Are you familiar with the book, “Zen and the Art of Archery?” For those who are not it is about a technique to improve the skills of archers in ancient Japan.

The targets were suspended and swung from side to side. The archer would stand the required distance from the target, but instead of shooting arrows at the target would visualize the process of shooting the arrows. He would see himself notch his arrow, draw his bow and release his arrow. In his mind he would see the arrow hit the target, dead center.

When I started to study archery this book was recommended to me. I was already familiar with visualization so knew it would work.

Some years ago this concept was taken to another level. A group of professional basketball players were divided into two groups. One group went to the gym every day and practiced the skills of the game. The other group did not set foot in a gym, they spent the same amount of time but practiced only in their minds.

At the end of the experiment both groups came together to see how each group had improved. To the surprise of all, the group that practiced only in their minds out performed the group that went to the gym everyday.

What does this mean? Well, it goes to show the awesome power of the mind. The mind cannot distinguish between what is real and what is not. The mind can be a powerful tool in manifesting our desires and for improving the skills we use daily.

We visualize all the time. For the untrained mind most of the visualizations are what we call daydreaming. If we train our mind so that we direct the visualizations, we can improve the quality of our lives and bring more joy and peace.

In the Ultimate Healthy Lifestyle we recognize this and know that visualization can be used to improve our sports skills, improve our health, bring us more money or improve any other area of life.

In order to use visualization to your best advantage you must become disciplined. The best way to do this is to practice meditation regularly. Meditation is of course not necessary to daydream but together, Meditation and visualization is one of the most powerful tools available to us to improve our lives.

Use the screen of your mind to project healthy, happy movies that will transform your reality into the life of your dreams.

TODAY’S TIP: If you want to improve a skill use visualization. Practice daily. You may surprise yourself.

Can you see it now?

Have you noticed that you have an ongoing dialogue in your mind? This is self talk. What you say to yourself determines who you are. What are you telling yourself?

In the Ultimate Healthy Lifestyle we recognize that this dialogue is manifesting our future. For many this dialogue is negative. They tell themselves that they want a new car, but cannot afford one. People may go to a job interview and their mind is telling them that they are not qualified or other reasons why they will not get the job.

What you tell yourself will come true. So, if you tell yourself you cannot afford a new house. It will be so. If you tell yourself that you are going to have a new house, with belief, your universe will help you get it.

The best example of the power of self talk is Mohamed Ali. When he was 11 or 12 years old he used to stand in front of the mirror and tell himself how great he was and how his life was going to be when he grew up. He didn’t know anything about self talk but everything he told himself came true.

That is the power of self talk and it works without fail whether we realize it or not. With the awareness of its power we can use it for our good. We can make positive self talk a habit. We can make a habit of telling ourselves how great we are and placing emphasis on our strengths. We can also use self talk to work on strengthening our weaknesses.

Start when you first get out of bed. Look at yourself in the mirror and tell yourself good things about you. Continue this all day and go to bed telling yourself how successful and happy you are.

Remember that the mind can not tell what is real and what is not. It will believe anything you tell it. You only have to keep telling yourself and in time you will believe it. In this way we can persuade ourselves to believe that which we want to believe.

Set your intention to engage only in positive self talk. Once that intention is firmly in place you can then start to cultivate the habit of positive self talk.

At first you will have to think about it and every time you do think of it tell yourself something good. Tell yourself how successful you are and how good you feel. If you consciously do this for a while it will become habit and you no longer have to think about it. Repetition becomes habit.

Use the big four daily and your life cannot help but improve. The big four are meditation, visualization, affirmations, and positive self talk.

TODAY’S TIP: Seek ways to improve your life daily. The more you seek the more you will find.

Are you ready for a new life?

We have talked about meditation and visualization. There is one more technique that ranks along side these two. It is affirmations. These three; meditation, visualization, and affirmations, make an unstoppable team in manifesting one’s reality.

This is so important that I am going to use two quotes today.

