I have always tried to "Champion" my clients, family and friends to achieve their dreams. I have often noted that Champions tell the interviewer: "It all just came together and I was so relaxed and in the moment". Focus began for them in their mind and was transferred to their body and experienced in competition. They believed they would win. We define winning as the most desirable outcome. Competitors often race the clock as much as they do their opponents. First place is sweet, but a personal best time is the sweetest victory for many. In a marathon you may have your personal best time and yet be an hour behind the overall winner. You are still a Champion. You put in the training, ate right, rested, got massage and tended to the little nagging injuries. You sacrificed hours of family time and leisure to make your new goal your highest priority. When you hit your mark and reveled in the glory of your accomplishment life became a little sweeter. Every goal you accomplished before just seems like a stepping stone to the current pinnacle.
I will borrow the Proactive behavior Theory from my psychologist who helped me focus on a career track. Small goals are set and achieved to lead to medium goals which are more difficult, but with careful planning can be accomplished as well. Ludicrous goals are those lifetime achievements that take incredible focus and a team of dedicated professionals to support your efforts in accomplishing them. Lance Armstrong is definitely a ludicrous goal setter. As I write this entry he is eying his 8th Overall Winning Podium of the Tour De France. It will take a village to propel him to that position. Good Luck Lance! Even if he retires short of 8 Tour victories he will be in the record books for several years to come and has overcome incredible odds to do it.
Now is the time for you to join me in focusing on a goal. Weight Management of ten pounds or one hundred and ten pounds can be achieved. Perhaps you are simply looking for an edge to improve your training and maximize your performance. Massage Therapy can benefit your body in ways you have not imagined possible. Have you ever taken a long walk in the woods to clear your head? Sometimes massage can be like that. You are paying no particular attention to anything and suddenly your thinking processes become clearer and you choose a course or direction. The fog lifts in your brain as the fresh air benefits every cell in your body. Massage Therapy is literally a fresh air moment on a cellular level for your body. As you relax and breath deeper without using your muscles actively, your circulatory system carries more restorative nutrients and oxygen to every organ and enlivens your entire nervous system to function at its highest natural potential with out foreign stimulants. The brain releases chemistry like an on call pharmacy to "medicate" you with your own prescriptions.
Nature's best keep secrets are unlocked through touch, diet and exercise. Babies come into this world needing love, food and movement. We never outgrow these basics. Even the disabled person needs external stimulation to keep tissues viable. Nutrition in the form of naturally sourced foods coupled with activity that increases the circulation of blood and lymph creates healthier bodies. Massage Therapy allows the body to rest and recover while continuing to benefit from movement. Tissue is manipulated, stretched, kneaded and addressed in such a fashion that the nervous system allows the pharmacy of you body to dispense the correct dose of anti anxiety chemistry. Lymphatic fluids increase in circulation and bolster the immune systems response to fight off stress hormones as well as bacterial infections. (not to be confused with the need for an anti-biotic, consult a physician if you believe you have a treatable infection)
Exercise induces the necessary increased oxygen intake. Just add water! Often after receiving a massage session clients are advised to drink more water. Good Idea! Your body has just had a work out. The muscles had the passive activity that flushed fluids and stimulated nerves. Depending on the vigor of that stimulation you may feel euphoric or energized. Water will assist your body in flushing the metabolic wastes that arise during activity, passive or active and through natural elimination (urination) relieve the body of those toxic wastes. I try to keep a case of water at the office to offer clients a "take along" flush!
