HAPPY NEW YEAR!!
Hope you and your loved ones had a fantastic holiday and 2024 is off to a great start!
I spent my last week in 2023 at a 5-day silent retreat at Kadampa Meditation Center and OMG did it open my eyes to loads of observations and insight. So much so that I haven’t fully processed them all. The biggest take away is to not miss any opportunity to create intention and compassion towards everything that I do. A beautiful example the Geshe (honorable Tibetan Buddhism title for monks and nuns) shared was the simple act of going to the grocery store. Instead of focusing on shopping for your needs, you would shift the intention to spreading love and connecting with others while you pick up some groceries for yourself. I know it may sound far fetched but this completely resonated with me. Along with many other gems, I was reminded that we all have the power to make any change we want but it all starts with creating habits that will serve our goal and purpose.
So as we are all still fresh in the new year spirit, let’s plant tiny seeds in our Intention Garden and envision 2024 with endless possibilities. With every seed of intention, patience, dedication and compassion is needed for it to grow into something beautiful. Creating healthy habits is what will keep us on track to reach the goals we have set out for this year.
Here are 4 healthy habits I am implementing this year.
Nurture my EQ
The number 1 pillar in heallth and wellness begins with your mindset. We go through a lot of emotions each day and navigating them can be a challenge at times. Checking in with my emotions and reflecting on my thoughts throughout the day is a powerful habit I have developed over the years. I have been using How We Feel , a science based emotion tracker app. It provides ease and convenience to help me create a daily journal habit. I select my emotion bubbles (2 – 3x a day) and journal my motivation in the morning and set my dedication in the evening. It’s so easy and quite satisfying.
Macro-Dose on Greens
Building a habit that fuels and nourishes your body doesn’t have to be overly complicated. After my morning lemon water, I take 1 scoop of AG1 in 10oz of water and I get all my micronutrients in one shot. Another way I get my daily micronutrients is breaking my fast with this blended green smoothie. It’s so simple, nourishing and kick starts other healthy choices for the day.
Prioritize Recovery
I never took recovery seriously until I experienced overtraining. Some symptoms are chronic and localized joint pain, disrupted sleep, brain fog, fatigue, and mild depression. Once I understood what my body was going through, I realized that I have neglected to provide the rest my body needed to perform at the level I was demanding of it. Planning recovery days is just as important (if not more!) as planning workouts for the week. Light stretches, sauna/steam, massage, breathwork, adequate sleep, and proper nutrition are some ways I recover so that I can show up 100% for the rest of my workouts and for life. Make sure you prioritize recovery at least 1 – 2 days a week. I thank my coach, Nicholas Lopez at Peak Vitality Solutions for bringing this crucial element of my wellness to the forefront.
Honor my Sleep Ritual
Sleep is a vital process that greatly impacts our overall health and well being. Sleep hygiene has been a hot topic of discussion as more research has surfaced on the importance of sleep and how we can prepare our bodies for a restful night. The first step is to establish a consistent sleep schedule and create an evening routine that supports you. My bedtime ritual starts almost 2 hours before I actually get into bed. This is what I do nightly to prepare for sleep:
- Make sure I finish dinner by 7/730pm.
- Turn down all bright lights in my home once the sun sets. (Alexa is set to turn off all lights at 1030pm).
- Take a hot shower and apply lemongrass and lavender homemade shea butter.
- Enjoy 1 scoop of Thorne’s Magnesium Bisglycinate in 10oz warm water an hour before bed.
- Set up an optimal sleep environment (turn down the sheets, close black out curtains, set room to 68 °F, diffuse eucalyptus oil in my bedroom).
- Shut down all devices by 10pm (I have Alexa remind me nightly at 930pm).
- Relax, read, and set my dedication in bed 30 minutes before my actual bed time.
This may not work for most of us but that is the beauty of a ritual. You can design and honor a ritual that works with your schedule and empowers you to get the rest your body needs. As with every healthy habit – consistency is the key that will unlock real and meaningful changes in your life.
What healthy habits and intentions have you set for 2024?. Leave a comment below or send me a message. Let’s kick off the year with some strong intentions that set us up to reach our true potential.