We have a Winner!!
Pilates wins and Stress is bad for everyone! If you thought I was going to tell you who won the election - that answer is unfortunately still undetermined and maybe for a while. This may be a source of great stress for you and that stress is not doing any of us any good. Maybe your concerns are Covid, schooling your kids, your business, finances, or illness … it’s all stress and it’s doing a number on our bodies. Our bodies are not meant to exist in constant stress. It actually impacts our immune systems and makes us more susceptible to illness.
Let’s talk about science for a minute. When we experience stress our body reacts with the fight or flight response or another name is the Amygdala Hijack. The thinking part of our brain - the cortex stops working as hormones surge and the Amygdala and Limbic system take over. Our bodies are designed to make a decision - stay and deal with the threat or run away. In caveman days those two choices made sense - face-off with the wolf or run. Today, however, we are faced with fight or flight inducing situations like a Pandemic or Election fraud that we can’t run from or handle. We are left in limbo. THIS IS NOT GOOD FOR OUR BODIES! Staying in our limbic system raises our cortisol level which makes decision making and rationale difficult, produces anxiety, interrupts our sleep, and in some cases paralyzes us from any action. So what do we do?
We need to biohack our bodies from this constant stress. Here are my tips for lowering your stress level during challenging times:
Turn off the media and social media. If you must - allot yourself a small window each day to check media or post. Set timers on your screen time. Replace stress-inducing media with reading, movies, and light-hearted happy shows. it’s important to choose subjects that don’t challenge you or disturb you.
Move! Getting your heart rate up a bit and moving your body will help regulate those hormones and settle the body. We never regret the workouts we do - just the ones we don’t do. Sometimes it’s hard to get started when we are stressed - set lower expectations. Even a 10-minute walk will do wonders for your mood. Make plans with your friends to go to Pilates - have accountability.
Get outside and enjoy nature. It’s hard to be in a funk when you are outdoors in a park or in the woods. Go for a hike - and take the time to really notice the pretty changing leaves, the sunshine, and the clean air. Be present.
Spend time with pets. Study after study show pets help to calm us. Play fetch with your pup or kitten. Animals can be so amusing - it’s hard not to smile in their presence.
Give yourself some grace. Maybe you had lofty goals and right now it’s hard to keep them. It’s okay - do what you can and be proud of yourself for what you are doing right. Each day ask yourself - what did I do right today? Celebrate that. DON’T make the opposite list - nobody needs that.
Start a gratitude journal. Each day - I like to do this at night - right down three to five things you are grateful for. Maybe it’s a text from a friend or a new healthy recipe you tried. These do not need to be huge things. You will go to sleep thinking happy thoughts and clear your mind of stress which can lead to a better night’s sleep.
Plan activities or projects that you can look forward to and prepare for. Having something on the calendar can be really motivating and distracting. If you are reorganizing your closet you may spend time looking at other closet layouts, getting ideas, and getting excited about what your closet can be.
Get some human contact. We are not designed to be alone. Talk a walk with a friend, call a friend (not text), come to a group Pilates class, go to a park, and watch others walk and play. There are so many ways to have human interaction safely.
These are just a few simple ways to combat stress. When you find yourself feeling paralyzed or unproductive make a point to change that as soon as you can. Get up and do something - empty the dishwasher, pay a bill online, walk around the block - anything that will give you a win and boost your feel-good hormones. Little wins add up!