Time management is crucial to a healthy life. Without time management skills, our time is not our own and we will most likely fail in our health initiatives. Other people will avail themselves of our days, and our goals and aspirations will fall to the side.

Family

One of the most difficult situations to find ourselves in is when a close relative thinks that their plans are more important than our healthy life choices. I had a grandmother who was normally a selfless person but she didn’t understand my health initiative and she tried everything in the world to hinder me from working out or even going to the doctor, if that doctor’s appointment interfered with something that she wanted to do. It was a hard thing to ride off into the sunset with Maw Maw mad as a wet settin’ hen. She could also play the pitiful, neglected little ole’ lady pretty well, but I pushed through and when she was down for 5 weeks and nobody else in the family was able to care for her, I’m the one who was strong enough to do that for 24 hour a day, 7 days a week for 5 weeks. After that period, I had to insist on going home. Again, she didn’t like it, but she lived 3 more years independently, so she was more than able to do that because she had benefited from my ability to stick with her for a while. We must make a stand for our health because trust me, nobody, and I mean NOBODY else is going to do that.

“Free ” Time

There are so many distractions to us reaching our goals. The secret to success is to decide what we want. Keep it simple. Do that and nothing else. Just do what’s important. Yes, there are exceptions, but the key word here is exception. It has to be a limited time event if it pulls us away from our goals and we have to take control and reinvent our lives and make health our first priority. I told a woman last night that all I do is health. I work in it and I “play” in it. It is my entire life. I benefit greatly from that decision. Instead of down time being pizza in front of the T.V., how about making it walking in a beautiful park or swimming or Zumba? Do something that fits your healthy lifestyle. If an activity isn’t good for you, it’s not going to make you feel better about your leisure hours. It will chip away at your resolve until you revert to old habits and then it will slowly destroy you. Make those “happy hours” truly happy. Find an activity that enriches your life and fill that spot with life-giving, creative moments.

Evaluate

Occasionally it’s necessary to step back and see where we are with our daily schedules. If our lives are becoming increasingly more beneficial to our overall well-being then we’re on the right track. If not, it’s time to cut the deadwood and graft in some new growth. You are your own time manager. Do yourself proud and you and everyone around you will benefit. Be strong. Be healthy. Live well! ;-*