Yes you read the title right. My body decided I needed to take a break. I didn’t plan it, it wasn’t written in my to-do list for the day and it definitely made me mad but I didn’t have a choice.
When your body tells you to slow down you must listen.
I became weak, like couldn’t even lift more normal weights when working out or exercise for a long; I needed sleep, I found myself sleeping more than 16 hours in one day (yes you heard that right…16 hours) and my stomach issues (IBS-C) took a toll like no other. I couldn’t work, I couldn’t work out and I couldn’t hang with people like I wanted to. All because my body was giving me signs that it wanted a day off.
So I listened.
I didn’t push myself anymore. I slept, I didn’t work out, I cancelled plans, deadlines got pushed and I was ate food thats only helped my stomach.
And guess what? I woke up after 3 days of this feeling incredible! I finally felt more myself then I had in months.
My body took a day off because I wouldn’t.
Right now we live in a world where we feel we have to go-go-go. I was working two jobs and was in my craziest time for one of them. I didn’t listen to my body and I kept pushing pushing pushing. I gained weight, I felt gross, I was exhausted and I wasn’t myself.
Why do we do this?
Look at the cost it came. Everything I teach people, I threw out the window…because I could ‘handle it’…go ahead and roll your eyes because I am while I even writing that.
Pssh…I could handle it? Really, thats my answer for pushing myself where I literally was on bed rest?
Who can relate?
We all push ourselves over the edge sometimes, we forget about health to work those next couple of hours, to just work out one more time, to not miss out on opportunities or even so we don’t let others down.
I promise though the world will be just fine if you take a break; if you sleep in; if you focus on one thing including focusing on yourself for a day.
Having my body tell me to take a day off vs. having a choice really opened my eyes to self-care even more.
Self-care comes in many forms and one thing for me is sleep. Find what works for you and focus on growing in your own self-care.
