sleep

Good Morning, GORGEOUS people! Last Monday I posted a video of Rachel Hollis with a link to her #Last90Days Challenge. The challenge starts today, October 1st, and I’m really excited to share it with you, and hopefully simplify what you need to do, so you can all jump right in and get started this morning! Sound good? Ok, here we go.

The premise of the challenge is that we humans often throw in the towel when it comes to fitness and nutrition during the last three months of the year. With all of the Halloween candy, turkey, and can I get an AMEN for all of that pie that will be put in our path over the upcoming holiday season, it’s no wonder so many of us fall off the wagon. We all vow to do better next year and start fresh on January 1st. Personally, I’m usually hungover and also promise myself to drink less, but that’s neither here nor there.

With #Last90Days, Rachel Hollis challenges herself and all of us to spend these last few months of the year taking care of our bodies and ourselves. Instead of overindulging on sweets, let’s overindulge on self-care. Instead of spending our time stressing out about making the perfect family dinner or buying the perfect gift, let’s say fuck perfection and focus on just being happy with life being the brutifal (that’s both brutal and beautiful) way that it is. Let’s ramp up for the new year and start our healthy habits now. If we can do that, think of how awesome and inspired we’ll all feel in January.

The challenge is so very simple. All you need to do is follow Rachel’s Five to Thrive plan, and get ready to end 2018 strong!

Five to Thrive

1.) Get up an hour earlier each day and spend that extra time on yourself and ONLY yourself.

2.) Exercise for 30 minutes each day.

3.) Hydrate. Your water intake in ounces should equal half your body weight.

4.) Give up one food category that you know you shouldn’t be eating. We all know and love these categories well; sugar, alcohol, dairy, soy, gluten. Choose one and kick it to the curb.

5.) Write down ten things you are grateful for every day. These things can be general (my children) or very specific (Haagen Daaz Chocolate Peanut Butter ice cream that has been set out of the freezer for 5 minutes so it scoops perfectly onto my waiting spoon).

That’s all there is to it. You can officially sign up for the challenge here to receive weekly videos and emails designed to inspire you to stick with it!

I’m excited to officially start today and I hope you will all join me!

Here’s a link to a great video that will hopefully inspire you to make the time to achieve your goals, and help get you in the right frame of mind for the next three months. Rachel gives us some tough love in this one, and she’s not wrong. We DO have the time and we need to decide what we want most.

We CAN do hard things!

♥ Erin

My two big kids come by their anxiety honestly. They often have trouble sleeping due to thinking too many troublesome thoughts before bedtime. Just like their mama, their brains just won’t shut off. My therapist recommended the app, Insight Timer, and it has changed our bedtime routine dramatically. Insight timer is a free app that offers more than 6,000 guided meditations and a timer you can personalize to your tastes. There are meditations for every time of day and every mood, and you can bookmark your favorites so you don’t waste time searching for the ones you like. My kids each have a favorite guided meditation that they listen to nightly. The soothing voices and calm, reassuring words lull them right to sleep. I’ve actually been using it for myself, and it works wonders for me too. I highly recommend checking this app out and upping the sleep game of everyone in your family. Here are our favorite guided meditations:

Relax and Sleep Well- Glen Harrold– This is my 7 year old’s favorite. This guy’s deep monotone voice calms him and puts him right out.

Deep Sleep Meditation- Renee Rotkopf– My 5 year old prefers this woman’s soft voice.

Deep Sleep Guided Meditation-Power Thoughts Meditation Club– This is my favorite when I’m really feeling anxious. At 61 minutes it gives you a full body scan to release tension and really relax every muscle in your body.

Sleep Meditation-Franko Heke– This meditation is only 10 minutes long. It’s perfect for when you’re already feeling pretty sleepy, but need a bit of relaxation before you’re down for the night, plus the guy’s voice is really sexy.

Rise and Shine- Andy Hobson– I’ve been known to have some trouble getting up in the morning. There is no shine in my rise. This meditation helps give me the energy to get the kids out of bed, and we all know how much energy that takes.

Happy Meditating!

Namaste,

Erin