cultivate, journal

thirty four: balancing expectations + finding flexibility

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If you don’t bend, you break. These are the words I have been – and will continue – repeating to myself.

If you don’t bend, you break.

2020 was…well, it was. It sure was. It was all the things. It was awful, it was big, it was slow, it was sad, it was joyous, it was enlightening. It was a lot of the things and it was all the things. It took away and it gave back. For all of us, in varying doses. In other words, 2020 was really fucking hard.

For the past twelve months, I have felt like I have been pinned down by an unrideable wave. With my back pushed into the coral, eyes unsure whether to look around at the bright colors around me or upwards towards the surface I can’t seem to reach. For brief moments, I’ve caught my breathe, my lips barely touching the air before plummeting back under the pressure of the white water. Every second of those moments are filled with confusion and contemplation: there is profound beauty always mixed in with the darkness of the unknown.

Perhaps what I am describing sounds like depression, but it’s not that. It’s living a life without anchors. It’s wandering in a space that you weren’t sure ever existed. For the past year, I have often felt like I am not in my own life. Instead, someone else’s life. A life I didn’t sign up for, one that isn’t objectively all that bad. Just definitely not what I had expected for myself.

This year has given and it has taken away.

Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to give birth without my the support of my mother.
But I did.
Never had I imagined laboring in a language I could hardly understand.
But I did.
Never did I think I’d spend three months of my life locked in the confines of a small city apartment without the chance to leave for fresh air.
But I did.
Never would I have pour my life savings, heart and soul into building a business I love only to shut down months later amidst a global pandemic.
But I did.
Never, ever, ever could I have fathomed keeping my son away from the love of my family because it was dangerous.
But I did.

Why am I sharing this? Because this is real life. And real life happens. And it doesn’t always feel good. And sometimes, it feels really good and really bad…at the same time. 2020 robbed me in so many ways of the life I have worked hard to create for myself. I have the perspective to understand my own privilege, but this isn’t about that. This is about knowing what you want, working hard for what you want, setting goals and expectations…and nothing working out as planned…and what to do when that happens.

With the changing of the year, I also changed my own year and rang in the big ol’ 34. Thirty-four. Just reading the letters spelled out feels different. I am thirty-four. When did that happen? In the span of the past 365 days a lot has changed, every single thing feels different because every single thing is different. This is a fact. What else I know to be true is that 2021 holds no promise to be better, different, worse or otherwise. We are continuing our path into the unknown. So what are you supposed to do with that?!

The type-A in me has a new planner by November each year, with ambitions, goals, projects and plans already filled in for the year to come. I love building something to look forward to and I passionately work on the sharp corners of myself with yearly intentions. But this year I’m doing things a little differently. Thirty-four year old new mom slightly wiser Gina is going to do it differently. Why? Because if you don’t bend, you break. I’ll admit it: 2020 broke me. And from it, I intend to grow again.

2021, or 34, is the year I intend to practice increased flexibility in all aspects of my life. Learning how to create expectations without holding on to them (woof, my mother has been telling me to do this basically my entire life…#lifeswork) will be the grease between the joints. Expectations are the baseline we set for ourselves, and they’re a good thing, but they’re also a slippery slope. They help us to measure our own successes, our own values, but they’re also a source of great disappointment when they’re not exactly as we had in mind.

I have absolutely no clue what is in store for me this year and planning it out seems a little pointless. Waiting for that moment or that change of tides is equally pointless. I will live my life in shorter moments, stretching out the days, looking around at the beauty and the chaos with a healthier balance of curiosity and contentment. This year, I will (try, let’s be honest, I’ll try) commit to being more flexible with myself, my expectations, the outcomes of my efforts, the efforts I make and how I choose to allow them to define me.

Wish me luck. I know it won’t be easy.

To bending, breaking, growing and glowing,

Happy 2021! Or 34 😉

 

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cultivate, inspiration

shift it sunday: break it down, build it bravely.

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What kind of life could I create if only I were braver?

