The Meditation Diet: How I Lost 60+ lbs. by Savoring
‘When walking, walk. When eating, eat.’ ~Zen proverb
By Leo Babauta
Picture me 7 years ago, about 60 lbs. heavier than I am now, with a chubbier face, a growing gut, and an addiction to junk food.
I ate pizza, chips, cookies, fried meats and cheeses, French fries, and drank beer and sweet & fatty lattes. I was 32 and headed for diabetes and heart disease, and couldn’t figure out how to change.
And yet, a year later I had lost about 20-30 lbs. and ran a marathon. The pounds kept dropping away, year after year, and more importantly, I was eating healthier foods. I now love fresh fruits and veggies,...
Source: Zen Habits - January 30, 2013 Category: Life Coaches Authors: Leo Tags: Health & Fitness Source Type: blogs
The Power of Habit Investments
By Leo Babauta
One of the things I’ve learned in my last 7 years of creating new habits is the power of compound habit interest.
It sounds really obvious when you say it, but if you do something small repeatedly, the benefits accrue greatly over time. It’s obvious, but not everyone puts it into practice.
It’s like putting a little extra cash into an index investment fund … let’s say you put in just $5/day (less than you spend at Starbucks perhaps) … at the end of 20 years, you’d have almost $70,000 if you could make just 6 percent interest, and closer to $90,000 if you could mak...
Source: Zen Habits - January 28, 2013 Category: Life Coaches Authors: Leo Tags: Habits Source Type: blogs
Discomfort Zone: How to Master the Universe
‘The only thing I can’t stand is discomfort.’ ~Gloria Steinem
By Leo Babauta
Of all the skills I’ve learned in the past 7 years of changing my life, one skill stands out:
Learning to be comfortable with discomfort.
If you learn this skill, you can master pretty much anything. You can beat procrastination, start exercising, make your diet healthier, learn a new language, make it through challenges and physically grueling events, explore new things, speak on a stage, let go of all that you know, and become a minimalist. And that’s just the start.
Unfortunately, most people avoid discomfort...
Source: Zen Habits - January 24, 2013 Category: Life Coaches Authors: Leo Tags: Habits Source Type: blogs
The Most Successful Techniques for Rising Early
‘The proper response to life is applause.’ ~William Carlos Williams
By Leo Babauta
Waking early is one of my favorite things in the world. The morning is quiet as the world hasn’t begun stirring, the perfect time for meditation, writing, exercise and some quiet reading.
Waking early can give you an hour or three of extra time for focus and creativity. While you could do those things later in the day, most people don’t (with exceptions of course).
I haven’t written about waking early for awhile, mostly because my waking time is in constant flux. Some months I enjoy rising with the sun, oth...
Source: Zen Habits - January 22, 2013 Category: Life Coaches Authors: Leo Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: blogs
Do Less: A Short Guide
By Leo Babauta
Many of us work in an endless stream of tasks, browser tasks, social media, emails, meetings, rushing from one thing to another, never pausing and never ending.
Then the day is over, and we are exhausted, and we often have very little to show for it. And we start the next day, ready for a mindless stream of tasks and distractions.
I am a fan of going against the stream of what most people do, and taking a step back. Is it really worth it? Is this the best way? Are we losing our lives to busy-ness and distraction?
What if we did less instead?
Of course, I’ve been suggesting doing less for six years...
Source: Zen Habits - January 17, 2013 Category: Life Coaches Authors: Leo Tags: Productivity & Organization Simplicity Source Type: blogs
How to Savor Life
‘Many people are alive but don’t touch the miracle of being alive.’ ~Thich Nhat Hanh
By Leo Babauta
It’s still dark out and the world remains asleep as I write these words, and I’ve just finished my morning meditation.
I sip my coffee, and savor the stillness, the quietude, the space of being able to think without distractions of the Internet or others.
This savoring … it’s a magical act.
Savoring is usually applied to eating good food: take a single square of dark chocolate and put it in your mouth, but don’t chew and swallow it. Let it sit there, as you savor it, noti...
