In this issue:
- My wacky workout, 850 pound leg presses = Big Life Lesson
- Lois says her Soul Adventure took her “from a dark, hopeless existence, to a joyful, abundant and grateful life” with health, “positive tools to combat negative feelings.”
- Sign up for the Egypt trip now and save $200! – Feb 18-March 3, 2019
I have the craziest workout. I do it every 10 days and I can finish it in about 25 minutes! People are always stunned to discover that: I can leg press 850 pounds!
I can dead lift 380 pounds!
My lat pull downs (pictured here) are 260 pounds!
Now here’s the real kicker – When I started (8 years ago) I could only dead lift 110 pounds… now it’s 3 times that. My leg presses were only at 320 pounds and I could only do 90 pounds on the lat pull down.
Nobody is more surprised than me that this is what’s happened. And believe me, this isn’t about me being a weight lifting superstar, I’m certainly not. I only hold the lifts for 5 seconds, because the science has shown that’s all it takes. I don’t have giant muscles in my arms (I don’t want that), if anything I wish my arms were smaller!
So here’s the deal with this and why I’m talking to you about it. First of all, this is a special program I found out about 9 years ago. The idea is to build lean muscle mass and it’s based on very current science that says the best way to do that is to take the muscle to failure and then let the muscles completely recover, which takes a full 10 days. So every 10 days I do this weight training and the goal is to increase it by 5 pounds each time.
This week I realized I’ve done this now for exactly 8 years and as I looked back at where I started, I was struck by the fact that what this is REALLY about is:
- Getting Started
- Learning what to do
- Doing a little bit, but doing it consistently
- Never stopping
And I realized that this is such a metaphor for life and it’s certainly the same thing for people who come to us to do a Soul Adventure.
Getting started is so hard. It’s so silly, I actually had the information about this program for over one year (!) before I did anything with it. I had seen something online and ordered the information (I think it cost $27!). But it seemed like it would be so hard and so boring to move all those weights around, and I was actually a little afraid to try to move all that weight around by myself. I had done standard 3-times per week workouts with a trainer, but I was embarrassed to ask him about it… I was concerned he would be offended by a workout you do only every 10 days. When I finally called him (one year later), he suggested I bring in the information. He read it and said he thought it was brilliant. He said he would help me get started and then if I wanted to, I could do it on my own.
The next part was learning what to do. When I started, it wasn’t so critically important that I do the lifts perfectly, but I could tell that if I wanted to do heavier weights down the road, I had to do it right so that I wouldn’t hurt myself. Paul is such an excellent trainer with incredible credentials and he taught me perfectly. And it was so effective, I wanted to keep on working out with him. Plus, we have so much fun talking and laughing… and he does the boring work of adding more and more weight as I do my warm-ups. So I’ve been doing this with him now for 8 years! Learning what to do from someone who knows their stuff makes all the difference.
But I know the biggest thing here is the consistency. Unless I’m out of town, I never miss my session with Paul, and I mean never. I always go, I never tell myself, “oh I don’t feel like doing it today,” even though there are definitely days when I don’t feel like doing it and days where I’m so incredibly busy that I’m telling myself I shouldn’t take the time. But I go because I know if I don’t do it now, it’s going to be a little harder to do it next time. Plus, I’ve seen the incredible results from doing a little bit, but doing it consistently. I just have to do a little bit. I just need to increase by 5 pounds, I just need to hold the lift for 5 seconds. Just by doing that little bit over and over again, I’ve tripled what I was able to do before.
And I know that this is keeping me healthy, making me feel good in my body and helping to maintain my weight. It helps me feel strong.
And that’s just what it takes in every part of our lives, especially our spiritual life. Just doing a little bit, but doing the right things and doing it over and over and over can give us tremendous benefits. Doing a little bit of meditation each day, even 9 minutes can make a huge difference! Being just a little kinder to everyone you meet can make the difference between a good day or a bad day. Just being a little kinder to yourself can give you enormous benefits (more on that next week).
And, of course, it’s exactly the same thing with doing a Sedona Soul Adventure. For everyone, Getting Started is the biggest hurdle. I’ve said to so many of our people that 90% of this is just about showing up — getting here and getting started. We’ve had people who have waited 2, 3, 5, even 10 years from the time they first felt the nudge that they should do this. As with anything in life, getting started is the hardest part.
