Delayed Gratification Scoundrel

We first talked about the Complacent Scoundrel.  This character is stuck in the status quo, never seeking what is best for herself.  The Delayed Gratification Scoundrel is stuck in a different place - the future.

Characteristics of the Delayed Gratification Scoundrel

For the Delayed Gratification Scoundrel, she's always choosing to look forward to happiness at some later date or time.  It's always a case of "I'll be happy when" with her.  She's locked into the mindset of the future situation and enjoying that new phase of her life.  This becomes a problem when she never chooses what'll make her happy NOW or when she sacrifices her present happiness for something that may never happen.  Plain and simple, the Delayed Gratification Scoundrel is unable to experience contentment in the present, causing her to remain unhappy.

Questions to Ask

When you recognize that someone is affected by the Delayed Gratification Scoundrel, here are some questions to ask in order to gauge if she's ready to return to the present.

• How has the Delayed Gratification Scoundrel helped you?
• How has it negatively affected you?
• When were you first introduced to the Delayed Gratification Scoundrel?  Was it brought to you by an outside force (family, culture, or society) or did you unconsciously accept it as your own?
• How have you been a Delayed Gratification Scoundrel in the past week?
• If there's something you'd rather be doing, can you do it instead?
• On a scale of 1-10 (10=best), how would you rate you overall level of satisfaction and happiness?
• How have you delayed your happiness in the past?  How can you achieve instant gratification?
• What's one thing you can do TODAY to have gratification and happiness in your life TODAY?

Defeating the Delayed Gratification Scoundrel

Just as with the Complacent Scoundrel, there are a variety of ways to defeat the Delayed Gratification Scoundrel.  However, these require a little more creativity to accomplish.

One big way to defeat the Delayed Gratification Scoundrel is to take time out of your day to play.  What things do you enjoy doing, that entertain and excite you?  Be artistic.  Play games with your family or friends.  Dress funky.  Do whatever enjoyable activity that helps you to nurture your inner child and get out of your own way, putting the serious you in the background for that moment in time.

Another way is to allow yourself to be in awe of life.  Take time to appreciate the little things in your environment and recognize the little things in yourself.  Return to your child-like vision of the world, observing everything.  You'll find things that you hadn't noticed before that this mind shift enables you to enjoy.

A third way is to add novelty into your life to make it more exiting.  To do this you'll have to step out of your comfort zone.  Just like with workouts you need to mix things up in the rest of your life.  I'm getting ready to do this myself in the next couple of weeks as we head to Germany to visit Benny's ailing mother.  I haven't been on a plane since 99 and don't know the language.  The whole trip is a novelty for me.

Affirmations

To keep your mind on defeating the Delayed Gratification Scoundrel, there are many affirmations that can guide you.  Pick any from the list (or choose your own), write them down, and place the affirmations around your home and workplace where they're visible to you.

I deserve all that I desire.

I desire all that I deserve.

I deserve to live the life I choose to lead.

I choose to be happy now.

I live in a limitless reality.

I accept the abundance of the Universe now.

My happiness is important to me today.

I listen to my heart.

I am in awe of my life as it stands right now.

I am balanced between work and play.

I revel in the ebb and flow of life.

The Complacent Scoundrel

Scoundrel (n): A dishonest or unscrupulous person; a rogue.

The first home study course I'm doing for the CECs through NETA is The Mind/Body Guide to Wellness,  This is worth 4 NETA CECs (not sure what it'd be worth for other certifying organizations).  The course centers around Deanna Reiter's The Nine Scoundrels.  These scoundrels lurk in our lives, sometimes obvious sometimes hidden, and tend to sabotage our happiness.  Do you recognize any of the nine scoundrels in your life or one of your loved ones?

