Be Kind To Yourself

I would say that I’m (possibly) the least qualified person on the planet to speak about this topic, but I’m going to give it a shot anyways.

I like to push myself.

I am the poster-child for pushing myself to the limits and completely neglecting “self-care”, especially my body and sometimes even my mind.

I see pushing yourself as a way to test the capacity of yourself as a human being but, there’s a time to push, and there’s a time to pull back.

I’m slowly learning how to be more kind to myself.

It all started with my incredible chiropractor.

She is very natural and holistic doctor who has the most amazing energy about her.

At the end of every session we talk for a couple of minutes about what I’m feeling in my body.

Usually it’s pain or tightness of some sort.

She gives me a couple of suggestions of how I can alleviate some of that tension, but she always leaves me with the comment, “be kind to yourself”.

Something about that message just feels good.

It feels calming, comforting, and for some reason, the stress in my life seems to melt away when I think of those words.

It makes me think about all of the activities that I really enjoy, that nourish my mind, my body, and my soul.

Yoga, reading, sitting by the pool, having lunch with a good friend.

So many activities we seem “too busy for”, but it’s precisely those activities that will nourish our mind, body, and soul the most.

It’s what we crave.

Now for me, I love to workout.

And when I workout, I like to workout hard.

If I’m not sore the next day, it feels as though my workout accomplished nothing.

But, is this me being “kind to myself”?

Not really.

Sometimes my body needs more rest.

Last week was a perfect example of this. I was super sore from a long hike, so I skipped my workout on Monday (gasp!).

I ended up doing restorative yoga Monday night, went to bed early, and woke up ready to workout again on Tuesday.

Yet again, my body was screaming for rest.

And for once, I listened.

I took another day off, and while my mind was screaming at me that I needed to get to the gym, my body was truly thanking me!

This was a real “light bulb moment” for me.

I realized that sometimes the most important thing that you can do for yourself is to simply listen to what you need and honor that.

Maybe it’s more healthy food, new vitamins, physical rest, or just a weekend to laze around doing absolutely nothing.

Sometimes the best thing you can do, is nothing.

So, take the advice of my wonderful chiropractor and really try to tune in to what your mind, body, and soul are telling you, and most importantly of all, be kind to yourself.