Making Things Happen

A note on making the Important things happen…..

We give ourselves so many reasons as to why we aren’t doing the thing we know we should be doing. Some are legitimate, and others, are mainly just excuses. We say we want to do this thing, and we may start off great for a little bit and then life happens and it all becomes too much to continue on, too much to hold.

Why does that happen? Why does the excitement wear off? Why do we become less enthused and fall off the tracks before anything really sticks?

Maybe instead of focussing on the why does it happen – we just need to focus on creating the action…or doing the thing. I’ve said this to my clients for years, it’s not about the results in this moment (YES results will come eventually), but the most important thing is getting the reps in. Creating and sticking with the habit, no matter what. Showing up for yourself because YOU decided you wanted to achieve something. And holding that line for yourself.  

The real flex is who you become along the way, the achievement of that thing you were originally after now becomes the bonus. The growth is what really matters.

Yes, some days it may feel like it’s impossible, but do your best. And if it doesn’t happen than show up again fresh the next day. But don’t just cave and forget about the whole thing. You are stronger than that, and you owe it to yourself. Keep showing up and doing the thing.

 It’s September now, that means 4 more months remaining of 2024. Here are some questions to ask yourself:

What do you want for yourself in the last quarter of the year?

How serious are you to go get after it?

And are you ready to show up for yourself, and do the reps?

I believe in you! Lets go!

 All the love,

 Jen xo

Living with Intention

Storytime for you…

Back in 2022 I was on medical leave for a serious diagnosis. I was shutting down my life so I could focus 100% of my energy on my own healing. It was uncomfortable, mentally taxing and to put it honestly…it was a rough time. There were a lot of unknowns, and it was a scary time for me. I could have sat in negativity, and it would have been perfectly reasonable for me to complain about my circumstances.

One of the best things I was able to do was to make the best out of this hard situation. There was no other way.  I had my kids watching and following along for the ride. I knew I wanted to show up for them and be the best I could be.

Every day I made a choice to be in gratitude for being alive. I might have had to deal with hard things emotionally and physically, but I decided to have a grateful heart for the other things. I decided to focus on all the good around me. I held that through the difficulty.

As we go through life it’s easy to be disappointed by the little or big situations that happen to us.

Flat tire – “just my luck”

Crashing my favourite mug to the floor while emptying the dishwasher – “today is just not my day.”

Major break up with friend or love – “why is this happening to me.”

It’s easy to complain and fall victim when life circumstances happen. “Why is life putting all this on me” When we take this angle - we are giving our power away. It feels like life is walking all over us. And it’s not fun. We can sometimes sit in the discomfort and let it engulf us completely if we’re not aware.

Maybe instead of life happening to us, it is happening for us. Whether we understand the deeper meaning or the lesson we are supposed to learn… having an open heart, trusting the process, and holding onto what is good definitely takes some practice. But you know what?

It’s so much more empowering!

Taking ownership creates a happier, more grateful heart and a better more fulfilling outlook on life.

Every day we have a choice, to let life happen to us (react) or choose what to do with our circumstances (intention). Not every day is going to be perfect. Remember finding the positive in a difficult situation is a practice. Accepting the challenge and finding the lesson within is a powerful way to live.

Looking back at my time in 2022, I may have dealt with a lot of crappy moments, but I am grateful for the way I was able to rise out of my circumstances and see the deeper lessons. I know I was given that diagnosis and it served my life. It was a major life reset and I understood the assignment. I was able to find my power within to keep choosing to see the good everywhere in my life. I kept my power by holding my vision and I chose to live with a grateful heart in one of the most challenging times of my life. I was able to lead by example for my kids, which may be the most important part of it all.

 Is this an area that you could work on for yourself?

Are you quick to complain about the challenges / circumstances that arise?

Do you reflect on the lesson that you may be learning from the challenge?

All the love,

Jen xo

Stay on Track this Summer

School is out for the summer, the kids are home, the routine and structure of the day is probably fine now, but will probably start fading at some point. More sports, more bbq's, more long weekends + dock days, etc.  Staying true to your goals will get challenging eventually if it hasn't already. Might as well be ready with these quick tips on how to keep focused on your progress and stay on track this summer!

TIP #1

Define what Staying on Track means

What does keeping your progress mean to you? Is that clear for yourself? What is it that you’d like to stay on track – your eating patterns + nutrition? Is it your activity and exercise? Is it the amount + quality of work you are producing? It will be hard to stay on track if you don’t define what staying on track is for yourself. So first – define what it is you want to stay on track with

TIP #2

Centre yourself each day

Choose a few key habits or routines, I like the term non-negotiables.. Maybe it’s a slow quiet coffee in the morning, daily movement, or the first glass of water in the day. Take a moment for yourself to ground into the day, and check in with how your feeling. This gives you a moment to feel if you are in need of some extra self care, or if you can push yourself a little bit further. 