Stealing a quiet moment to indulge in my (sixth) piece of chocolate and a new book while sitting in the warm October sun, I came across this question: What kind of life could I create if only I were braver? It hit me like a ton of bricks.

I have spent all the days of my short life trying to practice bravery. I have tried to consciously choose to operate from a place of courage rather than fear (or possibly the fear of regret) so that one day I can look back and know that I gave my life my damn best shot. Yet, with this “new normal” we are living, the crisis of the pandemic has ignited too often a crisis within me. A self-doubt, a second guessing, an uncertainty of self that fosters a spiraling negative narrative to take up space where my bravery usually lives.

“Was it stupid to build a resort on a remote island?”

“Should I really have my baby in Spain instead of in California?”

“Was quitting my job all those years ago really the right thing to do?”

“Am I even being a good mom?”
“Maybe I’m not what I thought I was?”

I’m asking myself all sorts of questions. Questions that I know the answer to. Questions that really don’t have any place in my current life because to get to the place I am now, I already asked, analyzed and assessed every angle of those questions before ever even making the decision to do the thing in question.

Now, maybe you’re reading this and thinking, “well, I haven’t lived my life as bravely as I could.” And if that’s what you’re thinking, then I’m really glad you’re here reading this. Because it means that you’re right there, on the cusp, about to live bravely.

Living bravely does not mean living without fear. It doesn’t mean living without hesitation or reservation. It definitely does not mean living without doubt. What it does mean is knowing that there is a truer version of yourself to live, a truer experience to have and chasing after that with all that you’ve got. It means being afraid but doing the real “right” thing anyways, not the “right” thing someone else told you was right. It means dedicating yourself to following your heart, your head and that thing that makes you light up from the inside.

Living bravely does not mean that you have to have it all figured it. Rather, it means living despite not having it all figured out. It means trusting, that with attention and attentiveness towards learning the lessons put in front of you, that you will figure out what you need to. It means making the next right choice. Not all the choices at once, just the choice you need to make right now to get you one step closer to the direction you want to go.

I will warn you about something, though. A few things will happen when you choose to live bravely and they won’t always feel good

  • You will probably lose a few friends.
  • You will probably feel lonely at times.
  • You will probably hear opinions you didn’t ask for. Or if you did, you’ll hear opinions you don’t like/don’t vibe with your choice to be brave.
  • You will put your own values into question. Over and over again.
  • You will always know what if feels like to not live bravely once you start…and it won’t feel right.

When I was 17 and decided I wanted to move to France, my uncle sat me down and asked me to think clearly about the choice I was about to make. He told me that I would likely lose a lot to gain what mattered most to me. At 17, when I could’ve stubbornly replied, “yeah whatever,” I didn’t. I listened. And let his words soak in.

16 years later, as I am typing this out, I have to say that he was 100% right. As I have chased my dreams with all my might, I lost contact with relations that didn’t support or understand my values. I missed weddings and birthdays as my passions took me to the other side of the world. I have felt some serious FOMO. I have asked myself a thousand times over if I’m living in accordance with my values – and I have learned that values change as we change, and that is totally okay. Actually, it’s great. I have learned to be flexible with myself, how I pursue what ignites me, and inflexible about living with what truly doesn’t inspire me to live my best, biggest and most joyful life.

Shift It Sunday Challenge: Break It Down, Build It Bravely.

Ask yourself this question: what life could I have if I chose to live bravely? Insert anything in place of life – relationship, love, job, experience – to take the first step towards living your life more fully.

Try to imagine in vivid detail what it would look like to live exactly as you dream. What does it feel like? Smell like? What are you wearing? Where are you? What colors surround you? It’s your life/job/relationship/love so be specific about the details.

It’s your life. Your one, big, bad, complex, complicated, beautiful, life. Don’t waste it.
Get brave and do the damn thing.

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cultivate

jack nicholson’s hairline and other thoughts on confidence.

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I woke up this morning, looked in the mirror and saw a giant “Welcome to Motherhood” sign flashing right before my eyes. I had officially join the Jack’s Temple Club and I wasn’t thrilled about it.

