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Morning ladies so today I want to talk everyday life. I recently had a few requests & questions on why I get up so early to exercise, how I organise my days & generally how I stay motivated & get things done.
So in the hope this is of interest & perhaps helps others who've decided this is the year for them to be more proactive here's what I find works for me.
Firstly I think it probably helps that I have a touch of OCD, as well as the fact that quite frankly I'm bl***y minded. If I set myself a task/challenge I'll get it done. You should ask hubby about my lists (yup I'm a MASSIVE list maker!). I think to say it's safe to say he loves nothing more than coming home to one of these personalised love notes just for him ;-) - not!
On top of my list making I'm also one of those people that has to get the jobs/tasks I've set myself for that day done - no matter how I'm feeling, what time of night it is &/or if it means there's no down time that day. Probably not the healthiest of attributes I know but it's what makes me, me & as I've said to hubby many a time, by completing the day's jobs it gives me peace of mind, which means I'm more relaxed & helps me sleep.......make sense?! Well it does to me!
One of the reasons I get up so early of a morning (5:15 am to be exact!) is so that I can get everything I need to fit into my day done. With working full-time on my styling business & the blog & also running the house (not to mention in the past few months the small matter of organising the sale of our home in the UK & relocation & purchase of our new home in France + all the paperwork that goes with this, not to mention the unpacking & renovation work) there's a lot to fit in!
Don't get me wrong I'm not one of these people who leaps out of bed at the prospect & at the moment with all that we've gone through & doing I'm finding it harder to get up but what keeps me going is that I know that as soon as I've started exercising I instantly feel better - more awake & generally more 'me'. Plus I'm not going to lie if it means I'm able to eat & drink the food I love, whilst trying to keep a grip on the middle age spread & mum tum then for me it's worth it. Plus if you struggle to wake of a morning & hate the abruptness of an alarm clock I have to say we recently treated ourselves to this & love it. A lot more gentle & you don't feel quite so tired when the alarm goes off if that makes sense as it wakes you gradually & gently.
If you're interested in my exercise routine you can see my weekly plan here. It's changed slightly in that I now don't run as it was aggravating a knee injury & instead do a combination of cycling, pilates & weights most days.
Regular readers will know that over the past 3 years I've developed a huge love of pilates & from going to my lessons that has led to a love of classical musical. So much so that I now find the right music will instantly take me to my 'happy place' which is when I'm practising pilates & my brain has stopped whirling & all I'm concentrating on is what I'm supposed to be doing. I particularly like the pianist Ludovico Einaudi & if you've not listened to his music then you must.
After we decided to move to France I knew there were a few life changes I wanted to make, as I'm well aware that I push myself too far & generally don't give myself enough downtime.
Together with my love of pilates & I don't know if this an 'age thing' or just where life has taken me, I've found that I want to learn more about meditation & wellness. So to make the time spent exercising more in keeping with this I promised myself as soon as we moved to France I would play some of my favourite classical musical whilst doing my pilates, light a few candles & even burn some incense. Which might seem crazy but it just feels a little more luxurious. Of course you don't have to move to a different country to make these changes but I knew if I set myself that goal I would do it, as opposed to always rushing & thinking I'm too busy today & will do it tomorrow!
As I've already mentioned I'm a huge list maker so as a way of getting everything I need to done in the day & also in an attempt to stop my brain thinking as much as it does. A couple of years ago I set about writing down every little job I needed to do each week/month/year. I then split the weekly tasks into days & then gave myself a rough timeline for each day (which I've yet to stick to but it's a useful guideline to try & keep me on track!). I then put these into the reminders app on my phone & set them up as recurring tasks to appear each week/month/year. That way I can focus my day on the jobs that need doing, whilst knowing that if all those jobs are completed on that day then everything I need to fit into the week will get done & it also stops my brain from having to think about & remember all those little incidentals & what needs to be done that day/week.
Like I said at the beginning of this post I definitely have some form of OCD & whilst I appreciate some *most* of you are probably thinking that's crazy to live the working week by a list, for me it gives me peace of mind & insures I get done what needs doing.
On top of this I also don't allow paperwork to build up & anything that arrives through the door or pings into my inbox I sort that day.
Another life change I've made to try & get a better balance since moving to France is that we've decided not to have a TV in our bedroom as we want to get back to our love of reading. I have to say to date we've not missed it, which in some part will be down to the fact that since moving in we've not stopped! But in an attempt to make this change happen I've purchased quite a few books that I'm really looking forward to reading - some chick-lit, some more factual & based on wellness.
Whilst we were going through all the stress & upheaval of the move & relocation one vision that kept me going was lazy winter nights with the candle lit, enjoying a glass of wine whilst reading a book/relaxing so here's hoping I manage to start making this part of my daily schedule soon to!
Like I've said throughout this post I fully acknowledge how I fit everything into my working week isn't going to be for most people but hopefully it has given an insight & some thought for what might work for you. Now if I can just stay awake long enough to start working my way through my reading list I'll be very happy indeed :-)
Back to today & it's a simple look for market day, which has fast become a highlight of our week & is something of a social event as we're always out for a few hours shopping & meeting new friends for coffee.
Scarf - Zara
Coat - Great Plains *
Shirt - Isabel Marant Etoile
Gloves - Black *
Basket - Initially London
Jeans - J Crew
Trainers - Golden Goose
Shop My Style
Scarf - Black
Coat - Mint Velvet
Shirt - Kin
Gloves - Black
Jeans - J Crew
Trainers - Boden
So ladies, anyone care to share what works for them & how they go about organising their weeks/lives. I'd love to hear what tips you find work for you.
Have a lovely day & as always I'll be back in the morning.
I just love Ludovico Einaudi. Try Jacques Loussier too. As a matter of interest, what time do you go to bed with such an early start? Do you have Pilates reformer??
ReplyDeleteHi Ann Marie ooh thanks for the recommendation I've downloaded some of Jacques Loussier's albums to listen to. As for the time I go to bed it depends on what time I finish for the day & stop. But generally it's around 10-10:30 pm although if I manage to finish early & just stop then I can fall asleep as early as 9 pm! Yes I do have a pilates reformer I was lucky enough to be able to buy it from my pilates teacher in the UK.
DeleteJane xx
You are not alone Jane, my daughter is a great list maker too. She loves to be able to cross each item through when it has been accomplished.
ReplyDeleteThere's no better feeling & for me it stops my over active mind from trying to remember everything too!
DeleteJane xx