Keeping up with my wellness rules
It’s Monday, which is like the equivalent of the 1st of January for me when it comes to rules and committing to stuff.
A few days ago I had someone help redesign the website, and she asked me, “what categories do you have on your website”. Wellness came up in that conversation, and it had me wondering what wellness means to me and how often I keep up with my own rules. The word ‘wellness’ itself means “the state of being in good health, especially as an actively pursued goal.” I feel wellness can manifest and be achieved in many different ways. I think it means something different to every one of us..
It's very easy to get carried away with social media's idea of wellness. The next thing you are following is a 26-year old's routine where she does yoga every morning and drinks celery juice by the bucket! This could be wellness for her but can also be an unattainable goal for you. You have to walk in your shoes every day, so sometimes. If your wellness rules aren't the same as the next person's, it's still okay. You get to decide how you take care of yourself. I've recently also changed my mentality on wellness and made some small rules for myself.
Start the day bright and early at 4:30am
Haha, jokes, jokes!
Starting with breakfast
My typical breakfast used to be a cup of coffee and whatever fruit I could get my hands on. And I can tell you that I'll be restless and shaky, probably anxious, almost untethered by noon because I'd have had 2-3 cups. This had to stop because it was not very sustainable. So I started to make time for breakfast. I would love to have continental breakfast every day, but that's setting unrealistic standards. I try to have a bowl of oatmeal or cereal with some fruit and yoghurt and then have the coffee with a sandwich. I used to think eating made me sleep, but having proper food in the morning gave me energy, and I wouldn't be as jittery or irritable by noon. How's that going? Honestly, after a couple of days, I got used and knowing that this worked for me had me follow through.
Finding a workout I love
So for as long as I can remember, I've always been a track girl. I love to run; it gives me some kind of calm. But with the way life goes sometimes, I don't always have time to run. And when I don't do it for a long time, it just goes out of my system. I found myself craving a workout during the infamous Shanghai lockdown, and I couldn't find what I actually enjoyed. Everything felt painful, and 5 minutes felt like 20 minutes. I had to go back to the drawing board and finally found Tara's body on youtube. Her workouts incorporated dancing with different genres of music. I liked this. I got to dance, and the music just lifted my mood. I felt good after the workouts and learned a few French words! How is it going? I have tried to incorporate it into my workout routines for the days I can't/ don't want to run. I don't do this every day, maybe 3-4 times a week, and it's been something I can sustain.
Eating my vegetables
My mum reads my blog posts, so I'm just gonna slide it in here! Okay, on a more serious note, I have never enjoyed vegetables. Still, I try to eat some greens almost every day. I just know that I feel a little off when I haven't had many greens. That's all I will share about this!
Finding relaxation practices
I just wanna let everyone who told me that "you will see when you grow up"… I am seeing! Sometimes my days go so fast that I feel like I don't even get a chance to catch my breath. The end of the day comes. I go to bed, wake up and start all over again. I literally lived like this for a while, almost fed off that speed every day until the one day I sat at my computer and completely broke down. It was my first anxiety attack, and I had no idea what was happening. After that incident, I started taking relaxation a little more seriously. I began to find ways that could help me to ground myself. Breathing practices have been one, and lately, one of my favourites is a meditation guide by Ambrosia. Her meditation helps me start my day with a clear mind or get back on track during the day. On the days that I don't start off with this meditation, I start with some Sade or something relaxing before I get into the day's chaos. Its been very important for me to find a way to turn off stress for a while. It helps me feel more present and get through my days grounded.
Skincare
I try to do my skincare routine at night as it is part of my winding down. I probably don't follow all the skincare routine steps, but the bits that I do incorporate always leave me feeling calm. Sometimes my skin doesn't care, but I don't mind anyway. I feel refreshed afterwards, and my skin has a glow throughout the day.
Screen time and bedtime
I genuinely used to fall asleep with my phone in my hand, watching social media or something. So bedtime could be anything between 10pm and 1am. I finally put the bedtime on my phone to try to get 8 hours of sleep every night. At first, I struggled to sleep, but after 3 days, even my body started to register that it was bedtime. I sleep and beginning to understand that it is absolutely essential for my wellness and sanity for my body to fully recharge. So I swapped my instagram for a a page or two in a book before I sleep. When I wake up, I have stopped opening my eyes to social media. Before dealing with the mess, I try to get into the rhythm of things first.
I dont really have this stuff figured out but I take things day by day, finding what fits better for me.
