Balance Your Body, Mind, and Spirit in Five Minutes a Day

The alarm goes off in the morning. You want to roll over and go back to sleep, but you get up and go through your rushed morning routine to get ready for the day. Whether you jump into the car to make the commute to work or you stay at home with the children, there is always too much to do. nnThere’s no such thing as a nine-to-five workday anymore, and there are still the daily chores, like getting to the bank or grocery store, doing the laundry, washing the dishes . . . and don’t forget dinner. After all this you try to squeeze in time for a family and social life along with a little exercise, whether it’s going to the gym, running, or using that piece of fitness equipment in the corner.nnThere just always seems to be too much to do and not enough time, money, or energy to do it. Stress—we all have it, and we all know what causes it. We know we have to reduce it to improve our health, but how? You can start to change your stress levels with one simple action done every day.nnIn five minutes a day you can reduce your stress, improve your self-esteem, build more confidence, and improve your quality of life. This may sound too good to be true, but it’s not. It only takes putting yourself first, doing something just for you, once a day. It’s easy; here’s how.nnPut three small, distinctive objects, like colored stones or marbles, into a container. One represents body, one mind, and one spirit. Each day, pull out one and spend at least five minutes on that category, doing something for you. It could be in the morning, at lunchtime, or at the end of the day. Everyone can find five minutes to put himself or herself first. The act of physically picking one of the three objects will help you to make it a daily habit.nnYou may wonder what you can do for yourself in five minutes. The possibilities are endless, and here are some ideas to start you off.nnFor Your BodynnGo for a walk, do five minutes of exercise or stretching, massage your feet, eat something healthy, climb stairs instead of using the elevator, rub lotion on your hands, do a few yoga or Pilates exercises, shoot some hoops, take a nap, or just lean back, close your eyes, and rest.nnFor Your MindnnRead part of a book, magazine, or newspaper, work on a puzzle for five minutes, play a hand of solitaire, do a crossword puzzle or play sudoku, learn a new skill like knitting, quilting, juggling, magic, or card tricks, learn a few words in a new language, or even just look up a new word in your own language.nnFor Your SpiritnnSit and breathe deeply or meditate for five minutes, go outside into nature, visit a museum and look at art, listen to music, read poetry, philosophy, or a spiritual text, buy yourself flowers, call a friend, laugh, hug someone, write a letter, or do something unexpected for someone—it will lift both your spirits.nnOnce you get into the habit of doing this each day, you’ll begin to look forward to your five minutes. You may find that as your life improves, you can find 10 minutes, 15 minutes, or more.n nWhen you take time for yourself, you’ll find that the rest of your day isn’t so difficult—you actually become more productive with the time you have. No matter how crazy or busy your day is, find five minutes, and do something for you.nn** This article is one of 101 great articles that were published in 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life. To get complete details on “101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life”, visit http://www.selfgrowth.com/greatways2.html.