Posts from — August 2009

Nicoya, Costa Rica is one of the Blue Zones, a name coined for a handful of longevity hot spots around the globe. Scientists and researchers spent 9 months in Nicoya, Costa Rica to study this community and ultimately to discover what cofactors here contribute to their exceptional longevity, health, and quality of life. The Blue Zone Expedition Team described the experience as life changing.

This video covers the take home message from Nicoya, Costa Rica on the keys to health and longevity.

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For years researchers have been fascinated with long lived cultures around the globe. These small pockets of people have extremely high numbers of centenarians/ 100 years old and greater, and also have exceptional quality of life in their late years. They experience a glaring absence of many of the diseases that we accept as par for the course in the United States.

According to this CNN report, lifestyle is responsible for 70% of our longevity. Our genes make up the difference. That being the case, we have more influence over our quality of life and longevity than we may have previously believed.

 These longevity hot spots around the globe may be our best examples of optimum human performance.

Enjoy the video.

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Let’s start with a foundation we can build on. The 2 most effective fat loss tools available are intelligent, customized exercise and high quality nutrition/ food.

Notice that I do not use the term diet here. The word diet implies a food plan that is done for a relatively short period of time, maybe 12 weeks, and then going back to your old way of eating. Dieting also implies deprivation and not feeling satiated from the food you do eat. Dieting implies that the approach is not sustainable. Do not think in these terms. When you are on a healthy, intelligent food plan you will eventually wonder how you lived any other way.

Now we’ll discuss intelligent, customized exercise. I refer to intelligent because it’s important to exercise in a manner aligned with human anatomy. When you do so you have the least wear and tear on connective tissue, ligaments, tendons, cartilage etc. What we are talking about here is intelligent resource management. Your human body is the resource.

Customization refers to you as a unique person.  For example, an effective exercise program for a  20 year old male  would be quite different from that of a 60 year old female. Another facet of customization is choosing an activity that you enjoy. If the process is enjoyable your more likely to do it consistently.

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Learning is one of the keys to both short and long term success regardless of the venture. In todays world if you can accelerate and deepen your learning you will get faster and better results. One aspect of learning is picking up, internalizing, and fine tuning the existing success patterns in whatever it is you are doing. Some of that can come from modeling the top people in that field.

The deepest, most complete level of learning can be called unconscious competence. At this level the components are ingrained so deeply at a subconscious level, conscious thought is no longer necessary. Unconscious competency can be achieved through repetition of an activity and time immersed in the activity. However, don’t be fooled. Does practice make perfect ? No. Only perfect practice makes perfect.  Repetition of an activity and time immersed in the activity with awareness yields results. The operative phrase here is “with awareness”.That’s what coaches are for. When you are playing the game you can’t see very thing.

Some experts believe that the subconscious mind can’t tell the difference between a real or an imagined experience. If this is true, mental rehearsal and visualization become extremely powerful tools.

This Tony Robbins video is useful in understanding how we learn and can help you get to your next level.

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The list of benefits provided by meal replacement shakes is extensive so let’s cover some of it. First, meal replacement shakes provide a convenient and fast meal. Simply mixed with water or milk in a shaker you can have a healthy distribution of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats ready in minutes. Creating more elaborate shakes with extra ingredients like fruit, in blenders takes a little more time but is well worth the effort. Since meal replacement shakes are convenient and fast they solve a significant problem in our fast paced society. Meal replacement shakes are muscle building fuel that is easily absorbed. Whether your goal is to increase lean body mass/ gain muscle, lose body fat, or just maintain your current level of fitness meal replacement shakes are beneficial. Since meal replacement shakes have a blend of macronutrients/ proteins, carbs, and fats, they provide a diversified blend of high quality calories. Meal replacement shakes are a rich source of amino acids which are the building blocks of protein. For those of you training hard in the gym or competing in sports like triathlons, remember, your training is just part of the equation. Another significant part of the equation is the quality of the calories, macronutrients, and micronutrients you consume which provide the raw material to build healthy muscle  and optimum metabolic activity.  Your highest and best recovery from workouts is dictated  by many factors one of them being optimum nutrition. Meal replacement shakes are a key component. Call us at Optimum Performance/ Human Performance Systems, in Scottsdale, AZ,  at 480-241-2621 to find out how our unique meal replacement shake can help you reach your goals.

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Let’s face it ,  there is a great need for healthy weight loss and weight management solutions today. Many people are so busy they have lost track of  or were never aware of the principles that when applied lead to healthy weight loss and weight management. 

Weight management courses are a great tool to help people reach their goals. One of the keys we use in the Optimum Performance Weight Management Course  and also in our individual consulting in Scottsdale Arizona is the idea of focusing on process as well as outcome.  Let’s define both of these. Process is the daily activity or the principles applied on a daily basis. Outcome is the end result or a specific amount of weight lost or  inches lost. If people focus on applying principles and execute their daily plan or process the outcome takes care of itself.

The next key is implementing a plan that people can live with on a daily basis. What we are really talking about here is building a sustainable lifestyle. The operative word here is sustainable.  It’s about creating a new way of being, an improved way of being. To find out more visit our primary website at www.op-az.com or call Optimum Performance/ Human Performance Systems at 480-241-2621 for a free consultation.

Popularity: 24% [?]