2012 is All About Creating a “Sustainable” Lifestyle – Get Yours

Photo by Megan Oswalt

By: Lana Perry

Sustainability is a big buzzword these days in terms of steps we need to take in effort save our planet. After hearing the word pop up everywhere, I started thinking about applying “sustainable living” to different facets of my own life. I realized that in 2012, I don’t have room for anything that’s not sustainable in terms of relationships, health and career.

Definition of a “Sustainable Lifestyle”: A lifestyle that is self-serving and built on a long-lasting foundation while stimulating growth and creating freedom within. It’s about leading a lifestyle right now that can carry you though the long-term if you needed it to.

 

The Plan:

1. Survey your lifestyle
2. Figure out what you need to cut and add to make your lifestyle more sustainable (review the guidelines below)
3. Embrace the new mindset

 

Relationships

Not Sustainable: Any form of dissatisfaction including communication, the way you spend your time together, sex.

The Problem: By simply accepting these relationship flaws, you’re compromising your self worth, which always has a bad ending that some people are never able to truly reverse.

Make it Sustainable: Either communicate your needs and get them reciprocated, or leave the relationship.

 

Health

Not Sustainable: A lazy, irresponsible take on nutrition, exercise and your sleep pattern.

The Problem: In your early 20’s you probably won’t notice the effects this behavior has, but as you approach 30, you should realize it’s taking a toll on your body. Frequent irresponsibility leads to health breakdown very quickly, especially after 30.

Make it Sustainable: Live now like you’d live if you had a serious health condition that required you to lead a health lifestyle. Moderation should be your motto.

 

Career

Not Sustainable: A job that’s not paying you enough to live comfortably, is not in line with your career goals, or is highly stressful or requiring ridiculous hours.

The Problem: This is another issue of self-worth. You’re enduring a job that can’t serve you long-term and is probably not serving you now either. Exception: a job that’s a stepping-block is one thing, the trick is knowing when it’s time to take the next step.

Make it Sustainable: Either work within your current position to mold it into what you need, or start looking for something new.

 

When considering which elements of your life are sustainable, enjoy this fresh perspective on working toward a rich, satisfying life – it’s very 2012. Also, if you need a more sustainable career…contact me for a Resume Revamp at lanaelizabeth@gmail.com.

Free Download: “Your Guide to Creating Work-Life Balance” by Lana Perry

Photo by Megan Oswalt

By Lana Perry

I’m really excited today to introduce “Your Guide to Creating Work-Life Balance”,  available to you free download.  A few months ago, I created a survey for the women in my big and beautiful network. One of the questions on that survey was something along the lines of: What area of your career would you most like to improve? And “work-life balance” was by far one of the most common answers.

I thought it would be a good idea to compile what I’ve learned from my studies, from my inspiring clients and from my own personal experience into this easy-to-follow, 7-page Guide complete with an assessment exercise and tools you can start implementing right now.

Since this is such a massive topic, I couldn’t possibly cover every single aspect of creating balance within this Guide. But I’ve still managed to provide you with the insight, framework and tools you need to get going immediately. If you find yourself needing more guidance, I’m always here for conversation or coaching at lanaelizabeth@gmail.com and within the comments below.

DOWNLOAD: “Your Guide to Creating Work-Life Balance” HERE and please feel free to share with your friends!

Your Homework: After reading this Guide, comment below discussing the balance you are most striving to create in your life and the new ideas you have for getting there. And of course any questions

 

Understanding the Role of a Life Coach: How Working With One Has Shaped My Life

Lana Perry, a Life + Career + Wellness & Weight Loss Coach

By Lana Perry

Not everyone understands why someone would work with a Life Coach. I mean, I didn’t before my first experience with one — so that’s not surprising. I wanted to take a moment to fill in the curious  1) what Life Coaching is, and 2) specifically how my experiences with Life Coaches at different points in my life have massively impacted the quality of my own life, so you can see Life Coaching in action.

What is Life Coaching?

