Motivation, Daily Movement to Help Sleep, and Being a Team Player
Hi Folks! Connor and Nick here from Healthy Living With Nick and Connor. Thanks again for being on our email list, it means a lot, and we are excited to share our weekly email with you. We hope you enjoy it! Here is what we hope you take away from this one:
Focus on working on things that you are interested in. This will help you tackle the things that you aren’t as excited about.
Moving your body during the day will help you sleep at night.
Whenever you are a part of a team or group, put the group’s mission ahead of your own personal goals. Help the team and you will end up helping yourself in the process.
Starter Mindset Tip: Focus on Things That Interest You
Motivation is an interesting concept. We think we either have it or we don’t, as if it is something that you are born with or not. Motivation is just like everything else. You can build it up with practice. Every time you do what you need to do, you are improving your motivation, especially when it is hard to do. When you push through some discomfort to get it done, you are teaching your mind that that is just what you do. When you are trying to work on your motivation, pick a goal or project that you are really interested in. We always perform better when we do the things that we enjoy. Doing this will build up your motivation muscle so you will be better equipped to tackle the stuff you want to do, and even the stuff that you have been putting off because you aren’t as interested in. When it comes to goal setting, you want to choose goals that you are really interested in as much as possible because that will set you up for success. But in life, there are always going to be things that you aren’t vibing with as much, so the more you work out your motivation muscle with the things you enjoy, the easier all of the other ones will be.
Health Recipe: Help Your Sleep and Move that Body of Yours During the Day
Timing: 1 - 60 minutes (shoot for 30 mins 5 days per week)
Level of Difficulty: Easy - Hard depending on your current activity level
Serving Size: Start small, aim for 30 minutes 5 days a week, grow from there.
Spice Level: Depends on how hard you go. No matter how spicy it is at the time, you will always feel better and more energized afterwards.
INGREDIENTS
Yourself and whatever movement you choose. Pick movements you enjoy so you look forward to it.
REASONING AND BENEFITS
Is this a sleep recipe or a movement recipe? It’s both! All areas of health impact each other, creating an amazing positive loop to keep you going and improving all areas of health. The better you sleep, the more energy you will have to exercise during the day, and the more exercise you do during the day, the better you will sleep at night. What came first, the chicken or the egg? In this situation, whatever you want to come first. Start with focusing on some good sleep, or start by getting out there and moving that body of yours to set yourself up to get that better sleep. We don’t care where you start, but at the end of the day, just get out there and move during the day. Find a time of day that works best for you to sneak in a little movement. A lunchtime walk/workout, a mid morning workout, a quick exercise after work, whatever works best for you to do consistently. The benefits to this are staggering for your mental health, your body, your energy levels, your nutrition, and oh ya, this is the sleep section, your sleep will be unreal. Aim for at least 30 minutes of movement 5 days a week, and build from there if you can. If that seems daunting, start with 1-5 minute sessions and build up. Work on your consistency and build it into your routine before you worry about timing. So let’s get on this positive, self-sustaining loop by getting out there and moving during the day to set yourself up for some high quality sleep.
INSTRUCTIONS
Let’s set the scene you for with two options:
You have just woken up, you have a little bit of time before work or before school. Let’s just sneak in 5-10 minutes of morning movement to get the body ready for the day, in the sunlight for maximum benefit. Then find a time later in the day to get in at least 30 minutes of movement. If 30 minutes seems like too long, crush another 10 minutes here to get you into the routine, and then work up from there!
You have just woken up, you have some time before any responsibilities in the morning and you may not have time later in the day to exercise. Don’t stop to think, let’s crush some morning movement baby! Move for at least 30 minutes if you can, again, if that feels like too much, start small and work your way up.
The more you can move during the day, the better you will sleep. Other options: walk during lunch, walk during phone calls for work, do micro 5 minute workouts throughout your day, do a fun workout with your kids before or after school to get them involved.
Do not get hung up on the idea that you have to go to the gym for an hour and a half every day to get the benefits of exercise. Just start moving your body, whenever you can, for however long as you can, and see how much your sleep improves.
PRO TIP: The later it gets in the day, the more tired you will be, and the harder it will be to psych yourself up for some movement. DO yourself a favour and fit in your movement before dinner to give yourself a better shot at making it happen.
*We all have to stop overthinking exercise. This leads to inaction because we don’t know what to do. Don’t think of exercise, think movement. Just get out there and move your body. Build up from wherever you are comfortable.
**Do this movement outside to get the added benefits from getting fresh air throughout the day.
***Have fun with it, what kind of movement have you done in the past that you enjoyed? Try it out again!
Dessert Quote:
“The world of mountaineering has a term called expedition behaviour. This involves putting the group’s goals and mission first, and showing the same amount of concern for others as you do for yourself.” — Adam Grant, “Give and Take,” p. 74
Now we want to hear from YOU! Please let us know what you think of today’s newsletter, and send us an example of how you applied the health recipe to your life! We would love to share how you introduced this week’s recipe into your life’s unique menu. Thanks and have a great Sunday!
Sources:
Learn more about how to work better with others:
Grant, A. (2013). Give and take: Why Helping Others Drives Our Success. Penguin.