What is the JTC, you might be asking? It’s this super inclusive club for new mothers who suddenly sport a bit more scalp where a lot more hair used to be…most notably along the temples of the hairline. As inclusive as it is – they say nearly 100% of postpartum women qualify to join – I had hoped, prayed and honestly thought I – and my thick long mermaid locks – would be spared.

Wrong.

I did get a little clue that my invitation might be coming when I went to the hair salon for a post-quarantine trim and the hair stylist mentioned how thin my hair was. Since she was speaking in Spanish and my level is still evolving, I obviously brushed it off as a miscommunication. I mean, obviously.

Wrong.

Welcome to motherhood.

One of the many things I have learned lately is that we must truly come to terms with how we choose to define beauty and more importantly, where we extract our confidence from. If my confidence lived in my hairline, it would be screwed right now. Thank god, I have a few other reserves to pull from. I did the work – rather, I do the work (constantly and repeatedly), to cultivate positive narratives that empower me to move through my days with more confidence. And it is work. Because some days, especially when the hairline is looking a little weak, I have to try a little harder to remember what makes me me…and why that’s worth something.

6 practices for building confidence and feeling good:

  1. Get up, stand up. No, really. Right now. How are you standing? Where are your shoulders? Is your core engaged? What are you doing with your arms? It might not seem relevant but confidence starts in the way we carry ourselves physically in the world. Your body language is a crystal-clear non-verbal communicator of how you perceive yourself and in turn, how others will perceive you. You’ve never seen Obama slouching during a speech, have you? Nope. So stand tall, take up space and be present.
  2. Build up others. It costs nothing and means everything when someone takes a moment to say or do something nice. When it’s honest (because everyone can tell when you’re full of it), a kind word goes a long way. Be kind, practice compassion and engage with the people around you. When you make someone else feel good, you will feel good, too.
  3. Know your values. When I was in elementary school I made a list (a long list) of the traits my dream man would possess. I was hardly out of diapers but I had a strong sense of what I valued in a person (particularly in Batman, whom I thought to be the end all be all). Turns out, 30 odd years later, many of those things haven’t changed. Knowing what you value in others is a reflection of what you value in yourself. Identify the characteristics that you appreciate, which you possess and practice behavior that helps you live by those values. You will never be exactly the same as that person you admire, but by tuning into what you truly find important, you’ll find that you will become a person you admire.
  4. Cultivate resilience. When that negative voice comes knocking and fills your head with nonsense, what are the most common things you hear? What are the things you repeatedly tell yourself? Try to get a clear understanding of what you’re telling yourself so that you can cultivate a healthier, more honest response to that bitchy voice. Remind yourself of something you’ve accomplished, something you’re proud of, something you like about yourself and kick that Negative Nancy to the curb.
  5. Focus on your strengths. Studies show that working on skills you’re already good at (as opposed to trying to improve your weaknesses) actually improves your skillset overall. As a person who despises spreadsheets and cries in the supermarket trying to figure out the discount I should be getting on the bundles of kale, I am really all about this advice. Now, this isn’t to say to completely abandon areas of your life that could use improvement, but rather, build your confidence through what you’re already good at. Focus on what you love, what you enjoy and what comes naturally to you and the rest will follow with a lot less friction.
  6. Reframe your perspective. Here’s the thing: you’re going to make mistakes. You’re not always going to be the best. You will do things you regret. These are facts of life and they won’t change, no matter how hard you try to avoid them. So instead of naysaying yourself and talking yourself out of striving for what you want or think you deserve, remember that you only get this one life to do it all. And you can do it all. But you have to try. The next time you start to fill with doubt and ask yourself “why bother?” take a breath and try this instead: “why not?“

Confidence is a daily practice. The ebbs and flows, ups and downs of life provide constant opportunities to feel like we’re just not good enough. But each of these moments are also opportunities to feel empowered, to remember how far we’ve come and to prove to ourselves just how amazing we are for being just where we are. So stand up tall, take up space and shift your perspective. You’re amazing. I know it. And deep down, you do, too.

