The leader of the Unity Church I attend simply says, “Begin again.” But I end up getting frustrated with all the beginning again and I don’t feel I benefit from the meditation that way.

I think I have found my answer in a book of Taoist exercises. In Internal Exercises by Stephen Chang, he explains that people who think a lot – I am pretty sure I qualify – can have disastrous results if they force themselves to empty their brains for meditation. He warns that they will experience confusion, illusion and frustration. In worst cases it can lead to schizophrenia. But mostly it leads to a worsening of the stress and tension one is trying to overcome through meditation.

The solution he recommends is a balancing between the brain and solar plexus. He mentions that the symptoms of cerebral brain over use are headache, stiff neck, confusion, forgetfulness and spaciness. He offers a simple exercise to help balance the mind and body.

The Solar Plexus Exercise:

Begin by sitting or standing with both hands placed on your stomach. Face forward and inhale. Feel your stomach expand with you hands.

While exhaling, push in and up with your hands on you stomach. At the same time, turn your shoulders and head slowly to the left as far as possible without straining.

Face back to the front as you inhale releasing your stomach and feeling the air push your hands out.

This time turn to the right as you exhale.

Repeat up to 36 times or as often as the flexibility of your neck and shoulders will allow.

I have found that after only a few days of doing this exercise, my mental clarity has greatly improved. I have not yet tried to meditate. I will give it a few more days before I try again. I was able to complete a mental focus exercise last night that I have been having trouble with however.

For more information on the solar plexus exercise and many other wonderful Taoist exercises see Internal Exercises by Stephan Chang.

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I am going to be testing a weight loss system that incorporates Menu Planning, Fitness and exercise planning, Stress reduction techniques, and Behavior modification. The full system is a twelve week program. I am giving it a thirty day trial run to see if it is right for me.

In order to give it my best shot, I need some people to work with me. My plan is to meet once a week to discuss how we are applying the plan and what parts are working for each of us and what challenges we are facing. Our goal will be to work as a team so that every one who participates meets their individual goals. There will be no competition, just universal support.

As the team leader, I will research the program and help coach each of the participants. There will be no charge for participating in the program, but each person will be responsible for purchasing his own food, supplements and study materials. We can split the costs of the training literature and DVDs and such where it is appropriate.

Meetings will be held at my office on the Cleveland State Community College campus. I will be happy to provide natural healing coaching to the participants as part of the program for those who help me meet my weight and health goals.

To qualify for the program, you have to be willing to commit to at least a thirty day trial. You will have to commit to actually following the plan as best you can. You will have to commit to meeting once a week and sharing your success and failure openly and honestly with the group. You have to agree to be accepting and supporting of other group members during the trial period. We may establish other rules as we go along to make everyone feel comfortable with the meetings.

If you are serious about improving your health and creating a sustainable healthy body weight, come give this program a try with me. Space is limited by the size of the conference room. I am most interested in people who would want to teach this system to others once you prove it works for you. However, anyone who is interested in loosing a few pounds and feeling better is welcome to apply.

If this sounds like you, send me a message on Twitter or facebook or email me with your health goals and the best time of the week for you to meet. I look forward to working with you.

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This week I have been experimenting with Market America Isotonix Digestive Enzymes. I just put half a pack in water and drink it with the meal.

Yesterday we had lunch at Burger King and even while we were still at the table I started to feel icky. I remembered my digestive enzymes in my pocket and I mixed the up in my drink cup and slurped them down. By the time I was back at the office I had totally forgotten my stomach pain.

Today, I remembered to take th enzymes before I went to lunch. Now I am back at the office feeling fine and ready to type.

When mixed with water the enzymes have a taste sorta like Gatorade. A little salty and slightly sweet. Not bad at all.

But I really like the way they make me feel. I am sure I will see an overall boost in productivity since I won’t loose an hour or so after lunch thinking about my stomach.

The digestive enzymes are available from Market America. Search for Isotonix® Digestive Enzyme with Probiotics.

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