Program Topics
As you walk and eat and travel, be where you are. Otherwise, you will miss most of your life.
Buddha
According to the World Health Organization, nearly 60% of health-related problems are connected to our lifestyle. Working long hours without proper rest, inactivity, unhealthy eating habits, smoking, drinking, and stress are major causes of our deteriorating physical and mental health. Health problems such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and several types of cancer can also be attributed to our modern lifestyles. Lifestyle-related mental issues include stress, anxiety, panic attacks, and depression are also lifestyle-related issues.
So, what are we talking about here? What exactly do we mean by lifestyle? Lifestyle is the sum total of what we do on a daily basis; everything from sleep, to waking up, to the food we eat, to the thoughts we generate, to the level of physical and mental activity, to our habits, our relationships, our understanding of life, and pretty much everything. Lifestyle is not just an indicator of how comfortable and wealthy we are; it is an indication of our physical, mental and emotional health.
There was a time when life was balanced, simple, and in tune with nature. Physical activity was balanced with mental activity; we had to physically work to sustain our lives by gardening, foraging, building shelter, cutting wood, etc. Today, our lifestyle is more complex, confusing and chaotic than ever before. Unbalanced on the physical/mental scale, our minds are overworked and our physical strength is no longer necessary to sustain our lives on a daily basis. Sitting at a desk, eating store-bought food with low nutrient value, and not getting outside on a regular basis has upset our basic balance of living. With this imbalance comes stressed-out minds and weak physical bodies which pave the way for a host of avoidable diseases and health conditions.
Here and Now
Each one of us is an ocean of creativity and intelligence. Only when we learn to be still and quiet and experience moments of deep silence, can we truly tap into our deep reservoirs of creativity. The more agitated and disturbed we are, the more busy and anxious we are, the less creative and intelligent we are.
Our ability to solve complex problems and deal with different situations of life comes not from somewhere outside but from deep within us. We are the solution
‘Here and Now’ has to be our new mantra. No other skill is more important when compared to learning how to be in the present moment. When we are in the present moment, we cannot be disturbed, we cannot be afraid; we cannot be negative and pessimistic. Negativity is simply a consequence of moving away from the present moment. This present moment is the only thing that is truly positive in our lives. Let’s cherish and value it.
Today we are suffering from an overload of information and very little sense. We have paid the price for comfort and modernization with our peace of mind, health and happiness. Now, we have to make an effort to gain control over our minds and bodies. It is next to impossible for society to provide any meaningful solutions for our individual needs of happiness and wellbeing; society deals only with our external well-being. Only we can take care of our inner well-being. We need simple and effective methods to make sense of the madness of life; a systematic approach to understand our lifestyle. We need to bring some sense to all this chaos and confusion.
Our lifestyle must balance our physical, mental and emotional needs. The first priority has to be given to taking care of our mind and body. Our daily routines need to be organized around at least 30 minutes of physical exercise and 30 minutes of mental relaxation exercises. The physical exercise can be as simple as walking every day or engaging in a sport that you enjoy. Even dancing to your favorite music for 30 minutes every day is physical exercise! Mental relaxation comes through meditation and sitting quietly. We’ve got to be responsible for our minds and bodies; there is no one else in charge there. Conscious choices have to be made to not indulge in activities and habits that adversely affect our mind and body. Most of our lifestyle-related problems can be easily taken care of by eating healthy, exercising, being mindful, and getting enough rest.
There are two very important aspects to our lifestyle; what we do and how we do. What we do is simply a matter of our lifestyle choice. Depending on the conditions of our birth, our upbringing, desires, interests, and choices, we are living a certain kind of life. Most of the solutions prescribed for our lifestyle-related problems are concerned with changing the ‘what’ aspect of our lives. The root of the problem of our lifestyle is not the ‘what’ but the ‘how’.
We can simply go on endlessly changing our activities and waste enormous amounts of time and money in doing so, but the quality of our lives will not change. By now, you must have figured out the importance of regular exercise, eating healthy and getting adequate rest to take care of your basic physical needs. Let’s explore the deeper dimension of ‘how’ which can tremendously improve the quality of our lives. How we do something is infinitely more important than what we do. How we do something involves our ability to be rooted in the present moment to perform an activity without becoming unnecessarily disturbed and agitated by its results and consequences. A lot of our lifestyle-related problems are because we are simply not available to the experience of life.
Forever is composed of nows.
Emily Dickinson
Methods & Techniques
Try this exercise for yourself: Next time you are involved in an important task at home or at work, just pause, bring yourself to the present moment, and tell yourself to observe each and every aspect of what you are doing, without thinking about the past or the future. Bring your Self to your actions. If you practice this regularly, you can see for yourself how much difference this can make in helping you to remember things and organize your activities. Program participants who practice mindfulness regularly have reported that their work efficiency has improved because they make fewer mistakes. Of course, this can improve your personal life as well. Being efficient and organized saves headaches and turmoil both in our professional and personal lives. Being in the present moment can make all the difference.
Life will always throw challenges at us. By its very nature, life is unpredictable. Learning how to be in the present moment to handle our daily challenges is the key to overcoming lifestyle-related problems. When we are faced with a challenge, either we can get agitated and disturbed or deal with it in a calm and composed manner. If we regularly practice watching all our actions and activities, it is less difficult to deal with daily challenges. Lack of awareness is the main cause of our mental disturbances. Building our awareness through the practice of mindfulness and meditation will give us the strength we need to deal with the difficult situations of life. Instead of constantly trying to change our lifestyle, let’s change the way we do things. Let’s bring in focus, awareness, and consciousness to overcome our problems and transform our lives.
Questions For Reflection
Question 1: What are the main causes of lifestyle-related problems?
Question 2: How can we take care of our inner being?
Question 3: What is meant by “mindfulness”?
Question 4: What is meant by how we do things?