And then you need to be learning what to do. Working with our incredible practitioners, having someone who really knows what they’re doing, urging you on, helping you, holding you to a higher standard than you might even be holding yourself, can make all the difference when you’re trying to change something. When you come here, not only are we clearing out all the blocks and the gunk that’s holding you back, we’re bringing you back into connection and giving you tools to maintain and deepen that connection. You learn how to do it and you take it home with you.
And then it’s all about just doing a little bit, but doing it consistently. The last session that everyone does as part of their retreat is called Intuitive Integration. In that session, we review what’s happened during the retreat and then we talk about how you can best integrate this into your day to day life: What are the things that you can do that will fit into your life and that will maintain and deepen the connection and peace that you found here? We put together an action plan for you, making sure that it’s doable, practical and effective. Just doing a little bit can keep you feeling centered, balanced, peaceful and strong.
So are you ready to get started? It’s actually very easy, just contact us. We’re here for you. Click below:
Or, if you prefer, you can call us now, toll-free, at 1-877-204-3664 (US and Canada). For our friends outside the US and Canada call 01 928-204-5988 or click here and one of our Retreat Guides will call you.
They’ll connect with you (or both of you, if it’s a couples retreat) in deep conversation. Then they’ll custom design the perfect retreat for you, working with our Master Practitioners here in beautiful, mystical Sedona.
Would you like to speak to someone today? We’re even open on Sundays (and on Memorial Day) because we’re here for you.
Lois says her Soul Adventure took her “from a dark, hopeless existence to a joyful, abundant and grateful life”
“Prior to my Soul Adventure, I had been struggling with depression, weight gain, addiction, smoking and anxiety for months. I had tried medication and therapy and neither of those worked, in fact the medications only made things worse; more weight gain, less energy and sluggish thoughts. Then my husband found Sedona Soul Adventures, how, I still don’t know, but I am so thankful! I called them the following day to learn more about their services and immediately knew this was for me. We left the following day on an 8 hour road trip to Sedona.
During the adventure, I could already feel blockages opening up and hope coming back into my mind. I was in such a sad and lonely place prior that I immediately felt changes occurring. It was so exciting learning new techniques and tools to help manage my moods. Each night I felt like I was just bursting with information and excitement with the ideas and perspective I was gaining.
After completion of the adventure, I went home and immediately put my new techniques into practice. Within a month, I effortlessly lost 9 pounds and started working out again as soon as we arrived back home. In the past, I didn’t even have enough energy to walk around the block. I ate better and made conscious decisions to remove negativity and old behaviors that no longer served me. I have taken a proactive approach towards my attitude, protecting it from negativity and situations that provoke anger and irritability. However, those situations and emotions are not always avoidable and I have learned to cope better in those cases. I live in the moment now and am able to see immediately when my emotions are turning and take responsibility for my wellbeing by either meditating or just sitting with the feeling and trying to figure out why I am experiencing them. In the past I would reach for anything to change that feeling, including alcohol, prescription drugs, or smoking. Soul Adventures provided me with healthy, positive tools to combat negative feelings. I am proud to say that I am 100% chemical free, no medications, no smoking and I am even eating organically! By living in the present, I can step back and be objective about a situation verses viewing everything subjectively and as a victim. I now see myself as the creator of my destiny, able to manifest pure joy and happiness, whatever I desire.
I was hopeful and optimistic about Soul Adventures, but I had no idea that in less than a month my life would go from a dark hopeless existence to a joyful, abundant and grateful life. Thank you Soul Adventures!”
~ Lois R., Buena Park, California Ready to get started? It’s actually very easy, just contact us.
We’re here for you. Click here…
Or, if you prefer, you can call us now, toll-free, at 1-877-204-3664 (US and Canada). For our friends outside the US and Canada call 01 928-204-5988 or click here and one of our Retreat Guides will call you.
Sign up for the Egypt trip now and save $200! – February 18-March 3, 2019
It may sound kind of crazy, but I’m so excited about the Egypt trip coming up next February. It’s silly, because this will be my 19th time! It’s not like I don’t already know what’s going to be happening. Maybe it’s because we’ve been planning some little surprises that I can’t even tell you about yet. Maybe it’s because I have a big surprise I’m going to tell you about in a few weeks. I think it’s probably because this week I’ve been looking over lots of photos from past trips putting together our new brochure and updating our website. Just looking at all those happy faces and remembering all those happy times. There is something incredible about going to these amazing places and experiencing these energies, connecting with the special people who go on these trips and making memories that last a lifetime.
If you sign up for the Egypt trip now, you’ll save $200. I’d love to have you join us. Click here to make your deposit.