FIT BLOG:
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Everyone has a limit. Energy wise that is. We found out accidentally our puppy's limit when we overdid it with potty training. One night he just all of a sudden looked like he was going to fall over and we thought we’d over heated him outside. Another night he went wild with the zoomies and barking (which he rarely does) and we mistakenly thought he was hungry. No, it turns out he’d completely worn himself out. He was fine just exhausted. We realized he didn’t get enough naps on both of those days. Our vet says that’s common after a growth spurt- they appear to have better endurance. It was our job to help him manage his energy as he grew by making sure we encourage nap times even if he seems ready to play. How many times have you done that to yourself? Pushed and pushed until you can barely hold your head up or lose your s%*t with your loved ones? It can be a hard habit to break. I’ve shared that yoga nidra naps have helped me the most with managing my daytime energy especially if I'm having sleep issues. Another recent tweak I’ve made is sleeping with Green Noise vs White Noise. The reason I switched was I heard Green Noise is better for anxiety. Even with the puppy, I’ve felt like I’m waking up more rested since making the change. I use the Sound Sleep App now during sleep. It has Brown, Pink, White, or Green Noise options. They can all help block outside sounds and improve sleep, focus and relaxation. You have to experiment to find which one you like best. White Noise can mask the most sounds and creates a steady frequency like the hum of a fan or TV static. Pink Noise sounds softer and more balance than white noise like a steady rain or heartbeat. It tends to be more soothing and helpful for sleep and even improving memory. Brown Noise is an even lower frequency than pink noise but a richer, deeper sound like a strong waterfall or soft rumbling of thunder. It can be helpful for focus, ADHD symptoms, or deep sleep. Recommended for light sleepers. Green Noise is a midrange frequency similar to nature sounds like the ocean that promotes relaxation and focus that can help with reducing stress, anxiety or racing thoughts. Recommended as background sound for meditation. Another good App where you can play with different sounds and make your own combo is the Better Sleep App. I've used the fan white noise for years on it until I switched to green noise. OVER TO YOU If you aren’t used to sleeping with Colored Noise at night but want to give it a try, consider doing a test during a daytime nap. You might need to have a timer set to turn off the App in the middle of the night. Keep the volume low so it doesn’t become noxious & wake you up. You can also try Brown Noise when you need to focus on a deep work task during the day. Listen to your body. It’ll tell you which color noise it likes best just like it tells you what music it enjoys most.   NAP TIME
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Do you struggle to stay on track with your fitness goals in the Summer or during your vacations? If so, I've got 4 simple moves to help you avoid a Summer slump or help you reset right away. Remember you'll have more success if you can tie any exercise or healthy habit to something you're already doing. For example, getting your walking in while you shop or explore on vacation. And in the Summer make Mother Nature your accountability partner as much as possible... getting near trees or bodies of water will calm & inspire both your mind & body. 4 SUMMER FITNESS MOVES: 1. RECONNECT- use full body movements to stretch and strengthen your core. Example: Yoga Dog Poses- You can do all of these on a counter or wall if you don't have the shoulder range of motion to do them on the floor. Listen to your Body & do the ones that you can do with good form and still breathe well for a few reps each to a few sets of the entire sequence. Warm up a little before you do them.  2. RESIST- use resistance from weights, water, bands, even sand to help you grow stronger. You can also turn any workout into interval training to get some cardio benefits. Walking is easy to do anywhere. Spice it up by adding resistance- walk back and forth in waist high water OR walk or run in sand to challenge your strength, cardio, and balance. Bands travel easily so you can bust out a workout anywhere at anytime as well. Bands are great because they challenge your stabilizer (postural) muscles with less wear and tear on your joints. They also work well with interval training. In just 10 minutes (1 minute of hard exercise), you can get the benefits of 50 minutes of traditional endurance training & get a stronger brain (mental health) & body (muscles & heart health). Grab a band & get going with this full body BAND workout here. 3. RECHARGE- when your body is tired, rest your body. You might feel heavy or burning sensations in your muscles, sloppy movements or poor posture, decreased balance, or even feeling weakness and/or stiffness in your muscles. Those are signals your body needs a break. Keep it simple this summer and take a 10-20 minute POWER NAP. It'll help with fatigue as well as improve your attention, mood, and focus. 4. REIGNITE- make time for fun, play, & pleasure. Create something- art, gardening, cooking, baking. Get in some deep, belly laughs (soul laughs) with your bestie. Intentionally find something that brings you joy each day. OVER TO YOU What's one MOVE your Body needs most today? You can start with that. If your Body said "all of the above", then practice the following sequence: Reconnect > Resist > Recharge > Reignite = Restore Your Body Morning- Yoga Dog Poses Mid Morning- Walk or Band workout Mid Afternoon- Power Nap Evening- Play You just made your own mini retreat & got in some strength, cardio, & recovery workouts. Keep it short & simple. It all adds up. Do daily check ins. Your body will tell you what it needs to feel, move, & perform better.  P.S. Want more ways to Reset Your Body each day? Get the Daily Energy Planner- it's a FREE Bonus in the Relaxed Body Toolkit- download here.
