Module 4: Implementation of the 5 + 5

Weeks Reading Material

Over the past 20 years, I have learned, from working with clients and from my personal experiences, that if we do not address our mental and emotional stress, it can show up on our physical body as chronic pain, weakness, dysfunctions, disease, etc. And on the flip side, if we do not address taking care of our bodies physically with healthy movement, proper food, sleep, etc. it can affect our mental and emotional state.

 

 5 to Thrive

These are five areas of your life that I want you to start implementing healthy habits into this week. You already started part of the Power Hour in week 1 with the journaling. Remember to be patient with yourself as you add new habits and take out old ones. Some days you will be great with implementing and other days will not. Remember that each day is a new day and keep trying! Do NOT have an all or nothing attitude. A motto I live by that has helped me keep my sanity with running a business and being a mother of three is, “something is better than nothing.” These are five areas I have personally struggled with and so have my clients. I will go over each area and explain how to start implementing healthier habits into each.

1: Power Hour

This is your hour to rejuvenate yourself mentally, emotionally, and physically. As women, we often put others first before we care for ourselves. There are times when this is necessary, however, we can’t care for others if we are unhealthy. I prefer to do this in the morning. As a businesswoman with three children, I notice that if I do not complete my routine early, it usually doesn’t happen. Some mornings I wake up and do quick stretches, meditate, and journal. After dropping the kids off at school, I exercise, whether that is going to the gym, taking a walk in the neighborhood, or practicing yoga. It’s important that you set a “power hour” a day just for yourself

  • Healthy Movement– At least 20-30 minutes a day. My motto- ” Something is better than nothing.” Set yourself up for success-BE REALISTIC, and start small. Get into a groove and then add more. Continuing from the practice you started last week, I want you to add this to your daily movement. Now that you have begun eliminating the distractions in your life, learning to check-in to see how you are feeling, and identifying what you need daily, I want you to start applying the check-in practice with your movement plan. If you planned a hard workout, and you had a tough, long day physically and emotionally or woke up feeling exhausted, change your flow to include a walk or yoga practice. This gentle movement will help rejuvenate you mentally, physically, and emotionally. Whatever that may be, it’s important to listen to your body after. Years ago, my acupuncturist told me I should have the same, if not more, energy after a workout. If you don’t, that means your body doesn’t have the chi(or energy) to support that workout. It’ll be hard at first, especially if you power through exercises, but you must stay in tune with how your body feels. We will be using yoga throughout this program to help you release emotions and blocks. Your subconscious blocks will be freed with a combination of healthy movement, the Emotion Code session, and the skills put into practice in weeks zero and one.
  • Meditate-If you are not used to meditating I recommend taking the time to be still and unplug from everything around you. Go in a quiet room and sit for 1-5 minutes and focus on your breathing. It will be hard at first, but over time, you will find yourself looking forward to this moment of stillness. It’s important that you’re alone and removed from distractions. Once your breathing becomes steady, you can slowly increase your time until you’ve reached a total of 15 minutes.
      • Here is a video that I explain how to use yoga breaths and box breathing to start meditating. Once you move into box breathing, start with five rounds. If you start to get dizzy, stop the process. I have found over the years of teaching when people are not used to deep breathing; they can get dizzy. If so, build up to five rounds of this breathing. You can do box breathing several times a day as needed to calm your nerves and relieve stress.

 

  • Journal-gratitude/brag-Write down five things that you love about yourself and five things that you are grateful for. We need to find the little things in our day to day that we are thankful for.
  • Brag: Everyday document five things that you did successfully the day before. If you have a hard time, you can think back to the beginning of the week, month, or even as far back as childhood. Some examples include making a delicious breakfast, helping your kid with homework, making healthy food choices, taking some “me” time, or perhaps you had an important conversation with your boss, partner, or child.
  • Gratitude Journal: Similar to the brag book, this is a list of five things that you are grateful for.  Some of my past examples include my health, my husband who still makes me laugh after 22 years of marriage, my three healthy, thriving daughters, and the extra time I have to hang out with my family.

