My neighbour told us that this video clip has done more than the Tourist Board and anyone (for that matter) to put Newport on the map!.

See for yourself…Newport (Ymerodraeth State of Mind)

Thank you Sangeeta.

Carolyn, Can Always Hear a Smile on Social Media

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Research suggests that simply smiling, for instance, releases endorphins and boosts serotonin, which actually lead you to feel the emotion you’re projecting.

I read Mark Perl’s Self Esteem – Gone in 60 seconds and wanted to add a comment for both he and moreso his wife Mandy. I’ve kept up with his comments since Tuesday and it’s heartening to read they have received much loving kindness and pro active suggestions in applying for other job interviews. So I wanted to go a step further and turn my reply into a blog to help her and others who find themselves in this hurtful spiral. When life get’s a bit rough, don’t allow people to walk all over you. Turn things around and ask them outright ‘What type of person are you looking for?’. You will be surprised, if you wait for the answer. Then be kind to yourself and smother those hurtful feelings with loving kindness. Experiencing rejection over and over does zilch for your self esteem and human spirit. Substituting thoughts about what you have in your life, as opposed to what’s missing, can help reverse the negative spiral. Mandy has a loving adoring husband in Mark.

Deepak Chopra referred to cyberspace as a “collective cloning of our soul,” suggesting we leverage technology but move the conversation happening on Twitter and Facebook to a new level. The outcome of Mark’s Blog proves his point of taking it to the next level.

Marguerite Manteau-Rao wrote ‘Practicing loving kindness does not mean feeling love at the exclusion of any other emotions. Rather, it means calling upon loving kindness to enrobe all or the emotions inhabiting us in the present moment, many of which can be all but loving … It took a while to get this’.

Slap on the Smile and infect all those around you and yourself!.

Demos asked us to share ‘My Fascination’. To SEE a gorgeous Smile lifts the human spirit releasing endorphins and boosts ‘feel good’ serotonin. Go to that next level involve someone new, ask them to comment. I have, I asked Baiju.

How do you get over hurts? Happy Friday! Carolyn x

This weeks other #Sparkly Tips

Wednesday’s #Sparkly Tip – Create your own killer playlist!

Monday’s Sparkly #Tip – Fuel don’t fool your body!

Carolyn, The Best Business attire, A Smile on Social Media

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I will take each tip and expand on them throughout the coming weekdays

So you have fueled your body and not fooled it, right?

Photo courtesy of Huffington Post

1. Eat regular meals and include protein to top up your blood sugar levels.

2. Exercise

It’s easy to find excuses for not working out, a gym membership is too pricey, it’s too hot to jog outside, or you simply don’t have the time. But with easy, one minute exercises you can do in your lounge, on the landing, or hotel room what excuse could you possibly think of?

3. Killer Playlist

Your favorite tunes are more than just a distraction from all the huffing and puffing – researchers have found that matching the tempo of a workout to music with a strong, fast beat can increase one’s capacity for exercise by 15 percent. Choose songs with 120 to 140 beats per minute (the norm for most pop and rock songs).

Here we go…> Closer to the Edge

4. Regular Fit top ups

Get fit and trim at home with these one-minute exercises to firm your body.

One Minute Step Ups – (alternate right and left) step up with knee lifts!
One Minute Crunches – Curl ups with knees in to chest.
One Minute Lunges – Alternate right and left leg.
One Minute Rotation twist – Stand feet hip distance and swing ( both straight arms, clutching hands) across the body to right then left.
One Minute Push ups – modified (on knees) or full extention with wide or narrow hand positions.

5. Smile – Research suggests that simply smiling, for instance, releases endorphins and boosts serotonin, which actually lead you to feel the emotion you’re projecting.

6. Change your daily routine! The same ol’ same ol’ is more than boring — it’s an energy suck.

Talk to me? I am online for an hour on twitter. What shape is your Wednesday in?

Sun’s out again, so no excuse to do your one minute exercise session.

Footnote – You can increase the sets to three and five as you get fitter on consecutive days.
e-mail me at carolyn@lifestyle-online if you would like a 1-2-1?.

Happy Wednesday!.

Carolyn, helping you to #Sparkle with Confidence on Social Media

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Sharon Fowler, MPH, and her colleagues at the University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, collected data for eight years have discovered that people who drank diet soda did not lose weight, but rather gained weight.