It’s the first thing my acupuncturist asks me when I complain of low energy. Am I dehydrated? Not only can dehydration cause fatigue, it can cause stronger cortisol (stress hormone) spikes when stressed as well as dizziness, headaches, dark circles, dry skin, and/or heart palpitations. One study with young women showed that just 1.36% dehydration impacted their concentration, vigor, mood, fatigue, anger, and increase task difficulty perception and headaches. Good thing everyone’s carrying around their Water Bottles these days! When you’re dealing with low energy, make sure you do a HYDRATION CHECK UP to rule out dehydration. HYDRATION CHECK UPWhen? Best time of day is in the morning. How? Check your urine color. Is your urine light in color? Your urine should be pale yellow or light in color (think lemonade) in the morning and pre and post workout if you’re getting enough fluids. Are you drinking at least ½ your body weight in ounces of water/non-caffeinated beverages each day? Making sure you’re well hydrated is second in line to sleep for helping your body feel, move, and perform at its best. Not a water lover? You can drink herbal tea, sparkling water, or add lemon and stevia to your water. Eating a diet rich in fruit and veggies can help with hydration also. HOW TO AVOID DEHYDRATIONYou’ll need extra fluids for exercise or when living in hot climates. Rehydrate during workouts, typically 1 cup water every 15 minutes of exercise and/or as thirsty. After exercise, drink 2-3 cups per pound lost during exercise. Replace electrolytes if exercise was longer than an hour or if you sweat a lot during exercise. You may need more fluids if you:
Post Menopausal women can be higher risk for dehydration due to hormone changes affecting fluid balance, hot flashes & night sweats, and even diminished thirst sensation as you age. You can lose electrolytes through night sweats. Electrolyte water or tablets can be helpful. Replenish sodium and minerals if you sweat a lot. My dentist recommends electrolyte water for dry mouth which is also common after menopause. I've found it helpful. Hungry? Sometimes hunger is actually a signal you're dehydrated. Got tight muscles? Healthy tissue isn’t stiff It’s elastic. Bungee cord like versus rope like. Staying well hydrated is key to increasing the elasticity of your tissue and critical for nourishing all your cells. Make sure to drink up after any Fascia Bodywork- massage, stretching, even acupuncture- to help flush toxins. PACE YOURSELF Too much water, too fast can be dangerous and lead to Water Toxicity or Hyponatremia. A serious condition where you have diluted sodium levels in the blood. The most severe cases can lead to seizures, coma, and death. Listen to your body. Drink when thirsty. Sip water throughout the day. Check your urine color. Dark = you need more hydration. Clear or frequent might mean you're overdoing it. If you have heart or kidney disease, follow what your specialist recommends for your water intake each day. OVER TO YOU Start your day with 8 ounces of water to replenish your body after a full night’s sleep. Figure out your daily water goal. Track your intake with an App or water bottle if you need some support or reminders. Increase your hydration if you meet any of the criteria shared above. Sip away each day to keep your energy, mood, & performance levels up. Your brain & body will thank you!  P.S. Ready to improve your Elasticity AND Energy? Join us for Mini Massage Camp!  I was slow to the party on this fitness trend, but it made the biggest impact on my energy and health over the past year. It’s become my #1 fat burning tool- it’s helped me lose inches significantly lowering my Waist To Hip Ratio AND blood pressure. I don’t do diets or obsess about the scale. I’m not into skipping meals on purpose. But last Spring I made a change to my meal planning when my fat burning quest led me to trying out Intermittent Fasting as part of The Galveston Diet (by Dr. Mary Claire Haver). Intermittent Fasting is an Eating Pattern that rotates between periods of fasting and eating. Studies show it can help with weight loss and decreasing abdominal fat, reducing inflammation and brain fog, improving