Women Living Well - Spring 2005
Student Papers
On Serendip

BALANCE

Throughout this course on women living well, all of the speakers talked about the importance of balance. They all said that the balance is one of the main factors for a good life. When combined, balance in thinking, time management, eating, and exercising is crucial in the formation of a healthy and content personality.

Mark Shultz talked about the balance between mindfulness and reflection, and how the achievement of this balance helps us lead the less stressful life. Being mindful is being aware of your present moment without judging, reflecting or thinking about it more than necessary. It is simply observing the moment in which you find yourself and taking it all in. Mindfulness is beneficial for one's wellbeing in a way that it helps us focus on "right now" and "right here". I would also argue that some brooding is good because it is in human nature to process and fuss about things. Achieving balance between these two is important because it provides for a realistic view of "right now" and "right here".

Glen Smith talked about tie management, which in itself is a balance between more and less important tasks. Without that balance, we would spend more time on unimportant activities and would not be able to focus on more important ones. Glen stressed categorization of activities and their grouping into a grid, sorted by the relevance and priority. Balance between relevant and less relevant things is important because it provides for completion of relevant tasks, while leaving time for play.

Mimi Murray talked about nutrition and its proper balance. The food pyramid can serve as a guideline, but the ratio of things on the pyramid varies from person to person. It is then important for each individual to find their nutritional balance, making sure that the intake of all the nutrients important for a normal and healthy life is covered. The balance between carbohydrates and proteins, fats, sugars, and milk products, vitamins and minerals, is crucial for good health and good living.

Finally, Matt Brzycki talked about the balance between fitness and aerobics, exercise and stretching, as well as the balance between frequency, intensity, time and type of exercise. Finding the balance between these factors enables us to get the maximum out of the workout, consequently making our body stronger and our lives better and healthier.

In conclusion, the most important thing is to balance all the abovementioned aspects of life. One should be mindful, eat healthy, work out responsibly, and prioritize according to their life-style. The balance of these activities makes a person less stressed and more healthy and happy.


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