Yesterday was a big stressful work day–you don’t need to know the details. It was also a big stressful family day–again, no details needed.
But amid all the work and family stuff, it was also both personal training day and Zwift race day. In time, that’s one hour at 7 am and nearly two hours at 7 pm (race plus warm up and cool down).
The morning involved leg presses and walking lunges, shoulder presses and chest flies, and a bunch of other lifting too. The evening was a warm-up on the bike, followed by a TTT, which was two laps of Tick Tock. (I love Team Time Trials. See why at the end!)
So today I am a little bit sleepy and a little bit sore (but not in a bad way, more like I can tell I used my muscles way.)
Do I need a rest?
What does Strava say?
So Strava says yes.
And I feel like yes.
So today is definitely a rest day.
Here’s what a TTT looks like. This is the five of us starting off, all together but not yet in a nice line.
And I did choose this second image because I was happy with my watts climbing out of the tunnel! I don’t like hills but I enjoy short punchy climbs.
Right and if you’re interested in racing on Zwift, TTTs are a great place to start.
Because time can be a messy concept for me, I sometimes end up with a weird jumble of tasks to do on my weekend – loose bits and pieces from all kinds of projects, stuff that needs to be done around the house…you know the kind of stuff I mean.
This Sunday, though, I was determined that I wasn’t going to let that jumble take over my day.
Instead, I alternated between relaxing and puttering my way through my list for the day.
Checking off ‘Read in hammock’ on my to-do list. image description: a photo I took of my POV while lying in the hammock. As the photo shows, I could see a corner of my ereader on my lap, my legs in green capri pants crossed at the ankles, my feet in sandals, part of the hammock, and in the background is my circular swing, trees, my backyard and my patio.
In order to get enough relaxing in, I actually put the following items on my list for the day;
Read in hammock
Read in chair on deck
Read in chair under tree
Stare at tree while lying in hammock
Is it a bit weird to put those things on a to-do list?
Maybe.
But I also know that if I don’t put stuff like that on my list, my brain won’t rest while I try to relax.
Instead, it will churn up all the things I *should* be doing and my rest will be ruined.
So if I put fun, relaxing things on my list, my brain is satisfied that my list isn’t being ignored and it lets me read, and putter, and enjoy a slow day.
(By the way, this isn’t about my brain insisting that I have to be productive. My brain just worries that I will forget about my tasks and end up having to scramble later. I guess it’s trying to protect me even as it gets on my nerves?)
Can you just choose rest?
Or do you have to coax your brain into the process like I do?
Here I am listening to a secret from Khalee. It must have been VERY serious business – I forgot to smirk. Image description: a selfie taken while I was lying in the hammock but only my head and part of my right arm are in the frame. Khalee, my light brown dog, is poking her snout up over the edge of the hammock and it looks like she is whispering in my ear.
Various bloggers have written about intuitive eating in the past, and the concept has been floating around in my brain ever since.
Another concept that has intrigued is the idea that lack of sleep can affect the production of appetite-regulating hormones. Google it for yourself. I’m not going to share links, not even those from reputable websites.
My normal eating pattern when I worked full time was a hearty breakfast, a mid-morning snack with some protein, a solid lunch, and then dinner. I ate healthy foods and didn’t have a lot of sweets, but I definitely made sure I wouldn’t go hungry should lunch or dinner be delayed due to work commitments (which they often were).
Lately I have been thinking a lot about how these two things might go together because my sleep patterns have been horrible. Then every once in a while I have a long night of amazing sleep.
I have noticed that when I have a great sleep, I don’t usually wake up hungry. Sometimes I am content with little snacks through the day; other times I have only a couple of meals.
I’m not a fully intuitive eater yet, but the habit is starting to build, at least on the days when I am sufficiently rested.
Now I need to start working on some sleep hygiene: get myself into bed on time, do my Duolingo earlier in the day, and read physical books or magazines instead of a screen. Wish me luck!
A woman with dark hair sleeps while surrounded by fresh fruits and veggies. Image from https://www.telegraph.co.uk
Back when I was in sixth grade, I had a babysitting job one weekend but started to feel sick so I called my mom. She took over from me while I went home and slept – for over 24 hours. Turns out I wasn’t sick at all, just exhausted. It happened every few years after that for my entire adult life. Did I learn from this? No, I did not.
But maybe I’m finally starting to absorb the lessons.
Last weekend I went camping with friends and barely left our little area. I washed lots of dishes and helped with meals, but mostly I sat around the fire and puttered while talking to people I love spending time with. I came home feeling mentally refreshed and not too physically tired.