TIP #3

Create Time Efficiency

If schedules are busy and time is a struggle, wake up earlier. The mornings hold some great magically moments to get things done. Yes it takes some discipline, but this is a great time efficiency hack.  Another option would be setting the kids up with an activity or arranging a playdate with another Mom to gain some extra time to be able to focus on what you need to do to move yourself forward.

TIP #4

Prep Meals as you Go

Summer is a fun time where schedules get a bit looser and more things happen on the fly, but it doesn’t mean that our nutrition must take a back seat. Decide on a few good meals that are quick + easy + nutritious. Have the ingredients ready to go and stocked and prepare ahead as much as possible. Doesn’t mean you have to be in your kitchen for hours on end. But a little here and there can really go a long way.

For example  - On Monday cut up the veggies for Tuesday’s meal. On Tuesday prepare + bake the chicken for the next nights meal. While you’re making breakfast on Wednesday, spend a few extra moments preparing the vegetables for dinner that night. 

Breaking up these tasks little by little create an easier time for the meal and make it feel like lighter work instead of a big ordeal every time. Once we get into the habit of breaking things into little pieces, the task starts to feel way easier and lighter on our minds too!

---

Try some of these tips this summer and let me know how it goes. Is there anything you would add here? Let me know!! Remember to enjoy your time, because life is meant for enjoying and experiencing! My hope for you is that you feel good, organized and on track while enjoying your summer. Cheers!

Jen xoxo 

6 Ways to Keep Moving Forward

Here we go again….

It might feel like we’re going backwards - in my region we’re back in lockdown after 2 weeks in red zone. It might feel like a shot in the back, another blow to our momentum. It’s easy to fall into victim mode, ie: why is this happening to me, I’ll never be able to get through this, etc. 

Let’s not fall into that low level thinking. Let’s rise above. We can’t control these things, but we can control how we react. Let’s look for the positive, look for the silver lining. 

Here are 6 ways to keep us moving forward:

·      Wake up each day with a positive thought, write it down to solidify it. This will help to start our day grounded in positive mindset. 

·      Get outside every day, even if it’s only for a few minutes to take a few intentional deep breaths. Being outside, we can always find something to appreciate and be grateful for

·      Nourish our body with good food that fuel our body and gives us life. Big salad, fruits and vegetables, something to help raise our vibration!! If you want to know more about how to raise vibration, check out this video, my 2nd video I ever recorded back in 2015   

·      Find friends that fill you up and keep them close. Or be the person to inspire and light up someone else

·      Move that gorgeous body of yours every single day, in some way shape or form, maybe 5 mins of stretching, maybe it’s a workout or hike – either way the body craves movement each day, honour it by moving! 

·      If you’re going to be scrolling social media then scroll your following list to delete or mute any accounts that make you feel less than awesome. 

Be patient with yourself. There are so many things we can’t control right now – but what we can control is how we show up for ourselves. We can show up with a positive mindset and being patient with ourselves and loving ourselves in a bigger way. 

And if we need to eat a pint of ice cream and binge watch Netflix for a while - know that its ok and loving ourselves with where we’re at is perfectly perfect. And it’s all part of the process moving forward. 

We will get through this. One step at a time! 

jen xoxo

A lil' story about checkpoints...

We are all running some kind of endurance race right now. It’s not even a race, because there is no end in sight. At least with a race you know there is a finish line. Here we are just running non-stop. It’s exhausting.  

When I gave birth to my 2nd child, it was at home and my first non-medicated birth. It was very uncomfortable at times. The most intense part was right before he was born, when I felt I couldn’t do it anymore. I exasperatedly asked my midwife, “how many more pushes?” She said 6 more. I did it in 3. When I saw the end, it empowered me to channel that energy and finish strong. 

When there is no end in sight it feels like it will go on forever and it takes so much more of our energy to keep on. 

Covid/Lockdown/Online school WILL eventually end, and life will return to some state of normalcy again, however this is not in our power right now, it's not something anyone can really control.

To take our power back and do things that ARE in our control, we can give ourselves some checkpoints. 

Checkpoints aka; things to look forward to and get excited about.

I do this when doing hard things like running up a big hill - I say when I get to that post, I’ll walk for 10 seconds. Getting there takes all the work, but having that little bit of rest helps me to keep going immensely. 

Maybe a checkpoint for you is ordering takeout, or having an evening where you can do whatever you want all by yourself no distractions. Or maybe your checkpoint is a guilt-free movie marathon on the weekend. Whatever it is, give yourself some checkpoints and honour what you need. Otherwise you may end up burning out along the way. 

So tell me, what are some of your checkpoints? 

All the love to you, 
Jen xo

ps. My final note is to all the high achievers out there….
Honour yourself for where you’re at. Don’t be too hard on yourself. If you are used to accomplishing a lot and right now and you’re not, then please give yourself some grace. This is tough stuff and we need to be ok with doing less right now.