“As long as you know what it is you desire, then by simply affirming that it is yours — firmly and positively, with no ifs, buts, or maybes — over and over again, from the minute you arise in the morning until the time you go to sleep at night, and as many times during the day as your work or activities permit, you will be drawn to those people, places, and events that will bring your desires to you.” ~Scott Reed ~

I have included the second quote because I think it sums it up. It is the complete explanation of how affirmations work. You can program your mind to believe just about anything. This is why there are cults whose beliefs are so far away from the normal concepts.

To use affirmations successfully you must be sure you are programing something that you really want. Affirmations must be concise and simply worded. Use as few words as possible but be sure that your phrase is inclusive of your idea.

Word your affirmations as if they have already happened. Example; I am, not I will be. The two most powerful words in affirmations are, I am. As I run I repeat; I am healthy, I am wealthy, I am wise.

While you are exercising is a good time to repeat your affirmations. Synchronize the words to your steps or movements. I use one word for one step. Find your rhythm. Speak your sentence on the exhale. It can be out loud or spoken in your mind. You want to make sure the sentence you are using can be spoken in one exhale.

Start your day by looking into your eyes in the mirror and repeating your affirmations. End your day the same way. Then repeat your affirmations through out the day as often as you can.

There is a train of thought that believes that you must repeat your affirmation at least 36,000 times for it to become effective. So you can see that the more often you repeat it during the day the sooner you will start seeing results.

Here is a technique to help you get the benefit of your affirmations sooner. Record your affirmations on an endless loop tape, like the ones in some answering machines. Purchase a Pillow speaker and play your affirmations while you sleep. Your mind is most receptive during sleep.

Here is an affirmation to start with, until you have decided on your personal ones:

“Today, I recognize my own strength and power and have the courage to do things I have never done before. I am full of belief, both in myself and my abilities and in the help which surrounds me at every turn. I am courageous, strong and capable and I can do whatever it is I wish to do.”

This affirmation is too long to repeat while exercising but could be recorded and played at night.

TODAY’S TIP: Write out your affirmations on 3 x 5 cards and keep them with you during your day. This will make it easy to read until you have memorized them.

What will you affirm?

I think that one of the most difficult things we face in creating our dream life is the ability to stay focused. We are continually distracted by things going on in our lives. Also our minds roam from one thing to another, quite often beyond our control.

This can make it very difficult because it is necessary to remain focused on our dreams and aspirations in order to make them a reality. The more time we devote on our endeavors the better our chances of success.

This is why it is important to cultivate an attitude of perseverance and project our vision into the future. It is also important that we not spend too much time in the future because everything happens in the now. There is a fine line between living in the now and spending too much time planning for the future.

It is best to set aside some time everyday to sit with ourselves and project into the future. Only 10 or 15 minutes is necessary, once or twice a day. During these times see your life as you want it to be. Make it like a movie and see yourself preforming some task or experiencing some event. Make it as real as possible by seeing it, smelling it, hearing it and tasting it.

As you do this consistently you will notice that it becomes more detailed and clear. This is how things begin to be projected into your reality and become a part of your life.

If you find that picture changes often it is an indication that you do not have clarity of vision. If that is the case you must rethink your goals and desires to make absolutely certain that it is something you truly want. Do not be afraid of change but be weary of constant change in your vision.

You must be consistent. Stick with one thing long enough for it to work. If you cannot stick with it, it may mean that you do not believe in it or yourself. It can also mean that you are afraid of success or failure. If you feel that this is the case be honest with yourself and take steps to work through it.

The greatest tool one has to maintain focus is meditation. Meditation, if consistently practiced, leads to control over one’s mind and thoughts. With control it is easier put forth the discipline needed for success.

When you are projecting your vision into the future it is not meditation, it is visualization. Visualization and meditation are different, although they can be practiced in the same sitting. It is important that both be practiced each day.

TODAY’S TIP: Write out a scenario of how it will be when you have achieved your goals. Use this as your scene for visualization.

Where will you be in five years?

Today we want to talk about how to re-enforce and strengthen our Chi or life force. When our life force weakens or becomes restricted in flow it results in sickness. The stronger your life force the larger your field of influence is and the more service you are able to perform.

