In a left brained, masculine energy, Type A world, everything seems so ambitious. We no longer eat fruits and vegetables and drink water simply because we like them. We no longer go on walks or do physical activities simply because we like them. We no longer have hobbies or interests just to have them. Everything has some big goal attached to the end of it. Of course, I am not speaking on EVERYONE. To the people out there that knit just because you like it and don’t feel the pressure to “make money off of it”, I love that for you. This blog is for the percentage of those that have lost this luxury. I feel that we have lost sight of the basics. The basics seem so “lazy” now. Too simple. In a world rooted in achievement, sometimes over-achievement, how do we resort back? That is what I am here to share. I am going to break this into 3 categories: Physical, Mental, and Spiritual.
Physical: Stay Active
This is as simple as it sounds. Move your body. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it), we no longer live in an active society. Long gone are the days we had to hunt and gather, walk miles to get everywhere, or even prepare fresh food every day. We are sedentary and spend majority of our time lounging around. Everything is at our finger tips. We can have groceries delivered to our doorstep. We can even have pre-made food delivered to our doorstep. So what does this mean for us? It means we have to make an attempt to put more movement into our every day lives. Here are some things you can do:
Park in the back of the parking lot. This will help you get more steps.
Take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator.
Go on walks
Listen to that "time to move" notification on your smartwatch.
Dance! Remember when you went out every weekend? You danced all night for hours and never thought twice about it.
Physical: Sleep
Prioritize getting an appropriate amount of sleep. I feel as if we glamorize operating on no sleep and praise people that are able to work more and sleep less. "I'll rest when I'm dead". Ever heard that before? You want to fight capitalism? Stop allowing companies to "capitalize" on your lack of sleep. For most adults 7-9 hours of sleep is optimal.
Takeaway: "Stop allowing companies to capitalize on your lack of sleep"
Physical: Fuel Your Body
Nutrition does not have to be complicated. Eating healthy does not have to be a lot of work. It's about knowing balance. Diet culture and unrealistic beauty standards have led us to adopt very strict rules when it comes to what to eat and how to eat it. We are so far on both spectrums, but fail to meet in the middle. We are either consuming fast food every day or we are drinking fruit smoothies and eating salads. Neither is ideal. Eat for nourishment of your body and nourishment of your soul. Sometimes that will be a meal full of anti-inflammatory foods, antioxidants, and vitamins. Other times, that may be a 4 for 4 at Wendy's (do they still do that?). The important thing is that you don't overthink it and stress yourself out along the way. Try to be mindful of these things throughout the week:
Have I been drinking water?
Have I eaten any fruits and/or vegetables?
Did I have protein?
Did I eat enough?
Have I been feeling energetic? Or lethargic?
Were there any strong cravings I had? Is it because I have been depriving myself of those desires?
Do I FEEL healthy?
Mental: Manage Stress
Did you know that chronic stress is in the top 10 leading causes of death? In fact, the number one cause of death is heart disease. Do you know what contributes to heart disease? Things like high cholesterol, diabetes, smoking (including second-hand), lack of activity, and a poor diet. Last question. Do you know what can cause people to smoke, eat poorly, drink alcohol, and remain in-active? Stress and/or mental health battles. So if you ask me, stress, especially chronic stress, is the number one cause of death. If you can manage this silent killer, you can improve the quality of your life both mentally and physically.
Live more in the present. Anxiety comes from too much futuristic thinking and depression can come from frequently reliving past events.
Set boundaries. Emotional and physical. You can't do it all and even if you can, you shouldn't have to. Know where to draw the line.
Learn balance. In all areas of your life.
Mental: Practice Self Care
Know what you need and give yourself more of that. I'll explain this one by sharing a story. I spent many years of my life in the grind. All work, all planning, all preparation, all goal-based. Always on the go. In some ways, I am still like this. My best friend calls me "busy body" and another friend of mine says he has to book a time to hang out with me months in advance. A joke, but partially true. In hindsight, I realized this lifestyle was not great for my mental health. Although I looked and for the most part felt okay, I later realized I wasn't. I'd be highly agitated, little to no patience, always tired, moody, etc. 2020 happened and life slowed down. I got to spend A LOT of time with myself. Honestly, best year of my life (on a personal level. I understand for a lot of people this was an awful time). During this period, I learned about self-care and I loved it. I spent hours, days, MONTHS pouring into myself and it felt amazing. Of course, life has picked up again and I have lost that time with myself. I struggle with maintaining that consistency BUT... I do my best to re-commit at least 1 day a week to self-care and date myself. You do so much for others, but what do you do for you?
