Amazingly today’s ’30 days of self-love’ topic, Rest, falls on my normal rest day. Is that kismet or what?! (The fact that I went to pilates this morning – instead of yesterday, thereby resulting in today NOT being a rest day – is obviously beside the point and ruins a good story!)
On my weight-loss program we have to exercise (cardio, weights, and stretching) six days a week. Because Wednesday is often fraught with great angst – it is weigh-in day – I usually give myself the day off exercise and indulge (but not overly) in some potatoes with dinner (ecetera); all while remaining within my calorie limit. Others on my program sometimes comment (on Twitter, Forums or Facebook) that they feel quite despondent and guilty on their rest days and yearn to get out there running, boxing, lifting and the like. But not this little black duck. I’m quite happy to have my rest days. There should be more of ’em I say. Actually I don’t say that. But I think it.
But I do realise, of course, that the topic set my Tina today isn’t solely about time spent not-exercising.
I’ve mentioned before on this blog the difficulty I face with resting. Doing nothing. Letting things go and taking a break. The need to rest can be hard to accept because we want to believe we can do it all. We want to have control and make certain that our actions achieve the results we desire. We want to feel proud for our achievements.
I know I have tried getting up early to cram more into my day. I eventually felt so exhausted all the time that I accomplished less overall. I had no energy! I have avoided taking rest days from workouts to fit in all the things I “should” to lose weight. I ended up taking a couple weeks off from an extremely achy body and lacked motivation to return. Even now, I fill my schedule and don’t get enough genuine rest from doing and going in my everyday life. I take time each day for things I enjoy, but rarely does that include a moment of nothing.
Our minds and bodies need rest. They need moments of peace regularly. It helps rejuvenate us so we can feel strong and capable of facing life. It gives us time to decompress and appreciate our lives. Rest enables us to continue growing into the people we aim to be. Without rest, we turn into empty vessels, drained of life and the energy to live it. I know those days when I find a time to relax and calm myself, I can handle so much more. I continue to learn the lesson of needing rest. I forget so easily, but always seek it out with time.
How will you rest today?
Before my iPhone, when I just had a iPod Nano, I’d often forget to get it out enroute to work. I’d be sitting there staring out of the window at the world passing by, before remembering that I could have been listening to music. And sometimes even when I did remember I’d decide to leave it happily ensconsed in my bag, content to gaze mindlessly outside. I should do that more often. I should bathe more often without stimulation (okay, that sounded a bit crass, but you know what I meant – no magazines, no books) and alone with my thoughts.
We rest our bodies, I wonder, other than those who practice meditation, how many of us rest our minds? And what does that mean? I like to think that sitting in front of the television mindlessly watching something is restful. But is it? I’m still getting some stimulation and I’m still having some reaction. So perhaps it isn’t. I’m not great at living in the ‘now’. So perhaps on occasions I need to unplug everything and not pick up a book or magazine, but just sit and ‘be’. OMG! What a frightening thought!
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