I also want to point out that the stronger your life force or Chi, the more you live your life in love and peace. Your Chi connects with and is a part of source energy, which is love. This is why strengthening your Chi leads to spiritual and personal growth.

The basis of maintaining a strong Chi is right living. Taking care of yourself, physically, mentally and emotionally.  Eating a healthy diet, exercise and maintaining a calm and peaceful life.

A healthy diet and exercise speak for themselves. Maintaining a calm and peaceful life may take some explanation. Meditation is probably the best way to reach and maintain peace and calm in everyday living.

I am not going to go into a lot of detail on diet, exercise, and meditation because information on these subjects is readily available. I do encourage you to take time to research the topics and make them a part of your daily living.

Learning and practicing a discipline strengthens your Chi. The disciplines I am talking about are QiGong, which I practice, yoga, Pilate’s, or any of the martial arts. Choose the one that best suits you and make it a daily practice. You will feel your life force as it becomes stronger.

Breathing is one very simple way of strengthening your Chi. By breathing I mean abdominal and deep breathing.

In order to do deep breathing correctly it must start with abdominal breathing. We have become a society of shallow breathers. We breathe with our chests. If you watch a newborn baby you will notice that the baby will breathe with their abdomen.

In abdominal breathing the abdomen expands and retracts and not the chest. To determine how you breathe place one hand on your chest and the other hand on your abdomen. Breathe normally and notice which hand moves. If the hand on your chest moves you are a shallow breather.

If you are a shallow breather practice abdominal breathing until it becomes habit. To practice deep breathing stand with your spine straight, knees slightly bent and arms at your side.

As you inhale start abdominal breathing taking in as much air as possible. Then without hesitating start to open the chest as you continue bringing in air. When you have taken in as much air as possible at this point raise your shoulders slightly and gently force in much air as possible.

Hold your breath for a moment then start to exhale. Reverse the process. Lower your shoulders, then deflate you chest and finally collapse the abdomen.

Establish a rhythm of breathing so that your inhale takes the same time as your exhale. you will also feel energized by deep breathing.

TODAY’S TIP: Make a habit of 4 or 5 minutes of deep breathing when you first get out of bed in the morning. This will raise you energy level and get your day off to a good start.

How do you feel in the morning?

You are the center of your universe. You decide what type of world your universe will be. It relates to “what you give out is what you get back.” Are you living in the type of world you want to live in?

If you are not living in the type of world you want to live in, why not? We are on this planet to learn and experience. We choose our experiences with the choices we make each day. With each decision we are faced with many different possibilities. It is up to us to choose the one that will lead us in the direction we want to go.

In the Ultimate Healthy Lifestyle we realize that the choices we make today will be reflected in our tomorrows. So how do we make the best possible choices?

The main way we make the best choices is to re-connect with our true self or spirit. We must believe that our Universe will take care of us and get in touch with that inner guidance. That means getting out of our own way.

We have to transcend our ego and lower mind. In the Ultimate Healthy Lifestyle we realize that in  listening to our inner guidance there are two voices within us.

When we ask ourselves for guidance the first voice we hear will give us a thousand reasons for or against something. The reasons will mostly seem logical. However this is the voice of ego and cannot be trusted. It wants to control the situation and will mislead you if that is what it takes to maintain control.

When you learn to silence that voice you will hear a tiny little voice. This voice will answer questions directly with no long explanations. This is the voice of true spirit. This voice when followed will always work for you best good.

When getting in touch with the voice of spirit we must accept that the answers we are given will not always seem logical. If we have the courage to follow the advice given we will find that all will work out. It may not work out as we would like it but it will always be for our highest good.

Another thing that will help us make the best choices is to use the world around us. We are mirrors for each other. The things we see in others are things that are in ourselves. If we dislike something in another it tells us that there is a need to address that in ourselves.

We are responsible for our lives and our lives only. When we address that which we see in others in ourselves it disappears in the other. At least in your world.

Work on perfecting self and you work on perfecting the world. Give love and you get love. This is how to live a life of fulfillment and growth. It is your choice.

TODAY’S TIP: Use meditation to get in touch with that tiny voice of spirit. Then follow your heart.

Can you hear it?

