Time Management Strategies

"Time is more valuable than money. You can always make more money but you can not make more time."  Jim Rohn

What a powerful quote this is. Time is a valued asset in one's life. Either you utilize your time efficiently and wisely or you end up wasting your time. Wasting your time means that your days become a blur. And if each day is a small piece of your life, if they become a blur, your life can waste away. Don't live like this! Time can be on your side and you can take full advantage of every minute you are awake by becoming a better manager of your time...

Do not let days get by without focusing on your productivity and time management. The superstar entrepreneurs', the most successful leaders in world and the elites know how to systematize their day in a manner of organization and efficiency. The most productive people in the world get the same 24 hours in a day everyone else does. So why do they achieve more during the day? It's because they are laser focused at creating an organized game plan to operate their time in the most efficient way possible.   Below are strategies that the superstars of the world apply to assist them become great time managers. 1.  Follow a schedule. Your schedule is your order. Without an organized schedule, life gets quite chaotic. With so many things to accomplish in a day, a schedule gives you a layout or a game plan to follow so you can stay on track. This schedule is not perfect. Of course things pop up that need attention but overall this schedule keeps you on track throughout the week.   2.  Add in your priorities. Once you have your schedule, you need to write out all of your priorities. Family life, work life, your health, your faith. What are the major things in your life? Your major things need the most attention. These things need to be added to your schedule first. If it's important to you, then make it an appointment and do not miss this "scheduled meeting". 3.  Limit non-important activities. If I were you, I would strip away anything that will not lead you to your goals. Do a complete assessment of how you spend your time each day. If you take 5 x 15-minute segments where you might waste time in a day that adds up to 75 minutes a day, 525 minutes in a week, and 2,362 minutes in a month! That is a savings of 39 hours in a month! Little savings here and there can add time to your days, which can equate to more productivity and completion of your major tasks. 4.  Become an early riser. Several research studies associate waking up early with success. Waking up 45 minutes earlier than you do now gives you more than 23 added hours a month. That's almost an extra day! In this early morning time you can plan and organize the day ahead, exercise, meditate, eat breakfast, work on your personal growth and/or focus on your goals. All of these tasks equates to a more optimistic way of life. The more optimistic you are, the better chances at achieving ultimate success. Just remember, the first week you do this, it will be uncomfortable. You might not like it. But once you have created a habit and you have following through for 45-60 straight days, it will become a natural part of your life.   5.  Get less sleep. I am not saying sleep is unimportant. Sleep might be the most important remedy for sustained energy, superior performance and vital cognitive thinking. But 5-7 hours of quality sleep will do the trick. Notice the key word, "quality". I would rather have someone sleep 5 solid hours every night than 8 hours each night of tossing and turning. Your body benefits from routine. Do your best to go to sleep around the same time each night and wake up around the same time each morning.  Do not watch TV right before bed as this stimulates your brain and can keep halt your sleep progress.  Try listening to soothing music, read a book or spend 10 minutes of quiet time to help with your sleep patterns. This way of living will give you more time and energy during the day so you can charge after your goals and aspirations.   6.  Learn to "empty your cup". Take a coffee cup and start pouring water into the cup. When it is full, continue to pour water into the cup. What happens? Yes, you are right. The water just spews out of the cup and no more water can be retained. Many people live their life this way. They go, go, and go without "emptying out their cup". They become overwhelmed and stressed. This leads to unproductive living. Recharging every 5-7 weeks with a trip out of town or a couple days off of work will revitalize your energy so you can come back and work at mastery levels and productivity.

From here on out, eliminate the excuse of "I don't have time." This is a statement that needs to be adjusted. Maybe you need to become a better time manager.   Always strive to develop a better system to manage your time. This will lead to better production, more focus on the major things and overall personal improvement. Stay Inspired,   Justin Levine Life Coach and Fitness Expert

A Challenge to all fitness enthusiasts and personal trainers

A challenge to all fitness enthusiasts and personal trainers

Fitness is my life, my passion and my obsession.  It is what I think about the majority of my days.  I enthusiastically live to educate people on creating effective, safe and properly designed fitness and nutrition plans.  The goal is to assist people achieve better fitness and performance levels, improve their movement and range of motion, help them develop healthier nutritional habits and guide them to overall better ways of living.  This is my mission.  I am offering up a fitness community wide challenge to general fitness enthusiasts, all personal trainers and fitness coaches, any sport coach that designs strength and fitness programs, runners, triathletes and any weekend warriors who enjoy hitting the gym.  Here is my challenge: clean up your movement; focus on quality repetitions; eliminate sloppy exercise technique; And truly be dedicated to mastering exercises instead of carelessly running through your training.  

 

I become frustrated when I see poor exercise programming, sloppy technique, and haphazard fitness training.  Utilizing complex movement patterns and high intensities for people who lack a baseline of conditioning, have dysfunctional movement patterns and who have not yet mastered basic movement is a recipe for disaster.   

 

It is quite easy to design a workout that will crush someone.  Anyone can put together this type of workout.  But this is poor and random exercise programming that will lead you or the people you work with down the wrong path.   

The idea is to create first, a safe program.  It’s a bad sign if injury is continuously happening and pain is always surfacing.  When you start prescribing exercises for yourself or the people you work with, you should add exercises that will be within their movement and fitness capability.  If the exercise or aerobic activity is out of an individual’s potential, injury rates dramatically increase.  I am not saying you shouldn’t push yourself, that is not the message.  What I am saying is, just because a training session makes you sore and tired, that doesn’t mean it will guide you to achieving your goals.   

“Anyone can make you tired, but not just anyone can make you better!” - See more at: http://www.trainingforwarriors.com/2013/11/my-10-lessons-learned/#sthash.n1zNVteQ.dpuf

 "Anyone can make you tired.  Not anyone can make you better."   Martin Rooney

“Anyone can make you tired, but not just anyone can make you better!” - See more at: http://www.trainingforwarriors.com/2013/11/my-10-lessons-learned/#sthash.n1zNVteQ.dpuf

Exercise training is not a “one size fits all” approach.  All bodies are not the same and people express their own unique ways to move.  Some people are hypermobile and their joints move excessively, which can cause joint trauma and injury.  Some people lack range of motion and mobility and need movement practice to improve this dysfunctional pattern.  Some people have limited fitness capacity and shouldn’t be performing high intensity intervals until they have built a better foundation.  These are situations where exercise individualization is needed to truly see results. 

Your challenge continues by making sure you choose appropriate exercise selections and training intensities and utilize smart progressions.  We are not looking for perfection but we are looking for a smarter approach.  Smarter training equals better results and less injury and pain.  To enhance your program ask yourself a few questions.  What did I do last week?  What is the plan next week?  Do my workouts follow some type of progression?  Am I performing the exercise correctly?  How do I feel physically?  Did I get adequate sleep last night?  Am I nourishing my body with nutrient dense foods?  What is my overall goal?  Answering these questions will give you direction regarding your exercise program.  Random and unsystematic training will eventually cause injury, burnout and/or demotivation to train. 

The challenge has been given.  Whoever takes this challenge is promised better fitness, improved movement and superior performance.  I dare you!