Change
I was driving along in my car the other and suddenly it hit me. I'm in the middle of some kind of transition. I'm not the person I was 6 months ago, but I also know that I'm not yet the person that I'm on my way to being.
I didn't know it at the time, but before I started the process of introducing fitness, nutrition and personal development into my life, I was definitely stuck in a rut. The true meaning of being "stuck in a rut" is to have become to fixed in a particular job, activity or method. I was livng the same day everyday, never changing, never growing but I always had this nagging feeling that I should be. I got comfortable just bumbling along, but I did make some luke warm efforts - I tried to change my diet and I started seeing a personal trainer 3 times a week, but I didn't feel or see any substantial changes. I didn't understand at that time that the changes that needed to happen we much more than just physical.
The real shift started to happen when I embarked on a 10 week long tour of "The Sound of Music" in China, with PiYo tucked neatly into my suitcase. PiYo was the workout programme that changed everything for me, but I don't think it would have had the same effect or benefit if I'd tried to complete the programme in the comfort of my usual daily routine and home life. The way the Beachbody programmes are so beautifully structured and laid out, combined with the mental and emotional challnges I was facing in China became a life-changing combination. It was the first step in building physical and mental focus. What I'm really trying to say here is that fitness was the first step in what has turned out to be a much longer and deeper journey.
Being in China made it very difficult to follow the PiYo nutrition guide, but again I don't know if I would have followed it if I'd done the programme at home. I also was blissfully unaware that my eating habits were completely unbalanced. There were a number of contributing factors - ignorance, lack of education and lack of preparation. I was in the mind-set that to lose weight I needed to eat less, exercise more and cut out all carbohydrates. I thought I had my diet sorted eating only protein and nuts all day! The first time I really made an effort with my nutrition was during one of Katherine's 5 day clean eating challenges. I followed it meticulously and I felt fantasatic - and I couldn't believe how much I was allowed to eat. Within those short 5 days I felt better, had better focus, slept better and looked better. I have been hooked since then and have been eating clean ever since. In fact, I felt so much better that I was inspired to do my own research into nutrition and wellness.
It started with fitness - I loved the feeling of accomplishment at the end of a workout and the sense that I was becoming stronger. That quickly led on to a desire to improve my nutrition because I soon realized that I needed to properly fuel my body for the exercise I was doing. Learning about the correct way to eat and what to put in my body has been completely life changing. When I think about the way I used to eat, I cannot believe I was abusing the gift of my body in such a disrespectful way. I can’t be angry with myself - I didn’t know any better, but now I do and so I treat my body like the amazing, capable and strong being that it is.
Enter personal development. The 3rd step in this ongoing journey. I have to go back to PiYo because my induction into personal development is actually a funny story. I started to do personal development completely by accident. The reason I mention PiYo is because while I was doing the programme, I started following Chalene Johnson on facebook (she created PiYo). I kept seeing all these posts about her podcast called "The Chalene Show" and I found them so annoying! A few weeks later I updated the software on my iPhone, after months of ignoring that little red no.1 in the corner of the "settings" app. The first thing I noticed when I downloaded the software was the podcast app... and what was the first thing I did?! Download The Chalene Show. That clever woman - she infiltrated my mind with all those posts! Once I started listening, I couldn't stop. Every time I'm in my car, alone in my house or while I'm typing this out, I'm listening to podcasts. It started with Chalene, but it snowballed from there. I now always have an array of podcasts ready and waiting. Podcasts about nutrition, fitness, mindfulness, productivity, emotional well-being, business, social media... the list is endless.
Personal development is so crucial to my life now that I struggle to understand how I managed before I started doing it. I listen to podcasts and read about an array of topics that have helped to expand my knowledge in so many areas. It has enabled me to understand my emotions, communicate with, and understand others more easily. It’s helped me in my teaching practice and I feel have so much more to teach now than just how to play the violin.
Committing to a fitness journey teaches you that you are in control of your mind and not the other way around. Speaking to yourself with positivity and compassion and motivating yourself to push further. Eventually you will realize that how you speak to yourself sets the tone for the rest of your life. You start your journey trying to change from the outside in; when really what we need to be doing is change from the inside out.
The changes that have happened to my body have been so rewarding and I so appreciate it when people tell me how well I look, but what they cannot see, and what is even more rewarding, is the change that happens internally. I’m so thankful that I took that first step and so excited for the steps I am yet to take.
