Amela Sandra: Lifestyle

Showing posts with label Lifestyle. Show all posts

Tuesday

My Healthy Self

My Daily Healthy Habits:

Eat Healthy, Non Processed Food - in other words learn how to cook healthy food or if you really hate cooking find a very healthy restaurant & I'm not talking about a healthy hamburger place to replace your "eat hamburgers for dinner every day diet" I'm talking about eat 50% Vegetables, 20 to 30% Fruit & the rest should be fish, meat or poultry (if you're a vegan there are supplements at your local health store that have what you're missing when you don't eat meat, poultry or fish) make sure you buy NON-GMO Organic Food, don't eat too many fats, or oils, continue reading my blog posts on healthy vs unhealthy groceries for inspiration

ALWAYS HYDRATE - All of our vital organs (brain, heart, bladder, liver, etc...) rely on water to function how they are supposed to, stop drinking crap and drink water also those "flavored waters" or "water flavorers" that's all crap, if you don't like water then it's probably the brand of water you are drinking, there are plenty of water brands and they don't all taste the same unless your taste buds are dead, otherwise, they really don't all taste the same - my favorite water brands are: Volvic, Jana and Icelandic - normally I drink 3 liters of water a day but now that I'm pregnant I drink twice as much

Exercise - You don't need to be all fancy to exercise: do some basic yoga, there are usually many free yoga places, also you can borrow a DVD from your local library, use the stairs whenever possible, walk instead of driving or taking the bus/train, etc....

Daily Supplements - Before I was pregnant I was taking vitamins essential for women's health from the SOLGAR brand, Solgar vitamins are all vegan & made from plants and vegetables - right now I'm taking prenatal vitamins and since I'm low on iron I'm also taking iron

S L E E P - Sleeping relaxes my mind and body - whenever I feel sick, stressed out, tired, etc... I go to sleep & when I wake up, I feel refreshed! This is also a good replacement for those of you who want to meditate but can't, go to sleep. It's almost the same thing to some extent. Tip: Don't over do it with sleeping, you also need to go out for some fresh air and sunlight.

Be Happy - Do things that cheer you up, talk to friends and family members that make you laugh or smile, play with your dog, go buy yourself some dessert or flowers, go to a concert, go for a walk, read your favorite book at the park/library/bookstore/coffee shop, go window shopping, get your nails done, do something you've always wanted to do, etc....

Shower & Moisturize Routine - After I shower, I always apply moisturizer on throughout my body: my arms, elbows, entire chest, (now that I'm pregnant I use coconut oil from the body shop to moisturizer my nipples, not moisturizing them can sometimes cause they to get dry and crack which leads to infections)

Have Sex - this is personal but the truth is, sex is VERY healthy, it's healthy for your heart and overall health, it also helps relieve stress; so the next time you and your husband are feeling stressed out, go to your bedroom, light up some candles, play some sexy or romantic music and make some amazing love (it isn't healthy if one of you has some sort of bacterial infection or disease on your genitals, that should be taken care of via primary care doctor or holistic primary care doctor)

Listen to Music - whenever I can't sleep or do yoga, I go for a quick walk whether it's around my college campus or around the block in my neighborhood with my dog, I always listen to my "PEACE, LOVE & HAPPINESS" play list which of course has exactly that type of music: music that is cheerful and usually about lovely things, peaceful things and happiness (I find it strange that some songs are called "My Happiness" and they are the most depressing songs ever, that's what I consider a 'happy song')

Thanks for Reading!

I hope I've inspired you with my healthy lifestyle!

x o x o
Amela Sandra

Sunday

Organize Your Life: The Amela Method

Over the years my schedule kept piling with endless errands, appointments, classes, date nights, family nights, meetings, activities and trying to fit in some time to see friends.

I was stressed out to the max and thought of every way possible to organize my life efficiently and effectively. Nothing worked.
After endless stress, I thought it through and remembered that I was busy like this once before in High School.

During my Junior and Senior year of High School I was involved in many activities but I had managed to fit everything into my schedule in tranquility. However things were different now, much more different....

After long stressful days, weeks and months of trying to figure out a way to organize my life.
My husband and I were on the verge of divorce because we rarely saw each other.
My mom and I constantly argued since I kept canceling too many of our traditional Mother & Daughter Sundays.
So... after crying myself to sleep, hating myself for not getting errands done on time and questioning whether I was happy with the way my life was going. I kept wondering how the hell am I going to get things done without growing any more white hairs. I literally had developed an entire strand of highlight type white hairs on my head, so much for being a twenty-something. I had finally figured it out.