This week, I’m ordering a “cottage”, more of a pre-fab shed for my lakeside property. I have owned the land for many years but didn’t go there at all for the first 15 because it was too much effort. More recently, I got myself set up so most of my camping gear stays there and I have a tent already up.
There’s still a fair bit of work involved in final set-up and take-down each visit, plus the worry about who will care for my cats while I’m away. Hence the cottage, where I can unlock the door and have a bed ready to go, and the cats can come with me.
In between those two events, I spent a weekend reading books and magazines, skipping a swim, not riding my bike, and reaching a level of rest that I actually felt the desire to do some house cleaning, a job I loathe (but I do it, to be clear).
Why don’t I do this more often? I have no idea. Work has been a giant constraint, especially as I pushed myself to be a physically active role model for my two kids. Plus I needed the intellectual stimulation of my hobbies.
I suspect I fell into the whole supermom fallacy, wanting to believe that I could have a fulfilling career, raise perfect kids, have a beautiful home, and look fabulous while doing it all. That belief started back in elementary school, when I was anxious to make friends and excel at all the things, while changing schools every couple of years.
Even in retirement, it’s hard to let go of all the activities. I track everything: workouts, chores, craft and research projects, blog posts written, recipes tried.
I have a goal of reading 52 magazines and 12 books this year. I’m well behind schedule, but my pile of back issues is starting to look a little more manageable after last weekend.
But genuinely taking a day off to do nothing in particular, and not worrying about whether I’m ticking off some box on a mental checklist? That is going to take a little more effort. Or less effort? I’m not sure how to describe working at doing nothing. All I know is that I need to work on building rest into my routine
I am amused by this image promoting rest and relaxation, from the Asian American Organizing Project. They sound as conflicted as me about how to rest.
Image description: Khalee, a medium-sized, short-haired dog is standing on a sunny wooden patio looking intently toward the camera.
When I took this picture on Sunday, her question for me was ‘Are you gonna share that banana?’
But, now that I see the photo again, I think her look is actually more intense and her questions are even more important than I realized at the time.
I think the banana was just the surface thought, I think, deep down, she wants to know if you are making time to rest this summer?
She’s wondering if your plans include downtime?
She’s wondering if you make the same mistake I do – subconsciously trying to get all the ‘work’ done before I relax when what I need to do is include rest as part of the overall plan – and how you might start to switch that up a little?
She’s wondering if you are trying to do things ‘right’ when good enough is, well, good enough?
She’s wondering if you are taking time to lie down in the shade and just sniff the air?
And, of course, she’s wondering if you know that any and all patio snacks should be shared with your dog?
This message has been brought to you by Khalee, Encourager of Rest, Ambassadog for Mental Health, Sharer of Snacks and is fully endorsed by me, Christine Hennebury, Proponent of Self-Kindness and Fetcher of Snacks.
Today, I’d like to invite you to pause for a little bit.
Yes, even in the midst of AllOfTheThings, I’m hoping you can let your body and your brain refresh a little.
Maybe that means taking a break away from your desk.
Maybe that means giving yourself a few minutes to exercise.
Maybe it means meditating, or colouring, or calling a friend.
Maybe it means taking your time with your tea/coffee/glass of water.
Maybe it means deciding not to participate in that argument someone is trying to drag you into.
Maybe it means giving yourself time away from being hard on yourself (tell your inner critic that I said you get AT LEAST 5 minutes of quiet right now.)
Whatever ‘taking a break’ means for you right now, I hope you can find some space to pause in a way that serves you well.
It’s hard to decide to take a break and it’s even harder to actually take one.
Just do what you can, even if you can only stop for a few seconds right now.
As always, here’s your gold star for your efforts.
A drawing of a cartoonish gold star with a happy expression, surrounded by small black circles and dots.
Here we are at Day 31 and I hope you were able to use my posts as reminders or prompts to make a little more space for you in your days.
It can feel a bit weird to add something else to our lists this time of year but it is worth it. Making space for ourselves helps remind us that we aren’t just here to get things done, we are here to live our lives, to enjoy ourselves, and to be ourselves.
Anything you do that reminds you or who you really are, anything that reminds you of your own power, will help you show up in the world the way want to show up, will help you to be responsive instead of reactive. And all of that will help you feel better over all.
This is the last entry for Making Space 2023 but tomorrow I’m starting our Go Team 2024 entries. Go Team 2024 will be a month of posts encouraging you to be kind to yourself and to recognize your own efforts each day.