Do any of these scoundrels get in the way of your joy? 1. Complacent - think things are good enough 2. Delayed Gratification - wait for what might make you happy 3. Addicted to Misery - enjoy complaining 4. Fear of Happiness - think too much pleasure will result in something bad 5. Martyr - put other people's joy before your own 6. Negative Thinking - assume the worst 7. Stuck in the Past - remember past wrongs & mistakes 8. Forward Thinking - live with a sense of anxiety & urgency 9. Grass is Greener - believe happiness lies outside of yourself #continuingeducation #wellnesscoach #GroupExerciseInstructor #cecs #neta #happiness #joy #mindset

A post shared by Cassandra Schmigotzki (@longandwindingroadtowellness) on Jan 25, 2017 at 6:49pm PST

Characteristics of the Complacent Scoundrel

For the Complacent Scoundrel, life is OK as is, nothing can be done to change it, and she must learn to live with life as it stands.  She is either unwilling or unable to identify the source of her unhappiness.  One of the major factors in her lack of motivation is the fear of the unknown.  From the outside observer, she appears happy, easy going, and indifferent.  She chooses whatever is second best because she accepts what's good enough.  She believes it'll be too difficult to fight her current situation to change anything.

There are a few good things associated with the Complacent Scoundrel.  She's usually a hard worker and extremely loyal.  She's also frugal but this can be taken to the extreme if she's not careful.

What prompts a person to kick the Complacent Scoundrel to the curb?  Some kind of external motivator pushes her to make a change.

Questions to Ask

When you recognize that someone is affected by the Complacent Scoundrel, here are some opening questions to ask in order to gauge if she's ready to move forward.

• How has the Complacent Scoundrel helped you?
• How has it negatively affected you?
• When were you first introduced to the Complacent Scoundrel?  Was it brought to you by an outside force (family, culture, or society) or did you unconsciously accept it as your own?
• How have you been a Complacent Scoundrel in the past week?
• On a scale of 1-10 (10=best), how would you rate your overall level of satisfaction and happiness?
• What have you settled for that's left you with less than ideal situations, people, or things?
• How can you make your life more ideal?  What's one thing that you can do TODAY to release what's not serving your highest good?

Defeating the Complacent Scoundrel

There are many things that can be done to defeat the Complacent Scoundrel.  One way is to garner conscious, independent thought to master your life.  This also allows you to see the alternatives within the areas of medicine, transportation, energy, education, business, government, economics, science, and theology.  Exploring the alternatives enables you to experience what's true for your unique self instead of solely relying on what tradition and the masses tell you.

Another way is to get your body moving with some kind of physical activity.  However, exercising only because you believe that you SHOULD can be problematic.  Intense exercise and extreme dieting hurts yourself by shocking your physical, mental, and emotional bodies.  Sticking with the SHOULDs causes you to want immediate gratification instead of gradual change.  The desire to exercise doesn't exist so it's not enjoyable.  You're also not a part of a support system to help with your accountability and progress.  All this together shows that you're not in the right mindset to truly change.

A third way to defeat the Complacent Scoundrel is to eat healthier according to what your body needs.  Being more conscious at the dinner table can help.  How can you do this?

1. Transition.  Take a moment sitting in your car to relax and leave any work problems behind before entering your home.
2. Check in with your mood.  Recognize if something's been weighing on you and take a mental step towards resolving the issue.
3. Check in with your body.  What's your body craving?
4. Sit.  If you're snacking before dinner, take the exact portion, not the whole package, with you to sit and eat.  Move yourself away from the next serving.
5. Pause and get conscious.  There are two options to work on this area.
1. Spend meal time talking with your family, keeping the conversation positive.
2. Just sit and eat.  Enjoy everything about the food...taste, smell, emotions, etc.

Affirmations

To keep your mind on defeating the Complacent Scoundrel, there are many affirmations and thought changes that guide you.  Pick any from the list below (or choose your own), write them down, and place the affirmations around your home and workplace where they're visible to you.

I create my reality.

I deserve to be happy.

I deserve a perfect job.

I deserve a perfect place to live.

I deserve respect.

Only loving, peaceful people deserve to be in my life.

Everyone in my world wants what's best for me.

The Universe supports my happiness.

I choose to be in perfect situations.

I deserve the best that life has to offer me.

I choose to live a life of excitement and awe.

I deserve an ideal relationship with myself and others.

I'm generous with myself and others.

I choose to exercise and eat well for my health.

This plan is working for me.

Exercise is enjoyable.

My metabolism is getting faster.

This is getting easier.

Sweating is good; it releases toxins.

I'm getting more flexible every day.

I have the energy to do all that I need to do.

I can accomplish anything.

I can do this today.

I'm capable in this moment, at this age.

Every healthy step I take reaps benefits.

