We all need to stress less ... but how?
It’s hard to not freak out right now.
If you’re feeling anxious, I feel you. If you feel like the walls are closing in and it’s hard to get air, like your chest might explode or perhaps you might be dying despite having no actual illness, I feel you. I really do.
2011 trail running during our honeymoon in Lake Tahoe. Trail running and running used to be my only outlet for stress and it wasn’t nearly enough.
I was diagnosed in 2012 with “generalized anxiety” and I am a “recovering” hypochondriac. I’ve suffered my fair share of panic attacks.
And just a few years ago my recent trips to the grocery store would have sent me into a tailspin: heart racing, palms sweating and the likelihood of bolting out the door, saying ‘forget it, we’ll starve.’ I’d also probably be wondering (outloud to Jonathan most likely), “is my head hot, do I have symptoms?” despite being perfectly healthy and maybe just experiencing, as I always do, seasonal allergies.
This pandemic would have ignited me to panic and then freeze, unable to do the things I needed to do to be productive and help my community.
But now? I’m feeling pretty good! Don’t get me wrong. I have my moments. I have all those swirling thoughts picturing what’s next being the absolute worse case scenario. And I’m definitely feeling the stress as a small business owner in the state with the most COVID-19 cases. But rather than hitting the panic button, I’m recognizing my stress and finding real ways to recover.
I stop and take a moment to be where I am, in the here and now. I look inside for compassion and I give a smile to the weary people in the store, looking scared and unsure.
I practice breathing methods, intentionally move my body and get outside every day. I take cold showers and I try to laugh more. I focus on listening to waterfalls and watching the birds out my window. I appreciate all the love in my life- my family, my friends, my community.
I also recognize that managing my anxious nature is and will always be Work (yes, with a capital W). That I’m prone to the freak out , but the more I work on it the better it gets. The better life gets.
And I can help you too. We, at Spears Strong, can help you. I know this because it’s helped me. Meeting Jonathan, marrying him, moving to the Pacific Northwest and starting Spears Strong changed my life drastically for the better, the healthier and the happier. I went from a stressed out, adrenaline-driven desk jockey working as a professional journalist covering hard news to an American Council on Exercise certified Health Coach who helps others recover from their stress and find meaningful strategies to deal.
I’ve wanted to share my story for a very long time but I haven’t, truly. For too long I wondered, ‘what will people think’ and ‘will I be good enough?’ Some of that is classic writer’s procrastination, some of it’s fear and most of it’s my own inactions and hesitations.
But as the world spins into chaos and confusion, it’s clear we at Spears Strong are not only able, but have a calling to help in our own very unique way. Over the next couple of weeks we’re going to send you a lot of information and I’m going to be sharing more of my journey and more of my story on our blog. I’m hoping to help you the way Jonathan and creating Spears Strong helped me: physically, emotionally and mentally.
“As the world spins into chaos and confusion, it’s clear we at Spears Strong are not only able, but have a calling to help in our own very unique way. Over the next couple of weeks we’re going to send you a lot of information and I’m going to be sharing more of my journey and more of my story on our blog.
I’m hoping to help you the way Jonathan and creating Spears Strong helped me: physically, emotionally and mentally.”
Spears Strong is inviting you to take a more positive viewpoint of our situation. Look to the OPPORTUNITY within the struggle. There has never been a more important time to take care of yourself and be a leader for your family.
Exercise, sleep, reduced stress, nutrition, hydration … these are the cornerstones of a strong immune system.
And stress is a big one right now. You might not even recognize that you’re stressed and likely running on non-stop adrenaline, but you need to be able to activate your parasympathetic nervous system, also known as the “rest and digest” part of your nervous system. When this is activated, we’re rested and relaxed. It allows us to recover. You can activate that system by taking a nice deep inhale and exhale: in through your nose and out through your nose, slowly (count 8 seconds in and 8 seconds out at your pace).
At Spears Strong, we are not a gym. We are a Human Performance company. In addition to showing you how to move your body so that it becomes more efficient and posturally aligned, we specialize in guiding you on how to create daily habits that improve your sleep, increase your hydration, help you to eat better and give you tools to activate your body’s essential recovery system.
We are monitoring updates and we will make changes as needed. We will adapt to what’s happening. We are still offering personal training sessions both at the lab, where our small staff and clientele will ensure you have adequate social distancing and that every surface and equipment used is sanitized after each session. We are also doing virtual and outdoor individual sessions, getting back to our roots of outdoor workouts.
What we all need most right now is not a high intensity, tough workout. We don’t need something to keep us “toned” or looking a certain way. What we need now is focused movement that boosts immunity through muscle contractions. What we need now is solutions for all the stress and ways to step away from the madness.
With extra time at home, you have an opportunity to create some new daily routines that make you feel good, give you more energy and better equip you to handle all the things.
Our Training Process and Life & Fitness programs are designed to help you work on all the tools you need to have a healthy cardiovascular, muscular, and immune system that is balanced and works in harmony with your nervous system.
Over the next couple of weeks we will be posting a lot on the blog and sending you regular information you can use, free of charge.
I’m nervously (pun totally intended) excited to share more of my story and give you some ways you can feel better right now!! Please email me at spears@spearsstrong.com if you have topics you’d like our team to focus on: how to set up routines, how to make movement part of your (new) normal, how to eat well (and avoid stress eating), for example.