2: Sunshine

Get out and enjoy the outdoors! Regular sunlight exposure can naturally increase the serotonin levels in your body that help to lessen stress and fight off mild depression. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that regulates appetite, sleep, memory, and mood. Also, serotonin plays a role in susceptibility to depression and suicide.

3: Sleep

I have been learning more about the importance of sleep from my acupuncturist,   the audiobook “Why We Sleep” by Matthew Walker, Ph.D., and the podcast, “The Drive” by Walker as well. As I have gotten older, I’ve noticed that it’s harder to have productive days on less sleep.  After learning about the effects of lack of sleep, I started making it a point to get at least seven hours of shut-eye, but ideally, I aim for eight hours.

4: Water

This is one of the things I talk to my clients about regularly. You need to drink half of your body weight in ounces of water every day. So for easy math, let’s say you weigh 100 pounds. Then the goal would be to drink 50 oz. of water each day. Most people struggle to reach this goal so I always recommend gradually building up to this amount. Hydration is vital for a healthy lifestyle and water is also a relatively easy thing for everyone to access. Will you have to pee more than usual? Yes. But it’s good for your body, your skin, and your immune system, so grab your reusable water bottle and get started!

5: Plan of action (PA)

If you do not have structure or a system in place to be productive and accomplish your goals this exercise will help you start. This plan of action will keep you motivated and on track. Over the years, I have created many PA’s that help me run my business and household. Writing out a plan or To-Do list has helped me to stay sane and sleep better at night. I like to make a list of things I want to get done the night before, so I have a good idea of how to go about my day when I wake up. I make categories for my work, personal, and family life. After reading over the list, I highlight the top items. It’s important to complete your BIG things of the day first. Once you do, it’ll help you feel accomplished, keep you motivated, and give you more time to fulfill your other listed items. 

Assignment 1

To build upon the concepts of being present from week 2, I want you to watch Brendon Burchard’s video to understand the importance of your morning routine and taking care of you first (Your POWER HOUR). “Three Worst Morning Routines Ever”

Assignment 2

Start implementing The 5 to Thrive program by printing the reminder and goal tracker from the downloads section. Put them in a visible place to remind you of what your goals are for each day. Write out the five points from the 5 to Thrive reminder on the goal tracker so that you can mark off each category for the next 30 days. They say it takes 30 days to create a habit, so hopefully, after this time, you won’t have to mark off each day. As we continue with the practice from week two, use this program when asking yourself, “What do I need?” and “How am I feeling?” These questions are essential when choosing the right type of movement for yourself. Don’t be afraid to ask for help and express what you need.

Here’s the link to the downloads

Assignment 3

Read “The Four Agreements” by Don Miguel Ruiz. When I read this book years ago, I realized that a lot of my clients’ stressors, and my own, came from not implementing these 4 things from this book. Once I had my coaching clients read this book and implement the agreements, they said it helped them tremendously with eliminating stress in their lives. This book is a quick read that I would recommend finishing within this week. Take notes on the things you feel like you need to work on and put up on your mirror or somewhere visually to remind what you are working on.

Assignment 4

Write out your movement plan.

Assignment 5

CCC(comfort crushing challenge)-For the women, do a video in my Unplugged FB group and for the men on your personal FB page to share what has been coming up for you (good and bad) going through these assignments in committing to self-care. How implementing the 5 To thrive and reading the Four Agreements is helping you with self-care. Learn to be vulnerable in your share, and when we are, it frees us emotionally, opens us up to deeper connections, and adds value to other’s life. You might be the haha moment for someone else to take the initiative in changing their life!

Recommendations for starting a movement plan
  • Think about what you want your movement plan to include and write it out. If you need help with ideas, we can discuss this in your weekly 1:1.
  • If you’re new to exercise, I would recommend starting with two to three times per week for 20 to 30 minutes.
  • Have space, equipment, and workout attire ready the day before.
  • Know how much time you have to work with so that you know what you can fit into that time frame in order to achieve your daily goal.
  • Schedule or write out your workouts on your phone or calendar. The more official you make it, the more likely you will stick to it. Also, I will be helping hold you accountable.

Remember you have access to my online yoga videos that can be part of your plan. Once you have come up with a plan, email it to me so I can hold you accountable.

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