I am my healthy weight. (visualize it)

I'm fit.  I'm healthy.  I'm strong.

Yoga vs. Pilates

While both yoga and Pilates take an integrated mind-body approach to fitness and well-being, their origins, approach to these objectives and methods differ greatly.

The emergence of mind-body classes like PiYo and Yogilates can make it difficult for people to distinguish between the two. Although the two can be pursued as complementary activities or integrated into one style, like PiYo, they are not the same.

It can be beneficial to practice each independent of the other and which one you practice depends on what you want to achieve.

The Origins

Yoga

Yoga is a spiritual practice with a physical aspect. It evolved in India 3,000 to 5, 000 years ago. Yogis, people who practice yoga, use breath work (pranayama), physical poses (asanas), meditation (dhyana) and personal practices to pursue the full integration of mind, body and spirit or samadhi. Samadhi refers to attaining the state of enlightenment, bliss, or union with the divine.

Pilates

Pilates emerged in the late 1900s, introduced to the world by its namesake, Joseph Pilates. Pilates developed his method as part of his efforts to heal himself. He suffered from physical weaknesses, rheumatic fever, asthma, and rickets, during his childhood. In his efforts to cure himself, he studied Eastern and Western forms of exercise, Greek and Roman exercise practices like wrestling, gymnastics and calisthenics as well as yoga.

How Yoga & Pilates Differ

In general, Western yoga practitioners are most familiar with the physical postures of yoga. Asanas, are only one component of an extensive system of philosophy, spiritual practices, and science. The poses are intended to build strength in the body and encourage mental focus. The asanas develop and strengthen every part of the body, joints, muscles, organs, glands, bones, and metabolism.

During yoga, the breathing is deep and continuous linked to each movement and asana throughout the practice. Yoga’s extensive and currently exponential growth in popularity in Europe, the United States, and Canada supports the development of a broad range of yoga asana styles, including the more popular styles:

• Ashtanga
• Vinyasa
• Anusara
• Hot Yoga
• Yoga Therapy
• Restorative
• Chair Yoga
•  Bikram

How Pilates Differs

 

Pilates differs from yoga in several ways. Both yoga and Pilates focus on integrating the mind and body, but Pilates does not include any spiritual pursuits. It does generally increase practitioners’ sense of well-being, but this is not its primary purpose.

Pilates also takes a less organic approach to movement. All Pilates exercises extend from the body’s core, also called the powerhouse. The powerhouse spans the center of the body from the pelvic floor to the top of the shoulders.

Pilates practitioners focus on stabilizing the powerhouse and allowing other limbs to move freely to guide the body through the Pilates regimen of movements. Pilates also incorporates the use of exercise machines to offer support and take muscles through their full range of motion with optimal levels of extension and contraction.

During Pilates, the breath is coordinated with the execution of each exercise. The primary focus of each move in Pilates is perfect execution, versus repetition of any particular move.

The Mindfulness Element of Yoga

Overall, yoga offers more than 60 different health benefits for mind, body, and soul. It reaches into every aspect on one’s life and goes way beyond fitness and physical achievement. For example, the mindfulness approach taught in yoga that is not a part of Pilates helps one to improve many elements of life, including weight loss, where you're getting in touch with the true needs of the body, such as hunger helps to reduce incidence of emotional eating or eating for any other reason but hunger.

The mindfulness aspect of yoga can be viewed as “life skills” training. In addition, this training can help deter many emotional and mental health problems, and the associated physical manifestations that result from them. Mindfulness during yoga brings calm and peace to your mind, body, and life. Through the process, you become more in touch with how you really feel, and that includes symptoms of stress. Such a heightened state of awareness allows you to better manage the triggers and affects that stress can have, thereby allowing you to avoid its serious health complications.

Many scientific studies have demonstrated the practice of mindfulness to have impressive and wide reaching benefits, including:

• Greater sense of well-being
• Stress and anxiety reduction
•  Better mood
• Reducing risks for depression
• Better immunity
• Better social relationships
• Improved cognition, memory and focus
• Improved awareness of oneself
• Improved ability to make decisions
• Improved sleep
• Reduction in chronic pain
• Lower blood pressure and reduction in risk for heart disease
• More enjoyment of life in general
• Overall improvement in quality of life

So Why Choose?