Mental: Find Hobbies You Like and Just Do It!
It's a dangerous slippery slope when you find something you enjoy doing it. Your curiosity is piqued. Interest begins to bloom. You commit to learning more about it and even become really good at it. You love it so much you are willing to do it for other people. This is where the slippery slope comes in because you have now turned it into work. At first you were painting for fun, but now you've got 5 orders to complete for people that offered to buy your work. This is no longer bringing you joy, it's bringing you stress. It is okay to find something you like and keep it for yourself. In fact, I recommend it. You are absolutely allowed to take a skill/passion you have and turn it into a profit while still enjoying it. For most people, this is ideal. It's the "if you love what you do, it'll never feel like work" quote. I'm only suggesting that while you find your contribution to society, find your contribution to you.
Takeaway: "While you find your contribution to society, find your contribution to you."
Spiritual: Practice Gratitude
When was the last time you expressed gratitude or even received it? Imagine if your friend or significant other approached you and said "I just want you to know I am grateful for your presence in my life. You are fun, reliable, trustworthy, and thoughtful. I enjoy talking to you and spending time together." Several things could happen:
You'd be shocked. Not that you are a good person, but that the other person is expressing the positive emotions you make them feel. Sure, you can know in your heart you are doing a good job, but it's amazing when you get verbal confirmation.
You'd feel good and here's the kicker... you'll end up doing MORE for that person. Isn't that something. When someone expresses they are appreciative of you, you want to give them more to be appreciative of.
This works on a spiritual level as well. When you can express gratitude to whatever higher power you believe in, that higher power will want to give you more. And if you don't believe in "all that mumbo jumbo crap" then think of it like this: The more things you can remind yourself you have (and truly feel happy that you have them), the less you will spend worrying about what you don't have. You may not have your dream job yet, but you have a job that allows you to keep a warm roof over your head, food in your stomach, and the luxury to go on vacation at least once a year. That's something to be grateful for, right?
Spiritual: Intentionally Be Kind
A couple of weeks ago I jokingly said "an act of kindness a day keeps the depression at bay". I actually think there is some truth to this. I don't know about you, but it feels good doing something nice for someone. In a selfish way, it's also doing something nice for yourself because you get a dopamine and serotonin boost out of it. Of course, if you feel like someone is using you then your act of kindness will not feel good. This is why it is important to set those boundaries and only extend a helping hand when you truly desire to do so. Imagine it's not a holiday, it's not your birthday, nothing special has happened, but you receive a card in the mail from someone in your inner circle with $100 in it and it says "buy yourself something nice. Thanks for being you!". Very simple but the impact it'd have on you is worth millions. Take that feeling you just experienced and imagine giving that to someone else. It doesn't have to be in the form of money. It can be anything that would make someone feel somewhat close to what you felt when you received that card. That is the gift you give yourself from being kind to another and it does more for your spiritual health than you may realize.
Spiritual: Spend Time In Nature
In a society where we spend so much time connected to technology and other people, we can often lose that connection to ourselves. Listen to the waves, feel the sun rays, stargaze under the moonlight, smell the flowers, and feel the grass under your toes. All of these things bring wonder and awe into our lives. It allows us to slow down and remember that there are things bigger than us in the world. When we are all standing outside staring at, oh I don't know, a total solar eclipse for example (because we just had one!), in that moment we are all connected to each other and to life. We get to feel small but amazed at the same time.
That's all folks!
This is not to say that you should no longer be ambitious and work towards greater things. However, I believe that once you have mastered the ability to live a simple life, you’ll be more physically, energetically, and mentally prepared to take on bigger tasks. We can reduce burn out, being overworked, mental health decline, and more. Build this foundation and see how far you can go without having to turn back and repair the things broken in the process.
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