I’m actually going to quote a few things from Wikipedia here since they have done a good job of outlining the role of a Coach:

Coaching, with a professional coach, is the practice of supporting an individual, referred to as a coachee or client, through the process of achieving a specific personal or professional result. The structure and methodologies of coaching are numerous but are predominantly facilitating in style; that is to say that the coach mainly asks questions and challenges the coachee. Coaching is differentiated from therapeutic and counseling disciplines.

So then, for the different areas I Coach within…here’s the deal:

• Life Coaching: I work with clients to identify and achieve personal goals using a variety of tools and techniques. Work toward improving overall quality of life, or progress in a specific area.
• Career Coaching: I work with clients who are interested in exploring the next phase of their career, how to get more from their current job, how to transition into a completely different field, how to identify true passions, how to begin self-employment, etc.
• Wellness + Weight Loss Coaching: I work with people who want to improve their state of mind, body and personal environment. This could include weight loss, managing a condition, or simply making dramatic improvements to health, immediate environment, or carbon footprint.

How Working With a Life Coach Changed My Life:

1. Career self-worth and satisfaction

• I learned to understand how much I had been tolerating from the job I had at that time, and how much change I needed to make to obtain the kind of life and happiness I was looking for through my career.
• I received affirmation that the career change I wanted to make, which at the time several years ago was quitting my job and going down a different career path, would be great for me – which gave me the confidence I needed to pursue something so major. Just two months later I was Program Manager for a Life Coaching company.

2. Respect for body and health

• I learned that it was time for me personally to stop partying, stop the long nights, stop the sleeping all day on the weekends from the long nights, and start savoring the daylight a little more.
• I became inspired to lead a much healthier lifestyle and received the support I needed to make that change, since there weren’t many people in my immediate circle who could relate.

3. Motherhood

• I worked with a Life Coach during the 4 weeks before my daughter was born. My goal specifically was to shift my mindset from crazy, work-related stress and chaos into a mindset that would be most beneficial to Motherhood. She actually had me create a vision board around Motherhood that is awesome and hanging as a piece of artwork right now.
• The two qualities I wanted to harness within myself were Patience and Presence and I did just that! Anyone who has known me knows that being impatient has been a strong personality trait of mine. But those same people now see that I’m probably the most patient parent they’ve every witnessed in action. This was a huge for me! I also learned how to tap into a more present version of myself. For the last 2 years of my daughter’s life, I’ve savored every single moment to the point where I don’t actually feel that she’s growing up “so fast” like everyone says – I’m so tuned in, the pace she’s growing is astounding but seems slow and beautiful.

4. Love life

• I learned to throw out some of my negative romantic relationship qualities that were not going to get me the kind of man I wanted (and certainly wouldn’t keep him around). I eliminated my girly neediness and little girl behavior
• I also got really firm around which things from a partner I will not tolerate. No longer would I play games or lower my standards, I would demand respect and understanding, and if I wasn’t getting that – I’d be out the door. (This mentality ended up landing me the man of my dreams!)

I truly wouldn’t be who I am today without the three different Life Coaches I’ve worked with over the last several years. They have allowed me to upgrade the way I think and make decisions. They have seriously brought out my own GLOW in a way I wasn’t able to do on my own. Friends, boyfriends and parents can offer lots of compassion and advice, but there is absolutely nothing like working with a skilled Life Coach. If you’re interested in talking about how Life Coaching can take you to the next level in your life, feel free to email me at lanaelizabeth@gmail.com

How to Hear What Your Body is Telling You About Your Lifestyle!

Photo by Megan Oswalt

By: Lana Perry

In my 20’s, I never paid much attention to what my body was “saying” to me. Partially because I felt invincible, but also because it was a lot quieter back then. But I swear something happens when we turn 30 – our body starts to get much more talkative!

Whatever your age, learning how to respond to your body’s requests is the kind of wisdom you can embrace forever. Say you’re tired or feeling anxious…what is your body really trying to tell you? There is so much more to learn from those signals than simply thinking you need to get more sleep or calm down. The statements your body is making when you feel tired, anxious, stressed, blah, etc are actually requests for help. You owe it to your body to listen and take its requests seriously.

