Written by: Tracy Renee Stafford, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Small, simple acts of self-care can be the portal to discovering a wealth of inner strength & light – enough for us to share with those around us.
Over these past 2 years, the exhausting nature of crisis has become all too clear. On top of the personal predicaments that life inevitably brings to us all, the pandemic has really challenged us in so many ways.
With that in mind, I offer here 10 simple ideas of how to keep our bodies, hearts, minds & spirits resilient, joyful, & vibrant as we enter a new (& hopefully much simpler) year. All of them are free & take very little time to practice, but they all can have a profound & immediate effect on the health of our whole being.
The invitation is to pick 1 or 2 to try on (not all 10!) and then to notice what happens. You might be very surprised at how such a small action can create such a substantial effect.
1. Drink water first thing in the morning
Dehydration is one of the most common preventable health issues out there. This is no small thing, as it can be a major contributor to fatigue, brain fog, irritability, migraines, kidney problems, & weight gain. Drinking water, especially first thing in the morning, when we’re more dehydration-prone, improves digestion, skin & hair health, immune system function, energy level, & metabolism. This one small act lets your body know that you care for how it feels & functions throughout the day.
How to do it: Fill your favourite bottle up the night before, and place it by your bedside, so it’s waiting for you first thing in the morning. Try to get in at least a full 8oz within your first few hours of waking.
2. Prioritize sleep
Poor sleep, meaning low sleep quantity and /or quality, another extremely common health issue (especially during pandemic times), has been linked to lowered immunity, mental health issues, heart stress, increased inflammation, poor concentration & memory, weight gain, as well as lowered performance in all physical & mental activities. We need ample recovery time, rest, & sleep in order to feel & live our best.
How to do it: Start by adopting just 1 or 2 of these good sleep hygiene habits, to see what works best for improving your sleep quantity & quality. Don’t take all of this on at once! Be kind & realistic with yourself.
Maintain a steady schedule of sleeping & waking times as much as possible throughout the week
Make your bedroom a sleep sanctuary, with as few devices or non-sleep related items in it as possible
Keep your bedroom on the cool side – excessive heat is one of the most common reasons for waking in the middle of the night
Turn off all devices (including TV) at least 30 minutes before hitting the hay (ideally 90 minutes before), reducing late-night blue-light exposure
Have your last meal at least 2-3 hours before bedtime
Limit late night intake of sugar & alcohol
Avoid drinking caffeine later on in the day
Spend some time in direct daylight every day (not just behind a window) to set your inner body clock
Include daily physical activity into your schedule
Visit a sleep specialist to learn about your specific sleep issues
Finally, enjoy the rest that you do get. Sometimes skipping the early morning workout to catch up on missed sleep is the wisest act of self-care you can make.
3. Start & finish the day with slow breathing
Many clinical studies have shown that slow breathing calms our nervous system more than meditation & even more than some pharmaceutical medications! We often wake up in the morning stressed – partly due to a rise in our system of the stress hormone, cortisol (which helps us wake up), but also partly due to the fact that we aren’t taught how to manage stress. Breath practices are a vital part of the centuries-old teachings in yoga, but only recently have they begun to be appreciated for their powerful effect on our health.
Stress has been linked to up to 90% of our modern ailments, and while we can’t control all the external circumstances that cause stress (such as a global pandemic) we can control how we respond to them. By changing the speed, rhythm & quality of our breath, we can directly affect our nervous system, which, in turn, creates a cascade of positive health effects through the body. Blood pressure lowers, digestion & elimination improve, inflammation is reduced, immunity is strengthened, hormone levels are balanced, sexual energy flows more harmoniously, emotional reactivity lowers, & our mind is more oriented towards curiosity & being present, rather than looking out for potential threats.