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cultivate, journal

rethinking minimalism: how the pandemic has taught me to live with less

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I was completely unprepared for 2020. I packed way too light.

I’m sure my story falls in line with about a few million other peoples. We weren’t ready for this year and all the chaos that has come along with it, so I’m not going to play a sad song for my own. But I will say it’s left me naked. Quite literally.

At a whopping 7.5 months pregnant with absolutely nothing that fit me, I left the little island I call home with a wimpy suitcase mostly occupied by a camera, laptop, a few books, a sarong and two bikinis (the only things I’d need in Sri Lanka, where I was headed). After a quick adventurous babymoon to a sleepy Sri Lankan surf town (adventurous mostly because a volcano erupted in the Philippines, redirecting me halfway around the world on six flights with my giant belly and a spicy curry that nearly put me in labor!), we were headed to Spain to await the birth of our first baby. Spain would be in the middle of winter but as I didn’t fit in any of my winter clothes, I figured I’d just live in some old leggings and Eze’s sweatshirts until the baby came. It wasn’t like I’d be going out much anyways (hmmm, hindsight is always 20/20…). After the birth, we would head back to Siargao where my wardrobe would be waiting in my newly built closet. I’d be almost back to my pre-baby size, surfing summer waves and living the island life as three.

Well, well, well.

It’s October. I’m still in Spain. I’m still wearing my fiancé’s clothes.

Life has a funny way of throwing curve balls doesn’t it?

So at this point you might be asking yourself, “well, why didn’t she just buy new clothes?” The answer is simple: I am stubborn. Out of principal, I absolutely hate spending money on things I already have, don’t need, and don’t even want. I’d much rather use my money on doing fun things, making memories and experiencing something new. Even if it leaves me looking like a hot mess. Which I do. At this very moment. A hot, hot mess.

It’s 38 degrees outside and I’ve got the sleeves of Eze’s old football jersey rolled up. Pants, who’s got em? At least I shaved my legs.

I won’t lie and say I feel great about this or even remotely attractive. (Yeah yeah, I know beauty isn’t skin deep but I won’t disregard entirely the impact of a nice-fitting pair of jeans). But I will say that I do feel like I’ve learned a big lesson…brought to me by tough love.

Over these past few months, I have learned that I really don’t need all that much and that I can be pretty creative about how I reuse what I’ve already got. Now, this is a lesson that I have learned over and over again just through traveling – backpacking doesn’t allow for extra fluff – but there was always something in knowing that at home, I’d have choice. This pandemic has be a very clear reminder that our lives are filled with a lot of useless distraction and that these distractions take us away from the work that stands between us and our happier selves. I do love drinking my tea out of a beautiful ceramic mug, but using my old jam jar works just fine, too. I miss a crowded room, buzzing with energy, but the intentionality of a good chat 1:1 hits at something deep. And my bikinis? I miss them a lot. But with only one in the drawer, getting ready for the beach has never been easier.

As life moves towards a new normal, I hope that this will be a lesson I don’t need to be taught again. While I know that I am privileged to even complain, I also know that experience is relative and old habits die hard. So this is where the work lives: invest in a few good things that last, give time to the relationships that fuel you, and don’t share your precious energy with anything that takes away from what makes you feel really good.

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shift it sunday: happiness is hard

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While singing a really ridiculous invented song to my son yesterday in a desperate attempt to stop him from crying, my exhausted mind stumbled across an epiphany. Happiness is hard.

In our modern society, we hold the shared belief that happiness is a human right and that feeling joy is something we deserve in our lives just as much as a roof over our heads and food on our plates. What we don’t often talk about is the work it takes to achieve it. We know well the consequences of our hard work in other aspects of our lives and willingly spend the vast majority of our time dedicated towards these aims. We painstakingly work long hours to pay the rent on our apartments, tackle challenging projects to get promotions, follow strict budgets to plan for our next holiday and subsist on juices made of green vegetables to cleanse our colons and have glowing skin. But what about joy? How did we manage to think we’d get by without putting any effort into that one?