Here are some common things our body says, and some great ways to respond:

Your body says: “My energy level is low and I feel blah…”           

Everyday culprits:

• Poor nutrition
• Lack of exercise
• Lack of AWESOME in your life

Better responses:

• The most basic way to increase our energy level and get rid of the blahs is to give your body better nutrients to work with which means better quality food per calorie. Nix the processed crap and stick with as many whole foods as close to their original state as possible. Drink way more water. Oh and lighten up on the meat consumption.
• Add exercise to get your blood pumping to all your organs, your brain and your happy-center (aka access more endorphins)
• Add zing to your life if you think it’s boring. Join a class or a club, look for a new job or career, go on a date, pick up a hobby, schedule travel, set a brunch date with your friends…don’t just sit there and complain, do something to enhance your quality of life.

Your body says: “I’m tired and stressed or anxious…”

Everyday culprits:

• Lacking quality sleep
• Pushing too hard
• External stress factors

Better responses:

• Get more rest and learn to actively relax and savor down-time. Protect yourself as much as possible, it plays more of a role in health than we realize because our body uses that time to renew its organs and restore.
• Learn better coping skills so that when you’re faced with overwhelm, hard times or a busy day, you know how to get through it all while still respecting your body. SLOW DOWN — from your breathing patterns, to how you move, to how you eat your food. Slow down.
• When it comes to stress, abolishing the source is always best whenever possible.
• Your body’s total functioning goes bizzerk when stressed thanks to the hormone Cortisol which gets pumped throughout your body when the fight-or-flight response is activated. Stress is one of the only things that’s present in nearly every patient with disease. Because this can wreck havoc on your system, bolstering it up with high quality vitamins is a smart move. THIS is the only brand I recommend, from personal experience: http://lanaperry.myshaklee.com/us/en/products.php?sku=20271 (for some reason external links aren’t working right now, so there’s the copy/past — sorry about that.)

Your body says: “I’m feel off, something is functioning weird…”

Everyday culprits:

• Well…something is functioning weird, plain and simple. Never ignore this!

 Better responses:

• Go to the appropriate medical establishment depending on the severity of what’s happening with you. Try not to get swallowed in worry from Internet research and speculation, but do take your body seriously.
• In addition to a Doctor’s visit and Rx, you might want to investigate alternative perspectives on health and medicine since there are lots of other ways to combat various dis-eases and ailments. A great Naturopath can be a lifesaver.

By listening to your body and responding to it appropriately, you begin to create a new kind of relationship with yourself that will serve you for a lifetime. Next time you feel tired, blah or you get a cold…take a deeper listen to what your body might really need, and watch how well it reacts to your care.

Often the problem is a larger lifestyle issue that needs to be addressed. I’m unofficially launching my Wellness Coaching practice (officially this Fall), so if you’re ready to start examining the things your body is saying and how it relates to your lifestyle and figuring out how you personally can be responding better to what your body is requesting – email me at lanaelizabeth@gmail.com and we can discuss!

What Does Your Excess Body Fat Really Represent?

All my excess fat represented a lot more than too much food and too little exercise!

By: Lana Perry

I weighed 70 pounds more than I do now throughout all of my 20’s and I remember feeling like I existed somewhere in the gray area between total denial and self-acceptance. The reasons for my weight gain seemed obvious at the time: too many keg parties, a preference for carbs and fried foods and zero exercise in college.

It never occurred to me that all that excess fat actually represented something much deeper, as did my inability to lose much more than 5-10 pounds. When you finally admit that the weight has to go, actually making that happen can be a lot harder than we think. That’s because it’s nearly impossible to be in the right mindset to lose weight until you deal with what your excess body fat really represents. Until then, the entire process is a daily struggle – you’re forcing your body to lose something it’s not yet ready to let go of.

Here is what excess body weight can represent:

• Loneliness
• Emotional pain
• Struggle
• Financial turmoil
• Job dissatisfaction
• Bad relationship
• Grief or mourning
• Feeling lost in the world
• Guilt
• Feeling “less than”
• Lack of self-identity
• Fear
• Desire to hide
• Self-defeating beliefs
• Lack of respect for self

The factors that truly created your personal weight gain are individual to you and once you deal with those issues head-on, you’ll see how much better your body responds to your weight loss efforts — the weight practically loses itself (with a lot of hard work). The mind and body are undeniably connected in a powerful way. It’s not something that’s talked a lot about publicly, but the weight loss journey is an incredibly emotional journey into the mind. The amount of outward transformation we see in people that lose weight is NOTHING compared to the amount of transformation that has taken place within.