insulin sensitivity, and lowering blood pressure and cholesterol levels. >> Fat burning happens when you fast 12 hours or more as your body uses up its glucose stores and switches to fat burning for energy << During fasting, your body also has time for cellular repair processes like Autophagy which can help with disease prevention and supporting the immune system. It can help with dementia prevention as it clears damaged cells and toxic proteins and increases BDNF production which supports the growth of nerve cells in the brain especially in the hippocampus (learning and memory center of the brain). Reducing inflammation and your risk for obesity can also help with joint pain and cancer prevention particularly for breast, colorectal, lung, cervical, stomach cancers. If lowering your blood glucose 3-6% or reducing your waist circumference 4-7% sounds good to you, you may want to try it. TYPES OF INTERMITTENT FASTING:There are a variety of ways to intermittently fast. Most common methods include:
Ender has been doing variations of intermittent fasting on and off for years using some of the more intense methods. That’s probably why I was so resistant to learning more about it. I’ve only done a variation of the 16/8 Method and the others don’t interest me. My favorite thing is it gives me structure to my day. Before I started Intermittent Fasting, I was frequently skipping lunch. A not so lovely habit I learned as a health care provider where we make no time for bathroom or meal breaks when working. And my meals were frequently too spread out even though I know keeping my blood sugar stable is healthier for my body. Intermittent Fasting helped me stop doing both of these unhealthy habits. HOW TO GET STARTED WITH INTERMITTENT FASTING (16/8 Method):1. Pick your eating window. How many hours will it be- 6, 8, 10 hours? And what time will you target for it? Most common is 8 hours which means you’ll be eating in an 8 hour window then fasting for 16 hours. If you delay your breakfast, you could do an eating window of 9-5pm (with a 5pm-9am fasting window), 10-6pm (with a 6pm-10am fasting window), or 12-8pm (with an 8pm-12pm fasting window).
2. Go slow. Decrease your eating window 30 minutes at a time over time as you get to your goal eating times otherwise you’ll likely be hungry and irritable. 3. Get Protein. Make sure you are getting enough protein in your eating window so you don’t lose muscle mass. 4. Hydrate well. Staying hydrated and getting enough electrolytes is essential especially when fasting. 5. Keep up with Exercise. Avoid exercise while fasting. Make sure your eating window supports your exercise plan. A 20 minute walk after meal can help with your glucose control. 6. Rest & Relax. Take rest & relaxation breaks during the day. Get plenty of sleep (at least 7-9 hours per night). It doesn’t have to be perfect. I average a 9 hour eating window but sometimes do 8 or 10. I have to really be on my game with meal prep to do 8 hours. I tried an 8 hour window consistently in the beginning and I found it stressful because I felt like all I was doing was eating. I had a hard time getting in all my protein as I wasn’t hungry, so I aim for 9 hours for now. Overtime I might try to get that down to 8 more consistently. We’ll see… Healthy habits shouldn’t be stressful. That defeats the purpose of them. Who shouldn’t Intermittent Fast? Contraindications include:
Have you tried Intermittent Fasting before? If you’re finding the fat distribution is changing in your body as you age or you want to get your waist to hip ratio down, I highly recommend it. I started it for the fat burning benefits and I stay with it for how it simplifies my life, has improved my energy, helps decrease inflammation and joint pain, and has the potential to reduce my breast cancer and dementia risk. It’s part of my fitness plan that also includes clean eating, resistance training, and mind body exercise and recovery work. It was the first change I made last year and everything else has built on that. It's your turn. Pick an eating window and test it out!  P.S. Need ideas for rest & movement breaks to manage your energy during the day? Download the FREE Daily Energy Planner here.
