Category: Lifestlye

Fitness for Life

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I didn’t have to think twice when my manager asked me if I could work this weekend. Deep down inside I wanted to. I wanted to check out the tone of the club during the weekend anyway. I wouldn’t work Friday though. That was my “selfie” day. Saturday was beautiful. I got a chance to work with two of my favorite service team members, it made the seven hours fly by, plus the day was productive. Almost every guest that came in decided to make health and fitness a priority.

The highlight of Saturday was a couple who came in to restart their health and fitness commitment. They brought in their two sons with them, so naturally they wanted to partake in the kids club membership for the boys. After we tallied up the dues for their start up fees and monthly dues the father looked at his wife. The wife showed no mercy. She was ready to start, and literally commanded me to swipe her husbands credit card. I obeyed.

Then she looked at her stomach, and her husband put his hand on her stomach as his face began to beam from his golden smile. She burst into laughter after admitting that there just might be another baby on the way which meant that her husband would definitely have to re-tally the family fitness fees in the near future. I couldn’t help but laugh, as their two sons were going bunkers already, excited for the kids club.Then she told me the story of how her and her husband had been trying for years to have children. They tried various medications and medical procedures with no luck. Then one day they joined the gym. They changed their diet moderately, and they worked out five to six days per week. They both lost weight and lead relatively healthy but very active life styles. In less than a year she was pregnant with her first son, and not even a year later she was pregnant with her second.

Stories like that came pouring in until I clocked out, and it just reaffirmed my belief—health and fitness enhances peoples lives. I felt blessed to be apart of that.

The wonderful thing was, this wasn’t the first time I heard the very same story. In my first book “Before You Work Out, Exercise,” http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/before-you-work-out-exercise-nadirah-aqueelah-shakir/1021907698?ean=9781440180507 I wrote a similar story of a couple trying to conceive who could not. After about six months of training she was pregnant also. The list goes on  up until today of women who decided to make their health a priority, and are now happy mothers. Earlier this month I went to a company meeting and one of the featured stories was about a trainer who trained a woman who was having trouble conceiving. After training for a period with her trainer, she conceived also.

I know that body is a servant of the mind. It really is. So the fact that these people’s lives began to change after they start training is not a surprise, it is only the result of their decision to change their mental attitude about what is possible for their lives. The amount of mental fortitude it takes to decide, and stick to a wellness regimen is no easy task; but once you began to do it, the possibility for more positive things to occur in your life are endless. This is because your mind is now aware that you can in fact do what you once thought was impossible.

“Mind over matter—Your body and your life are the matter.”

Is it Time to Clean Up?

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Instead of focusing on how you look. Focus on how you feel. I recently revamped my exercise and fitness regimen after asking myself that question. I felt lethargic, and aggravated.The energy in my body felt stagnant. The first quarter of the year had been swallowed up as I committed to meeting deadlines for projects that riddled me sedentary. In my sedentary state, my nutritional choices were poor—reaching for whatever was convenient, and tasty. Being up late night and consuming high carbohydrate meals and snacks packed on the weight in no time.

 

Because I enjoy body-breathing workouts, and healthy eating my body felt the effects of processed foods, and lack of movement rather quickly. So I decided to clean up my diet and intensify my workouts, and in no time I begin to feel like myself again—energetic—flexible—optimistic in tone. The truth is, the things that we put into our bodies affect our attitude and our health. What we put into our bodies also creates a certain energetic vibration. If we eat “junky” we begin to feel “junky”. When we eat good we begin to feel good. This desire to want to feel good is what prompted me to get back on track. The natural process is—what is in, comes out. This is true of both our thoughts and our food. So today I honor my body. I treat it respectfully by giving it the nourishment it requires. Blessed Be.

Because we are all beautiful, instead of focusing on how we look we should check in with our bodies to see how we feel.

The Right Order, For The Wrong Answer

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“You can’t replace the wrong answer, until you’ve got the right one!” ~Nadirah A. Shakir~

I tutor second and third graders on Thursdays nights, and it’s true when they say you can learn a lot from a child. So I’m going over some basic arithmetic with one of the students who is sharp as a blade; but there’s always that one equation that makes us feel “not-so-smart,” right? So the young lady is working the problem out on paper, working the problem out in her head, counting her fingers on her chin, and writing in the answers that she calculates to be correct.

Looking at the answer key, I shake my head each time she fills in the wrong answer to let her know that she has to try again. She’s a little perfectionist. Each time she got the answer incorrect I could see her angst. But she kept trying, and trying, and trying, and erasing, and erasing, and erasing until finally…she got the right answer. I gave her an affirmative head nod as she looked up at me with her hopeful big brown eyes gleaming. She was so excited that she could finally move on to the next problem. After giving her a big high five, and a hand full of peanut M&Ms to celebrate her victory, I asked her why she didn’t just skip over that particular problem and go to the next one. I asked her this question because it is not only advised, it is encouraged for scholastic exams which are often timed—do the ones that you are sure of and come back to the ones that you were stuck on. Her reply was simple, “I don’t like to do that. I like to go in order,” was all she said, with a mouth full of milk chocolate and peanuts.  I had to laugh. So much wisdom, so simple, so young.

As adults when we get stuck on a problem we often find a way around it. We cut a corner, or we even ignore it all together, and leave it blank. We bank on our intellect, and our wits, to give us just enough “cool points” to pass us to the next level. The thing is, even if we get promoted we still have to go back. No lesson goes unlearned. If we leave it blank there’s always that inkling, that void that we know we must fill.

When I used to work as a substitute teacher I witness high school children who could barely read from a elementary school book. Some one had passed them on. They skipped problems, and left answers blank I’m sure.

