Tag: motivation

Posted on

Be your own Author

You are the only Author

Once you realize you’re the only author of your story, it gives you a sense of power, a purpose and improvement of your mental well being.  Only you decide what happens in your story.  And though you may not be living it at the present moment it’s never to late to start again.

 

Not tomorrow..you’re the Author today

You don’t have to wait until everything is perfect to begin the practice of journaling.  It’s the best way to rewrite your story.  You don’t have to have a degree, be the perfect weight, have a new love, a new place to live, etc. You start today, and then I highly recommend daily editing.

I truly believe the art of writing can change your life.  Whether you buy a leather bound beautiful journal, make one stapled together with paper, or just use google docs, get your feelings down on paper.  They don’t have to make sense, you don’t have to be a great writer or poet, just write them down.  It’s a great way to really see what’s going on in your life and where you need to make some changes.

Author of gratitude

One of the best things you can do for your own personal/mental health is to write down things you’re grateful for.  Some days you may find that difficult, you’ve had a really shit day, things have sucked, people have been mean, etc.  But really dig deep here, there’s always something to be grateful for.  Maybe something as small as being grateful you have a warm home, or maybe you’re just grateful that you survived the day, etc.  When you write down things you’re grateful for, it makes your heart a little warmer.  You start to see the world in a new light.  Not everything is doom and gloom.  You really do have something to live for, there is a higher purpose.

I truly hope you start today.  Write your story, rewrite it often, and continue editing.

Cause I’m not there yet, but perhaps, Soon Enuff.

Peace & love, Amy

I am a published author of the book, Soon Enuff, which is available on Amazon.

I’m also a Certified Life Coach with specialities in Surviving Mental Abuse and Happiness Therapy.

You can contact me via email @[email protected]

Follow my blog for alerts on new articles

Posted on

Reinvent Yourself

What does reinvent mean

Whether you’re in your late 20’s or 70’s, it’s never too late to be what you really want to be, to do what you’ve always wanted to do.  To reinvent yourself is to really get in touch with what you’re longing for; A new profession, to become a parent, to buy a house, to move to a different country, to quit your current job to teach yoga, to be a traveling you tube hiker. Whatever your dreams are, if you want to reinvent yourself, Monday is the perfect day to start.

Steps to reinvention

First of all let’s clear out all the emotional clutter.  Anytime someone wants to make a change you should expect to be met with conflict, either from yourself or from outside sources.  You need to sit quietly with yourself, usually over a nice hot cup of coffee or tea and clear out your mind.  Focus on the good, the good you’re already accomplishing and the even better things the new, reinvented you can do.  When your mind starts to play games with you or outside sources start to make you feel doubt, meet it head on.  Remind yourself who you are, how strong you are, remind yourself of what you really want.  It’s okay to have doubts, but don’t let them stop you, you’ll need to be strong mentally to get through reinvention.

Secondly, start changing up your routine.  Whatever it is you’re wanting to reinvent yourself into, better eating, more working out, more writing, waking up earlier to look through the houses for sale, property in another country, etc.  Researching is going to be your number one go to.  Don’t just assume that you know it all.  If you want to move to another country because you think it’s peaceful and beautiful, do your research and then research some more.  Talk to people that have lived there, make plans to go and visit, possibly for a little longer then a regular vacation.  If you’re wanting to be in better shape and think you know the perfect diet or workout plan because it worked for so and so, do your research, know you’re body type, know what foods do and don’t agree with you.  Look into many different options, as there is no “one thing fits all.”

Thirdly, set some goals. I’m talking about learning or process goals, not performance, outcome goals.  For instance : In two weeks I’m going to learn about the seasons in Costa Rica.  In one month I’m going to learn about the process my body needs to go through to lose ten pounds.  In one week I’m going to really see if I can live on half my income, if I can lessen my grocery bill by 50% and in one month I’m going to look over the process of reducing my debt to see if it’s a possibility to quit my current high paying job for the new job, which is more outdoors, less time in the office, but half the pay job.

