The last of five Principles outlined in The Athena Principles, Simple Wellness Practices for Overworked Professionals is Accountability. Okay, I admit it, this isn’t the sexiest of the Principles. But I define accountability as a systematic way to check in with what you commit to accomplish, celebrate the wins, and compassionately adjust where needed. It’s also a powerful determinant of whether or not your wellness intentions will be realized.
Read MoreThe fourth of five Principles outlined in The Athena Principles, Simple Wellness Practices for Overworked Professionals is Growth Mindset. How the wellness journey is viewed determines one’s level of progress and enjoyment. When you adopt a growth mindset, you begin to focus on what is right in your life. The more you practice this mindset, the more you’ll being to experience challenges as opportunities that will, in turn, position you to move forward with more confidence and ease.
Read MoreThe third of five Principles outlined in The Athena Principles, Simple Wellness Practices for Overworked Professionals is Consistency, defined as the art of staying committed and engaged, especially during challenging times. When working toward improving well-being, consistent action is the critical factor in determining success because it leads to reliable outcomes and results. The reverse is true as well – inconsistent action usually equates to less-than-optimal results.
Read MoreThe first of five Principles outlined in The Athena Principles, Simple Wellness Practices for Overworked Professionals is self-compassion defined as the care for one’s own well-being in the form of self-acceptance and nurturing support.
The benefits of self-compassion are broad. Research has shown it can improve self-worth, motivation, depression, body image and overall happiness. People who have self-compassion practices develop the ability to administer kindness to themselves as soon as they recognize they are hurting.
Read MoreThe Athena Principles combines wellness philosophy with a methodology that includes:
· Tools to assess your current state of wellness, provide clarity, track progress, and set new objectives;
· Principles, which provide a solid foundation and serve as a guide for current actions and future decisions; and
· Practices that, when performed regularly, aim to create good habits and increased well-being.
The methodology recognizes that wellness is a fluid process that thrives with a flexible approach. It regards wellness as a practice, honors and cultivates inner knowing, and provides accountability. It can provide you with a foundation for making change, a vantage point to help you see where you’re working against yourself, and a scalable process that can grow with you.
Read MoreThe core message of the book The Athena Principles: Simple Wellness Practices for Overworked Professionals is: Reconnecting to our mind, body and spirit through the exploration of five Principles (self-compassion, intention, consistency, positive mindset and accountability) and related practices (writing, meditation and positive action) leads to wholehearted living and optimized well-being. Readers will learn what living wholeheartedly means for them along with ideas to create a customized self-care plan that nourishes their deepest desires.
Read MoreMy father was born in 1922. When my mother passed a few years back, he decided it was time to sell his home and move into an (un)assisted living facility. Aside from some industrial deafness and impaired sight from macular degeneration, he is remarkably spry in both mind and body and strong in spirit. And last month, he tested positive for the coronavirus.
Read MoreI’ve been holding a question posed by life coach Martha Beck, who likened the pandemic’s ascendance to a tidal wave, wiping out the old ways of being. But, she offered, you could also think of it as a wave you could ride, like a surfer. What would it take to let go, have the courage to point your surfboard over the lip of the wave and let gravity glide you to the shore?
Read MoreIn the northeastern United States, we have experienced six full weeks of “Stay at Home” orders with at least two (and probably four) more weeks on the horizon. In my April 1st blog post, I wrote about the things I was doing to keep my well-being intact during this time. I’ve kept vigilant with my practices, utilizing the green, yellow, red coding I described so I could easily track my progress. Here’s how I’ve been doing:
Read MoreAs we move beyond the one-month anniversary of the Stay-At-Home orders to maintain social distancing with no definitive end in sight, I have noticed a personal shift. While I’m attending to all of the professional and personal things that need to be done . . .
Read MoreMuch has been written about the importance of keeping a daily schedule while learning to live with coronavirus restrictions. Almost overnight, we had to find ways of working remotely, schooling children, caring for elders and tending to family responsibilities while abiding by the guidance for keeping ourselves and our loved ones safe.
Read MoreIt can be unnerving to watch the Coronavirus spread into a global pandemic. We can feel uneasy and powerless. The increased stress can impact the strength of our immune defenses. The immune system is defined as “the cells and tissues in the body that make it able to protect itself against infection,” according to the Cambridge dictionary.
Read MoreIt’s been said that nature heals. Studies and related findings point to the benefits of spending time in natural surroundings, including lowered anxiety and stress levels. Nature-oriented therapy is a growing field (pun intended) with the use of therapeutic gardens in institutional settings such as hospitals, recovery and correctional facilities on the rise.
Read MoreSpring seems to have arrived early in the northeastern United States. The daffodils are about to bloom in my yard, the birds are more active and I feel an uptick in my own energy level. The groundhog did not see his shadow and the long-term weather forecast shows no sign of snow for the next ten days. I know we’re not out of the winter woods yet, but I’m already preparing for longer days.
Read More“I don’t want to be dependent on anyone,” says CrossFit enthusiast, Jacinto Bonilla. At first glance, it might read like an unremarkable statement, but consider this – Jacinto was born when World War II was in full swing, a gallon of gas cost 18 cents and male life expectancy was under 61 years. Today at 80 years of age, Bonilla can deadlift 300 pounds, squat 200 and keep up . . .
Read MoreA new decade is dawning and this moment feels significant. It feels like an opportunity to expand capacity for acceptance. It feels like there’s an opening to shift the dialogue from exclusion to inclusion. It feels like the perfect time to focus on our human commonality – starting with compassion for ourselves and then expanding it out into the world, like rippling concentric circles of kindness.
Read MoreSmall steps taken towards enhanced wellness can have big impact. Last Saturday, I had the opportunity to attend a half-day silent retreat where we used mindfulness techniques as an anchor to the present moment. This was done through a series of exercises that included walking, listening, observing and eating, the latter being the perfect precursor to celebrating Thanksgiving with friends and family a few days later.
Read MoreAt the end of my last blog post, I mentioned that I was heading to my local CrossFit box (i.e., gym) to check it out. Yes, I’m familiar with the horror stories: the ridiculous workouts, the crazy injuries, and mid-workout visits from “Pukey the Clown.” Yet, for some inexplicable reason, I’ve been intrigued for a while and finally decided to give it a try.
Read MoreLast year at this time I was getting ready to run my first ultramarathon. It was the culmination of three years of training for endurance cycling and running events. In 2019, I decided to focus on boot camp workouts and shorter trail runs. A few weeks ago, I began thinking about my next wellness challenge. I wanted something on the horizon to keep me enthusiastic through the upcoming dark winter months. But what?
Read MoreThe disappointment of a broken promise can make us feel unvalued, upset and hurt. Whether intentional or unintentional, unkept promises erode trust over time. What about the promises we make to ourselves and don’t keep? Those broken promises can be subtler and take shape in the form of what habitually remains unaddressed on our to-do lists. The result is the feeling of not honoring ourselves.
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