Balancing the Comfort Zone
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As February is coming to a close and we have been focusing this month on self-care, self-worth, self-love, and self-respect, I’m sure you have noticed that balancing everything is probably a challenge. We are so good at starting out but we fizzle and tend to slowly start shedding the things we know we need because sleep, the kids, our relationships, or work takes the front seat.
It is always good to remind yourself why you started this change in the first place. I think it is also important to remind yourself of the feeling you get when you feel taken care of and how much easier things tend to fall into place just by taking that extra time in your day for yourself. This is the feeling you are chasing and striving for and the feeling we tend to forget about when things get challenging or hard.
As I’m working on these concepts/habits/routine/structure with you, I also struggled with my own balance. As much as I was taking care of myself, I did get sick and I was challenged with the thoughts of “I need rest and not to workout” and I hit the snooze. I did not think too much about this action in the morning because even though I didn’t feel better, I knew that the rest was appropriate. Throughout the day I did “lie” to myself thinking that I could get that workout in later. As I woke up from my 3rd nap of the day at 8 pm, I knew that this wasn’t going to happen. I did think, like we always do, of the vow to keep up the consistency in the morning. When the alarm went off, I was met with the typical comforting thought of, “you still don’t feel well, you need rest, hit the snooze.” It was so easy to keep going with this but I was awake enough to say to myself, “there it is!” My comfort zone. My comfort zone crept up on me throughout the day and reared its ugly head the next morning by telling me the “sweet nothings” of “I don’t have to.” Instead, I said I’m going to get up and work out regardless of how I felt. But, I did change up the routine. I got coffee first instead of water to help my sore throat and as I was scrolling through my Beachbody app to figure out what to do, I told myself to keep to my muscle-splitting schedule and do the hard work out the best I can.
Was it frustrating when I noticed I wasn’t into it as much as I should/wanted/could be? Sure.
Did I blow my nose a lot, drank too much coffee, and tried to ignore the sinus pressure? Yes.
Did I feel better after the workout? YES!
It is so easy to break this habit loop and end up in the same spot we always end up doing. We do so well for a period of time and fall right back into our comfort zones of shame, disappointment, and restructure. Let’s not do that this time.
I finished this great book, Healthy as F*ck by Oonagh Duncan, and even though she didn’t tell me anything I didn’t already know, she did give me permission to be myself, doing things slowly and half-as*ed but as long as I was doing them, and to love myself and the process. She shares the 7 Habits of Healthy Motherf*ckers and I laughed and related to everything. I highly recommend this book for the motivation, inspiration, compassion, and realness that we all need when choosing ourselves for once.
Just as I tell my clients, work on one thing at a time, create a balance with it and readjust if needed, before you add the next thing. Even though I did a workout that wasn’t my best, I still was able to do the heavier weights and that inspired me to keep going. Who would have thought that I inspired myself? Crazy!
One thing I have learned these past 3 months for myself is that I need to schedule my time to complete things or I won’t do them. Not only am I making time for myself, work, blog posts, and workouts, but I’m also creating a visual representation of where I’m going. I may plan things but I’m writing down and/or crossing off/checking it off if I completed it. This allows me to see what went well that day and what didn’t. I also made notes to myself throughout the week about what went well and what I wanted to change or even what I learned about myself to tweak the next week. Looking at yourself as a work in progress instead of failing to do something keeps the shame low and the motivation high.
Balance is possible but it is going to look different every day and every moment. I think the key is learning what balance is which is being comfortable being outside your comfort zone and knowing when you are creating excuses to go back to the comfort zone.