Had I not finally confronted some issues I didn’t know I had (which was actually a matter of circumstance, not choice), I don’t think I would have lost the weight and experienced such a monumental change in my perspective. In studying for my Food Psychology Coaching Certification, my eyes were truly opened and I learned the science and logic behind what I’d experienced. If you’re ready to lose  weight and want this to be the healing, massive transformation it actually is – instead of a nonstop, day-to-day struggle to get yourself to the gym and avoid bagels, I’d love to work with you. Email me at lanaelizabeth@gmail.com and we can talk more about my approach. It’s your time, let yourself GLOW!

Upgrade Your Morning Routine!

Photo by Megan Oswalt

By: Lana Perry

I didn’t realize how much of an impact my morning routine was having on my overall happiness. The way we start our day can have a profound affect on our moods, weight, stress level, productivity and much more. I challenge you to create a healthier, more self-serving morning routine. Here’s why and how.

The Common Morning Routine           

Something as simple as the time you choose to wake up in the morning will impact the rest of your day. Maybe this scenario sounds familiar: You snooze your alarm clock a few times until the last possible moment you can wake up and still make it to work on time. You begrudgingly pull yourself out of bed and start getting ready. Breakfast is something super quick if anything, and you may not have had time to pack a healthy lunch. You fly out the door and head to work.

What More Time in Your Morning Routine Means for You

By giving yourself an extra 30-60min in your morning routine instead of all that rushing, you will drastically change many aspects of your life, not to mention it feels much more luxurious.

• You’ll enter your day calmer and less stressed, which means less Cortisol “stress” hormone destroying your body’s functionality, slowing your metabolism and hording fat.
• You could have more time to prepare a big, healthy breakfast, as well as snacks and lunch for work.
• You can work out consistently each morning which is proven to be the best time of day to make exercise a habit
• You could do something relaxing and indulgent like sit on your balcony with a cup of coffee and your favorite blogs, newspaper or music.
• Use the time to work on a side project you’re always too tired to do after work, but so excited about.

An Example of a Great Morning Routine

I’ll use myself as an example here. My morning routine used to be the type of routine I described above. Always rushed, always running late. At a certain point while I was working a 9-5 office job, I decided to make a change because I couldn’t figure out where else to fit in the exercise I desperately needed. I couldn’t workout out consistently after work because I was either doing something social, working on a side project, or burnt out from the day. I started waking up at 7am and prepared breakfast, lunch and work snacks then went to the gym from 7:30-8:30am every morning, showered and got ready there, grabbed coffee on the way and made it to work by 9am. Now days, since I have flexible work hours from my home office, I have added daily yoga in before my gym workout. I start my day relaxed, upbeat and refreshed and spend the rest of my day feeling the same way.

How to Make This Work For You

If you see the benefit here, commit to how you want to start your day and honor it. Here are some suggestions to make this easier:

• You will probably need to start going to bed earlier to get enough sleep in order to wake up earlier. Protect your sleep and set boundaries so you are in bed when you want to be.
• Figure out what would make you really happy in the morning, something you’d look forward to when waking up. Build your routine around that. Your favorite toast and mixed berry protein smoothie? Relaxing on your chaise lounge with your favorite book? A blood pumping outdoor run?
• Give yourself three weeks of forcing yourself to get up earlier before you can expect it to become a near effortless routine. At the end of the week or three weeks, reward yourself for sticking to your goals.

It has been said that people who rise with the sun do so because they look forward to their day. On the contrary, people who have a hard time getting up and giving themselves enough time for a proper morning routine may not be looking forward to what their day will bring. Of course the ideal solution would be to make changes in your life that will make you want to jump out of bed to start your day (for me, working for myself from home with flexible hours makes me ecstatic!). But for now, let’s just stay focused on getting more from your morning routine because you will start seeing the benefit immediately! If you’d like to set up a 1-time Strategy Session with me to get your morning routine in check, let’s discuss at lanaelizabeth@gmail.com.

