Friday's Top 5 Take-away: My Top 5 Health Inducing Activities

In the spirit of our September Challenge I thought I'd share with you my top 5 health inducing activities.

These are all activities that I enjoy and make me happy, but they also happen to be good for my overall health. See if you also enjoy any of them, and then share your top five in the comments below.

1. Dancing

Dancing is in my soul. I've always said that if I didn't do what I do now, I would have become a dancer.

It's a different conversation altogether if I'd be any good at it :o)…

I like to go out and dance. I dance by myself at home (when no one's looking). And I dance in my mind (koo-kooo).

'Nuff said. I dance – I am happy. (* and yes that is me 'dancing' with the Star Wars Warriors…)

2. Yoga

I tried to start regular yoga sessions a couple of years ago. I knew that it's great for the body and the mind. But for me it was always a bit slow, and somehow I never managed to stick with it.

Fast forward to a couple of months back…

I though I have to try this yoga thing again, because at the time I had to work on reducing my stress levels. I had already implemented daily meditation sessions into my routine, so I understood the power of focusing on one thing at a time (mindfulness). So I tried it again.

I started off with one 30 minute session a week as part of my workout schedule. I do Ashtanga Yoga – it is kick ass! By the end of the session, if you have applied yourself you feel like a million bucks.

I love my yoga now. I have implemented it into my daily workouts. I love the fact that you can see clear progress. I'm bending now in ways I never thought I would when I first started…(no giggling please). The result is – everything seems a lot more toned now ;o)

The lesson for you perhaps… don't give up on something you know is good for you. If you try it once and you just can't seem to get into it, decide to leave it for now and try again later…

3. Meditation

This I've always wanted to try. And I did (again a few years ago), but I just couldn't do it 'right'.

It turns out there's no right or wrong way of meditating. It's one of those things that you have to own.

You have to decide that you know best for yourself and then commit to it every day. Also start out small – 5-10 minutes at a time. Once you can sit through that (and oh boy is it hard to stand still and quite), increase the times to whatever feels right to YOU.

The benefits are amazing. I did it because I had to. I didn't want to take pharmaceuticals to reduce stress, so my only other option was meditation. It is now a part of my day. It provides me with a sense of calm, but it's also teaching my brain that I can have a quite mind any time I want to.

If you're like me – where every second of the day you have something to think about – you'll know this is amazing.

If you're thinking of trying meditation (and you should), but don't know how or where to start. Try Meditation for Dummies – it is very well explained, and it has a CD of some of the basic meditations. So you can put it on your iPod and use it to guide you in the first few sessions.

4. Walking on the beach in Marbella

I can be in ANY mood and all I have to do is pick my butt up, walk 2 minutes down the road to the sandy beach of Marbella and just walk…

The combination of sand in my toes, the sound of the water sloshing on the sand, and the beauty of the ocean stretching as far as the eye can see, never fails to make me happy.

I can walk for miles and it never gets old.

For you that may not have the right appeal, but there must be some sort of a setting in nature that evokes the same kind of peace within you. What scenery makes YOU happy. I know for my grandparents nothing did it like the mountains. They could hike for 8-12 hours at a time right up until their mid 70ies…

So think of what makes you feel whole in nature and implement it into your September 30-day challenge.

5. Reading and learning new things

Last on my list but definitely not least. I love reading and learning new stuff. I've got to know over the years that for me it's the process of learning that inspires me and makes me happy. Not so much the mastery of the topic I'm learning.

I love to unravel the details and to see how things link and work together. Granted sometimes I just can't grasp how things work, but at least I try.

If you get a thrill out of learning or simply reading a gripping novel – make time for doing that. You don't need much to get the benefit. Schedule 30 minutes each day, and then just immerse yourself in the pleasure. I like to read in the evenings. I don't even watch TV that much anymore…

Cool – that's my list of things I love to do. The point is that whatever makes you happy is worth doing. Schedule it in if you think your day is far too busy to spare 30 minutes. The moment you put it in your schedule it becomes a part of your day.

If you don't plan to have some YOU TIME – trust me you WILL find something more important to do, and you WILL feel like life owns you, not the other way around.

So – what are your top 5 health inducing activities? Please share below in the comments area.

Oh, and of course, if you liked the information above, and you think it'll be useful to someone else – please take a moment and Tweet it or Like it on Facebook – thanks.