So, how do you satisfy those sweet cravings? How can you truly taste and enjoy the real flavor of foods?

Help to keep your sweet cravings in check:

Use only a small amount of sugar coming from 100% cane sugar or honey

What do you bring to the table?

Photo courtesy of Huffington Post

What shape is your Monday in?. I am off for my Power Plate session.

Carolyn, helping you to #Sparkle with Confidence on Social Media

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Phil Collins Against All Odds (Take A Look At Me Now)

Connect right? Do Good and Feel Good. Asking for help about the things you need. There is nothing better than real messages from real connections. Being real and Asking For Help from your fellow ecademates.

Louis Gray wrote this ‘Today Ecademy is here to help you connect to future business colleagues. Ecademy are entrepreneurs in spirit working to find likeminded individuals who can support their aggressive goals’.

Looking into the Inch Club earlier I saw this from Zara ( read below) then I recieved a DM from Milton ‘WHAT is the best way to lose weight, please?’

Hello all, haven’t been in for a while. Maggie (my new doggie come fitness coach) has been taking me out for longer walks than usual and she loves going up hills, so my aim has been just to climb up one hill a day, to get a bit breathless, the idea being to get used to exercising and controlling the hyper ventilating process by breathing through my nose – I’m going to see if getting fit can help me control my panic attacks better, I’ve felt worse since exercising but I’ve only just started, so rather like the Internet, I’m not ready to give up the ghost just yet.

I got a shin splint in my right leg for 2/3 weeks which made it difficult to walk far, this was due to wearing cheap shoes, I had no idea footwear could cause injuries like this – so I learned something there.

Anyway one stone down, 4more to go to reach a healthy weight for my height.

Zara in support of your agressive goals focus on the solution, not the problem.

Hyperventilating can be improved through awareness of:-

Poor Stamina
Breathing Techniques
Poor Posture
Asthma
Anxiety – Learn to switch off! Hypnotherapy and Relaxation techniques are wonderful for addressing hyperventilating.
Stamina – Breathlessness is improved by interval training – undulating hills are brilliant! Well Done Maggie aka Fitness Coach

Shin Splints are common when you increase resistance uphill wearing inappropriate footwear. Ask any Paratrooper Zara? I wrote this Article on Ace because of my dedication to improve gait problems in trainers and in the Work Place.

Solution – Find a brilliant people friendly Podiatrist.

Why you need GREEN exercise

Giving and Receiving, Serving and Volunteering. ‘Do Good and Feel Good’. Do you have any real stories to add about how you were helped to become the architect of your future?.

Connect – What kind of help do you need? C

Carolyn, helping you to #Sparkle with Confidence on Social Media

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I received this tweet first thing from Mick Say
“I can’t remember why I tag your messages with #Sparkle ? Remind me”

Re “Personal and Business Growth!” Take a breather to Ignite and Connect - refresh your mind, recharge and calm your thoughts and connect with Nature.

How about this?..>

   
Courtesy of @gowerscapes – It’s why I love the Gower!.

What shape is your Monday in?.

Carolyn, helping you to #Sparkle with Confidence on Social Media

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MindGym – I was sent this powerful illustration of the following:-

Collective Intelligence

Collaborative Intelligence

High Engagement with Community

Why do you connect on ecademy?

Just skyped with Steve Hall Doingthe92 and he had not heard of Gavin and Stacey.
Here is another Friday question for you. What would you feed your Hero?
Answer – The Help for Heroes Cook Book

Happy Friday.  Knights of Cydonia

Carolyn, The Best Business attire, A Smile on Social Media

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Last Friday was made complete chatting away, in between Friday business and motoring on the M4, with this sociable, thoughtful connection Demos. This morning Demos wrote : Hopes and dreams ripped apart. In his blog Demos commiserates with England having lost to Germany in the World Cup. The media will no doubt be quick to point out the chink in one’s armour. We saw a few Knights dressed up in the South African Stadium willing their home side onwards and upwards.

As opposed to the usual ‘morning after doom and gloom post-mortem in the press, I get thinking about what makes a team successful and what in business makes a person successful. Who do you aspire to be?

Is being successful hereditary?

Another view in terms of being successful could be hereditary. I had been reading this article in The Hertfordshire Business Independent.

