Vital Strokes

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One way to think about how we deal with ourselves and other people, is to think about giving and getting "strokes". Some strokes are positive and make us feel good; others are negative and make us feel bad. For example, we give ourselves positive strokes when we like how we look, when we feed ourselves healthy food and when we share active times with family and friends. We give ourselves negative strokes when we hassle ourselves about our weight, or when we don't eat well, or when we hurt ourselves with too much or too little physical activity

VITALITY means feeling positive about how you look, how your body moves and how you choose to eat well and stay active. You no longer need to spend time trying to be perfect and searching for the right diet or muscle-building plan.

Decide that you deserve to live life to its fullest and enjoy giving yourself some positive strokes. Some of the best strokes are
small, everyday things: physical activities that are fun and easy to do, eating experiences that nourish your spirit as well as your body, and telling yourself good things that boost your self-image.

1. List three ways you can make healthy eating more pleasurable (e.g., I can add variety by trying new recipes or eating ethnic foods I haven't tried before).
   
   
2. List three types of activities that you enjoy. These include:
   
   
   1. everyday activities such as walking for errands or gardening;
   2. some activities you can enjoy with others, such as dancing, bowling and playing at the park with the kids; and
   3. some activities that are strenuous enough to make your heart rate beat faster, such as cycling and roller skating.
      
      
3. Affirmation means declaring that a certain thing is true. Write down three positive statements about yourself (e.g., I am a loyal friend; I learn quickly; I am an attractive person). Repeat these statements to yourself every day and affirm them as true.
   
   
4. Read over what you have written in this exercise and choose one or two things from each list that will give you positive strokes. Start now!

Giving yourself, your family and your friends positive strokes that will help you make the VITALITY lifestyle a reality. All you have to do is eat well, stay active and feel good about yourself.

Enjoy eating well, being active and feeling good about yourself.
That's VITALITY