I'm usually that person who makes a soundtrack to life and thinks "in this moment, what music should be playing? Should it be instrumental or should there be singing?" At one point in my life I looked into what it would take to work with directors selecting music for scenes and movies. I mean, right now I'm packing to move and I have created a "packing playlist" to help me get things done quicker. Maybe I'm this way because I grew up playing instruments, singing and enjoying good ol classic art…who knows…either way, that's how I role.
I'm sure many of you can relate to the workout playlist; mine consist of : cardio, lifting, cross fit, rowing, yoga, stair master, running, HIT. In addition to my genre playlist (country, classical, hip hop, blues etc) I also have playlist for: traveling, relaxing, reading, pool, getting ready, mellow, cooking, cleaning, bathes, going out….you name it I have a playlist for it. When I go to power lift I put on rap music, turn it up loud and get in the zone. Immediately, any doubts are out of my head and I'm in the zone to move some weight and feel good about it. When I row, I like to listen to Bob Marley because it's powerful and chill music. Rowing, can be more of a mental battle which is why finding a happy chill place in my head helps me. You get the picture on how music changes things for me.
I'm an emotional listener; meaning when I hear music I feel the emotion behind it. I get chills, smiles, or tears. I hear each instrument and feel the music/sound down to my core. When someone has a conversation with me, I tend to feel their emotion good or bad. I'm a big visual person too. Knowing this about myself, why would I think it's any different with my own words and thoughts? It's not! Lately, I've been so busy with work that I wasn't able to find a balance and work out or eat as healthy as I'm use to. As one would expect, I lost some muscle, gained a little, got a little soft (it all sounds so sexy right?)…basically all the hard work I did months prior to achieving a fitness level kinda went the other direction. I started getting really discouraged with things (even though it's really not that bad) and my thoughts of my appearance were all negative. I'm great at encouraging, motivating others and getting them out of their head. Why the heck can I not do this for myself everyday. During my 40 day yoga challenge at Big Yoga (which btw was AMAZING) we talked about "tapes" we play in our head. It really hit home to me because I became more aware of how toxic my negative thoughts are to my health. It was an eye opener. Last weekend I was so sick of hearing my own negative thoughts about how I looked, I kicked my ass back into gear with working out despite how exhausted I was. I still carried these negative thoughts but I pushed them out and filled my thoughts with exactly what I wanted. Did one or two days back into my workout routine actually show a difference, no probably not but because I told myself I was back I felt better and return looked better. I started cleaning up my diet but committed to allowing myself to still enjoy things like wine, pizza or chocolate in moderation without thinking I'm breaking a law. It's amazing how our thoughts and words affect our health. I acknowledged myself for dedicating time to my career. It has led to a promotion, I'm fulfilled in what I do and I'm about to move into a new place. It's okay that I didn't go to the gym every day or eat super clean every meal because I was still doing something I loved and great for myself. That's what I should have been telling myself instead of "Ugh, I feel so gross, Im so badly out of shape there's no point of return…give up, you're old and a blimp and no way will I ever wear anything other than a brown paper bag"..blah…blah..blah.. (I'm being a little extreme here but you get the point lol ) That's really annoying. For the most part, I've weeded out people and things that bring continuous bad energy, but I can't weed myself out…that's not possible and silly so making that change in my attitude is what I needed. Just from one week of thinking positive and working out I've felt so much better and I am seeing a difference in my body and attitude. It doesn't take much to get back to where you want to be. The music I play each morning is something that I enjoy and makes me smile or dance around. At the end of the day I listen to very relaxing calm music. It's a continuous cycle of music, thoughts and sounds that will help create a successful, healthly and positive version of myself.
I decided to blog about this because I had a conversation with one of my good friends today in regards to our goals and what we would like to change. As she is telling me what she wants to change about herself I can't help but shake my head. She is doing exactly what I would do with my thoughts, she created a perception of what she thought she looked like vs how she really looks. She looks like a badass!!
It's so important that we become aware of the things we hear and how we react to them. I've put emphasis on looks but we have to listen to our thoughts about love, career, family and change because it doesn't matter what it is…our thoughts ultimately control everything.
So, if you get in a stressful situation or long day, turn on your "pick-me-up playlist". If you want to PR on your back squat, turn on your "I'mabadassweightliftingmotherlover playlist", if you're sick and want to feel better put your "thismusicmakesmyorganshappy playlist".
I challenge you to start every morning and end every day with something positive about yourself and someone else. When it's about yourself and in the morning say it out loud in bed before you let your feet hit the floor and when you go to bed acknowldege something powerful or great you did that day. Acknowledging someone else just creates a snowball effect…it's a win-win. :) Remember, it's not just the food we put into our bodies but our thoughts that can either make us healthy or unhealthy.
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