Ever heard of the island town that wants to get rid of time? They have constant daylight from May 18th to July 26th every summer. Imagine boating at 3am or gardening at 4am. The 300 residents of Sommaroy, Norway proposed this idea of breaking free from the “global clock” and having a time-free zone in 2019. Visitors play along by leaving their watches on the bridge. Some say it’s just a marketing strategy to attract summer tourists. Can you imagine all of the logistical issues? When do you check out of a hotel or how do you know when a store or restaurant is open? You can take away time but at some point, you’ll need to decide when you’re going to sleep and eat regularly to function on a basic level. YOUR BRAIN CRAVES A DAILY ROUTINE. The more structure you give it, the better it'll perform. Ever tried to make some healthy habit changes like going to the gym regularly and notice resistance popping up? That’s partly your brain trying to keep you safe. It doesn’t know that going to the gym is going to help you get stronger and healthier. It just knows it’s a change in your routine. Do you need to clean up any of your Daily Routines right now? If you’re not sure, ask yourself: Are you waking up well-rested, accomplishing the most important tasks each day, and feeling hopeful & happy overall? On a more basic level (just like we monitor with babies)… are you eating, sleeping and pooping? If not, you may need to make some tweaks to your routine and how you support your brain & body by prepping & planning better for your daily activities & rest. Let’s review some ways to structure your day to be your most productive, energetic, creative self. You can use them to help you get back on track or stay on track. To begin, look at how you are scheduling your waking, eating, and sleeping times. Trying to keep consistent times in these 3 areas will do a lot for your overall performance. You can also use the 8+8+8 rule to keep it simple. You’ve got 8 hours each day for:
DAILY ROUTINE CHECK IN: Do a Daily Routine Check In to see what you might want to tweak. *Remember when you want to make changes to your routine or add new healthy habits, always ease into them and try to tie it to something you're already doing. Example: breath work while you drink your morning coffee or tea; exercise after you walk the dog. Need help narrowing it down to your One Thing? Check out this FIT Blog. BASIC MOVES:
PRO MOVES:
OVER TO YOU: Decide if you do best with set times for each daily activity or if you work best with a priority checklist and chunking your time. You don’t want your routine to cause more stress so figure out what works best for you. I prefer to work from a weekly checklist of priorities and chunk my activities as much as possible. If I get too specific about what I’m going to do at each hour of the day, then it overwhelms me if I get behind that schedule. You may need a strict schedule of what to do every 30 minutes of the day to stay focused. Listen to your body, it’ll help you figure it out. Start by creating more structure to your daily routine but consider regular check ins for what you may need to tweak in your week, month, quarter, or yearly routines so you can have more energy, ease, & flow. Next up, I’ll share the tweak I made to my schedule that has made the most impact on my energy & health this past year. It created structure to my day that I didn’t realize I was missing.  Apparently there's a trend to not set New Year's Resolutions anymore. It makes sense. 80% of them are abandoned in the first two weeks of January. The desire to improve our health, finances, or happiness is still there. People are now setting goals when the timing is right for their body & life vs primarily at the beginning of the year. More people listening to their bodies is a good thing. It doesn't change the success rate of accomplishing a goal though. You will fail when you go after a new one. It's completely normal to get off track while it's becoming a habit. It's how our brain is wired. To resist. It likes the familiar and thinks it's protecting us by using the same old pathways. You'll also most likely go too hard, too fast, and burn yourself out. It's human nature. What matters is how fast you bounce back. How resilient you