Recipe: GLOW Banana Bread (whole wheat, vegan, sugar-free)

I was totally craving Banana Bread and created this healthy masterpiece! Was great to eat a slice and feel nourished instead of assaulted by sugar. It’s completely tasty!

There it is!

GLOW Banana Bread (whole wheat, vegan, sugar-free)

Makes 1 delicious loaf

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup vegan margarine
• 1/2 cup agave nectar or honey
• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 cup almond or soy milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp maple extract (optional but so good)
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder (optional)

1. Preheat to 350

2. Cream the vegan margarine and agave or honey

3. Stir in flour, baking powder and baking soda until combined

4. Add remaining ingredients and mix well

5. Pour into an oiled bread pan and bake for 45 minutes. Mmmm MM!

Recipe (c) Lana Perry of Glow Hard or Go Home

Intro + Making the New Me

So here we are, the honorary first post of the blog. This blog will officially launch very soon, sign up for an email update (to the right) so you know when that happens!

But while we’re waiting, let me illuminate for you what has been going on that’s led me to creating Glow Hard or Go Home.

Phase 1: Party, party, party…work, work, work. Rinse and repeat. That’s pretty much how I spent all of my 20′s. I gained a lot of weight, didn’t consistently exercise and didn’t take nutrition seriously. I had very little dedication to my well-being. And I held roles at companies that hypothetically were pretty cool, but being the nonstop “hub of the company” became an all-encompassing, stressful vacuum.

Phase 2: Career breakdown. I suddenly found myself laid off from my job as Program Manager for a Life + Love Coaching company, while on maternity leave (July 2009)…it was pretty ridiculous. Without the money coming in, my now husband and I were forced to move from our paradise land of Cali to Georgia. Once I got here, I poured my soul into a publication as Editor in Chief and Self Empowerment Director, only to have the biz owners falter so hard the magazine never came out.

Phase 3: Health breakdown. An inflammation of my Iris in my right eye (it was basically red, painful and sensitive to light) led me to the Dr’s office where I was way less than delighted to find out I had a few other pretty important health issues (Dec 2010). I was shocked, so upset and felt helpless. I’ll get into more specifics of what was/is going on in future blog posts.

Phase 4: Glow Hard or Go Home. With regards to both my health and my career, I decided to go crazy and learn to dominate both. I wanted to take my health and my career back into my own hands to be successful in both areas without relying on others. It truly felt like it was now or never, and I went with NOW.

In pursuit of my goals, I’ve learned so much from personal experience, lots of resources, other coaches and visionaries and observing friends and colleagues. I’ll be sharing those goodies with you on this blog as a way for us to Glow together! Can’t wait, let’s do this!

Recipe: GLOW Cookies (aka Vegan / Gluten-Free Oatmeal + Raisin)

Why do these cookies make you Glow? Well because they are vegan, they lack gluten, there’s only natural sources of sugar and very low amounts at that, yet they are super tasty and easy! So even though I haven’t technically started this blog, I couldn’t help but share.

These are pretty much the only kind of cookies I eat these days because I don’t like most store-bought vegan cookies that are usually really high in sugar to make up for the lack of taste. And also because I’m not much of a baker (great on the stove top though!). And because I usually have the ingredients on hand. SO good, let me know if you try them!

GLOW COOKIES (Vegan Oatmeal + Rasin)

Makes about 20 small cookies

1. Preheat to 350

2. Mix the following in a bowl:

• 3 very ripe bananas
• 2 1/2 cups regular oats
• 1tbs vanilla extract
• 2tbs vegetable oil
• 1tsp baking soda
• 2/3 cup raisins
• 2tbs ground flax (optional)
• 1 scoop chocolate protein powder (optional)
• 1tbs agave nectar or maple syrup or brown sugar (add up to 3tbs if you want them sweeter)

3. Plop small, flattened balls of the mixture on a greased or non-stick cookie sheet and back for 10min or so. They will always have that “just out of the oven” chewiness due to the banana. YUM!

Recipe (c) Lana Perry of Glow Hard or Go Home