Research show that our propensity towards happiness, like obesity or depression, lives in our genes. That some of us are hardwired to feel joy a little more easily. Knowing this, it would be simple to write off our dissatisfaction with life as a matter of pulling DNA’s short stick. But that just seems pretty lame to me. We all deserve to feel joy, right?

Living a feel good life doesn’t mean living a life that feels good all the time. It means that you are an actively creating a life you love to live and (practicing) seeing things through a more positive lens more often than not. That doesn’t sound impossible, right? Well, good. Because it’s not. But it isn’t necessarily easy. It is, however, well worth the work and definitely within your reach.

It’s quite likely that if you’re reading this, you’re 1) not entirely satisfied with your life and/or 2) you don’t always wear rose colored glasses. No worries. I don’t either! Why? Because the pursuit of a feel good life, the pursuit of happiness, is all about a shift in perspective. And that shift takes work. It takes conscious and continuous action, day in and day out. Even, and especially, when you don’t feel like it.

So how do we get there? We shift.

Shift It Sunday Challenge: create new habits to rewire your brain.

It might sound hokey but it’s not: practicing gratitude and kindness actually make you feel good. So that’s what we’re about this week. For the next seven days – yes, every single day – challenge yourself to:

  • write down/tweet/meditate on/fill in the blanks three things that you happened during your day that made you feel good
  • do something nice – help a stranger, buy the coffee for the guy behind you, hype up a friend you know is feeling down, call your mom. Up to you!

Even when we know what will make us feel good, we often don’t make it a priority and the feel bad spiral continues. This week, shift your priorities to shift your perspective.
It’ll feel good, I promise.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, the song went like this:
Mama and Mini went to the beach
Mama and Mini swam in the sea
and now? and now?
Mama and Mini are gooooooing hoooooome!!

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cultivate

it’s time to cultivate YOUR feel good life

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I will never forget the exact moment I knew I was going to take a different life path. Walking into the barre studio, ready to teach a group of women pouring in from their long days at the office, I was in a funk. I had spent the afternoon drowning in some self-hate talk, having a “fat” day and a seriously bad hair day that no bun could fix. Just as I entered my class and saw these women there, motivated and ready for a serious booty kicking, my entire mood changed. No matter what day they had had, they showed up for themselves. They were there to do the work. And they were looking at me to show them how…and I couldn’t have felt better about doing exactly that.

I spent some time after that figuring out how I could spread my passion for a feel good life beyond the mirrored walls of my San Francisco studio and it was a few months later I found my answer. Sitting in the surf line up just before sunset on a little island in the Philippines, it hit me. Happiness lives everywhere. It is a portable thing you can pack and take anywhere. But sometimes a change of scenery helps you find out where you left it. And this little island was the perfect place.

So now, here I am. Typing these words from a little beach hut watching the surf, feeling really damn good…and I’d like to invite you join me. I found my feel good life and I’d like to help you find yours.

This October, join me and the lovely Andy from No Shoes No Worries for a week of wellness, self-love, sun and surf in paradise. Grab your bikini, put your game face on and come to Siargao Island and cultivate YOUR feel good life.

For more information and to grab your spot in paradise, click here.

 

 

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sweat

sweat challenge: new year, new booty!

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I am a procrastinator. A royal, class A procrastinator. I justify my tendency for putting things off until later with the fact that I tend to work better under pressure. And though that might in part be true, I also must admit (to myself) that I often struggle to find the motivation to get a head start…unless it comes to exercise. That is one thing I will always prioritize. Without it, I am a grump…and that just doesn’t feel good.

With 2019 right around the corner (what happened to 2018 anyways?!), I thought it a good time to get a head start on my healthy resolutions. In the same way that wearing cute workout pants motivates you to go to the gym, having a nice butt encourages you to keep it that way! I have decided to start my 2019 off on a stronger, rounder, more powerful step and close out 2018 feeling great.

Are you with me?!

Starting TODAY, you (or at least I) will enter the new year with a new booty.

The challenge: Each day of December, I will post a squat variation from the calendar above on Instagram. Starting with 100 reps, we will add one rep each day of the month (ie: December 25th, you will do 125 reps). Break up the reps as you need to – completing them all in one go, taking rests or even doing half in the morning and half at night. Up to you, just get ’em done!

