Last weekend I was uploading a video to my trainer (yes, I have a coach!) and I noticed something about my body that is the visible result of a summer of indulgence… alcohol on the weekends, traveling and less mindfulness with eating than usual. It was a signal to me to re-center and re-focus (just in time for vacation! lol).
As someone who helps people with this very topic, I have enough experience to know what’s a good next best step when there’s something about my body that feels “off.” I’m also my own best client. 😆
Creating a plan and a goal is never enough.
Because the “what to do” and “how to fix it” paradigm that we use in society isn’t effective in the long run. Usually that shiny burst to do a thing will not be enough to carry us through creating a new habit or a new way of being. It also doesn’t address longing and beliefs.
No, it goes like this:
First the heart. Then the mind.
Nature knows this… if you’ve ever had children, first your heart is invested and then your brain follows. If it were the other way around and we had to think our way into parenting, everyone would give up. #hardestthingever
So, treat yourself that way.
Yes, I’m tracking macros to re-center myself. Even as experienced as I am with food, when I put in my son’s birthday dinner of ribs, salad, ¼ potato, 2 oz of vodka, vegan queso dip and a bakery cookie, it was over 1200 calories for one meal. That cookie was 480 calories alone!! 😤 That’s useful data right there!
But the thing that made a bigger shift in how I show up for myself is writing a love note to my body.
Have you ever done that? It’s the best thing you’ll ever do for your body.
We take our bodies for granted so much of the time. We only communicate with it when we’re complaining. Most people are in battle with their bodies.
We expect it to operate efficiently and silently with no gratitude or loving attention. Have you ever known anyone to thrive in that kind of environment?
Your body is not other. It is YOU. It’s the only one you’ll ever have. It’s the thing we should revere the most but yet we’re taught to criticize and compare and never be satisfied.
Here’s the letter I wrote this week:
Hey beautiful body,
I see you there taking up delicious space; moving, working, breathing.
You are my instrument of LIVING. Without you I would be the ultimate wanderer. But I’m here because of you and I’m in awe of that.
I have so much respect for all the systems and automations that live within us.
I’m deeply grateful for every breath, for every cell, for every wrinkle, for every heartbeat.
I ask so much of you. I’m sorry if I have ever berated your physical appearance based on society’s mixed up messages about what’s important. I’m proud of you and list no attributes to justify that. This love isn’t because of how I look or what I can accomplish. It just is… no matter what. Thank you. You delight me each and every day.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
What would it be like for you to operate from that space? Personally, it’s much more fun. And I feel so much more empowered and supported. It was maybe 10 mins of sitting in gratitude.
But that feeling of winning no matter what, of appreciation, of acknowledgement stays with me way past those few minutes. It creates an anchoring place of joy that will allow me to keep going, much more than an app or a scale or some other metric.
There is always space for a plan, and my guess is that you’ve probably tried a lot of them (especially as it relates to your physical self).
So make your to-do list and get your “ducks in row,” the brain likes to be organized and know what to expect. But you can also cherish your body now.
I keep this little card on my desk at all times – “I love my body. I create peacefulness in my mind, and my body reflects this peacefulness as perfect health.”
I would love to hear if you’ve ever written a love note to your body… if you did, what would it say? Please share with me if you would like!
May you find delight in your body before you create the plan.
Many hugs,
Coach Laura
Share this with a friend, if you think it’s a good message…