An Unusual Holiday Season

It was Thanksgiving in the U.S. a few days ago. For me, and I’m guessing for many of you, it was an unusual day. As someone who has celebrated with throngs of relatives my entire life, the quiet was a new experience. But a good day emerged out of the strangeness, one filled with reflection and gratitude.

During a long walk after a minimal but delicious midday holiday meal, I stumbled upon a realization that stopped me in my tracks. This year, with its volatile ups and downs, is no accident. This year is a bridge from where we were to where we’re going. This year is leading us toward new territory. This year is asking us to ready ourselves for the journey ahead. Pow! With that as the backdrop, I thought about the upcoming month. Here are the questions I posed and some musings on each.

The Pros and Cons of Fitness Tracking

For years, I have been a relentless fitness tracker. In the 1990s, I kept paper logs of my workouts and meals. In the 2000s, I graduated to looking up macros online for more precision. When wearables were introduced, I tracked my steps, my heart rate and the distance of my runs. Then apps became commonplace and I was in heaven – one place to keep all of my fitness metrics along with my goals and trending capabilities. Ultimately, fatigue hit.

Business metrics are a way of life in the corporate world and I lived by them for decades. They are still important to me as a business owner, but my daily activities are no longer ruled by incremental measurement. Perhaps this is why I put my fitness tracker and related tools away. Here’s what I learned…

“The Athena Principles” Key Takeaways (Tenth/Final in a Series)

Wellness transformation is like a slow-motion chain reaction. When you find ways to reconnect with yourself, you make better wellness choices to support the aim to live more wholeheartedly. That, in turn, leads to optimized well-being. Again and again, in the thousands of decisions you make each day, you will become more aligned with your deepest desires.

“The Athena Principles” Ongoing Learning Curriculums (Ninth in a Series)

Researchers have shown that learning can change our brain chemistry for the better by improving cognitive connections and adaptability to change. In addition, learning deepens our understanding of different subject matters, helping us to stay relevant and engaged.

Learning new things about interesting topics also fuels enthusiasm, especially if you build this learning into your everyday life. Daily learning keeps you curious and can lead you outside of your comfort zone (where the magic happens) to an overall richer, more creative life experience.

“The Athena Principles” Morning & Evening Routines (Eighth in a Series)

Mahatma Gandhi is quoted as saying, “Happiness is when what you think, what you say and what you do are in harmony.” A great way to keep yourself aligned, on-track and engaged is to establish and follow a workable morning and evening routine. I haven’t met or read about someone I respect who doesn’t have some sort of daily routine, especially in wellness, sports or business. Once I understood that their lives were built deliberately, I began emulating their practices until I found a combination that worked well for me.

“The Athena Principles” Accountability – Principle 5 (Seventh in a Series)

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.

“The Athena Principles” Growth Mindset – Principle 4 (Sixth in a Series)

The 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.

“The Athena Principles” Consistency – Principle 3 (Fifth in a Series)

The 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.

“The Athena Principles” Self-Compassion – Principle 1 (Third in a Series)

The 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.

Midlife, Well-being, WellnessKathy RobinsonJuly 15, 2020self-compassion, women, wellness, well-being, midlife, journaling

“The Athena Principles” Methodology Overview (Second in a Series)

The 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.

The Athena Principles: Book Overview (First in a Series)

The 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.

Lessons Learned from My 98-year-old Father’s COVID-19 Recovery

My 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.

Midlife, Well-being, Wellness, WomenKathy RobinsonJune 1, 2020Women, Wellness, Well-being, Pandemic, Coronavirus

In the Pandemic's Wake

I’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?

Midlife, Well-being, Wellness, WomenKathy RobinsonMay 15, 2020Pandemic, women, midlife, well-being, wellness

Learning Through the Pandemic

In 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:

Midlife, Well-being, Wellness, WomenKathy RobinsonMay 1, 2020women, midlife, wellness, well-being, pandemic

Being With Things As They Are

As 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 . . .

Midlife, Wellness, Women, Well-beingKathy RobinsonApril 15, 2020Women, Wellness, Wellbeing, Pandemic

How to Keep Well-being Intact During Challenging Times

Much 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.

Midlife, Well-being, Wellness, WomenKathy RobinsonApril 1, 2020Women, Well-being, Wellness, coronavirus

How I’m Reinforcing My Immune System

It 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.

Midlife, Well-being, Wellness, WomenKathy RobinsonMarch 15, 2020women, wellness, well-being, immune system, coronavirus

Gardens of Ease

It’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.

Midlife, Wellness, Women, Well-beingKathy RobinsonMarch 1, 2020Therapeutic gardening, Well-being, Wellness, Women, Midlife

An Early Spring

Spring 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.

Midlife, Wellness, WomenKathy RobinsonFebruary 15, 2020Midlife, springtime, rejuvination, women, wellness, wellbeing

Fitness = Independence

“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 . . .

Midlife, Wellness, WomenKathy RobinsonJanuary 15, 2020Wellness, Midlife, CrossFit, Aging Well

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