Share your post-squat selfie on Instagram stories and tag me, @cactusandthewave, and I will enter you in a drawing to win some of my favorite feel life goodies including Vital Proteins collagen peptides, Schmidt’s Natural Deodorant and Rx Protein Bars!

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nourish

food fight: three superfood recipes you can wear

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Raise your hand if you’ve ever been in a food fight.

Well, if your mom was anything like mine and considered eating in the bedroom grounds for punishment, chances are your hand is lingering low, too. I watched summer camp movies and It Takes Two more times than I can count, jealously watching pre-teens chucking handfuls of spaghetti at each other. But in our house, cleanliness was king and, according to my mother, throwing food at my annoying little sister was simply not clean.

Fast forward 18 years and I can safely say that there are big downsides to not living with your parents. Paying your own rent, buying your own groceries, knowing that literally no one will clean up after you…ever. However, there are also some perks to adulting, and for me, one of those perks is playing with my food.

We all know the benefits of following a healthy lifestyle, of eating our greens and drinking enough water. But did you know that the same Superfoods that fuel you from the inside also work magic on the outside? Yup. Beauty may come from within but it doesn’t hurt to help out a bit. ; ) Here are a few of my favorite #selfcare recipes that make you look good and feel good!

Coconut Coffee Booty Scrub

Okay, this scrub isn’t actually just for your booty. But(t) in recent months I have had some unwanted visitors (cough cough cellulite cough cough) setting up camp on my lower half and I have now shamelessly joined the millions of women who search for cellulite reduction on Google. My coconut coffee body scrub does just that. Caffeine helps increase blood flow and circulation, reducing the appearance of cellulite as well as energizing the body from the outside in! The gentle exfoliant of the coffee grounds and sugar help to brighten your skins natural glow and smell absolutely delicious.

  • 1 cup used coffee grounds*
  • 1/2 cup coconut sugar
  • 1/4 – 1/3 cup coconut oil – depending on your desired consistency

Mix ingredients in a small jar or glass container and voila! Ready to use or store for up to a week. Gently scrub from head to toe in circular motions towards the heart to greater improve circulation. I would highly suggest not using this in the evening as it can provide quite an energy buzz!
*You can use fresh grounds if you do not drink coffee but if you’re making a cup of joe, might as well put the used grounds to use!

Rose Matcha Detox Mask

The matcha hype is nothing new. It’s centuries old, actually, and for very good reason. Matcha is jam-packed with antioxidants, contains memory-boosting amino acids as well as detoxifying chlorophyll that helps fight wrinkles and repairs and energizes damaged skin cells. Mixed with rose water and bentonite clay – another ancient times heavy hitter – you’re also reducing redness, irritation and detoxifying the body through it’s largest organ: the skin.

  • 3 tbsp betonite clay powder
  • 1/2 tbsp matcha powder
  • 4 tbsp rose water – add more/less to achieve desired consistency
  • Few drops of vitamin E oil

In a non-metal bowl mix the powders with a non-metal spoon (the volcanic clay reacts with metal, pulling metal into your detoxifying mixture and reducing the healing properties of the clay). Add in rose water (drinking water is fine, too) to your desired consistency and top off with a few drops of vitamin E oil. Apply mask in an out and upward motion and let sit until dry. Wash off with warm water, pat dry and hydrate with your favorite moisturizing oil.

Coconut Hair Mask

I used to live on a sailboat and out of all the things that one might find to be difficult, the beauty issue I struggled with the most was managing my dried out, salt-soaked, sun-kissed locks. Yeah, boat hair don’t care sounds cool and all…until it isn’t…and you’re dealing with crispy, funky hair that goes down to your butt. With limited access to resources (aka fancy conditioner or a salon), I added longevity to my mermaid mane with coconut oil.