Whether you view January as a month to jump into new goals, to continue on your current course, or to just putter along through while you figure things out, I’m going to be posting every day to remind you that your efforts count – no matter what those efforts entail.
Wishing you all ease as 2023 becomes 2024 – a change that has as much meaning or as little meaning as you want to give it.
Even though I (gently) boss you into being kind to yourself, you are, after all, the boss of you and you decide what matters.
Onto our videos!
If you want to ease your way into the new year, here’s 10 Minute Bedtime Yoga video from Yoga with Adriene
Still image shows Adriene lying on her yoga mat with her head on a pillow, she is wearing comfy clothes and her dog Benji is sleeping near her feet.
If you want to welcome 2024 with a bit more oomph, here’s The Fitness Marshall team leading us through a dance to Lady Gaga‘s Bad Romance.
Image description: three people in dance clothes doing claw hand gestures as part of a dance move.
If you want a restful meditation to welcome the new year, this 10 Minute Mindfulness Meditation / Present from the Calm app channel might be just the thing. The video features a crackling fire in a fireplace and that seemed like a good meditation focus to me.
Still image shows flames crackling around a tall cone of logs and sticks in a fireplace.
And if you want powerful energy to greet the new year, perhaps this 5 Minute Meditation to Access Your Superpowers from 5 Minutes by Great Meditations might be a fun way to start.
Whether you choose calm or energetic or something in between and whether or not you choose to do any of these videos, I hope December 31 treats you well and that you have the space you need for your own peace of mind.
About Making Space 2023:
In December 2020, Fit is a Feminist Issue blogger Martha created a tradition – a series of reminder posts to take good care of ourselves during this last month of the year when it is far too easy to get swept up in your to do list, no matter what you are celebrating or not celebrating.
In 2021, I started doing daily December reminders with a post called Give Yourself Some Space, and that’s how the ‘Making Space‘ December tradition began. Throughout December 2021 and 2022, I wrote a short post that included two videos – one for exercise and one for meditation – and a bit of encouragement for you to make space for yourself at this busy time of year.
These posts are not about cramming more things into your month, they reminding you that there IS a *YOU* who is doing all of the things and that you are worth taking good care of.
Perhaps the things I suggest aren’t what you need at the moment. That’s totally ok. Perhaps you can use something else to create some space, something that will help you feel more relaxed or more in charge of your day. Just do whatever you can to give yourself a little more breathing room.
So, some of these posts may be long and some may be short but please know that every single one of them is written with the hope that you can find a little ease in your day, whatever that looks like for you.
Please remember that you don’t have to spend this week making plans for how to make 2024 your best year ever.
If that kind of planning feels good, have at it. But if it feels like something you *should* do, please do something else instead.
You can spend this week making space for yourself, taking deep breaths, just puttering along in whatever way suits you best.
You can also take January one day at a time once it gets here.
You also have the option of labelling January as Planuary, like I do, and deciding what kinds of plans to make once the calendar rolls over to 2024.
(Maybe that’s not how the movers and shakers do things but I am not interested in being a mover or a shaker, except in the most literal of terms – I like being able to move and sometimes stuff needs shaking up.)
ANYWAY!
Here is your movement suggestion for today. I really enjoy this 5 Minute Foot, Core, and Pelvic Floor workout from Dr Bri’s Vibrant Pelvic Health.
Still image is of the instructor smiling on a sunny tropical beach. There is a small inset photo of her feet and the words ‘Quick Foot and Core’ are superimposed on the right side of the image.
And today’s meditation is Releasing the Resistance from Great Meditations. I don’t know if you are feeling resistant to anything in particular right now but it is such a common feeling that I figured it would be useful no matter what is going on for us at the moment.
Still image is a drawing of a person with flowers in their long brown hair, they look peaceful. On the right side of the image is text reading ‘Releasing the Resistance guided meditation’
About Making Space 2023: In December 2020, Fit is a Feminist Issue blogger Martha created a tradition – a series of reminder posts to take good care of ourselves during this last month of the year when it is far too easy to get swept up in your to do list, no matter what you are celebrating or not celebrating.
In 2021, I started doing daily December reminders with a post called Give Yourself Some Space, and that’s how the ‘Making Space‘ December tradition began. Throughout December 2021 and 2022, I wrote a short post that included two videos – one for exercise and one for meditation – and a bit of encouragement for you to make space for yourself at this busy time of year.
These posts are not about cramming more things into your month, they reminding you that there IS a *YOU* who is doing all of the things and that you are worth taking good care of.
