THE ONE-MINUTE POWER BREAK COMMITMENT
INJECTING ONE-MINUTES EVERY CHANCE I GET
Mini-relaxations
Mini-sleeps
Mini-energizing
Mini-stretching
Mini-meditations (anyone can do one minute!)
A COMMITMENT FOR LIFE
We are often off living in the future. Or we are "unconscious" and living as The Gradually Boiling Frog. And sometimes we are doing what we would best do. Here I am doing what I learned from Parkinson's Law: that the time spent on something will expand to fill the amount of time allotted - or time that is simply available will suck into it the easiest, but not the best, use of my time. From this law, we learn that we must intentionally insert what we want, and it will displace something else of less worth. (Learn Parkinson's Law.)
If you are to have good health, good energy, and good "life productivity" (of happiness), you must do this for life, every time, in lieu of the alternative lower level of living life! The other must is the 10 minute break every 60-90 minutes, with at least an approximate one to two minute process of:
Moving large muscles, like your legs to waist height or close enough to touch the
knee with your hand, a minimum of 100 times, while at the same time taking really
deep breaths at any pace you want, with very brief holds - guaranteed to shift how
you feel and your energy.
This smooth your energy and your day dramatically, just by itself!
WHAT IT IS DESIGNED TO ACCOMPLISH
The one-minute break commitment is simply designed to
1. Inject into life extra minutes of doing what we would best do.
2. Actually rewiring the brain and thus our habits, so that life's good habits become more automatic and effortless.
Increases one's ability to direct attention, a key training for the brain and for success in life.
Weaves into the wiring of the brain practices that will become automatic habits.
It improves willpower also. And self-control. And self-discipline. And it does it effortlessly.
(At first, this will be invisible, as it seems you are not doing anything, but then you'll look
back at some point and see what a difference it made in your being effective in life.)
This is an extension, or modification, of the life-critical Short Pause, which is designed to stop and engage our higher brain or to relax (and rejuvenate) and send safety message to our emergency lookout system.
WHAT IT CONSISTS OF
It is simply this:
Each time I shift activities or take a break in an activity (even when I get up for another reason), I take one minute (or close to that) to:
Notice what is going on with my body/mind, especially if holding or shallow breathing
Stretch (and hold)
Do pushups (setting a minimum for the day of 50, of any fashion that you can do them)
50 squats (minimum per day)
Jump up and down
Jog in place
Breathe, especially do the superdeep breath where your raise your arms and throw back your
shoulders)
Organize something (after at least a stretch, though)
Clean up something (some people use the two-minute rule: if something takes less than 2
minutes, do it right away, as it is no hassle and nothing to be impatient with)
Relax, let go of all muscles (break the typical building of tension involved in unconsciously
'holding', makes one tire less)
Rest, the one-minute "nap" (you do this when you notice you feel tired)
Meditate
Close your eyes (or lean forward and do "palming", with palms over your eyes)
Note that this is in addition to assuring that I have the proper concentrated exercise time.
Yes, when you wait for the 60 seconds to be "completed", it seems like a long time, but you'll never notice that the minute is missing from your time. But you WILL notice how much better you feel!
If you want to continue past the minute, that's fine, too, if that works for you. (I find it makes cleaning up or organizing almost effortless and 'no sacrifice'.)
WHAT IT DOES FOR ME
This injects more health into my life. It injects more energy. It makes me stronger and looser. It elevates my mood, mechanically. It ups my metabolism, lowers my need for sugar, and I will weigh less. It gives me a breather, metaphorically and actually. It actually increases my perspective on life. (It also removes the settling of toxins and other problems resulting from sitting too long.)
HOW LONG IS THE COMMITMENT FOR?
For the rest of my life.
It is a healthy thing to do, no matter what age I am. It can always be fit in. The return in benefits to me of the small effort is immense per minute, lasting into the next while also. And it takes no time at all, essentially leaving all my time intact. And it leaves me being trained for better focus and brain function!
Yes, I commit to, in every opportunity - I repeat: in every opportunity - doing the one-minute break for the rest of my life, forever, without exception.
Forever.
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INCREASED THINKING ABILITY AND A BALANCED FEELING
If we relax, we reduce tension and increase efficiency. If we allow the tension to stay, we become dysfunctional to some degree, so that our tension and body side effects actually don't just accumulate, they actually multiply more quickly. If an engine needs oil and we don't give it oil, as we let it go further it will be slightly inefficient, slightly damaging, then the oil gets worse and shavings get into it, and then it escalates to a burnt out engine.
Our bodies exist on that same spectrum, we just don't notice as much as we should - and sometimes the damage isn't seeable, since there is no message sent - so we are all of a sudden surprised, later, with a malady - one that we could have deduced logically, though unseen, to be produced from the neglect.
It is essential, as a part of life, to pay excellent attention to, and to correct before it goes to far "out", one's Homeostasis (High Functioning Balance). Maintain an excellent range of this and your life and functioning will be dramatically improved.
When we do exercise, we generate endorphins, which have us feel better, so the one minute of exercise generates something positive and doesn't allow atrophy to go on. It also makes the body more efficient.
Yes, one minute does that all.
Directing oneself to take the break and do the actions interrupts our normal patterns and creates a path of proactivity, which becomes a wired-in habit, but without any huge effort and certainly no battle. Our viewpoint of "doing something" and "being in charge" actually gets grooved in - from only one minute little teeny chunks, building to a huge habit.
PERIPHERY COMMENTS:
I got this idea from watching my brother jog in place or do pushups or tai chi while talking to me or other people in his family.
It might strike one as odd behavior. And it looks like multitasking, trying to be overly ambitious in achieving.
But, really, it is super-wise, and super-beneficial.
He is healthy and very slim.
Thanks, Bro, for the great insight.