are. Not that you got off track. ️BUILD YOUR RESILIENCE MUSCLE. You can build your resilience muscle. It just takes practice picking yourself up. To do that you have to become mindful of when you get off track. The faster you realize it, the faster you can start up again. You’ve also got to learn to let go of the guilt of eating that cookie or not going to the gym. Before you go beating yourself up, focus on the fact you caught yourself or noticed that sneaky habit of procrastination and commit to starting over. Instead of guilt, celebrate your wins. Celebrate what you did do toward that goal or new habit no matter how small. It'll help you keep doing it or attract more of it. It’s OK if you over complicate it, overwhelm yourself, or get distracted by the new shiny object. We want it all NOW. New things excite us. They turn on our brain’s happy hormones. It just doesn't last. How many books have you started that you haven’t finished? So how do you get back on track?!? ️GET FOCUSED. Decide on your 1 thing to focus on this month or quarter so you don’t sabotage yourself. It could be related to your fitness, relationships, finances, or education. Whatever you feel is the next step for you to move along your Wellness Adventure. Need help narrowing it down? Here’s the Mindful Athlete Goal Setting Worksheet to help you pick out your first fitness or wellness goal for 2026. ️ GO PRO TIPS (after you’ve picked your 1 thing):
Remember to take deep breaths and baby steps. It’s about progress not perfection. You're training for a marathon not a sprint. Building your resilience muscle will help you stay on course. OVER TO YOU Pick your 1 Thing this week. Schedule it. Do it. Celebrate it. Repeat it. If you get off track... Schedule it. Do it. Celebrate it. Repeat it. Build your resilience muscle. Baby steps add up. Your brain needs the reps to rewire. You'll see results if you stay focused on your ONE Thing until it's time for your NEXT Thing.  P.S. Need more help getting clear on your ONE Thing?
Calm your Brain with the 12 Days of Bliss Challenge- ONE simple REST Move in just 5-10 minutes a day to help you Recharge & Reset for the New Year or anytime you're on the verge of Overwhelm & Burnout. Let the Adventure to a Peaceful, Playful, Powerful Body Begin- Download the FREE Challenge here. Do you know what activity will help your brain stay younger? Nope it’s not sleep, exercise, or what you eat. Yes, they're all healthy brain habits but PLAY has been shown to decrease your brain’s biological age by 6 years! What kind of PLAY? This research study involved doing or learning a creative, skilled based activity. Dancing the Tango, singing or playing an instrument, drawing, or playing real time strategy video games specifically were types of play studied that showed they helped your brain stay younger by improving your overall cognitive function. PLAY taps into your superpower- Neuroplasticity or your brains ability to create new pathways for better movement, focus, mood, and creativity. It helps you regulate your nervous system and can move you into a flow state- fully present, focused, at ease, and in your creative zone. Where time seems to slow down. Movement, Meditation, Exploring, Journaling, Music, or creating Art can all help you get in flow and tap into your Peaceful, Playful, Powerful Body. Unfortunately, we all typically play less as we age. Even dogs stop playing as much as they get older. We have to be more intentional about adding creative PLAY time into our days if we aren’t professional musicians or artists. The busier you are, the more you’ll have to block off some PLAY time each week. OVER TO YOU: Do you need to add more PLAY into your life? If so, what sounds fun to start in January? Ready to sign up for some Tango classes? Always wanted to learn the Banjo? Do it. It's time. I want to start playing piano again and I'm working on getting a keyboard. For now, I’m going to bust open this animal watercolor book and pens I got recently. Pick one PLAY Move to do and see how your Body & Brain respond. At a minimum you’ll feel more energy, ease, and flow but overtime your helping your brain become younger & healthier.   P.S. Ready to Boost your ENERGY, Strengthen your JOY Muscles, & Bring out the BLISS?
