Who doesn’t deal with some sort of stress in their lives?? It could be family, your kids, their homework, your job, your pets tearing up the place, not having laundry detergent when you go to do the laundry, forgetting to pack your clothes for the gym when you have every intention to workout…and the list can go on and I KNOW you all know what I’m talking about!
Yesterday I listened to a podcast regarding mental health and stress management. The biggest take away (and I already know this but it’s so hard to do sometimes!) is to focus on what you CAN control and to set yourself up for success. The only thing I really can control is how I react to a certain situation.
Here are five tips on how to manage your stress in the first place (and managing your stress leads to a healthier mindset!)
- Get enough sleep…do not watch the news or have electronics at least 30min before bed. An hour if you can handle it. I used to always stay up and watch the weather for the next day – it was a habit; and what comes before the weather? ALL the news! And what is normally at the forefront of the news-the BAD news…things that will make you angry, sad and depressed so who wants to feel like that before you go to bed OR during the day?? Not me! So schedule your time wisely and catch those zzzz’s!
- Get on a schedule! Don’t be running around by the seat of your pants all of the time! Dial it in and then life should run a bit smoother for you. Get up one hour earlier and get 3 main tasks done and you should have a big “W” for the day! I’m already getting one of my tasks done by writing this little blog 🙂
- EXERCISE!! I’ve added a 30min walk to my daily habits to help me just destress and do nothing but walk. I’m only on day 3 but I can tell it is going to help me…I also try to schedule in workouts 5 times a week where I’m strength training and doing a CrossFit workout. Good for the heart, bones, muscles and mind!
- Practice Gratitude! What/Who are you thankful for? Tell them! Surprise someone with a text or phone call and tell them that you are grateful for them. Two people will have smiles on their face for sure! Make it a daily habit and I guarantee you will have more joy in your life!
- Dial in your nutrition! If you eat crap, you’re going to feel like crap! Start off with a healthy breakfast; it doesn’t have to be a “typical breakfast”, it could be an Oikos yogurt, peanut butter toast, a smoothie…anything to get your metabolism going so you have energy for your day. Try it, you might like the way it makes you feel!
Remember, you don’t have to focus on ALL of these at once…start small and go from there. They say it takes 21 days to make a habit stick so let’s see what we can do in the next 21 days, shall we?? Pretty sure if we can make even one of the above happen, we can reduce our stress in our lives! Who’s with me??
Have a Great Wednesday! 🙂
Work Hard, Eat Clean, Be Blessed!