While yoga and Pilates provide similar benefits, a strong and toned body, endurance and a sense of well-being, their end goals differ. Pilates focuses on strengthening and rehabilitating the body for optimal physical health; the mind or will is employed to achieve this goal. Yoga's physical postures and breath exercises strengthen the body and discipline the mind in preparation for meditation and spiritual evolution.

In short, Pilates is outwardly focused and yoga is inwardly focused.

Making the choice between doing Pilates and practicing yoga comes down to one of intentions. If the intention is simply to form a strong and balanced body, Pilates will serve. If the intention is to achieve a strong and balanced physical body while gaining mental and spiritual benefits, pursue yoga. If both outcomes seem like something you would like to experience, try them both and see which one you find most accessible and beneficial. It just may turn out that you are not willing to let either one go.

Do you prefer yoga or Pilates?  What's your favorite style of yoga?

6 Ways Women 50+ Can Benefit from Pilates

Pilates is a type of anaerobic exercise that is designed to increase the strength and flexibility of your core muscles.  The beauty of Pilates is that it can be done by just about anyone at any fitness level (see me & Pilates on Facebook).  It involves very little in the way of exercise equipment and can be done anywhere.

Pilates isn’t just for the young, athletic person.  Because it doesn’t put undue strain on the heart, it can safely be done by older adults, including those over the age of 50.  It can improve the health of woman over 50 and doesn’t take a heavy toll on the body.

There are many reasons why Pilates can be a good exercise for women over the age of 50 years of age.  Some of these benefits include the following:

1. Pilates involves an invigorating mind-body workout. Pilates places a heavy emphasis on using proper breathing techniques, aligning your spine correctly, and keeping your pelvic aligned.  It involves concentrating on flowing, smooth movements that help you become more in tune to your mind and body.  When you do Pilates, you learn to control your movements by practicing quality exercises that focus on the core.  There is a focus on breathing to the tune of your movements so that you can use your power to efficiently move your body.  By being a mind-body workout, Pilates teaches you how to breathe better, which can be great for women who are under a great deal of stress.
2. Pilates helps you develop strong core muscles. Much of the focus in Pilates is the strengthening of the core of your body.  The core of your body is the central part of your body—both the abdominal muscles and the back muscles.  Pilates helps you strengthen these muscles so that you can move with ease as you go about your day with complete control over these essential core muscles.  Pilates can help you find integration between your pelvis, trunk, and shoulder muscles so that they function as a strong unit.
3. Pilates helps increase flexibility and allows your muscles to lengthen.  Many anaerobic workouts, such as weight lifting or using weight machines will only lead to muscles that are bulky and short.  These muscles tend to be more likely to be injured and aren’t the kind of muscles you want to have.  Instead of bulky “body-building muscles”, Pilates helps you elongate your muscles, strengthening them at the same time.  Your muscles will become more elastic and you will have increased flexibility of your joints. When you achieve these kinds of muscles, you are less likely to become injured.
4. Pilates can help you prevent muscle injuries and can improve your performance in other sports. Most other anaerobic workouts work the same muscles over and over again, such as the biceps muscles or quadriceps muscles.  Sometimes these muscles are exercised to the exclusion of other muscles.  You can easily over-strengthen certain muscles, while other muscles are under-strengthened.  In Pilates, all the core muscles are strengthened at the same time so that you have a decreased chance of becoming injured while working out or by doing your ordinary activities of daily living.
5. Pilates conditions the entire body. In doing Pilates, you strengthen not only your core muscles but also strengthen the muscles of your extremities.  Pilates doesn’t emphasize one set of muscles to the exclusion of other muscles.  When you do Pilates, you can function better in daily living and will be better at sports with a decreased chance of becoming injured while doing other types of sports.
6. Pilates helps you move with better efficiency.  When you do Pilates, you train many different muscles at the same time.  Pilates involves doing smooth and continuous motions so that you can train your body to move with more safety, decreasing your risk of falls and the fractures that can come with falling.

As you can see, Pilates is an activity with many benefits for women over 50. If you are interested in doing Pilates as a form of anaerobic exercise, take a Pilates class or purchase a DVD (such as those in my Amazon store below) that will teach you how to safely do the exercises.  You can practice Pilates every day with a low risk of suffering from any kind of overuse injury to your muscles.