Thursday, October 4, 2007

Towards Happiness

Here are four habits that longevity experts say are at the heart of a sunny disposition—and that you can adopt, too. (an article on MSN Health today)
I edited this to meaningful excerpts and phrases. Hope you will try some of these!

1. THEY WORK THEIR CELL PHONES
Just talking on the phone to a friend has the immediate effect of lowering your blood pressure and cortisol levels... Our research shows that having good long-term relationships provides as many physical benefits as being active or a nonsmoker. Make the effort to connect with the friends you already have. Call now, and before you hang up, schedule a lunch date—personal contact is even better.

2. THEY EXPRESS GRATITUDE (WITHIN REASON)
People who write about all the things they are thankful for are optimistic about the upcoming week and more satisfied overall with their lives... They also feel physically stronger. It's hard to be bitter and mad when you're feeling grateful...

3. THEY'RE RANDOMLY KIND
Do you perform five acts of kindness in any given day? That's the number of good deeds that boosts your sense of well-being and happiness... Your karmic acts can be minor and unplanned - giving up your seat on the bus; buying an extra latte to give to a coworker. You'll find that the payback greatly exceeds the effort.

4. THEY REAPPRAISE THEIR LIVES
Yes, you can rewrite history—and feel better about yourself in the bargain. Set aside a little time each week to write about or record—or even just mentally revisit—an important event in your past. Reflecting on the experience can reshape your perception of it, as well as your expectations for the future...

It's helpful to look at the bad times as well as the good. Perhaps now that a few years have passed, you'll be able to see how that breakup or failed job opportunity opened other doors and finally forgive yourself—and your ex-boyfriend or would-be boss. Even if a memory is painful, it's good to work through it. If you can come to terms with past events, you'll be better able to handle tough times down the road. So be honest, but also go easy on yourself. Remember: You are the heroine in this tale.

I need help on #2 and #4. This first step is admitting you have a problem. :)

Walk with some short easy jogging intervals with 5 work friends - 65 minutes.
Girlie Pushups - 20
Plank - 37 count



To all my race-bound friends, have a great weekend !! :)



19 comments:

Amy@RunnersLounge said...

Great recap of that article, and thanks for the comment/support. I went back and added it at the end of the post and asked people to take your advice and look at it!

Amy
http://blog.runnerslounge.com

Wes said...

Ya know, I'm not much of a talker, but I like the other three a lot!

What? You are doing girlie pushups? OMG! I better get with the program :-)

RunToTheFinish said...

Very nice...except the phone thing, I really hate the phone but I do love seeing my friends..so maybe I should call them, huh?

J~Mom said...

Well no wonder I like my cell phone so much! I:>) Great recap there!

Scott McMurtrey said...

i don't like talking on the phone at all. maybe it's because i'm getting so darn old...

:)

Nat said...

I love that... thanks.

P.O.M. said...

Great post. I try to do those things, but I know I slip up . . . ALOT! And I can definately do more :)

Andria said...

Good suggestions. It's amazing to see how much better things get when you just look at the good stuff and not just the bad!

Pokey said...

Great stuff Nancy! See, you are the Energizer Bunny of positive thoughts! ;)

Marcy said...

This was a great article Nancy! Thanks for sharing this. I def need to work on Number #4 myself LOL

Wes, you're kidding right? You're not much of a talker?!? Or do you just mean on the phone?

Unknown said...

i'm not much of a phone talker, but the other ones are great. thx for sharing this. :)

Pat said...

No one said Energizer Nancy?

Nancy on the Run!

Iowa Nancy

Nancy's Moving Forward

Nancy's Fartlek

Nancy . . .Fast Forward

Catching up to Nancy.

I like the last one, because I believe we are all catching up to the persons we can be.

Database Diva said...

I read the MSN article with great skepticism, because I am a skeptical person. I did find the part about "active pessimists" at the end pretty funny, because I've known a few people like that. They say that happiness isn't having what you want, it's wanting what you have. Having witnessed people who could never be satisfied, I'm inclined to agree. However, this study from last year provides demographic details about the "pursuit of happiness". http://pewresearch.org/pubs/301/are-we-happy-yet

Bob - BlogMYruns.com said...

Good post... I heard this many years ago and thought its a great way to live.

"Work harder on yourself then you do on your job and everything will fall in place."

ummm this week I worked harder on my business though--oops--lol but overall I try to keep on working on myself, which is a battle !

Thanks for sharing!

Marcy said...

Nancy, I saw that Tom and Doug finished but I wondered about Jess. I saw her first 2 splits and then nothing. I hope she is OK.

Looking at the site now, it says that runners that haven't crossed the halfway point by 12:00 will will be diverted back as a precautionary measure (I guess it's REALLY hot there today)

Bill Carter said...

Very nice post Nancy.
Life can become a grind and make us kind of go through the motions without taking time to enjoy the gift that is life. Thanks for the reminder about what we can do to make it even better.

psbowe said...

That's nice list to remind us all. thanks.

akshaye said...

alright.. i probably have the most rollover minutes in the country!

but the rest are great.

Laura N said...

Neat post, thanks for the inspiration!