We hear a lot of talk about all humankind being connected, that humanity is one. Well it has now been proven to be true. Not only is all humanity connected with one another but everything in the Universe is connected.

Quantum physics is now able to measure the threads of the net that connects all things. It has been named the “Mind of God” or the “Divine Matrix” This is the web that connects every atom and particle of the Universe.

Each action we take, no matter how small, sends energy along those strands from ourselves to others and the planet. We cannot imagine how many people are effected by our actions. Just as when the butterfly beats it wings it is felt on the other side of the planet, so to with our actions.

In the Ultimate Healthy Lifestyle we recognize this fact and we monitor our thoughts and actions to do the least damage and the most good. Thoughts are energy and therefore has impact as does our actions.

This is why it is necessary to live a disciplined life. Disciplined as far as monitoring our thoughts and actions. Our thoughts are the most important because everything begins in the mind.

In the Ultimate Healthy Lifestyle we try to live by to old saying, “if you don’t have anything good to say, don’t say anything. We remember that what we put out we get back.

Whatever energy we send out on the web of life we get back in like energy. If we send anger, we get anger. If we send love, we get love.

The thing that many people do not understand is that that energy does not have to come back from the place we sent it. In other words if we are angry at someone that anger may not be returned by them. We could get that anger back at another time from another person.

In our universe all things are balanced. That is what Karma is all about. What you give out, you get back. You plant the seed and it gives you its fruit.

This is why I strongly recommend that everyone practice meditation. Meditation is probably the single most powerful technique to gain control over the body and mind. Once control is accomplished it opens unimaginable doors into spirit.

You are a spiritual being having a physical experience on earth. The veil is lowered in life so we forget who we are. Meditation will sometimes give us a glimpse through that veil. The more aware of our true self we become, spirit, the better human beings we become.

We can sometimes see that in young children. They communicate with unseen beings and have imaginary playmates. I knew a woman whose daughter ,when she started talking, told her that  she was 4000 years old and named the planet she came from.

The woman was so freaked out that she forbade her daughter to talk about it. Years later when the woman opened her mind to the possibility she asked her daughter about it. Her daughter had forgotten it.

Practice meditation and perhaps you will get a glimpse into spirit. It is worth the effort because even if you don’t your life will improve. Guaranteed!

TODAY’S TIP: If you want to learn how to meditate join a meditation group. There is probably one near you as there are groups in most cities and many times they are free.

What are you sending out on the web of life?

There are many different techniques of meditation. However they all have the same purpose and goals. The reason people meditate may differ and encompass only part of those goals. All however agree that the benefits of meditation are many.

We cannot cover all the techniques of meditation but with a little effort you will be able to find the one that suits you best.  In this post I will cover a couple of techniques that are easy to learn.

The first is called Mindfulness Meditation. I personal like this method because it teaches that one would benefit from living their life in a continual state of mindfulness. Mindfulness meaning being fully aware of everything that is going on around you and in you.

To practice mindfulness meditation pick a quiet place where you will not be disturbed. If you want to enhance the mood you could light a candle, use appropriate aroma therapy, and or play some peaceful, soothing music.

You can sit on the floor cross legged or it that is not comfortable sit in a chair with your feet flat on the floor. The key to mindfulness meditation is to be aware of your breathing as you empty your mind of all thoughts. Simply notice your breath as you inhale and exhale.

Feel your breath as it goes in and out of your body. Feel it as it goes from your nostrils to you lungs and out . Just keep concentrating on breathing and if your mind interferes with that, notice what you are thinking about then refocus on your breathing.

That is all there is to it. If you are just starting out do this for 5 or 10 minutes and add time as it becomes comfortable to 20 t0 30 minutes.

Another way of meditating is to use a mantra, a word or a group of words.  You can use any word you chose. A good mantra or word is OM. Follow the direction for the mindfulness meditation but instead of following your breath repeat the word you have chosen.

As you exhale say the word or words. If you are choosing a group of words you do not want to use a sentence that you cannot repeat in one exhale. Then inhale and repeat the words on exhale. That is all there is. Simple isn’t it?

In both types of meditation you want to measure you breathing so the time of your inhale is the same as the time of your exhale.

