How are you looking after you? I thought I had looked after myself enough this week, I had cut down my work schedule a lot, but I still taught my mindfulness Pilates classes on zoom, of course if it had been in person work I would have had to have cancelled because I could not have turned up coughing and spluttering all over the clients! Definitely not.
So why did I think it was okay to turn up to teach on zoom which was detrimental to my own health and well-being, ending up at the doctors and needing medicine to take for a chest infection very sore throat etc. In future I will look after me so that I can go back to work quicker and do a 100% good job. So I felt inspired to write you a blog about how you can help yourself when you’re feeling poorly, obviously always consult the GP, Doctor if you aren’t well but perhaps these tips or at least some of them will help too.
heres 5 tips which I hope may help you too
1 rest
2 sleep more
3 listen to your body
4 eat and drink well
5 enjoy a snail paced morning routine.
do something positive for you so you don’t stay in the doldrums
I still enjoyed my miracle morning today, a very gentle morning routine & extremely lazy 6 minute Pilates, breathing naturally. The thing is when you aren’t feeling very well, and I have not been out of the house for five days now, that although you need to rest, heal and recover, at the same time by spending so much time in bed and sitting and lying down, your body still needs to stretch and otherwise the muscles just become stiffer and stiffer and complain and your back and neck are not happy. So you can still do some very basic gentle one minute and six minute Pilates, even on your bed! If your nose is bunged up and you’re coughing a lot, then Obviously you have no choice but to breathe naturally, but you can still do some gentle movements even sitting on your bed with your back straight and do a few little shoulder circles perhaps five times each way.
1 Rest
🙌
2 sleep more ‘zzzzzzzz’
Often sleep is broken when we are not feeling very well, so if you’re able to take time off work, then don’t set an alarm in the morning perhaps take an extra nap in the day to help you recover and delegate as much as you can. For example my son picked up my prescription from the pharmacy for me.. took out the bins and made me hot honey & lemon.
3 listen to your body
4 eat and drink well
I’ve added in warming soups, as well as adding the green juices in as well such as morning celery juice (a whole pack of celery!!) , evening cucumber juice (a whole cucumber juiced) as well as lots and lots of hot honey, lemon and fresh ginger, sometimes with turmeric, sometimes with a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar is apparently very good!
I’m eating all my usual food fortunately, except adding in extra vitamins and minerals such as vitamin C. Obviously we all eat different diets but it’s such a good thing to boost the immune system again especially if you’re having to take antibiotics, I was quite impressed with the doctors they even recommended I take probiotics which is obviously a really good idea after taking that sort of medicine.
5 enjoy a snail paced morning routine
here are some of my favourite things I enjoy in my daily morning routine, Hope some of them help and inspire you in some way
1 meditate
here’s a 1 minute meditation for you to enjoy (please note if you have a bunged up nose, simply breathe naturally & calmly!! The best you can, let your breathing calm and soothe!!) sitting or lying in bed!
join in here
2 pick an affirmation everyday
here’s one for today, say to yourself
‘I love to smile’
& give yourself a little smile & maybe high five in the mirror. The High-five tip is a tip from author Mel Robbins, author of the high-five habit, I heard her being interviewed by Fearne cotton on her happy place podcast, it’s really worth a listen and I must say it really does cheer you up giving you a high-five in the mirror, I loved doing this with my clients earlier in the week, they loved it too! Have you tried it yet?
If you love angel cards too, pick one or more! I enjoyed picking two today!
3 visualise a small or big goal, have a little daydream about it with your eyes closed, or perhaps gaze at a vision board or read what’s on your vision board.
4 exercise. No you might not be up to doing anything or going out or anything like that, and you need to stay at home cosy and heal. However it’s good to have a very gentle little stretch now and again or if like me and many of my clients it’s still good to do 6 minutes mindfulness Pilates practice, except you might have to breathe naturally, do it in bed or move much smaller movements than usual and that is okay just listen to your body what feels right for you.
Try some shoulder circles and gentle next stretches, all you need to do is sit on your bed, and circle your shoulders five times one way and five times the other way, you can also do a few gentle simple neck stretches, sit with good posture on your bed
then tilt your head from one side and then tilt your head to the other side. 1, 2 or 3 times.
join in 5 shoulder circles here!;
Stretch your neck for 30 seconds join in here
If you don’t stretch and do some basic movement you will just get stiffer in the muscles and seize up which is not good, keep listening to your body and keep moving in a very gentle way and do a few little 30 seconds stretches here and there.
5 read.
If you feel up to it, read a good book. The latest book I am reading is the high-five habit by Mel Robbins. Basically the tip she gives every time you go past a mirror at home, give yourself a high five 🙌!! It’s really good! Tried it yet?
This is especially good tip when you’re feeling ill, because often you don’t feel so positive when you’re feeling poorly, so rather than looking in the mirror thinking oh God I look and feel so rough, you just give yourself a high-five.
I like doing a double high-five with both hands high-fiving, you can listen to the podcast on Fearne Cottons happy place podcast with Mel, read her book to find out the science and depth of using this amazing tool, highly recommend. What book are you reading right now?
6 journalling.
Enjoy some writing time. This can be diary style, how you’re feeling, what you have been doing personally and professionally, it can be writing what you’re grateful for, it can be picking an affirmation card and writing about what that message means to you or an angel card, I’m really enjoying the miracle morning journal at the moment which I fill out each day, this journal is by Hal Elrod, his miracle morning another excellent book.
it’s nice having a good old fashioned diary too, You can have a notebook on the go to, whatever works for you and you feel inspired by.
I really hope this blog helps and inspires you in some way, if you feel it will help a friend or family please feel free to gift it to them to help them at this moment in time, I teach all of this to my clients. You can join in too
sending you lots of love and a high-five!
love Bev
Ps Oh I wish I looked like this photo today!! But no, writing this blog curled up in bed with pjamas, no glam dress or makeup!! Do I care? No!! I think the high fives helped!!
from the daily mail photo shoot !