Last, and I think this may be the most important one, start imagining yourself as your new reinvented self.  What things you’ll experience, how you’ll look, how you’ll feel.  Start to visualize yourself with that new baby, new house, new job, quitting your job, no job, new body image from the working out and eating well.  I think you’ll find, this alone, will keep you motivated towards your end game.

Cause I’m not there yet, but perhaps, Soon Enuff….

Amy

Find me on Facebook @lilbitsofme22 or Instagram @lilbitsofme22 or Pinterest @lilbitsofme22 or @coffee_poetry_lilbitofme

Oh and if you like what you’re reading here, click the subscribe button 🙂

 

Posted on

Are you your own worst enemy….

Have you ever really thought about how you speak to yourself?

Are you praising yourself, giving yourself a pat on the back, loving yourself, looking in the mirror and being proud of who you see?

Or, like most of us, are you condemning yourself. Telling yourself that you’re not good enough, pretty enough, young enough, talented enough. Are you looking in the mirror and pointing out to yourself all your flaws and how you wish you looked better?

We don’t realize it, but we hurt ourselves far more than anyone else can ever hurt us. We don’t realize that what we say to ourselves, what we think about ourselves, that’s the most that anyone else can ever think about us.  Though it’s true another person may be saying to you, “You look beautiful today…” In your heart, if you don’t believe it, because you have said too many times to yourself, “I’m disgusting, I wish I were more pretty,” than you won’t even hear when a person gives you a compliment, you’ve already condemned yourself.

The energy that comes from within you is what others receive from you.  If you are negative towards yourself, people sense that, and it makes them negative about you.  Conversely, if you have positive energy, and you really love yourself, others will love you and want to be around you because your energy is so positive and people, especially in these times, crave positive energy.

I have come to realize one thing about myself….I need to sincerely work on this.  I am a very positive and uplifting person…but only for other people.  I have started really listening to what I say to myself, and it’s not pleasant.  I’m never happy enough with how I look.  My writing is never quite good enough, my house never clean enough, and on and on….I think I’ve become very good at putting out a “false positive energy.” I can seem like a very nice positive person, but on the inside I’m not feeling it.

So if you are struggling like me, let’s start today to really listen to ourselves.  And when you catch yourself saying something negative to yourself, stop for a moment, change your attitude and you will eventually change your behavior.  I don’t think this will be any small feet.  I think we’ve trained our brains from childhood to think the way we do, maybe we were raised with over bearing parents, maybe a love in our life, hurt us so deeply that we began to self-doubt ourselves.  But whatever it is that started this awful trend in ourselves, I know one thing for sure, we can break the cycle.

So: Do you ever realize the way you speak to yourself?  Maybe you ought to listen….

Peace & love

Cause I’m not there yet, but perhaps, Soon Enuff….

Posted on

Mindful Aging….

My morning poem:  When you walk out this morning be mindful of every smell, color and texture, all these things will bring your senses pleasure.  And just perhaps one day, we’ll share these treasures together….-Amy-

Good Monday Morning,

New day, new week, let’s make it great!

So does growing older every give you a bit of anxiety?

There are days I get so excited about the stage of life I’m in, kids are grown, I’m older, but still young enough to do pretty much anything I want to.  Still, there are days, I look at myself in the mirror, see the little lines getting more pronounced, having to color my hair a little more often, and times when I worry about my future (older) self.  Financially, health wise, all of it, some days it’s a struggle.

But as I’ve grown in my practice of mindfulness, I’ve come to realize, there’s absolutely nothing you can do about getting older, it’s going to happen, we can’t stop time, and honestly, who would want to?

However, we can change the way we age.  Why does the word age get associated with illness, and becoming decrepit.  Why can’t we grow old and remain healthy?

I believe if we take care of our bodies, minds, and soul through exercise, healthy eating, and healthy living, life can be absolutely wonderful until the end of our days.

Learning to live moment to moment, really living, really tasting life, not just being alive, but being open to every opportunity life gives us, seems to make living worthwhile, and worth living a hundred years!

I hope you take today to be mindful of all the beauty around you.  And if your day is stressful or sad, that’s ok too, accept it for what it is, what it’s showing you, and then tonight when you close your eyes, know that you made it through, and you’re ok, and you’ll be energized to wake up to a new sunrise tomorrow.

