I had the opportunity to speak with my life coach this morning and talk about some of the realizations of the past couple of weeks. The biggest realization was that I have not been “walking my talk” as honestly as I desire.
I speak, write and share a lot about holistic wellness as a component of green living–they really are intertwined. We cannot think about healing our planet while disregarding our own health and wellness and vice versa. However, my recent reality has been that in my attempt to focus on growing my business and take on new opportunities, I stopped living as healthily as I advocate–I’d “slipped” back into some old habits. And where I had not quite slipped backwards, I was beginning to backslide. All this came to a crescendo this weekend while I was away and had time to look at my behavior. Also, since I’ve been home this week, I’ve had a chance to look at how much I’ve been “doing” as opposed to making time for “being.”
So what exactly do I mean by that? Well, in “doing,” I am usually focused on work product and results. Right now, results come in the form of scheduled workshops and product sales. It also means attending lots of networking events and looking for opportunities to spread the word about my business. Conversely, “being” means spending time with ME. In order to be focused and to re-energize myself, it is important that I find ways to just be with myself, with no demands of deadlines or accomplishments. This is that “pause” which offers time for regeneration and new growth. Without that pause, I can become over-tired, frustrated, and burnt out–leading to the feeling of trying to grab at or reach for what I want rather than sitting with the knowledge that what I want is already here.
The other outcome of not taking enough pauses was the re-emergence of some bad habits. As I began to feel stressed out, I began to “stress eat.” This is different than eating in a healthy way. I began eating more frequently to try to raise my energy level and I started making some poor choices–choosing more empty calories in the form of excess carbs and sugars. In looking back over the past few months, I also began eating to make myself feel better as I tried to work through new business directions. In addition to “stress eating,” I let go of my exercise regimen. In my attempt to chase after what I wanted for my business, I would not allow myself time to work out, saying that I needed that time to work on my business. The cycle of stress eating and not exercising only made me feel less energetic and less enthusiastic in the long run–it led to me feeling depleted rather than invigorated. My behavior was all about trying to chase after what I wanted. I know from experience that when my action is from the place of chasing after something, I’m never able to catch it–it remains elusive–yet, I was in this cycle once again.
This past weekend led to the opportunity for me to take a look at how I’ve been living. The last couple of days have been a bit painful as I’ve begun to admit that I have not been treating myself as lovingly as I desire. I openly declare that it is my intention to live a long life–contributing to the world in which I live–yet, the last few days have revealed that my actions are not matching up with my intention. Having come to this realization, I have two choices: I can either sit here and beat myself up for what I have or haven’t done OR I can assess the situation and look at ways to bring my actions into alignment with my intention. I choose the latter!!
What I have come to understand in the past couple of days is that this seesaw of “doing” and “being” is really about finding the balance. In order to be successful and in order to maintain health and vitality, there must be a constant flow and exchange between the doing and the being. It is not about choosing one or the other. They are both equally important in order to continue moving in the direction of my deepest desires. Flow is necessary in order to have movement.
I’ve also come to the realization that in order to have health, I must BE health–I must be it and live it each and every day. In order to BE health, I need to create and use some very tangible tools as part of my daily living. As I’ve contemplated this today, I’ve come up with my “Bellisima Living Toolkit,” which is really a checklist of things to do on a daily basis to keep that balance in my life between “being” and doing.” I share it here with you in the hopes that as I pass it on, I take it deeper into my own being. Enjoy and truly have a bellisima life!
THE BELLISIMA LIVING TOOLKIT
1. If you have a vision board, look at it each and every day. If you don’t have one, create one! I’ve created two vision boards in the past five months and they have been a source of deep inspiration to me. Because of the process of creating the board from my heart, both of my current boards reflect my heart and soul. They resonate with me because they are ME. When I am feeling disconnected or discontented, all I have to do is take time to ponder the board speaking to me and take in the messages and images there. For instance, yesterday morning I was feeling “flat” and demotivated. I took about ten minutes to contemplate the vision board that stood out and saw messages like, “Live your best life,” “A New You for the New Year,” and “Loving myself gives me the extra energy to work through any problem more quickly. My life is a labor of love.” I immediately felt a smile appear on my face and a loving warmth flow through my body. I was instantly re-ignited!!
2. Journal every morning. For me, writing is an essential way to connect with myself. I get to my heart as I journal. Starting my day with a few pages of writing allows me to check in and love myself in the process. I also do my journaling by writing with a pen in a paper journal. The action of handwriting onto paper allows my heart, mind, and body to integrate. It is a profoundly spiritual practice to me.
3. Exercise at least five days each week. Movement and moving are essential to keeping my body flexible and strong. There is also the resulting increase of blood flow which means a more vital life force and flow coursing through my veins. It is also a way to release pent-up anxiety and tension and get that angst out of my body. Sweating allows my body to do some detoxifying as well.
4. Do a chakra balancing meditation daily. I have a 20-minute chakra balancing meditation on my Ipod that I occasionally listen to. Whenever I listen to it, I immediately feel a calming and sense of centeredness move through me. This is a great way to not only balance myself but ground me as well.
5. Enjoy teatime each day and just sit for awhile. I enjoy green tea every morning and early afternoon. However, sitting in the early evening or later on at night with a relaxing herbal tea is a great way for me to “pause.” As I pick up my cup and hold it in my hands, I immediately feel myself take a deep cleansing breath and release it as I bring the cup to my lips. Somehow in those few moments I begin to relax and find myself immersed in the pleasure of sipping my tea.
6. Read something inspirational daily. Books have always been a pathway to my own intuition. The message I need to hear often comes to me by way of a book I pick up either from my own home or the library or a bookstore. I have learned to pay attention and pick up the book that speaks to me. Paying attention to that often “littlest of inklings” has helped me many times throughout my adult life.
7. Take a bath as often as possible. Immersing myself in a hot bath with scented bath salts not only detoxifies my body, but it allows me to spend time with ME. I am a captive audience in the tub to my own thoughts and feelings. There are no other distractions. I am present. It is the icing on the cake in the “being” department!
All these tools help bring me to the present moment and back to ME. The more I can incorporate them into my life, the more I can then flow and create. And the more health I will attract and maintain. That’s my truth!