How to do it: First thing in the morning (even before drinking water!), or anytime in the beginning part of your day, take 1 to 5 minutes to practice ‘4 part breathing’: inhale – pause – exhale – pause. Find a rhythm that feels like you are gently stretching your breath. A common rhythm is that each part has a duration of 4 counts (inhale for 4, pause for 4, exhale for 4, and pause for 4). Notice how this sets you up for a more wakeful, yet less stressful day. Repeat this practice at night & enjoy a much better night’s sleep!
*For more breathing techniques, I invite you to read 5 Simple Breath Techniques to Reduce Stress &, Improve Mood, Energy & Cardiovascular Strength
4. Mindful Nourishment
HOW we eat may be just as important as WHAT we eat. When we eat slowly, putting down our fork in between bites, savouring each mouthful with all 5 senses, not only do we enjoy what we’re eating so much more, we also tend not to overeat. Mindful eating can be a very powerful tool for weight loss, improving digestion & reducing stress. We can also be mindful with meal planning & prepping, such as becoming more aware of ‘eating the rainbow’ (try to eat all the colors every day, especially green!) and eating food that’s in season & locally produced. We could also become more mindful of how we feel after we eat in order to notice the effect that different foods have on our body & mind.
How to do it: Resolve to make 1 meal a day a mindful eating experience. Turn off all screens & let the food (and the company, if you have it) occupy your full attention. Notice the appearance, smells, textures, taste, & maybe even the sounds of the food (crunchy food is fun!). Take breaks in between bites & tune in to how your body feels as you eat so that you can notice when you’re full. If you’re also cooking your mindful meal, try to stay present with all the aspects of the preparation – from veggie chopping to seasoning to presentation. Even if you’re present for only 5% of the time, the effect is still strong.
5. Move in ways that feel delicious to your body
While I am a strong advocate for daily physical activity, I think we often equate movement with hard work. But exercise is not just about punishing or pushing the body; it’s also about enjoying it. Wiggle, dance, stretch, & tune in to what kinds of movement the body longs for. Sometimes you can end up giving yourself an amazing workout by starting simply & slowly. There is a lot of information out there about how many minutes of ‘X’ workout we are supposed to do each week in order to see ‘results’, but this can actually create the opposite effect & discourage us, especially if we have body or time limitations. It might feel like if we can’t do it ‘all’, it’s better to do ‘nothing’. This is not true! Every moment of movement that we do counts, especially if it brings us joy.
How to do it: Do you love nature, the company of others, or music? Let this inspire you to pick your best strategy for getting in some movement every day. Whether it be a walk in a local nature reserve with a friend or following an online stretch video at home, or simply dancing to your favorite band, movement is nourishing. Be sure to honor your body & not push past its limitations for safety. Rather, gently encourage it to move just a little bit past the comfort zone. With regular practice, your fitness level will naturally increase.
6. Remind yourself daily of what’s most important to you
The whirlwind of world events, social media, the news, and even the intensity of our own personal lives can cause us to get pulled off course & forget what’s most important to us. We can give too much air time to the influences outside of us, and forget to listen to the wisdom that is already & always within. While it can be hard to find the time to put everything else aside & connect with our inner guide, we can take advantage of moments of stillness that naturally arise – waiting in line, waiting on hold, waiting for the kettle to boil – to take a deep breath and ask ourselves “What’s the most important thing I need to remember right now?” Of course, I’m not talking about running through the ‘to do list’. I’m talking about dropping deep into our hearts & spirits to remember what we value above all else. By returning to this question over & over again, we can deepen our connection to ourselves, our inner wisdom, & to the precious present moment.
How to do it: It’s possible to combine this with the morning & evening ‘slow breathing practice’, or whenever you notice a natural pause in your day. Wherever you are, relax the body as much as is comfortable, stay connected with your breath, & feel where you are making contact with the ground. Then ask yourself the question ‘What’s the most important thing I need to remember right now?’. Be patient with the answer, but also allow yourself to be surprised by the first words, images or sensations that come into your awareness. Let the answers be felt, rather than thought. Allow the answers that you receive to settle into your whole being – and then carry on with the rest of your day, noticing any differences in your energy & frame of mind.