Julie Meyer - successful female entrepreneur when asked about her role models she replied on the one level, my role models are pretty close to home- my mother and stepmother my family is littered with with extremely strong women said ‘I have tried only to build my own Cathedral. The winners of any game set the rules of the game. I realised I would never win if I played by other peoples rules. so I would have to set the rules of engagement for the playing field in which I wanted to win.’

Her replies made me Smile, as I had recently come to the same conclusion about some of the women on my mother’s side of our family had been extremely strong women.

Who is successful in your family?

Remember you can join ecademy’s Cricket family at Ecademy’s second Cricket Event organised by Baiju “Performance” Solanki

I dreamed a dream. Simon Cowell’s words to Susan Boyle were – ‘You came back to face your critics and you beat them!’

Carolyn, helping you to #Sparkle with Confidence on Social Media

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Photo courtesy of Flickr

There is something great about working out in the open air and there are added benefits from ‘Green Exercise’.

Rural versus Urban – Natural environments enhance good feelings.
Nature can make positive contributions to our health. Being outdoors can help us to recover from pre existing stresses or problems. It helps to lower blood pressure. Natural sunlight versus little or no light especially in the work place boosts the good feelings.

I had my routine blood pressure checked this morning for the first time by our practice nurse since God knows how long!. I’m lucky I’ve always had low blood pressure. The look of amusement on the nurses face when she said ‘this is good’ made me Smile! Yes, I exercise regularly and don’t take any pills!!. So feeding on fresh air as opposed to prescribed or unprescribed drugs for me is the Good Life!.

I realise through my screening work how so many of the population rely on satins, and drugs to lower blood pressure where weight increase jeopardises the effects!. A vicious circle that one.

So find your nearest Park. I did this morning at 8.30am – Cwmdonkin Park and take that early morning power walk/jog/run. This time last year I wrote Having a Ball and for those of you who are cricket lovers there is another opportunity this year to GO GREEN participating in …>
Ecademy’s second Cricket Event organised by Baiju “Performance” Solanki with special guests Penny and Thomas Power. John Cassidy begin_of_the_skype_highlighting     end_of_the_skype_highlighting will also be there happy snapping!.

If you feel peckish and in need of a sweet pick-me-up, afterwards why not try these Oat and Carob Truffles – a great alternative to chocolate..

A simple recipe from the Food Coach (You will need a powerful food processor.)

Makes :24
Time : 35 minutes

Ingrediends
2 cups porridge oats
1 cup dates (de-stoned)
1 cup sultanas, chopped
1/2 cup almonds
2 tsp vanilla essence
A few tablespoons of cold water

Method
Combine the oats,dates, sultanas,almonds,carob powder and vanilla essence in a food processor until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add cold water, a little at a time and process until the mixture clumps together into a ball. Using hands, mould the mixture into balls. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving.

This blog answers this question – “Carolyn, what exactly is it you do?”….> What do you SEE in the mirror? Help yourself make that change. Do Smile at yourself?

How would you go about enjoying some GREEN exercise? Happy Monday!. C x

Carolyn, The Best Business attire, A Smile on Social Media

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How well do we communicate with ourselves? Inner monologues – Many of us don’t do that very well. We beat ourselves up and put ourselves down and convince ourselves we are no good.

Body Worries

Many people ignore the fact that the idealised body images that surround them are just that – idealised. They are, in the large unattainable for most people, however this does not prevent us from our relentless pursuit of attaining the elusive perfect figure. This pursuit proves fruitless and can leave the individual chronically dissatisfied with their appearance This in return, can lead to poor self esteem and lack of confidence. Does that ring a bell?

Riding this journey together. You are not alone. Stand back and gain a realistic perspective. Accept the core problem – that of a negative body image and the feeling you are simply not worthy of making that effort that produces change.

Unlocking the ‘key’ to a positive attitude.

Why?  When a person diets and reduces calorie consumption, the concentration of amino acid, tryptophan falls and consequently the levels of brain serotonin fall. As a result, the brain sends out strong cravings for the person to eat carbohydrate and fat, which can in some cases result in uncontrollable binge eating.

Have that moment to be gentle to yourself and hopefully some-one else too.

Replacing negative inner thoughts and words with

“Let’s Do it today!. Let’s exercise today because you know how great you feel afterwards.

This blog answers this question – “Carolyn what exactly is it you do?”.  I’m off to exercise. What do you SEE in the mirror? Help yourelf make that change.  Do you Smile at yourself?

Happy Saturday!. C

 Carolyn, The Best Business attire, A Smile on Social Media

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