Last September I conquered my fear and went surfing for the first time. I’ve wanted to try it for years, but something kept stopping me. However, my soul started pleading with me to ride the waves. And so I did. Boy, was it amazing! And the whole experience got me thinking – strength is so much more than just physical, it’s mental/emotional too! I’m a fitness coach but when you ask me what the single most important ingredient to truly sustainable health is, I won’t say diet or exercise… it’s your emotional well being.
Today I’m sharing my top three tips on keeping your mindset strong (so your body can feel that way too!):
- Love yourself exactly as you are!!! Don’t criticize yourself. Instead praise yourself for all that you are. Needing an instant dose of self esteem? Write out a list of at least 10 things that you love about yourself, or are grateful for. Another idea is to literally, look at yourself in the mirror and repeat 10 times “ I love myself exactly as I am”…that’s an exercise both my students and I do pretty much daily. You can do this every day if you’d like, too.
- Address your stress! Become aware when you feel stressed out, heavy, anxious, depressed or lethargic. Then take note of the tone of your mind chatter. Is it negative? For example are you telling yourself, “I SHOULD know how to do this,” or “I’m never going to get where I want to be.” Can you feel the pressure of these heavy thoughts and beliefs? Exactly. So once you find these negative thought patterns, change them. Think to yourself or out loud, “Although I may not know how to do this now, I believe I can find a better way,” or “I’m not there yet, but I’m doing a lot better than last week, and if I continue working on myself I will get there. I am willing to see things a different way.” It’s also a good idea to utilize any resources that are calling to you such as audio books, workshops and/or therapists. I also find a great way to prevent stress build up is to plan to do things you love, or think you would love every week! It’s important we feed our soul in this way: dancing, being in nature, exploring new streets, going to the beach, playing sports, painting, learning something new like cooking or surfing. Just play and create!
- Try some form of meditation! This is actually one of the most undervalued ways to achieve your desired body and weight. Remember you are energy and so is everything. If you are vibrating at a stressful level or resistant level of energy that’s exactly what your body will reflect. If you are getting sick, injured, holding onto weight or not letting go of weight you are clearly in a heavy and dense vibration. To remedy this and return yourself to a higher vibration MEDITATE. This allows you to let go, release and realign. You can use guided meditations (search youtube for them), or just focus on your breath as you sit, cross legged, nice and tall with your eyes closed. Try putting on some calming music, lighting incense or even trying to harmonize your breathing with the music. Walking meditation is also wonderful. Leave your house with no real direction, just focus on each breath and step you take. How your body feels as you walk. That’s all meditation is really, being fully present in the current moment.
Which of these most resonates with you? Let me know in the comments below!
