Thankful Thursday: Running, Nature, and Yoga

This week, I am thankful for running, nature, and yoga.

Gah!  I cringe just typing that because 10 years ago I would have walked away from any conversation in which someone pledged her affinity to any of those things.

But 10 years ago, I didn’t really know how to take care of myself.  I was a big ball of hot, reactive energy.  At the time, I viewed it as passion, but the truth was I just didn’t have the tools manage my feelings in a responsible way.  I was anxious all the time, whether it was at work or planning a wedding or being newly married. 

I hated anything that made me have to deal with my anxiety which made running, nature, and yoga unbearable.  Being alone with my thoughts was like a hamster running on a wheel – lots of activity, but accomplishing nothing.

This eventually caught up with me after Thomas was born.  I’ve talked about being on medication and being misdiagnosed, but either way, I was set upon my course of finding inner peace.

So slowly by trial and lots and lots of error, I found my magic combo: running outside and yoga. **

The running part I get; I used to run a lot as a kid, and it just felt good. However, I didn’t grow up with an innate connection to nature.  In fact, I have a vivid childhood memory of going outside and was immediately disgusted by all the bugs flying around our wooded backyard.  Horrified, I went inside and read a book.

I am not sure where this newfound fondness to nature came from, but there is something so comforting about it now.

I mean, look at these pics from my run:

Yoga, well, yoga has definitely  has toned my shoulders.  I have been going so regularly these days, Red Lotus Yoga is kind of like my Cheers bar.  I run late almost every Friday.  One Friday, the teacher and the receptionist said, “Erin, don’t worry.  We signed you in.  Go on to class.”

I love starting my Friday off with Eliza and Alyssa!  Alyssa is one of my favorite teachers EVER!

I was taken surprise by how deeply comforted this simple gesture made me feel.

Anyway, I don’t go to church, but at yoga, I do feel a connection to something bigger than myself.  When I am quiet and encouraged to set an intention, I am able to feel peaceful and able to find a sense of gratitude that is naturally very difficult for me. 

I am not saying that every day I’m floating on a blissful cloud of inner peace, but I do notice little changes that make me feel more in charge of my emotions that have, in turn, given me a better chance at feeling more at peace.

So if you were to tell me I’d love running outside and practicing yoga so much that I am now a regular at the yoga studio, I would have laughed a cynical laugh.

Thankfully, I am not that person anymore.

**This combo works for me.  Everyone’s magic combo is different, and I commend anyone who is able to figure that out, whatever that combo may be.

1-year anniversary: Running and Presenting at the Rochester Writers' Conference

This weekend marks a very special anniversary. This weekend, I began running. When I started, I used Couch to 5K app and couldn't run more than 5 minutes without thinking I should call 911.

With each week, I became stronger until one day, I was running four miles. Me, four miles! I just didn't think that would be possible.

The benefits of running have been life changing.  First of all, I feel good.  My moods are less swingy, and I don't feel that deep dip of depression and anxiety as I used to feel.

I also feel stronger. For the first time, I feel less (not completely) detached to the number on the scale.  I think this might be because I feel more confident with what my body is able to do rather than what number it is.  This is HUGE for me.

So you are probably wondering how I am going to spend this anniversary. I would love to say running on a gloriously crisp autumn day or maybe buying some new, cute running gear.

But I am not.

I am spending it in the doctor's office due to an injury I sustained while running.  I was running backwards so I could talk to my new exercise buddy, and I tripped on a curb.  I went down like a ton of bricks, but carried on with nothing but adrenaline coursing through my veins and a strong desire to finish my workout.

But I was hurt and bruised. The pain wasn't going away. So here I am.

And after the doctor examined me, she determined that I did not break anything.  I have bruising and swelling.  She said that I need to be taking Advil and using an anti-inflammatory essential oil.  Phew.

This weekend also marks another anniversary - my first time speaking at the Rochester Writers’ Conference.  Last year, I was so nervous about presenting, but since then, I've had quite a few public speaking opportunities like Live in the D and Listen to Your Mother.  I am hoping to enjoy myself more this time.  

My presentation is about social media branding for writers. However, I am also moderating a discussion about women me writing which I makes me feel a tad bit nervous, probably because I think these women are amazing.

I met Jessica a few years ago, and had a chance to work with her since she a co-producer of Metro Detroit Listen to Your Mother. I am also a huge fan of her blog Four Plus an Angel; she is one of the most beautiful, eloquent writers I know.

And then there is Satori who I also let at Listen to Your Mother.  I also went to her monthly show, Secret Society of TwistedStorytellers.  Talk about amazing!  She is very talented, and I am in awe of her whenever she is on stage.