Source: Zen Habits - January 14, 2013 Category: Life Coaches Authors: Leo Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: blogs
Zero Clutter
By Leo Babauta
Now is as good a time as any to clear out your clutter — sweep it out in one go, or take bite-sized chunks each day over the course of a month. Either method works.
Today I’m going to introduce you to a method I call Zero Clutter. It’s about only having the essential things in your life, and clearing out the rest. It’s about developing the habits that keep your life clutter-free, and learning to put things where they belong every time, so that clutter doesn’t accumulate.
It’s not something you can implement overnight. It takes a little time to clear out the non-essentia...
Source: Zen Habits - January 10, 2013 Category: Life Coaches Authors: Leo Tags: Simplicity Source Type: blogs
What We Lack in a Hyperconnected World
Post written by Leo Babauta.
Is it strange that many of us these days feel hyperconnected and yet disconnected?
This is what Mark Sisson of Mark’s Daily Apple explores in his new book, The Primal Connection: Follow Your Genetic Blueprint to Health and Happiness. It’s a fascinating look at what we need as humans, what we lack in this age of distractions and speed.
Mark published The Primal Blueprint a couple years ago, and this new book looks like it builds on top of that. In this interview, Mark answers some key questions about what we lack in a hyperconnected world.
Q: How is The Primal Connection differen...
Source: Zen Habits - January 9, 2013 Category: Life Coaches Authors: Leo Tags: Books Health & Fitness Source Type: blogs
Simplify the Internet
Post written by Leo Babauta.
The Internet is overwhelming for many people — it never ends, and our connection to it is consuming more and more of our time.
When things get overwhelming, my advice is always the same: simplify.
But how do you simplify such a complicated beast as the Internet? It’s impossible! Actually, no, it’s doable, but it takes a willingness to let go.
Without letting go, there is no simplicity.
Let’s take a look at some ways to simplify the Internet.
The Complications
How you simplify depends a lot on what you do on a regular basis, and that’s different for everyone. Some common things ...
Source: Zen Habits - January 4, 2013 Category: Life Coaches Authors: Leo Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: blogs
12 Rules to Live By
Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Craig Ballantyne of The $100K Transformation Contest.
The one thing I admire about people who have strong nutrition beliefs is their dogmatic behavior.
For example, a vegetarian, under no circumstances, will ever eat meat. There is no, “well, everyone else is having a burger, so just this once, I will too.”
That’s not how it works.
Not when a vegetarian has a strong personal philosophy that they never, ever, ever eat meat.
And that strong personal philosophy guides them to guilt-free behavior that is congruent with their goals.
I’ve also taught my fat loss client...
Source: Zen Habits - January 3, 2013 Category: Life Coaches Authors: Leo Tags: Happiness Health & Fitness Source Type: blogs
The New Rules of Fitness for 2013
Post written by Leo Babauta.
We’ve entered 2013, and yet most of us think of exercise like it’s 1991. Let’s toss out the old and welcome the new.
The old: long sessions of jogging, or marathon sessions on the elliptical machine or treadmill, or working every bodypart individually on a dozen different weight machines and dumbbell stations, doing circuits in a women-oriented fitness center, taking dance-aerobic or kickboxing-aerobic classes.
There’s nothing wrong with all that, but it’s not how we live today. Today, we live online, in a world of Facebook and Twitter and Instagram and Pinterest, of Gmail and iPho...
Source: Zen Habits - January 1, 2013 Category: Life Coaches Authors: Leo Tags: Health & Fitness Uncategorized Source Type: blogs
52 Changes for 2013
Post written by Leo Babauta.
The New Year somehow brings out the desire, always present but usually at a hum rather than a buzz, to make changes in your life. It’s a fresh start, a time of renewal and optimism and determination.
I’ve written a guide to help you make those changes.
Actually, it can be done anytime, whether in January or June — just pick one of the 52 changes in the book, and start on the plan.
One change a week. The 52 changes I recommend. A plan for each.
The inspiration for the book came from a desire to help people learn to make profound changes through doing, and to show the world...
Source: Zen Habits - December 31, 2012 Category: Life Coaches Authors: Leo Tags: Books Source Type: blogs
