are no plans, no deadlines, no strategies for arriving at the finish hence a lot of people start something with no real drive and soon after fail without even getting close.

Implementing a health plan is also exactly the same. On a business level a company needs to look within the structure and assess what is best going to suit its staff. Does your business have an absenteeism problem? Are a lot of your people sick on a regular basis? Are a lot of your staff overweight or obese? Do a lot of your staff look very stressed and tired? Are they working long hours without having adequate family time? Do a lot of your rush to a 10 minute lunch period and eat poorly?

It’s one thing to say we want to implement a health program, but what do you really need? At Lifestyles Corporate Wellness we will help you identify the needs of your staff by conducting a Health Audit, and then we will advise on the appropriate course of action. We will work with you on looking at ultimate goals… For example “By July 2010 we will have 60% of the staff to have lowered their skin fold measurements by 10%.” Or “By December 2011 we will have lowered absenteeism by XX%.” When we know the goals we can plan the road to success! It may be regular seated massage, or twice weekly outdoor fitness sessions, or an online nutrition service… Whatever it is, by implementing the correct strategy according to what will best suit your staff, you know that you will be getting great return on your investment because the results will show specific and measurable improvement!

So before you go searching for a Wellness Plan for either yourself or your business, ask yourself and your team what it is that you want to achieve and by when… Or if you are still in the dark call us and we’ll do the rest!

Healthy staff equals healthy profits!

– Wayne Dart CEO LIfestyles Corporate Wellness

• Next Week: How to create a healthy culture within your business.

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Is your team really fit for work? While plenty of business owners put various health initiatives on their To-do lists, too few follow through properly. As Rosemarie Milsom discovers, raising your team’s heart rate can also raise morale and productivity. How’s that for ROI?

Interview: Dr James Dimmock Exercise Psychologist

The statistics say it all: the desk-and-computer-dominated workplace is contributing to our bulging waistlines. More than half the population is not meeting the daily minimum recommended level of daily exercise and the average Australian desk worker puts on one kilogram every year through inactivity. Instead of the 10,000 steps a day needed to maintain a healthy weight, desk workers take only 3500.

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THE cost of Australia’s obesity crisis has soared to $58 billion a year as workplaces, hospitals and taxpayers bear the burden of the nation’s growing weight.

An Access Economics analysis to be released today shows the financial costs of the epidemic have almost tripled from $21 billion in 2005.

It also reveals a staggering 137% increase in cases of type 2 diabetes caused by excess weight. More than 240,000 Australians now suffer from the debilitating condition as a direct result of obesity. Chronic diseases such as heart disease, osteoarthritis and some forms of cancer have also soared as waistlines have expanded.

It is vital for individuals to take care of themselves and be conscious about leading a healthy lifestyle that includes both eating well and exercise. There needs to be a balance with the amount of calories coming into the body and calories being used!

Within our fast paced society today we have technology at our fingertips and it is easy for us to live a lifestyle that is more sedentary then in the past. It is easy to grab take away on the way home for dinner instead of cooking for the family and it is easier to be supersized by the portion sizes society presents us, it is more convenient to even order your groceries online today then go to the shops and get them yourself!

But with these options we need to consider is convenience the cheaper option in the long run. And as parents the food choices we make will influence the lifestyle habits our children develop.

We know parents are in an uphill battle with environmental and social factors in our society today influencing the kids to become more inactive, such as playstations, internet and stranger danger. All of these contributing factors are affecting our kids today to become more sedentary and inactive but we can not just say these factors are to blame… If the government and society really wants to make a difference to the fast growing rate of obesity, it is time to step up and take action.  Let’s make a difference in our lifestyle today. But without change there is no change.

And individuals need to make the decision to live a healthier lifestyle. However for some the decision may be a difficult one as they are not too sure of where to start making the changes in their lifestyle.

Some may be afraid to go on a diet as they know that it is only a short stint and after the diet they are back to their old habits.  You see… to live a healthy life it is all about making lifestyle choices in your everyday life. It is not about a short diet then jumping back into the old eating habits, it is about making changes and changing unhealthy lifestyle habits in the everyday life for a healthier future. And this is the reason why we wanted to take action and help families, parents and kids to lead a healthier longer life! We wanted to provide families with a simplified guide to a healthy family that they could implement and use. We spent years researching and developing our book called “Please Mum, Don’t Supersize Me!” which was released in all good book stores throughout Australia earlier this year. It is an awareness atlas and an essential guide for a healthy child. Don’t believe me, see what others have said about it!

 “It’s the most successful diet of all… no pills or potions”A Current Affair – March 2008 

 “It’s a timely and worthwhile publication” Alan Jones, 2GB Radio

“A valuable resource and essential reading for families”  Alan Thompson, head coach, Australian Swim Team

 “It is a perfect fit for families who want to lead more healthy lifestyles” Christopher Guerriero founder & CEO of the National Metabolic & Longevity Research Center 

We have all heard many statistics after statistic that are released but it is time for action. And we are here to take action and make a difference to assist with this growing epidemic. And as a follow up to our book “Please Mum, Don’t Supersize Me!”, we are currently in the final stages of finishing the development of a new program called “The Secrets of a Healthy Family” where we share with you what we believe are the 7 Secrets of a Healthy Family whilst also interviewing 7 health and wellness experts from around the world with their views. Because we are about helping individuals to live a long, healthy, happy life! 

Richard & Joey Marc

Lifestyles Corporate Wellness Executive personal trainer Gordon Campbell shares with us his healthy food & lifestyle tips

On recent trip to a seaside location, I discovered that a “portion” of fish and chips these days consists of two very large battered fish fillets and a A4 sized carton spilling over with chips!

What are the correct portion sizes of a meal?

The best rule of thumb for portion sizes is to take a regular sized dinner plate. You fill ¼ of the plate with lean protein or legumes, ¼ of the plate with whole grain carbohydrate & the remaining ½ of a plate with steamed vegetables or salad (with lots of colour). Don’t have seconds but keep the leftovers for a healthy lunch the next day. Also avoid picking before and after your meal, as the saying goes “pickers wear big knickers”.

Recipe of the Week – Avocado Pesto Dip

2 x Avocadoes peeled and stoned

2 x Garlic cloves crushed

Juice from 2 limes

Large handful of fresh basil roughly chopped

Large handful of flat leaf parsley roughly chopped

¼ cup of pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

½ cup of pine nuts

1 teaspoon of honey

Place all ingredients into a blender or food processor and process until smooth. Serve as a dip with vegetable sticks or use as a spread on sandwiches instead of butter, margarine or mayonnaise

For more infomation go to www.corporatewellness.com.au or simple go to our personal trainers sydney videos