Progress Not Perfection

MY FEBRUARY WRITING CHALLENGE: DAY 15 OF 28

I hopped out of the shower in a fret, realizing that tomorrow I will be on national television. Exposed to all. Vulnerable and not knowing how I will be portrayed, how it will reflect on my business, who it will touch and reach and inspire. I had the privilege of going back for a second round competing on The Food Network’s hit show “Chopped”, and it airs tomorrow night.

I’ve been doing this writing challenge for 15 days now. The challenge was that I share my writing here every single day for a month. As you may know, these monthly challenges have proven incredibly helpful for me in terms of creating new habits. My first one was doing a Whole30 challenge which ultimately changed the way I live and eat forever. Then it was a month of mediation. A month working out every day. A month of journaling. A year of sobriety. A year not watching television. And most recently, a month with no social media. These challenges work for me and so here I am, proudly keeping up with this one, which has been much harder than I thought it would be.

But with this comes the insecurity that there will be new eyes on my inner thoughts. I’ve been doing this writing but not really sharing it. Feeling “ok” with the idea that if someone just happens to stumble upon it, no big deal. But who knows how many eyes will come here from their television sets tomorrow, and I’ll admit that it brings up insecurity. “Should I delete that post where I said I was going to sell out Madison Square Garden?”. “Is my writing horrible? My grammar?"

Fear. Fear. Fear. 

If I learned anything in Overeaters Anonymous and through my own healing process with emotional eating, it’s that we should strive for progress, not perfection. That’s what this  writing challenge has been teaching me and if nothing else, that’s been enough. And so instead of going back to make sure I didn’t say something I’ll regret, I’ll surrender my worries knowing that everything I’ve written here has come from some authentically inspired place within me that felt true in the moment.

I am not afraid to admit I am in process. I used to think I had to wait until I was an expert to share. I’m so glad I dropped that attitude and I hope that you do too because I have a feeling there are millions of people that need to hear exactly what your message is at exactly the level you currently understand it. Any other time would be too early or too late. Share your genius with the world. You are here for a very specific reason and there truly is no one who can do the work that is unique to your purpose. 

If you’ve found me from Chopped. Thank you. Thank you for taking me right now, exactly as I am. I hope that I can do the same for you. We. Are. Enough. 

Self-Care Daily Habits

MY FEBRUARY WRITING CHALLENGE: DAY 7 OF 28

I received such a beautiful compliment today from a friend who does some work with Model Meals on the weekends. She said that she admired that I was able to run a business and be so busy but still manage to find time to take care of myself. I told her that I was grateful to have learned that if I don't take care of myself, I certainly wouldn't be able to take care of a business. We cannot give what we do not possess ourselves. 

And while it's late now and I'm eager to go to bed but sticking to my commitment of sharing my writing every day, I wanted to share some of the daily self-care practices that I think play a key role in my own wellness, and that I think would be great tools in anyone else's personal growth, wellness, and self-discovery. 

• getting enough sleep
• meditation
• clean eating: I avoid all grains, dairy, sugar or any sweeteners, alcohol, and processed foods
• stream of consciousness journaling
• prayer
• gratitude
• affirmations
• writing a biography of yourself as exactly who you want to be in this lifetime
• writing a journal entry from your future as if you woke up in your dream life and were describing the reality around you
• read or learn something new (books, podcasts, etc)
• vision board - I use pinterest

Much more to come on these habits specifically, but these are the ones I practice nearly every single day and have changed my life immensely. I'm about to get started right now on that first one. Goodnight. 

A Note From the Present

My February Writing Challenge: Day 2 of 28

I’ve come to learn that self-care is one of the most generous things we can do for the people in our lives. To invest in ourselves so that we can show up for them as the best possible version you can give them. I have a few practices that I do daily and part of my daily self-care routine is writing a note from my future as if I was living it in the present moment. I often type this with my eyes closed so I can really feel the experience of this perfect day and all that it involves. I look around at where I am, what the environment is like, what I’m doing, who is there, what my plans are for the day, how I feel, the color of my sheets, the details. I take myself there in my mind and I do my best to truly FEEL everything that that moment and experience evokes in me. But this morning as I dove into this part of my morning routine and prepared to visualize, I was overwhelmed with how good this present moment already was. And so this came out of me instead...

(How can I write a note from my future when my RIGHT NOW is so blissful.) Today I choose to write about my now. My gratitude.) Today I woke up early. 3:35am to be exact. I made my bulletproof coffee and I walked Kingsley in the park. I headed to the gym and I got there a little bit early. That time between here and there when I sit in my car and just be is some of my favorite time. Those minutes of peace. I took the 10 minutes in my car to write my affirmations for the day and the biography that I wish to fulfill. I worked out at the 12 in a class taught by Matt.  I absolutely love this gym and these people. I see how much  my body has transformed from the lifestyle changes I’ve made and I can’t help but be proud. I very quickly forget that it’s 5am as soon as we get moving. Leaving class at 6am is one of my favorite parts, not because I’m leaving but because without failure, I am always surprised by the fact that it’s still dark out. I rush home with the goal of showering, putting Kingsley on the leash, and making it to my favorite lifeguard tower so I can see the sunrise while I finish my bulletproof coffee and dive deeply into my morning self-care routine. I arrived just after 6:30am and the sky was already bright but that’s ok. I say good morning to people I pass because I’m practicing “going first”. Initiating kindness. Saying hello first. Introducing myself first. Leading with love. No one is on my lifeguard stand and I am happy. I get a little protective over this routine but fortunately there is almost always an empty one a couple streets over. But today 15th street is MINE.  I did an experiment to see if Kingsley could carry my Mexican beach blanket on his back like the charming little mule he is. It lasted about 30 seconds before it almost fell into the territory marking flow, and so I carried it. I laid it out on my lifeguard stand, tied Kingsley to the second stair, and climbed up. My Uggs and sweatpants are super BASIC but I’m warm, so fuck it. I open my laptop and I do my morning gratitude.  I write...

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And here I am, writing my “note from the future” which is, for the first time in this practice, a note from my present because I’m working on seeing the miracles in the now. There sure are plenty of them.