Self Care Tip #4
Do you extend the same kindness to yourself that you do to others? You must. One practice that helps is to cultivate a mindset of acceptance for “what is” rather than “what is not.” Learn not to rake yourself over the coals when things don’t go the way you wish. Staying stuck in regrets about the past or anxiety about the future are both ways in which we rob ourselves of appreciating the moment which is the only thing within our control. Being accepting of your present situation, even while striving for better, goes a long way towards creating a more peaceful state of mind reducing cortisol levels and leading to a healthier body and soul. But, like most things, it takes hard work to achieve this state. The challenge is to be at peace with what is, learn what you can from it and grow stronger from the experience. How can we get to this place of calm more quickly? With mindful, conscious practice we can limit the time we stay down when things go sideways. It is a skill to be learned like any other. It may come easier for some than others, based on life experiences. Also, we live in a culture where feeling are quickly quashed. We may get the message, “Get over it already.” We don’t. It takes time to process hard things and get to the other side but there isn’t a lot of space given for this processing. Catch phrases like, “It is what it is” or “You need to just let it go” don’t leave much room to work through feelings. These messages may even leave you feeling bad for feeling bad. Let’s not be hard on ourselves if it is a struggle. However, experiences that don’t get worked through get played out time and again and can lead to maladaptive coping practices which may include emotional eating and drinking and general stress weakening the immune system. A helpful goal is to switch our mindset from resistance and tension with what is to one of openness to new opportunity. Here are some tips to help you travel a different path if you find yourself stuck. Consider these points cues, much as you would when working on your squat. Instead of chest up, knees out, try adding these cues to your self- care repertoire.
- Name it! Acknowledge your feelings. I’m feeling really frustrated with these restrictions on my life. It makes me sad my plans were cancelled. I’m overwhelmed. You are human. Humans have feelings. All. Day. Long.
- Take a deep breath and just be aware of the feelings floating through you. Close your eyes and sit with it. Don’t rush to shove it away with an act. Just be. Some feelings are really uncomfortable. Don’t be scared of them. They won’t last. Just like feeling happy doesn’t last. Great when it happens, but also fleeting. How long does the PR high stick around? Enjoy it while it is there.
- Repeat a positive mantra. I can handle this situation. I will get through it. I am well equipped to manage. Believe it. You are.
- Give yourself some time to gain perspective. Create distance between you and the experience. Do not act in haste. Hurt feelings won’t resolve immediately. Wait for a calm state to prevail, however long that may be.
- STOP a negative frame of mind by saying “stop” aloud to yourself. The act of voicing the word “stop” can work wonders in getting you to switch gears.
- Check for negative “tapes” playing in your head such as “This is going to be so hard” or “This is so painful.” Ask yourself how you can think about the situation differently. “Hard” can become “This is a challenge and I will rise to it”. “This is so painful” can be viewed as “Pain is a great teacher.” You can tell yourself, “I may not know what the lesson is iin it right now but in time I trust I will.”
- Be ok with not knowing “the why” behind the situation or your feelings. Don’t worry about trying to figure it out. Just be with it. Believe the learning will come.
- Suffering from an emotional hangover? Treat yourself well. Eat good food, not the junk you’ll crave. Drink healing tea, make some chicken soup, light a candle, blast some music, avoid turning to alcohol, however, tempting it may be.
- Journal it out. Some prompts: What am I feeling? Why? What can I learn from this experience? Work to identify if there is a need in your life that is not being met and is showing itself in your reaction.
Change, as we know, does not occur overnight. But, taking the time to incorporate some different mindset practices into our game means the next time we face an emotional trigger we’ll have a better strategy for dealing with it. We’ll break old patterns that don’t serve us well and develop new responses that do. Ever evolving.
Athletics Sunday Morning WOD 11:15am 12.13.2020
Wow! Only 3 Sunday workouts left this year. We’ll finish it out strong!
Warm Up: 2 rounds
:30 second bar hang with twist, 20 cross touch air squats, 30 vigorous marching steps, 40 down dog calf climbers
Then complete 3-5 practice reps of each movement in sequence.
Sunday WOD:
3 Rounds*
*descending rep scheme
Round 1
600 m run, 50 ring rows, 40 wall balls, 30 Toes to Bar, 20 wall ball jump-in
Round 2
500 m run, 40 ring rows, 30 wall balls, 20 Toes to Bar, 10 wall ball jump-in
Round 3
400 m run, 30 ring rows, 20 wall balls, 10 toes to bar, 5 wall ball jump-in
Cool Down: dragon/pigeon/child’s pose/prone breathing :90 seconds
WOD Notes: Gym running routes 600m = 7th and Highbury,500 m = around complex, then to 5th tree, 400m = around block. Subs = equal distance row/bike/ski erg. Ring Rows: Find challenging foot position, max 10 reps in a row. WB aim for weight we could complete first set in about 3 mins. T2B subs = feet as high as possible, knees to elbow/chest/waist, toe raises, ghd sit-ups, ab mat sit-ups. WB jump in = hands on ball, jump back to plank, maintain tight core and jump feet to outside of ball, stand up tall with ball, repeat.
Home Gym: Running subs: 600 m = 5 min cardio effort, 500 3 mins, 400 meters 2:30 – complete one or a mix of running in place, mountain climbers, marching, stand-ups for allotted time. Ring Row mods = db renegade rows, plank up downs, banded rows. Wall balls = DB or odd object thrusters, Wall Ball Jump ins = elevated squat thrust burpees.