Perhaps the things I suggest aren’t what you need at the moment. That’s totally ok. Perhaps you can use something else to create some space, something that will help you feel more relaxed or more in charge of your day. Just do whatever you can to give yourself a little more breathing room.
So, some of these posts may be long and some may be short but please know that every single one of them is written with the hope that you can find a little ease in your day, whatever that looks like for you.
Note from Christine: I made a mistake when scheduling this post and it went up early. My apologies for the mixup.
I hope that this last weekend of 2023 finds you with lots of space to do the things you need and want to do.
And if that space isn’t naturally-occurring, I hope you can find a way to make some.
Please remember that you don’t have to do the videos I link to and you don’t have to do the things that other people say you *should* do with your time.
We all have things that need to be done, I get that, but we also have a lot of pressure to do things that other people have prioritized. I hope that you can make a little extra room for your own priorities today and let other people deal with at least some of the things they tried to push off onto you.
The videos below do not have to be priorities for you, I only offer them to make it a bit easier for you to do a little movement and a little meditation without having to put too much extra thought into choosing a video.
I always love a video from Ask Dr. Jo and this Real-Time Morning Stretching Routine is especially enjoyable.
Yes, I know you have probably already started your day but these stretches are just as good in the middle of the day as they are first thing.
Image description: the title of the video is in the upper left on black text, on the right side of the image is a still from the video showing Dr. Jo pretending to wake up. She’s sitting on a blue mat, her feet and calves are covered in a blanket and she is lifting a sleep mask up onto her forehead.
And just like the stretches above, this 7 minute guided morning meditation from Meditate Daily with Andrea Jean is good any time.
Still image is a cartoon drawing of a person sitting crossed legged in meditation. The background is grey and white text at the top reads ‘7 Minute Meditation’ and at the bottom it reads ‘positive morning’
About Making Space 2023:
In December 2020, Fit is a Feminist Issue blogger Martha created a tradition – a series of reminder posts to take good care of ourselves during this last month of the year when it is far too easy to get swept up in your to do list, no matter what you are celebrating or not celebrating.
In 2021, I started doing daily December reminders with a post called Give Yourself Some Space, and that’s how the ‘Making Space‘ December tradition began. Throughout December 2021 and 2022, I wrote a short post that included two videos – one for exercise and one for meditation – and a bit of encouragement for you to make space for yourself at this busy time of year.
These posts are not about cramming more things into your month, they reminding you that there IS a *YOU* who is doing all of the things and that you are worth taking good care of.
Perhaps the things I suggest aren’t what you need at the moment. That’s totally ok. Perhaps you can use something else to create some space, something that will help you feel more relaxed or more in charge of your day. Just do whatever you can to give yourself a little more breathing room.
So, some of these posts may be long and some may be short but please know that every single one of them is written with the hope that you can find a little ease in your day, whatever that looks like for you.
I hope that Day 28 finds you with some ease and space in your day.
If not, I hope that you have the energy to create some of both.
Please remember that this making space series is about creating the space that YOU want and need, about doing what makes you feel like yourself. Do what works not what someone says you *should* do.
If you are looking for video suggestions for today, I really like this Yoga for Lazy Days practice from Yoga with Joelle. I’m not really keen on people labelling themselves as lazy but I can get behind declaring a day as a time to be lazy – laid back, relaxed, and at ease.
Image shows the instructor lying on her stomach on a mat on her lawn. She has the upper part of her body raised and is holding herself up on her right forearm.
And for our meditation, let’s give this one by Tara Brach a try. I love the title Arriving in Mindful Presence.
Image description: still image is sunlight on a closeup of golden grasses.
About Making Space 2023: In December 2020, Fit is a Feminist Issue blogger Martha created a tradition – a series of reminder posts to take good care of ourselves during this last month of the year when it is far too easy to get swept up in your to do list, no matter what you are celebrating or not celebrating.
In 2021, I started doing daily December reminders with a post called Give Yourself Some Space, and that’s how the ‘Making Space‘ December tradition began. Throughout December 2021 and 2022, I wrote a short post that included two videos – one for exercise and one for meditation – and a bit of encouragement for you to make space for yourself at this busy time of year.
These posts are not about cramming more things into your month, they reminding you that there IS a *YOU* who is doing all of the things and that you are worth taking good care of.
Perhaps the things I suggest aren’t what you need at the moment. That’s totally ok. Perhaps you can use something else to create some space, something that will help you feel more relaxed or more in charge of your day. Just do whatever you can to give yourself a little more breathing room.
So, some of these posts may be long and some may be short but please know that every single one of them is written with the hope that you can find a little ease in your day, whatever that looks like for you.