7. Practice Compassion
In simple terms, this means being kind & respectful to ourselves & to others, recognising that life is often a very challenging & complicated experience. Anecdotally, we seem to have more difficulty practicing compassion for ourselves than we do for others. We tend to be more critical & impatient with ourselves than we are with others & we tend to impose higher expectations on ourselves than we do with others. Compassion is not about pity, it’s about respect. It’s about recognizing that all human beings, even ourselves, find life very challenging sometimes, and in those moments, what is needed is kindness & spaciousness, not judgment.
How to do it: Starting with self-compassion, in moments where you are having a hard time, notice how you talk to yourself. Are you being kind? Are you giving yourself what you need? Are you able to create some breath & space around the situation, instead of getting tight & narrow? Then see how you can practice this with others – starting off with those who you feel more strongly connected to, and gradually widening your circle of compassion to include those with who you may have less in common with. Self-compassion is the anchor for this whole process, because while all of this may sound simple, it’s definitely not easy. Be kind to yourself.
8. At least once a day, look up
We have become acclimatized not only to staring down at our screens, but also in having a kind of tunnel vision of our lives. The perspective we have of our lives is directly from within them. This can cause us to take everything just a little bit too seriously, and to hold onto everything just a little bit too tightly. This is not to say that our lives are not important – they are – but that’s also not the whole story.
How to do it: At least once a day, go outside & look up. Look up at the sky, the sun, the stars & the clouds. If possible, look up not just with the eyes, which might strain the neck, but also lift the chest. This lets us look up with the more important eye, the one that’s in our hearts. Let this be a moment to imagine what your life looks like from the perspective of the clouds, the ether, and even from deep space. Notice what this perspective offers you, that you can take back into your day to day life at eye level.
9. Take care of your surroundings
The daily morning ritual of making the bed has been shown to help de-clutter the mind, improve focus & productivity, and to reduce stress. Keeping our desks neat & tidy offers many the same benefits. Instead of considering this a chore, let it be a moment for mindful awareness. Taking extra special care of 1 area in your home or work is especially great for those who don’t find stillness practices to be a good fit, but who still want to practice mindfulness. This ritual of appreciation for the small things in life, the details, allows us to touch into the profound power of creating & enjoying simple beauty.
How to do it: Pick one small area of your home or workspace and dedicate this area as your ‘area of care’. Maybe you pick a particular plant to care for, or a shelf, or your bed. Make it your mindful practice to take extra special care of this space. Use this time – even a few minutes – to be as present as possible with all 5 senses. Notice how this affects the rest of your day.
10. Notice the miracles all around us
At least once a day, notice something that makes your jaw drop in awe – the angle of the sun on the horizon, a heroic story in the news of human perseverance & bravery, or simply the mysterious way that a flower opens its petals. Let there be one moment a day where you remember that magic exists. This act of noticing is its own reward.
If any of the ideas I offer here resonate with you, I invite you to click here to receive the 5 Day Introduction to Fully Embodied Living. Each day includes guided stretching, breath practice, meditation, & support for intuitive eating & personal growth.
Wishing everyone a safe, peaceful & joyous new year.
Tracy Renee Stafford, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Tracy Renee Stafford is a coach in Fully Embodied Fitness — a weave of yoga, pilates, dance, & functional exercise – and in Fully Embodied Living based on 4 Pillars of Well-Being: Connection to Body, Nourishment, Presence & Growth. Her mission is to help people discover how they can make self-care a celebration, rather than an obligation, & enjoy the body for how it feels, rather than just for how it performs or looks. She ran her own studio in the Canadian Prairies heartland for 20 very rewarding years – where she taught various forms of fitness, with a specific interest in injury prevention & rehabilitation and empowering students with information on HOW the body works best. She is a Mindful Movement, Holistic Living & Nutrition Coach, weaving together all of her expertise into her Fully Embodied Living Programs. She currently lives in Buenos Aires and keeps her passion for dance alive by studying Argentine Tango.