Use the 12 Days of Bliss Challenge- ONE simple REST Move in just 5-10 minutes a day to help you Recharge & anytime you need a Reset. Download the FREE Challenge here. My absolute favorite prescription from my Menopause Specialist, that I've absolutely crushed, was to eat 1 square of dark chocolate every day. It has to be 70% cacao or greater. Ideally eaten in the middle of the afternoon, especially if you have a mid-afternoon slump. I brought it up with her because it’s one of the main things that helps me combat sugar cravings. She recommended I do it DAILY for some of the other health benefits. Dark Chocolate can help your: · Heart Health · Brain Health · Mental Health · Gut Health Chocolate is made from cacao beans that are roasted at high heat into cocoa. Cacao beans are considered a SUPERFOOD with over 300 beneficial compounds that can boost your mood, energy, and focus. They contain Flavanols & Antioxidants which can improve your brain & cardiovascular function-regulating blood pressure, reducing risk of clotting & inflammation, and improving circulation & good cholesterol levels. They're packed full of fiber & minerals. 1 ounce dark chocolate = 64 mg of Magnesium which supports sleep, mood, blood sugar stabilization, and your bone & heart health. It can also help reduce stress by increasing your serotonin, endorphins, and dopamine levels. >>The higher the cacao content in your chocolate bar, the more likely you're getting these health benefits<< THE DARK CHOCOLATE RX: Eat 1 ounce of dark chocolate (70% cacao or greater) every day. SPICE IT UP: Add a handful of pecans or almonds if you need a protein snack that’s super satisfying. PRO TIP: Let It Melt In Your Mouth- slow down and let each bite of chocolate melt in your mouth to help boost the relaxation benefits. SAVOR. EVERY. BITE. CHOCOLATE NOTES: If all you’ve ever eaten is milk chocolate, you may have to work your way up to 70% cacao. The darker you go, the less sweetness & more intense the flavor. >>Watch for added sugars because this is one way manufacturers get around the bitterness of higher cacao levels<< If you’re sensitive or need to limit your caffeine intake, know that there is caffeine in chocolate. Dark chocolate has more than milk chocolate. Depending on the amount of cacao in it, the caffeine can range from 12-30 mg per ounce of chocolate. You may want to avoid eating it too close to bedtime. Chocolate can help with PMS symptoms. I used to crave it at certain times each month. Finally, Chocolate can trigger migraines in some people. Listen to your body. It might take a little exploring to find your happy level of cacao intensity, frequency, & favorite brand. Honestly, some dark chocolate bars taste like dirt to me. That's no fun. You may not tolerate 70% cacao daily. No biggie! Don't torture yourself. Remember we want the health benefits AND it to be a pleasurable experience. Find your F-L-A-V-O-R. EnJOY!  P.S. Ready to Boost your ENERGY, Strengthen your JOY Muscles, & Bring out the BLISS? Use the 12 Days of Bliss Challenge- ONE simple REST Move in just 5-10 minutes a day to help you Recharge & anytime you need a Reset. Download the FREE Challenge here.
Do you ever have trouble falling asleep? It can be so frustrating when you do ALL the things to prep for sleep and get in bed on time to make sure you get enough hours only to lie down and nothing happens. And the longer it takes to fall asleep, the more anxiety can start to creep up. If this ever happens to you, I've got a relaxation tool to add to your REST Toolbox for sleep support. It's been a game changer for me. I got this sleep tip from a Yoga Therapist and OT who recommends it for all her clients to help them relax and fall asleep. She recommends using a weighted eye pillow with some breathing exercises in bed to help with falling asleep (or back to sleep). I honestly forgot about my awesome eye pillow that I've used in the past for naps and meditation. So I dusted it off and tested it out. OMG- it's been A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! I've been falling asleep faster and sleeping deeper. In all fairness, I've been doing all the things to improve my sleep quality. I've shared those things in this FIT Blog but adding the eye pillow to the breathing exercises in bed has definitely led to a deeper relaxation response in my body. Here's the eye pillow I use and recommend:  How it works: The eye pillow needs to be weighted as this the pressure over your eyes helps stimulate the Vagus Nerve and the relaxation response. Mine has a lavender scent which is calming to the nervous system as well. I recommend the "Happy Wraps" brand. They come in sets of 4 so you can give them as gifts to family & friends. Add it to some Breath Work: Here are 3 breathing exercises you can trial with your eye pillow to help you relax your body & fall asleep faster (or help you fall back asleep if you wake up in the middle of the night). 1. Belly Breathing:
2. Military Method Breathing Exercise: You’re going to breathe slowly as you relax from head to toe. With each breath, focus on letting your body feel heavy. Picture your body sinking down into your bed.
