Good morning, Leaders! It’s Friday!

For the past seven years, I’ve been traveling to Arizona for a visit to the Mayo clinic. They have an executive program that consolidates all necessary visits into a tight time frame that respects busy schedules but it provides ample time to listen and consult with top notch doctors at one of the most renown health care facilities on the planet.

•Here is where I learned about diet. They advocate for the Mediterranean diet where my doctor said “Meat is a treat”…(I grew up believing it was a staple).
•Here is where I learned my hearing is failing fast. At age 45, I was told I had the ears of a 60 year old farmer. Last year the new audio technician shared that the frequencies I now hear the least happen to be the typical female voice frequency…recipe for relational angst. Hearing aids are in my near future and I can thank my contractor background where crushing concrete and working around loud machinery with no hearing protection likely accelerated my hearing damage.
•Here is where I’ve been told (more than once) that my liver function is sub par and doesn’t process sugar or alcohol well.

Sleep, exercise, diet…all pillars of health I slowly started taking for granted.

Question: Why do I raise the issue?
Answer: My ignorance toward physical fitness and how it relates to being in a leadership role coupled with my desire to pay it forward.

I used to think it was completely cerebral. Why would physical and mental health cross each other’s path? Studies are actually revealing a connection between the heart and the brain we never anticipated. Google neurocardiology or HeartMath for more information. Not to mention the obvious stamina related to being mentally available for long periods of time.

Leadership is stressful and you’ll need all your resources to function at a high level the way your Team expects you should.

There are few excuses for me being overweight or ignorant today.
-Smart phone apps help calorie and step counting,
-I can (and have) Skype(d) with a virtual nutritionist,
-Healthy food choices abound-even at McDonalds.

Now all I need is the discipline to follow through.
Where did I set that down again?

Have a blessed weekend.