Like Mother, Like Baby

I've been cleaning out the desk drawers in my office as I prepare for my permanent maternity leave, and today I found a list I made back when I had my first son of similarities between mothers and babies in those first few weeks of getting to know each other. It seemed suitable that I would be reminded of those things just a couple of days out from having my second baby.

On the list of things mothers and babies had in common...

1. They're both on a liquid diet: Baby on milk and mom on coffee to stay awake!

2. Poop is a big deal. Sorry guys, but it's true. They won't let anyone go home from the hospital until everyone has pooped!

3. Both bodies are adjusting to new settings, but get different responses. While little toots and burps from one elicit adoring coos from the people around them, the same things coming from mom aren't quite as cute. :(

4. Both probably have poop somewhere on their body and don't realize it. And likely don't much care anymore.

5. They're both wearing their jammies most of the time.

I can tell from the list that I had intended to come up with five more ways that mothers and babies are alike, but must have fallen asleep. I was a new mother after all! But it's nice to know that even in that hazy and altered state I had the capacity to grab a pen and jot down something I thought might be funny later. It gives me hope for next week!

Since then, I've realized a few more ways that mothers and babies are alike. Both are facing a brave new world, both have unlimited potential, and both will come to rely on each other for sources of inspiration, challenge, and accountability. We can apply this kind of thinking to all sorts of goals, wellness and otherwise. Are you a newbie? Search within yourself today for something new - it can be as simple as trying a new speed on the treadmill or switching from flavored yogurt to plain - and approach it with the attitude of a newborn. Just so we're clear, that would be one that is open to learning about the world around them, not crying until someone gives you what you want. :)

To all of the ladies having babies this month, of which I know at least three, look for ways you and your baby are alike (beyond poop) and look at wellness through new eyes.

And then, get out there and get healthy! :)

Create your own media, create your own influences

Yesterday I vented a little about the negative role that media can play in how we shape our images of ourselves and create self-worth. Today, it's the flip side: how we can create our own positive influences using the media and other things around us.

More and more research is showing the power of positive thinking, and you can see a pattern of it in the stories of successful people across the globe.  It really is incredible how you can change your life just by changing your perspective, but that's a whole other blog entirely!

Here's what I've done to create my own positive media and change the way I let the world influence my decisions:

1. Mantras.  I love mantras, and I create them all the time.  One that I shared the other day with a friend who was struggling with something that used to plague me is, "turn jealousy into joy."  I left jealousy in 2010 because it was holding me back.  But, that doesn't mean it doesn't try to creep back into my life.  When I start sensing that I am wallowing in envy-induced self-pity, I remind myself to turn jealousy into joy and am instantly overwhelmed with happiness for whomever it is I have been admiring.  It's amazing how amazing I feel when I use mantras.

2. Surround yourself with positive. Following other athletes on Twitter inspires me to challenge myself and push the limits of my workouts.  Participating in the weekend races of my local track club reminds me of the great wellness community that I live in. My vision board includes images of positive experiences I want to have in my life and I see it every day. Seek out people, places, and events that support your wellness goals and the influence will be very positive.

3.   Ignore and shun the negative. Sometimes living in the positive means taking deliberate action against the negative.  This can be hard because at times it means ending relationships that are antithetical to your goals, which can be painful.  But, every time I have made the difficult decision to remove a negative influence from my life, it has been replaced with so much wonderful that I've been rewarded beyond my wildest dreams.  Sometimes it just takes the will to be positive no matter what.

Your fitness and wellness goals are yours, but it takes more than just you alone to accomplish them.  It also requires a positive environment and influences.  Luckily, you can create them quickly and put them to work right away!  This week, look around and put some mental sticky notes on what is positive and what is negative in your life, and take some steps towards the positive.

I'll see you there!

Good day!

At the Crossroads

Wow, this has been the week of awesome workouts. My trainer and I have somehow just clicked all of a sudden, and by the time I leave the gym I feel like I've had the best workout since the last time I was there.  It's a great feeling, and I am choosing to believe that it means a new season of wellness has begun for me.  Spring is here, summer is on the way, and the heat is being turned up!


Another reason I'm feeling that way is my nutrition.  I am so so so so sick and tired of my food. I never thought I would be tired of eating egg whites and spinach on toast for breakfast, but here we are. Protein smoothie? Ick. Even my favorite oatmeal snack is getting the evil eye. I need a change.  So, I'm spending some time eating less strategically and more intuitively until I sort it all out. Since I have some pretty specific fitness goals for the months ahead, I may enlist the help of a sports nutritionist to help me. You know how it is...you can give people great advice all day long but when it comes to your own nutrition, things can get cloudy.  I need an objective perspective.


Anyway, what I'm getting at is this reminder: the seasons are changing, and so should your wellness. Are you getting out of a rut like me? What do you do to shake things up? What are your goals for the summer, and will your current plan get you there? I hope you'll join me this weekend in some soul-and-goal-searching, and meet me at the cross roads of Been There and Now Doing This.


Have a great weekend!  Good day!