If there is anyone out there that would like to experience meditation in a retreat setting let me know. I will give you the name of a program that holds 10 day meditation retreats. They do not charge a set fee for these retreats but ask for donations. I have done the retreat and can tell you it is an amazing experience.

TODAY’S TIP: Periodically during your day stop and try to notice everything that is going on around you. Each time you practice this you will notice more. This is mindful living.

Will you practice.

There is a lot of talk and information about meditation available. I will not bore you with a lot of detailed in depth explanation of meditation. But, I do believe that everyone would benefit from its practice. Here are some of the benefits that come from regular practice of meditation:

• Calms the mind.
• Relaxes the body.
• Helps eliminate stress.
• Helps control your thoughts.
• Aids mind, body health and wellness.
• Brings clarity and awareness.

These are only some of the benefits of meditation. There are many more as you will discover once you have been practicing for awhile. Overall life just seems to flow easier to those who meditate.

Meditation is easy to begin but often very hard to continue. The reason for this is that in the beginning the mind and body will fight you because the mind does not want to be controlled. I suggest that you commit to six months of practice with no expectations.

The reason for that is it may take two or three months to feel that you are making any progress. At first your mind will wander and your body will become restless. You must let them know that you are serious and this is not just another phase that you will try for a while then give up.

When the mind wanders simply notice what you are thinking about and refocus. When the body becomes restless move a little or adjust your posture. Do not quit. Set a time length and sit there for that time, no matter how restless you become.

Begin with at least 5 minutes, but no more than 20. When you are able to sit for 5 minutes without becoming restless then go for 10 minutes and so on. You can sit on the floor on a pillow with your legs crossed if able or you can sit in a chair with your feet flat on the floor and hands on your thighs.

Refocus your mind whenever you need to. Do not worry about how often this happens. As you progress it will happen less often, until you are able to spend the time with a completely still and calm mind.

One thing that will help is to meditate at the same time and the same place daily. Once your mind and body except that you are not going to give up they will start to help you.

As I said, it may take several months before you are able to spend 20 or 30 minutes in complete mediation. When this happens you will start to experience miracles in your life. You will feel better, be calmer, and be able to act in more decisive ways and with more clarity.

Tomorrow I will talk about some of the different techniques for meditation.

TODAY’S TIP: Start your meditation practice today. The sooner you start the sooner you will start seeing the benefits.

Will you commit the next six months to daily meditation?

It cannot be stressed too often that you are a product of your thoughts. Therefore your life and your reality depends on what you think. Most people are mentally lazy, therefore their thoughts are random and pure chance. They exhibit no control over their thoughts so their thoughts control them.

When people do not control their thoughts it is reflected in their lives. Their realities seem to be dictated by chance and are sometimes like a roller coaster, ups and downs. They are often devastated by the downs and do not recognize and appreciate the ups.

I am sure you know people who complain about anything and everything or always blame someone else for their problems. It they are close to you, as family or friend, it may be very difficult to not buy into their problems and let them bring you down.

It is important to maintain a distance from the complainers. It can be hard because there is a fine line between protecting yourself and appearing cold and uncaring. It can be as simple as saying, “I understand and I am sorry, but can we talk about some of the good things in your life.”

On the other hand, if you are able to control your thoughts you are able to have more control over your reality and your life. Things go smoother and you get better results. That is not to say that there will be no downs in your life, but those downs will not seem so incapacitating and insurmountably.

In the Ultimate Healthy Lifestyle we except the fact that you create your reality with your thoughts. It is within your power to create the reality you wish to have. This is done by controlling your thoughts.

Think only the thoughts you want to think. This may seem impossible, but with practice it becomes possible. Putting focused energy into meditation and changing your thoughts when you think of something that does not serve you is the key.

Control will not come in an instant but over time with dedication and perseverance it will become a part of your daily habits. How much are you dissatisfied with the life you are now living or how bad do you want to live the life you dream of?

TODAY’S TIP: Take a good look at where you are in life and decide if it is where you want to be or not. If not set your intention on getting to where you want to be.

Are you willing to put forth the effort?