Taking care of myself so I can take care of them!
Here are some personal updates! Us mamas need to take care of ourselves so we can be the best for our children, our husbands, and for God!
CARE
I made a commitment last Christmas to take better care of myself. After talking to a friend about new year’s resolutions, I realized that though my health hadn’t gone “off the rockers” (is that a phrase I don’t know), I was having some very odd nerve pain and needed to get to the bottom of it.
I started seeing a chiropractor regularly and now, 8 months in, I can say that my nerve pain is gone, and so is that pesky but very real birthing left hip pain and right shoulder/neck pain and middle of the back pinch and boot foot pain ….. That time and financial investment has been so, so worth it. And now I just go in once a month to maintain the progress I’ve built!
My posture has improved too! I was noticing that I was slumping — and developing that “neck bump” — I have to make a conscious decision to sit up straight, shoulders back every moment, every time! I also make sure to do my stretches every day to continue to get better!
Let’s normalize chiropractic care! It’s amazing! Let’s normalize feeling great in our bodies!
We’ve also brought the kids — they didn’t need near as much work as me, but it’s nice to know that if they get bumped, we can go in and their body and spines can get settled so they can continue to grow healthily! Pictured: Dev and me with our doctor!
Now you’re not going to see me in any string bikinis here — no before or after photos and no quick fixes — because my body doesn’t LOOK like I’m 20 (y’all I’m almost 40) — but I feel great!! And I’ve focused on myself so that I can go on that nature hike, I can walk a gazillion steps at Atlantis and not run out of breath, and I can do the Dune Climb at Sleeping Bear Dunes and make it all the way to Lake Michigan and enjoy the journey!
MOVE
In addition to weekly doctor visits, I also have committed to daily workouts. I’ve shared some of what that has looked like for me, especially after my arm broke or my gall bladder surgery (yes it finally came out, after trying to keep it through cleanses for five years). And I’ve always enjoyed HIIT workouts — I was in the Army and had to pass that PT run after all. But I really wanted to amp it up. (Though I’m not doing the 75Hard which I have to say is SO inspiring to me, but I just couldn’t (and can’t) commit to that huge of a project!)
It started at just 3 times a week but now has progressed to about 6 times a week and feels so good. When our bodies MOVE, you feel less PAIN! It’s amazing! I used to have some beginnings of “plantar fasciitis” too — and with regular work outs and stretching my calves, it is completely gone! (This result is of course not what everyone experiences, I’m not trying to compare my journey to anyone else’s!)
I absolutely love Heather Robertson on YouTube. It’s FREE! Just get some hand weights and kettle bell and you’re good! Love that this is no extra cost for my family. You just have to watch 1-2 ads at the beginning! She has several 12 week, 6 week, 14 day, 10 day, 7 day programs. I have done the 12 week program a couple times, and I love mix ’n matching it too — I just make sure I at least do a leg, arm, abs, cardio workout each week. She changes it up a bunch and they are FUN!
We also try to do 2 family walks/hikes a week (Wed/Sat). These don’t always happen, but simply walking is so good for the body and soul. Below we are pictured on one of many hikes in Northern Michigan this past summer!
LEARN
Heather (her and I are on a first name basis btw) has upbeat music in her videos, and I enjoyed that for a while, but then really invested in listening to podcasts on direct sales, marketing, homeschooling, parenting as well as reading many audio books. I put her volume really low so I can still hear the “beeps”. — Here is a short list of things I have personally enjoyed reading these last couple months.
I love the THINKING part of working out — it’s a time to THINK and LEARN. Afterwards, I spend about five minutes writing down thoughts or ideas. It’s often the “out of office” times that we do our best thinking! I also love to hang out with my girls — they always love to join in and they like to point out that I’m not doing it as well as Heather but I love them so it’s okay!
Podcasts:
- Amy Porterfield Podcast
- The Mason Jar Podcast
- A Delectable Education Podcast
- Your Virtual Upline Podcast
- Real Christianity Podcast
- Anything with Dan Sullivan or Benjamin Hardy
Books:
- Deep Work by Cal Newport
- Atomic Habits by James Clear
- Procrastinate on Purpose by Rory Vaden
- The Vision Driven Leader by Michael Hyatt
- Free to Focus by Michael Hyatt
- The Gap and the Gain by Benjamin Hardy and Dan Sullivan
- Who Not How by Benjamin Hardy and Dan Sullivan
- Be Your Future Driven Self Now by Benjamin Hardy
So — all this to say — invest in your health! You can do it! Do the hard now so you can experience the good and easy later!