Peace & love!

Cause I’m not there yet, but perhaps, Soon Enuff….

 

Posted on

Fit Friday….let’s talk fitness

Hi guys…

So my daughter, who is also a Doctor of Physical Therapy, has been telling me for months to see a Biomedical Doctor for my stomach issues.  Here’s a little history behind that:

3 years ago I was having some really bad stomach pain, worsened as the night went on until I could no longer take it.  My husband finally made me go to the ER where they did some blood work and rushed me into an emergency exploratory surgery.  Turns out I almost died…had diverticulitis, which I never knew I had, and it ruptured, spilling poison in my body.  Five days in the hospital and my stomach cut from chest bone to pelvis bone. It was really traumatic, I didn’t much want to live, let alone, think I would ever recover.  Six months later, they went back in and reversed the surgery I had, re-opening the same area and also cutting horizontally this time.  So, needless to say, my abdominals have never been the same, nor do I think they ever will be. That’s also why you’ll never see a fitness picture of me with my stomach in it… 🙁

However, after the surgeries and now 3 years later, I am healing and feeling better each day.  I have, though, continued to struggle with stomach issues, despite the fact they also removed my gall bladder during the surgery.  I still have so many foods that I cannot eat without getting very ill.

So, upon listening to my daughters advice I started a new diet and workout regime consisting of very healthy eating (though I do love sweets on occasion…lots of occasions ha) and I work out 6 days a week, sometimes twice per day.  I have started incorporating yoga as well as P-90 and Barre.  Once it warms up a bit I’ll venture back out for a few runs a week, though I’m not super stoked, running isn’t my favorite thing to do.

I wanted to share with you a few things I’ve started this year that have already really improved my overall feeling of well being.  First, I started taking a probiotic called Visbiome.  After doing some careful research I believe this to be the best on the market, having over 112.5 billion bacteria per capsule.

I ordered it on Amazon, around $59 for 60 capsules.  It does say to take 5-6 per day, but I honestly only take two, one in the morning and one at night, and I can tell a big difference.  Well worth the cost…

I’ve also started to just add “more color” to my plate.  For instance, this was my breakfast this morning:

I cooked kale in about 2 tbl. of olive oil, along with a 1/4 of a yellow pepper, onion, and mushroom, just until tender.  Then I scrambled up two eggs, poured it over the top of the veggies and then cut up some little cherry tomatoes on top.  Used some corn tortillas, which have no gluten, and very low carbohydrates to make a little breakfast taco.  Cut up some strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries and pineapple.  Like I said, colorful, and oh my, so, so, tasty.  I’m not a kale lover, but I’ve been trying to incorporate it into my meals at least twice a day.  Kale is low in calorie, high in fiber and has zero fat. One cup of kale has only 36 calories, 5 grams of fiber and 0 grams of fat. It is great for aiding in digestion and elimination with its great fiber content. It’s also filled with so many nutrients, vitamins, folate and magnesium.

I’ll get into the benefits of the other ingredients on another Fit Day.

My workout today is 1 hour morning Yogaflow, and then P-90 legs and back.  I’m telling you I used to think Yoga was honestly for wimps that couldn’t handle a “real work out.”  I’ve been doing P-90 for about two years, and it’s a killer, but I love that type of hard exercise.  I’ve been doing yoga now for about a month, and I don’t believe any other type of exercise has pushed me to my limit quite like this.  I’m a super competitive person, so not being able to master some of the moves is really good for me, it just makes me want to work harder at it until I get it.  I’m quite sure I’ll never be a master at it, but it’s fun, something new, and very challenging.  It also gives me a great time to just concentrate on my breath and be mindful of what my body is doing.  I honestly love it and have rarely missed a day since I started.

If any of you enjoy Yoga, let me know what your favorite type of Yoga is and also what position gives you the most trouble, or that you’re best at.  I love to learn what other people are doing for exercise.

I hope your day is awesome, try to make some better choices for your body and mind today.  Remember, we can’t control everything, but we can control what we put in our mouths 🙂

Not there yet, but perhaps, I will be, Soon Enuff…..