This week has been so good! I am really getting into a groove with these areas that feels more natural and enjoyable and less like work. I feel like that can only be a good sign. I did something a little crazy, but with incredible payoff, so definitely worth it. I obviously still have so much room to grow and improve, but I feel like the freedom to enjoy the journey is coming faster and more fully than it has in awhile, and I am so optimistic, excited, and thankful.

Nutrition: It’s amazing the difference it can make having not only a meal plan, but certain elements prepared in advance. Having prepared my chicken, cucumbers, energy balls, and even grinding my coffee ahead of time makes breakfast and lunch a no-brainer with minimal effort required. I’m still not always sure I’m eating enough, but I expect that to become clearer as time goes on. Funny (?) note: when prepping my cucumbers on Sunday, I did not put on the glove while using my mandoline slicer, and…I sliced off a tiny bit of my finger. It hurt and bled a lot at first, but fortunately I have a sister who is a nurse who helped me to know how to bandage it properly. Mostly it was inconvenient and tender after that first night. You just never realize how much you use your pinky for.

Rest: I am getting really good at taking daily down time- just dropping everything and relaxing for at least an hour in the afternoon. This refreshes me so much and frees my mind to know that that time is coming, and I can make it. Bedtime is going okay, but we are watching The Last Dance, and it’s really hard to turn it off and get in bed on time. I haven’t taken an Epsom salt bath this week, or done much foam rolling, so that’s something I need to be intentional about going forward, in addition to prioritizing bedtime.

Exercise: Whoooo boy. Last Thursday, Kristine presented a crazy and exciting idea to me. We were both close to big milestones both on the bike (250 for her, 500 for me)and the yoga mat (150 for her, 250 for me), so why didn’t we have a bit of a marathon to hit them on Monday and Wednesday, respectively? A little background: part of the magic of peloton is that your instructor can see on their screen when you are hitting a milestone (usually a multiple of 50), and often will give you a shoutout in congratulations. Denis, our beloved instructor both on the bike and mat, is really great about this, but especially on the bike, it matters what type of ride it is, because the less direction he is giving throughout, the more names he has time to call out. Monday’s ride was the perfect type, so I thought it was worth a shot. Then I looked at my class count, and saw that this meant I had to crank out 23 cycle classes in three days, and 33  yoga flows in five. *sweat pours* I can do this, suuuure. I sat down, made a plan, and realized, it was, in fact, doable, even without “cheating” by taking mostly warmups, cool downs, and five minute flows.  It was, however, exhausting. For me, the highlight was the pyramid stack Kristine and I did together Saturday morning. We took seven classes 5-10-15-20-15-10-5 minutes long, and had a blast. I then ate a massive brunch cooked by Scott, because, whew! The yoga was somewhat easier to stack, and I had more time to do it, so that was fun. A lot of that was restorative-with all the extra riding, I needed it! I did also keep up my regular strength training during all this too, and it all just felt so very good. Monday evening, when we got on our bikes, I had a sense of, “okay, this better pay off in a shoutout…” but also one of knowing that even if it didn’t, *I* knew what I had accomplished, and I was really proud. Kristine had never gotten a shoutout  from Denis, so I was really excited for what I was sure would be her first one. When it came, I was recording my screen with my phone and so excited to send it to her. A few minutes later, when Denis was in the 400’s, I was unprepared for my own, and got hilariously flustered. Scott was standing right next to me, though, and I was excited to celebrate with him. This morning, when it was time for our yoga milestones, something possessed me to record during the pre-show, and I am glad I did, because that was when both of our milestone shoutouts came. With the help of the whispers of two sweet little fairies, mine was very intentional and meaningful. This was probably one of the most empowering and meaningful weeks of exercise I’ve ever had, on a lot of levels. I felt so present and strong in my body and really enjoyed pushing toward this goal.

Self care: These habits were less consistent this week. I did okay at nighttime skincare, and showering (all those rides and flows made this extremely necessary!), but morning skincare, beauty, leg shaving, and anything else just…hasn’t.

Soul care: I am getting better at this, but still not consistent. I know I need it, though, for renewal, especially as we move into the schoolyear. I need it for my mind and my heart and my attitude. I am frustrated that so often it’s the first thing on my to-do list that falls off.  

Body image: This week has really shown me how strong my body is, what it is capable of, and how a balance of work and restoration makes me stronger, more balanced, and, more myself, across the board. None of that has much to do with the external, does it?

This week I love my body because it was my partner in accomplishing what i set out to do.