  • 4 tbsp extra virgin coconut oil (or whatever you can scrape out of a mature coconut you let sit in the sun)
  • Your favorite essential oil (optional)

If using an essential oil, mix your go-to scent (I use lavender or lemongrass!) and the coconut oil in a small container or the palm of your hand. Massage oil mixture into your hair from the base of your neck down. If you’re experiencing dryness, you can add to your scalp as well. Tie hair up in a bun or out of your face and let sit 30 min to overnight. The longer the better, but you know your hair best. When I leave it in overnight, I sleep with a towel on my pillow or a super sexy shower cap on my head to protect my sheets. Wash it out as normal and be sure to really rub in your shampoo to fully remove oil.

Do you have any wearable Superfood recipes to share? I’d love to hear ’em!

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cultivate, nourish, sweat

A morning routine worth waking up for

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Confession: I am not a morning person. Let me emphasize this. I am really not a morning person. Growing up both my parents worked in the nightlife business, my great-grandmother stayed up until the early hours of the morning chatting away with our family in the Philippines…our lives came alive at night. But then I got older, moved away to a tropical island and adopted hobbies that are made for the morning hours. What’s a night owl to do when the waves call your name at 6am?! Make the morning exciting.

If you find yourself in my shoes or simply just hate getting out of bed, here’s my morning routine worth waking up for.

  1. Wake up call. My alarm is a groovy jam that sets the tone for my day. I make sure to pick something that won’t drive my boyfriend insane (which is mega important for keeping cranky moods at bay so early in the day!). I am also a serial “snoozer” but I’ve noticed that if I’m listening to a song I enjoy, I’m less likely to hit snooze and actually get out of bed.
  2. Take a mindful moment. Before I climb out of bed, I try to complete a 5-10 minute meditation to set my intentions for the day. I love the app Insight Timer – they have thousands of meditations to choose from by length or theme. I tend to opt for a meditation on positivity, motivation or confidence to get me amped up for my day.
  3. Hydrate. I head straight to the kitchen and prepare a hot lemon infusion with one whole lemon, apple cider vinegar, ginger, honey and a dash of cayenne pepper. I sip on this as I continue to get out of the door. Prep your infusion the night before to save a few minutes!
  4. Quick clean up. I can’t start my day without brushing my teeth and washing my face. It just doesn’t work. Next, I apply a light face oil mixture of vitamin E, argan and rosehip that helps my face retain moisture during my workout. I also toss in a few calf raises while I’m brushing my teeth to get my booty moving! The bathroom session finishes with a quick dry brush – often to a groovy morning jams – to get my blood flowing and my body energized before I step out the door.
  5. Sweat! If I’m not off to teach a class, I’ll head to the gym or do my own workout in the living room or on the beach. If I’m short on time, I opt for my high intensity 15 minute jump rope and resistance band routine. If you’re looking for workout ideas, I share my morning workouts on Instagram stories.
  6. Nourish. I head back into the kitchen to chow down on a protein-packed breakfast. My go-to is a fruit and veggie filled smoothie bowl with collagen peptides from Vital Proteins and Superfoods from The Healthy Grocery or a breakfast salad full of fresh greens and a oil-free “fried” eggs.
  7. Cultivate. While eating breakfast I go over my to-do list or listen to an inspiring podcast that gives me new ideas and a wave of fresh thoughts to start my day!
  8. Clean up, round two. MC Shower Time aka a three minute shower hustle to scrub down with my skin stimulating coffee scrub, wash my hair and get glowing out the door. Not going to lie, sometimes I end up in my workout clothes until noon if I work from home…#noshameinthesweatgame.

My morning routine takes about 60-90 minutes (including my workout) depending on what time I need to get out of the door. If you’re reading this and thinking “who has an hour to spare!?” think again. You can make the time…and once you do, you’ll have a hard time giving it up.

Each person is different and our morning needs are different. Here are a few tips on creating your own morning routine:

Prep. A stress-free (or stress-less) morning routine starts the night before. Pack your lunch. Lay out your workout clothes. Write your to-do list. Leave the coffee pot out. Do whatever you can the night before to leave yourself more time in the morning for YOU.