“I don’t like to do that. I like to go in ORDER,” she replied. There is an order to our life test, and there are steps in our spiritual development. When we don’t follow those steps, when we grow impatient and try to skip those steps we always fall back—fail, and that is how we waste precious time. The fact that most scholastic exams are timed made me pay special attention to her flow after her big “problem”. Funny, how she breezed through the rest of her practice test. Plus she had time to take a break stretch her legs, and snack on peanut M&Ms and still finish before her time was up. You save time when you go in order, and you can’t replace the wrong answer until you’ve got the right one. That was the lesson that the seven year old taught me.

Our big problems, and big ordeals that appear to stop our flow will really give us the power we need to move forward with precision, if we just take the time to figure them out, face them with courage and the intention to understand.

I’m wishing you Divine Order, patience, and understanding with those difficult life equations. Nadirah A. Shakir

Clean Out Your Closet

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CLEAN OUT YOUR CLOSET

by Nadirah A. Shakir

When is the last time you cleaned out your closet? Recently, I did. In addition to the fact that most of my clothes were getting a bit baggy, I just wanted to release everything that I no longer used. Most things went easily into the give-away bag. But there were some things that were challenging to part with: my sky blue Nikes with the holes near the pinky toes. I used those for my early morning forgiveness walks in 2010. Then there was my turquoise dress that my dad brought me from Cuba. I gave my first massage in that, but it was now ripping under the armpits. And the little black dress that was a gift from an ex-boyfriend…so many memories!

I was surprised at the range of emotions that surfaced during the seemingly simple activity of cleaning out my closet. I cried. I laughed. I tried to justify keeping the worn-out items. However, when something no longer serves the purpose for which it is intended, or when it is not conducive to the energy you want to attract into your life, let it go! Something better will come.

When it comes to releasing excess weight or any other undesirable condition, we have to be very conscious of what we are holding in consciousness. We have to ask ourselves who haven’t we forgiven; what we need to forgive ourselves for; and what error thoughts are on repeat in our minds, keeping us stuck in a vicious cycle of self-sabotage. We have to let it all go—no matter how familiar it may be, and no matter how good it may look to the outside world. Today, choose to make space for something new and beautiful in your life!

 

Saving Dollars Makes LOTS of Sense!

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100 dollars

“Saving Dollars makes LOTS of sense!” ~Nadirah A. Shakir~

1. Catch the maitine’e: The matine’e is 6.50 in comparison to the movies after 12.00 pm  which is about 4.00 to 6.00 bucks more. If you’re a movie buff like me, you’ll definitely want to take advantage of the savings!

2. Do your own nails: A good manicure and pedicure is about 40.00 bucks, doing it yourself is free once you invest in the tools. To purchase all of the tools to do your nails is about 45.00 bucks, and once you have them they last all year. The only thing that you’ll probably have to purchase every two months is nail polish which is about 2.00 to 6.00 bucks depending on wear you shop! Most women get a “mani” and “pedi” every month. That’s 480.00 bucks a year!

3. Wear and do your own hair: I know hair extensions are the thing; but I know how much quality hair extensions cost! PLUS I know how much it cost to have a someone do a good weave job. A good weave/hair extension job is anywhere from 150.00 to 350.00 dollars, plus the hair! You’re talking 500.00 to 600.00 dollars. On average, people who wear hair extension get it done every two months.  That’s 3,600.00 dollars a year!

4. Eat healthy: Nutrition is medicine. So why not buy it at the grocery store as opposed to the pharmacy. It’s a whole lot cheaper…and I’ll bet it taste better too!

5. Work out regularly: Research shows that people who exercise regularly are less likely to get sick during the year. Being healthy eliminates the cost of doctor visits, medical expenses, and medications. Move your body!

6. Walk or jog to your destination: Gas prices are outrageous! So why not walk to the place you have to go if it’s in a 10 mile radius. You’ll save gas, you’ll being doing the environment a favor, and you’ll be toning your lower body and burning calories! It’s a triple win!

7. Cut coupons: I know we dread it, cutting out the coupons that come in the mail, and then hauling a purse load of them to the grocery store and then, being the one in the front of the grocery line holding up traffic. It’s a bit much I know, but the savings definitely add up. Cut your coupons and try to have them organized when you go to the store so that you don’t hold up the line please…thank you.

8. Shop on clearance rack or accept hand-me-downs: Let’s face it! There’s always that one item or outfit that just came out that you are definitely going to want to get your claws on, and you are willing to pay top dollar just to have it before anyone else does! But what if you can, wait! What if you can wait until it goes on clearance and buy it for 35 or 50 % less than the original value? What if you were even more patient and waited until one of you friends or family members brought it, and got it for free once they decide to hand it down! Free—free!

9. Subscribe to your favorite magazine: We all have one—a favorite magazine that is, and we’ll stop buy the book store or the magazine stand to buy it every month for $6.00 to $9.00 bucks! If however you subscribe to your favorite magazine it normally equates to $20.00 to $35.00 bucks per year. Buying your favorite magazine will add up to 108.00 dollars per year as opposed to 35.00 a year for a subscription. Save 73 bucks and just subscribe!

10. Buy your own coffee: On average a cup of coffee is two dollars. Now if you get fancy and start adding shots of espresso, asking for almond or soy milk instead of regular milk, you can spend well over five bucks for a cup of coffee. Those of us who are true coffee drinkers have to have our cup of Joe everyday! If we are buying it out we are spending any where between $730.00 to $1,825.00 per year on coffee alone! Now what if you are a two cup drinker! OMG!!! YIKES!