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De-Stress Your Life... One Month at a Time

I'm becoming more and more convinced that stress is a key factor in not only our health but also in how happy we are and how long a life we live. Before I went back to school a year ago, I was sick constantly! I was also completely stressed out by my work environment. It was this situation where I wasn't being appreciated, I wasn't given enough to do, and I had absolutely no control over changing any of that.

In this past year though, as I've struggled to keep two Etsy shops afloat, gone back to school full-time, and moved twice... I've actually been far less stressed! I rarely get sick anymore, either, was is quite amazing to me! I'd started to think being sick was just "normal" for me.

So as I'm looking back over this past year and loving the positive direction my life is taking... it makes me want to continue in that direction!

If you've been a reader of this blog for any length of time, you probably know that I love setting resolutions for myself... and I'm equally good at not keeping them. ;P So I'm going to try something a little different. I'm going to give myself one 30-day challenge each month. That way it's a nice, bite-sized, measurable thing I can do that most likely will result in an actual habit-change. And rather than getting stressed out trying to re-make my entire life in a month... I can work on it one step at a time!

Month #1 Challenge

I challenge myself to stand up and walk around at least once an hour (during the day), if possible.

I read somewhere awhile back that sitting all day is one of the worst things you can do for your health. And as a champion couch-potato, I'm thinking that's probably not good news for me. Lol. But... moving around at least once an hour is said to bring stress-levels down, lower blood pressure and bad cholesterol, etc. So... that sounds easy enough to do!

Now that I've started school again, I'm taking a smallish water bottle with me to class, and every time it empties, I get up and go re-fill it (not during a lecture, but if I'm working long hours in the lab, this is a good reminder to get up and move around). So not only is this getting me moving around more in the course of my natural day, it's also getting me to drink more water, which is also really good for my health in general. So overall, I think this is going to be a really interesting challenge and I can't wait to see how the month turns out!

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Comments

  1. Congratulations on the lifestyle change and resolutions. I am not always sick, just depressed at how I feel, groggy, tired, and I may just have to follow along with you on these monthly goals!!!

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    Replies
    1. Yes that could also be an indicator that your lifestyle and habits are not quite in sync with where you need to be to be healthy. Even if you're not sick, always feeling run-down isn't really healthy either and seems like it would probably end up taking a toll on your immune system. Of course it's harder to get moving when you're feeling groggy, but hopefully this will give you some good motivation! :)

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  2. I just read about this again in the paper this Sunday. Another plus they mentioned for including water in this challenge - it forces you to get up more often for bathroom breaks. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love this idea! I agree, sometimes resolutions are hard. I made some for myself a little while ago and found that breaking them down really helps! I too need to get up during the day more often! I'll definitely be joining you on this one!

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