Make it realistic. Some days (ie: Monday-Friday) there just isn’t enough time for all the self care you’d like to get your day glowing. Minimize stress and save the extra love for the weekend. A morning routine weekend edition post is just around the corner : )

Follow the #feelgoodlife formula: cultivate, nourish, sweat. Make a list of the things that energize you, that put you in a good mood and ignite your motivation. Pick the ones that are either the least time consuming or the most important and make them the foundation of your morning routine (#cultivate).
Eat a nutritious and protein-packed breakfast that will give you the energy to give the day your all (#nourish).
Move! Make time for a quick workout. And when I say quick, I mean it. If you don’t have an hour for the gym, no worries. Take five minutes to stretch, plank or even do calf raises while brushing your teeth. The latter is my go-go. Seriously.

If you’ve got a morning routine you love, I’d love to hear it! Share in the comments below!

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cultivate, inspiration, journal, nourish

Feel good now: three ingredients to a life worth living

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My mom always told me “you don’t actually know anything until you’re in your 40’s.” Then she turned 50 and has since said, “you don’t actually know anything until you’re in your 50’s.” Reading between the lines (and the Moscow Mule in her hand), I have come to understand that what she really means is that, for most of us, it takes a lifetime to develop a true understanding of the lessons we’re meant to learn…and then to actually put those lessons into practice. We spend so much of our lives filled with worry and doubt, chasing this and that, we don’t actually get to feeling good about the life we’re living until…well, apparently…our 50s?

Since I’ve got such a wise mother who has a head start on mastering life’s lessons,  I have made the conscious decision to learn the lessons early. To open my eyes. To pay attention. To make intentional choices that will enable me to live a life that feels good…now. I mean, the sooner we get started in practicing habits that help us thrive, the longer we actually get to enjoy the fruits of our labor.

Through plenty of trial and error, I have boiled a feel good life down to three key elements. Three elements that when mixed with energy, awareness and a lot of water, put you straight on the path to a life you’re excited to live.

Three ingredients to a life that feels good:

1. Cultivate. Our lives are pretty much a set of lines that we get to mold into whatever shape we’d like. We get to draw the boundaries of our comfort zones…and then redraw them over and over again. Cultivating a feel good life is about creating new experiences, expanding our horizons and investing time and energy in the things that make us excited to get up in the morning. It might be practicing a new hobby, planning a weekend getaway or developing a morning routine that gets you pumped for the day. You are the architect of your life. Design the life you want to live…and get to living it.

2. Nourish. If you want to grow rice, you plant rice. If you want to grow apples, you plant apples. If you want to grow joy…guess what? You’ve got to plant it. In order to live a feel good life, we first have to start by nourishing the elements in our lives that fuel us to feel good. Simple as that. Nourish YOURSELF. Practice self-care. Eat clean foods that make you feel strong. Take the bubble bath. Read books that call to your curiosity. Give into compassion but also learn when to say enough is enough. The areas in your life you give the most attention to are the ones that will thrive. It’s up to you to decide if you’re growing flowers or weeds.

3. Move. To quote the prodigious Elle Woods: Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people don’t kill their husbands. You just cant argue with that. Sweating it out for even 15 minutes a day has a long lasting feel good effect. It gives your body (and mind) the strength it needs to do all that you ask of it. Exercise is active meditation, a gesture of gratitude, self love and an act of power all at once. The more we move, the stronger we are to roll with life’s punches. The stronger we feel, the more capable we are to lift those around us. Take the walk, go to the dance class, sign up for the marathon. Make the time to move. You (and everyone around you) will thank you for it.

Living a feel good life doesn’t mean that you are bursting at the seams with joy from sunrise to sunset. It means that you are actively creating a life you love to live. It’s about building an environment that brings you joy and arming yourself with the tools you need for when things aren’t so sunny. By cultivating new experiences, developing positive habits and nourishing our own well-being, we put the power back in our own hands to decide what kind of life we want to live. I don’t know about you, but I want to live a life that feels damn good. Right now.

If you don’t know where to get started or what path to take, reach out. Let’s build your feel good life together.

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