I didn’t work out all week
I wanted to tell you I didn’t work out all of last week and that I’m really happy about it. Let me explain…
I could tell you it was a busy week, and that would be true, but it would also suggest I was making excuses for myself. But here’s the thing – I did this by choice.
I’ve been feeling particularly exhausted lately. Working my full-time job, growing my businesses, trying to have some semblance of a social life, and participating in intense exercise 5-6 days a week started taking a toll. I was falling asleep much earlier than normal and waking up feeling tired, and I felt like I was hitting a wall.
I did a really intense workout last Sunday and decided to take a few days off. Then, I went and saw a Doctor of Chinese Medicine to work on neck pain (who’s amazing, by the way, if you’re local to Asheville). One of the techniques involved scraping to break up what is going on in the muscles, and there was so much junk in there, this was quickly the result:
It looked like this on both sides (which made my trip to the grocery store after more interesting). It was seeing this bruising and how bound up I’ve been and tying that to my decreased energy levels despite showing a strong adrenal pulse that showed me what I needed to do.
I consciously chose a week off. I went back at it today with renewed energy and knew I made the right choice.
Now I sit, writing this to you in my favorite coffee shop, drinking a matcha smoothie on sunny spring day, loving this incredible life I get to live, and I’m grateful I took the time to honor myself.
So, here are my lessons for the week:
1. Learn to differentiate between conscious choices and excuses. We all make excuses as to why we can’t or shouldn’t get to the gym, eat well, etc, but the key is pushing past those excuses to take better care of ourselves. It becomes a choice when we understand that the workout or situation will do more harm than good, which was the case for me over the past week. When you find yourself in this circumstance, own the choice, embrace the time for self-care, set an end-date, and get back after it!
2. Love your body enough. Whether you love your body enough to give it the benefits of exercise and good food or you’re loving it enough to give it rest, always love it enough to do the right thing.
3. Invest in self-care. However that means for you right now – working with a trainer, healer (like I did this week), nutritionist, life coach, etc. Never go self-care alone. I believe in this so much that I personally have a life coach and go to a gym where all classes are coached. Even after years of training and owning a gym myself, I still believe that everyone (including me) needs a coach. There is simply no better use of your time and money.
I’d love for you to share how these lessons resonate with you and how you can apply them to your own life. Leave a comment, and let me know!
Make it a great week! 🙂
