Well, Hello, November! It seems that just like that, here we are, with only 2 months left in the year. Where did the year go? Seriously, time just goes faster and faster. If your life is anything like mine, the next two months will go by in a blur...a joyful and celebratory blur, but a blur nonetheless. Before I know it, we will be writing 2018 and planning for spring break, then summer camps, and it just goes so, so fast.
This last week we had Halloween. As a child growing up, I didn't participate in the Halloween festivities, so I find myself loving seeing Halloween through the eyes of my children. While it is a busy night for adults, I hope you also found some warmth to seeing the little ones get dressed up and have some fun. Maybe you went out with your kids, or maybe you stayed home and greeted the trick or treaters, but I hope it was a fun night!
While Halloween was fun, it wasn't my focus for my fourteen40 this week. Afterall, that's just one day, and the whole point of this project is to encourage people (but especially women and mothers) to take time on a regular basis to "fill their cup." For me, I had to be up and out for work very early the next morning; which meant that after the Halloween fun I had quite a bit of work to do at home to prep for the next day. It was a fun night, but just a single night and it was quickly over.
As I've mentioned in my bio, I'm a runner. My particular distance of choice is the marathon. Yes, that's right, I willfully choose to run 26.2 miles a few times each year. There was a time that I would not have believed you if you had told me I'd be running marathons for fun (and LOVING it), but I digress... I love marathons. I love to run them and I love to train for them. With that, however, comes quite a bit of time spent in recovery. I mean, I'm not 22 anymore! So to make sure I can continue to get stronger and faster, I have had to learn how to fit in not only the training, but the recovery activities. This, while it seems would be so simple, is a very challenging task for me.
Recovery activities are typically slow and purposeful. They include stretching, yoga, breathing techniques, foam rolling, epsom salt baths, and massage. Wait, if I run then I NEED to get massaged and take baths? Yep, you do. They aren't always the relaxing kind of massages or baths (ugh, ice baths), but they are enjoyable. My problem is that I don't take enough time for recovery, in general. I love love love epsom salt baths, but never seem to be able to fit one in at the end of the day; and God knows I could never take one in the morning! So this week, the week before our Ragnar Relay race (I'll be sure to post about that when it's done because I'm sure it'll be full of stories!) I knew I needed to really put some focus on making sure my legs are ready. I decided my fourteen40 time would be devoted to making sure I got in some epsom salt baths.
I loved this. I really loved it and will do it again. I was already feeling sore from a Barre3 class early in the week, so on Monday when I got home from the gym in the morning, and after the kids were off to school, I took 10 minutes and soaked. It was bliss! Just 10 minutes of soaking in the tub and soaking in the quiet and stillness reset my energy for the day. So I did it again on Tuesday! I think I could get used to this. Tuesday I even indulged a bit and used some special scented mineral salts that I usually reserve for longer recovery baths...so I sat in the tub a little longer than Monday. I didn't do this every day of the week, but I did again on Friday, and again on Saturday night. It was so refreshing to have some quiet time (no phone except for the 2 times I snapped pics for this post), and I could actually feel my stress leaving my body.
I was more productive on those days. I was happier. On the days that I used my scented mineral soaks, every time I got a breath of the scent, I remembered the relaxing few minutes I had to myself. Why don't I do this more often, again? Oh yeah. I don't have time.
Wrong.
I do have time. I have to MAKE time for it in my day. It wasn't long, 10-20 minutes max. But did it make me late or unproductive on the workdays that I took time for the baths? Nope. It did the opposite. I felt better physically and mentally. I was ready. It's a lie that I seem to keep falling for when I stop doing things that I know will serve my mental and physical health because "I don't have time." Also because, the only people that take baths on weekday mornings live in soap operas. Well, maybe not! My fourteen40 focus has once again taught me that if I put myself in the place of putting myself first, I am more positive and energetic, and I'm always able to get both "my" time and time for everything else that the day calls for.
If I can do it, you can too. What will you do this week to put yourself in your fourteen40? I encourage you to think about it if you've not already. It is so important to fit your wellbeing into your day! "Rest and self-care are so important. When you take time to replenish your spirit, it allows you to serve others from the overflow. You cannot serve from an empty vessel." ~Eleanor
