R.E.S.P.E.C.T.

Beautiful Readers,

Want to know what I think is the singularly most important thing in the world next to love? That’s right. Respect. The good old-fashioned kind. Self respect. Respect for others. Respect for the planet. Respect for your family, your pets, your plants, and pretty much everything you come into contact with. Want to know why? And no, it’s not some totally airy-fairy reason, either. I think respect for all that stuff is so important because, frankly, that stuff is all you’ve got. And you only live once. And if you don’t respect those things now– you really won’t get another chance.

respect is sometimes hard to come by in these parts. You may have to re-learn it. At some point (like maybe in your tween years) you learn that rolling your eyes in disrespect for everything around you shows that you are savvy despite your age and that what you’ve got now, just isn’t enough for you, because you deserve better. Your new-found blase attitude indicates to your disaffected teen self and to everyone around you, that you expect “more” from life–whatever “more” is.

You are encouraged by the media, society, and maybe even your parents, to believe that it is your job on earth to make things “better” in some palpable way and to reject the status quo. No blame for this. I think it’s  just part of the natural push of evolution to make kids want to strive for a better life than their parents had. Thing is–this idea that it is our responsibility to “improve” the world in some way suggests that the world is in need of improving. Of course the world is not particularly flawed–or at least I don’t think so. I personally believe that things are getting neither better, nor worse, on earth.

Trouble is, particularly in America, respect for history, tradition, stability, longevity and anything or anyone that was around before you were born,  is in relatively short supply. It is easy to become terribly unbalanced in the ambition/dissatisfaction-respect/contentment continuum. All ambition and little respect is the norm as I see it. Respect is unexciting by nature because you can really only respect things that you know already. I mean, I guess you can have a healthy respect for the unknown future or for fate (if you believe in that) but,  really, respect is all about loving  what you do know and already have right now. Boring, right?

Successful wellness requires a really healthy sense of respect. Caring for your body (and, by association, your mind) can feel a lot like a tedious chore–the process is not showy–and no one is really all that impressed by the 100th time you do 40 minutes of cardio. It does not always result in the wildly impressive visible resulsts that you see on tv or in magazines (though, I guess it can, if you are focused on that), but in the end, after you have come to look the way you want more or less, the rest is just maintenance. And maintenance is by nature boring for the ceaselessly ambitious.  It does not stroke our ego any more than brushing our teeth does.

However, like the poster I have seen many times on dentist’s walls, “You only need to brush the ones you want to keep” exercising regularly and eating reasonably well, is important in caring for what you already have. Maintaining a regular, balanced, and therefore, successful, fitness regimen begins with a healthy respect for yourself and a willingess to take care of your basic, normal and unglamorous  needs for exercise, sunlight, positive nutrition, and self-nurturing through relaxation and conscious peace of mind.  And while these things may not buy you a new house, get you to a better career, or help you impress your friends, they will allow you to enjoy the benefits of feeling good,  a more balanced approach to life,  a calmer mind, and a greater appreciation for the respect you owe to yourself, which can help you to respect all other things in your life more.

Thanks for reading,

Alix 

President;  Beautiful Fitness

www.beautifulfitness.com