I am excited to meet Lynne Cobb who writes over at LynneCobb.com.  She has been writing over twenty years, and I am really looking forward to meeting her.

So I am pretty excited about this weekend and feeling kind of proud of all that I accomplished in a year time, if I do say so myself.

Are you celebrating any milestones?  Are you gearing up for a new project or goal?

Motivational Monday: Hello, February!

January, I'm kind of glad you are over.

We haven't seen this kind if snow here since 1978. Mention inches.  At first, I was good with it. The fresh white blankets of snow made everything pretty, even on gloomy, cloudy days.  We were able to go sledding. There is nothing quite like flying down a hill with the wind in your face. It brought back all kinds of cozy childhood memories, especially when we took the kids down the same sledding hills my parents took me when I was a kid.

But then the cold came. Cold as in 35 degrees BELOW 0 with the wind chill.  For days.  

School was cancelled. The days off were fun in the beginning. We didn't have to go back to school after our Christmas break so it felt like an extended vacation.  We were cozy in our jammies with nowhere to go and unlimited screen time on all devices.

But as the month drudged on, the inclement weather days kept coming.  During the whole month of January, we only had one full week of school. 

The cozy feeling began to feel stifling. I lost track of the days. The less I did, the less I wanted to do. So I tried to find the silver lining.

I baked cookies.  There were many benefits of this: the oven kept the house warmer.  The cookies were delicious. (Obviously).  The kids were into baking (for the first couple of batches), but began to loose interest.  But that didn't stop me.  I baked and baked and baked.  

I needed to feel a sense of accomplishment since everything else was falling apart with no schedule, no motivation. When those warm, delicious cookies came out of the oven and melted chocolate oozed out with the first bite, I felt like a winner.

However, I started to notice that I was developing an extra layer of insulation.  It kind of snuck up on me.  I mean, it's not like my clothes felt tight since I was only wearing jammies with elastic waistbands. I like to that think by adding this extra layer of insulation by the means of baking comforting treats, I was honoring my biology, a need to stay warm before we had things modern luxuries, like furnaces.

But we do have furnaces.  For quite some time.

So February, I need to get it together.  Enough of drifting through each day in your bathrobe, eating cookies. Enough of the unlimited screen time which is defiantly warping your children's sense of reality. 

I can't live like this anymore. Nothing is getting done.

Today I am going to go to the gym and run. I think being cooped up without the release of a good workout has made me crabby. My mind feels fuzzy.  

I created some charts to help the kids stay focused on things other than screen time.

This reminds me of a lesson I already learned with summer: I do better with a schedule and a routine.  I do better when we have places to go or things to so. And when I say I really mean we.  Not that I don’t love cuddling on the couch with my babies, but I really am a better mom when we are doing stuff.

Did you have a lot of snow in January?  How did you cope?  How are you feeling about February?

Motivational Monday: My Thoughts on Running

In September, I decided to do the Couch to 5K so working out would not get lost in the shuffle of life.  Trying to make it to a class and hoping there is space available was jus too difficult, and 30-45 minutes 2-3 times a week on the treadmill seemed doable.  I just wanted to keep sane and not gain weight.  I never expected to love it.

And if I'm being totally honest, I didn't think I could do it. I have friends that were talking about running 5K during a workout or even a race, and, to me, that was equivalent to running to California and back.  I just didn't think running a 5K was a fitness goal that I could reach.

Right before Christmas, I completed the Couch to 5K program by running 3.92 miles.  I felt amazing! I did it!  I accomplished this feat that seemed unrealistic and totally out of my league.

It was not easy: the first 15 minutes of each run make me wonder why I am torturing myself.  Once that wanes and the endorphins kick in, and I feel like the synapses for sadness become rewired. I feel happy. 

I even kept it up during the holidays, which is totally unheard of in my book.  I usually let the mental stress get to me and just try to sleep and eat as many cookies as I can.  

Then I hit a snag and haven't run in 2 weeks.  I blame Snowpocalypse along with a sinus infection/headache that was slowly sucking my motivation to do anything.

During these two weeks, my head is fuzzy.  Never getting off the couch and staying in my fleece jammies under a fleece blanket seems totally reasonable. I'm tired so I must need more rest, right!?

This is a lie.

I've been down this path before. The one where my body says it's time for hibernation. 

And I'm not falling for it this time.

Running makes me stronger. I feel focused.  I want to drink less coffee. I fit into my jeans.  I feel more mentally stable. I feel confident that I accomplished something I never thought feasible.

That warm, fuzzy blanket and cozy couch will be there when I get back.

But now that I realize how I feel when I run, I know that today, practicing kindness looks like going to the gym and running myself back to normal again.

Do you struggle with wanting to work out and relaxing? What keeps you motivated?