3. Chanting "OM"- this sound creates a vibration in your throat that relaxes you by stimulating the vagus nerve through its auricular branches.
Note: You don't have to sleep all night with the eye pillow. It'll naturally fall off as you roll to your side or change positions. For the Kiddos: All of this would be great to do with kids for sleep support also. You can add a breathing buddy (stuffed animal) to their tummy to help with the belly breathing. I won't tell if you need a breathing buddy too. OVER TO YOU: You can use your eye pillow to relax for sleep and also during the day when you need a relaxation break or nap. Test out the eye pillow with each breathing exercise to see which one your body likes best.  P.S. Feeling burned out? Use the 12 Days of Bliss Challenge- ONE simple REST Move in just 5-10 minutes a day to help you Recharge & anytime you need a Reset. Download the FREE Challenge here.
**Note- I'm delaying the final blog post of our Water Exercise Series to share some Rest & Recovery Tools I shared with our newsletter community after the devastating 4th of July floods in Central Texas. We are sending so much love to all of those impacted by this tragedy & gratitude to all of the responders who continue to support these communities. XO- Mollie & Ender It’s been heartbreaking to see how many lives have been impacted by the extreme flooding in the TX Hill Country this past weekend. We're grateful for the fast emergency response to help victims & the heroic efforts of the young camp counselors who responded so bravely to a horrific situation in the middle of the night. July 4th weekend is THE busiest time of the year for Texans to head to our rivers for camping & tubing. It’s just what Texans do for fun but also to survive the summer heat. You really aren’t a true Texan unless you’ve floated along the Guadalupe River at some point in your life. It’s hard to fully comprehend how much joy the rivers bring with how much devastation they're capable of. If you’re connected to anyone that has been directly impacted, please know we’re sending you all so much love. It’s times like these where your body needs extra loving care to support processing the emotions, stress, and trauma it’s experiencing. It needs more Rest & Recovery to remind it to calm down even if it’s just for a few minutes at a time. If you’re not sleeping or physically exhausted (i.e. heavy or burning sensation in your muscles, sloppy movements or poor posture, decreased balance or coordination, or feeling weak or stiff in your muscles) from the stress, your Rest Rx is to take NAP BREAKS. 3 Types of Naps:
If you’re sleeping OK but showing signs of stress (i.e. restlessness, anxiety, worry, heart or mind racing, rapid breathing, difficulty concentrating, numbness, or muscles tension in your neck/shoulders/hips), your Rest Rx is to take RELAXATION BREAKS. 6 Stress Cycle Busters (Relaxation Breaks): When you’re stressed, your brain goes into protection mode. It signals to turn on your sympathetic nervous system (i.e. fight, flight or freeze mode). It’s the opposite of your healing mode. You can help your body complete the stress cycle by giving it the cue that it’s safe to move back into relaxed mode & calm your nervous system by using any of these strategies as Relaxation Breaks:
You don’t have to do all of these to help your body recover & reset during stressful times. Start with one that sounds soothing & doable. Check in with your body. It’ll tell you what it needs to calm down & feel better. You'll know you've turned on your Relaxed Body when you feel a shift - sense of relief, yawning, goose bumps, a deep breath are all signs you've completed a stress cycle. Be mindful of how much news & social media you’re taking in right now about this tragedy. It’s likely triggering a stress response in your brain & body. Definitely limit it a few hours before bed as it can disrupt your sleep. If you want to do more for the areas impacted, World Central Kitchen is on the ground feeding Central Texans and the search & rescue crews. You can donate to support their efforts here. Be extra kind to yourself right now! I found comfort in this story about Hazel, the Camp La Junta dog, that scratched on the door of a cabin to alert the campers of rising water and waited with them until they were all safe (Texas Monthly shared about it). It's not a common dog name but it's my mother's name (who passed away in 2003). Grieve the loss but always find the hope, love, & helpers out there as well (even if it's coming from our furry friends).  P.S. Want more strategies to go from your Stressed to your Relaxed Body? Download the Relaxed Body Toolkit & Daily Energy Planner here.
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Mollie, Ender, Ty & Teddie
Mollie Miller, PT, CBIS
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