Staying Healthy and Strong and Inspired During Difficult Times - Part One

As I write this, gyms are closed, social distancing is becoming increasingly important and there is fear of the unknown.  With this current reality, it's easy to get in a head-spin of fear and negativity.  However, we don't want to live in that place for long or often.  Research tells us, and I think we all know deep down, that getting stuck in fear will erode our mental and physical health.  Like always, we have a choice of how we will react to our situation.  Will we stay down or will we rise?  We have an opportunity to make the best out of this situation and we ALL have it in us to do so!  Let's get some strategy and tools to stay healthy, strong, and inspired during difficult times like now.

I LOVE helping people in this way!  I actually have made a career out of it.  Yet, I don't think I would have ever had the courage to give this a real go until a college friend, after taking a workout class that I taught, suggested I should do this for a "living".  Say what?!

I didn't think teaching fitness classes was a career.  I probably said something along those lines out loud.  Which brings me to my first tip of staying healthy and strong, especially in this current climate:

USE YOUR VOICE TO LIFT OTHERS UP
You never know when a heartfelt word of encouragement or showing up for someone in a time of need might stick with them for a lifetime.  Just like my friend Megan's words did for me.  Also, don't overlook that you can create a ripple effect that will keep going further than you can imagine.

FOCUS YOUR EFFORTS ON WHAT YOU CAN CONTROL
I am sure we have all had the experience of the infamous downward spiral that can occur when one worry leads to another, causing us to be knotted up with anxiety and frozen in fear.  Although frustrating, when we can notice the spiral, we can realize that it is not serving us.  We can do something about it. Let’s preemptively take action that will serve us! Write down an action plan or do the next right step. Take action on an area that you can control and let that empower you to keep going. Can you dance it out and bring positive energy to your next interaction? Try finishing this sentence: "I will make the best out of this situation by..."  Then go and do it. You got this! When I get stuck or when I’m coaching someone who feels stuck—getting into physical motion can help you snap out of the funk and wake you up to your power. So try getting a workout in, going for a walk, doing even 5 minutes of activity. It can be magic! It may feel weird at first and maybe you need to be coached through it, but it is absolutely a powerful tool that you can harness. Let’s do it! Can you take a quick movement break right now?