Finally I was hopeless and had to accept that this was all part of adulthood.
Then I realized that acceptance is one of the many steps to a successful life.
Accepting failures, mistakes and being straight forward about your flaws is the first process to success.... in ANYTHING in life!

Here's the result of loathing myself and thinking that I was a failure:
I had created lists, but not just any silly lists, I had created specific lists that I knew would be useful for and flexible with Everything! Everyday!

I started off with my old check-list from High School except instead of writing it on my mirror with lipstick, I typed it up in my REMINDERS App on my iPhone.
What is My Check-List for my daily routine?

My Daily Check List aka My D.C.L.

Then I had created a List of Errands, Appointments, Meetings, etc... for the day and another one for the week. Before we get started, I would like to ensure you that I know it's effective and efficient because I've been using it for four years now. I've been very successful with it. In fact this year I became a professional organization guru, and mastered the art in time, goal and life management. I have finally created an equilibrium for life, work & school:

Here's What It Looks Like:

List of Appointments:

As you can see in the picture on my desk I have a board that I specifically use for appointments.

I don't like to clutter my desk because after reading a great Feng Shui book (don't remember the title but I can find out if you'd like) I found out that clutter brings negative energy and stress into your life which makes sense. So I try to keep things on my desk that I (1) use everyday (2) will use right away and recycle

Note: Notice in my photo how I have three categories? +Work +College +Etc...

The work and college categories are self explanatory: work is anything work or internship or volunteer related, college is anything that has to do with my college or CUNY in terms of appointments.

Etc is for my husband's errands or things that I have in mind but don't have time for just yet and want to make time for ASAP.

I also keep my appointments in my agenda and Errand's Check-List which are listed below....

My List of Errands
First I create categories and then I create bullet points of each errand, if an errand needs more detail then I create another bullet-point, in the photo is an example, it is blurred to respect my privacy.

I keep a copy of this on my bulletin board and when something is completed I put a check next to it with a little side note if necessary/applicable.

My Planner

I've been using a planner since Junior High School, it is the best book you will ever buy!

My planner is much more advanced than many of the people I have met.

Friends, family, professors and managers always ask me what my method is.

Here it is:

Make sure your planner has a Monthly Calendar Section for the Current Year and Next Year

Also make sure that it has a full timed schedule agenda for the almost entire day, 7 days a week.

My agenda begins at 7 am and ends at 8pm in which case, if I have nothing to do at 8, then I just write a 9 over the 8 with a dark red sharpie pen.

The way I keep track of appointments and daily events/appointments such as classes and tutoring in my agenda is by boxing in the start time with the end time, this avoids confusion and helps each event stand out, plus, in case you have some notes or assignments to jot down you will stay "in the lines" and be reminded better since each box stands out. I tend to color code everything with specific colors, which helps a lot.

To be even more precise, I have a "Key Box" at second page of my agenda with everything explained:

When something is highlighted in the following colors it stands for:

-Blue: Difficult Classes

-Purple: Somewhat Difficult Classes

-Green: Work, Internship, Volunteer Errands

-Red: Immediate Priority

-Pink: Secondary Priority

then I have orange, yellow and lighter blues, greens, etc....

COPYRIGHT:Any newspaper article, blog post/entry, newsletter, tweet, magazine article, etc... that pertains any of the information written in this blog entry without my consent will be challenged. If you would like to use my blog entry for your business or personal writing, seminar or discussion group please notify me via e-mail at AmelaSandraPR@gmail.com and let me know. This also complies with any and all of my blog posts, if you would like to use my entries for your business please notify me immediately. For collaborations, I do volunteer work or compensated work depending on the job specification. Thank you for your cooperation and respect.

Thursday

Self Love

Today is usually the day that I write in my journal.
I used to own a diary but my mean cousin would break the lock and read it.
So now I just stick to journals and a free diary app on my phone.
hhhhhha... the positive side of technology.

this is my inspiration journal

Journals are tricky.
Before I used to say "Oh well my day was pretty boring, I won't write in it today."
Actually, everyday of your life is important.
Everyday can be a miracle if you choose just always remember that optimism is a choice.
Writing in your journal every day at least once a day, any time of the day is wonderful.
It really helps me reflect.
It also really helps me see my day in a different way.
The most beautiful part of journal writing is that as I grow I begin to notice everything
that I have ever accomplished. It's very motivating. ❤

drinking green tea latte and writing in my journal via my instagram

Something that I've always had a problem with was expressing my feelings.
There are many ways of writing a journal.
For example the good 'ol way of like an episode of Clarissa Explains it All

If you need some help deciding what to write in your journal or what kind of journal you should begin, here are some links from a journal blogger & writer/poet:

Blogger Deborah Watson-Novacek's Journal Writing Ideas: