Category: Random Thoughts

5 Must-Read Personal Development Books for Millennials Trying To Get Their Life Together

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Do you want to know what is one of the biggest things I love about summer and what I miss about the two years I took off from school? I miss having time to read for leisure instead of for work or school. When I was a child, I loved reading! I stopped reading for fun once I started college and started again once I graduated. However, once I started law school, I stopped again. It’s just a cycle at this point.

Tomorrow is National Book Lover’s Day and while I don’t prioritize reading all the time, I definitely still consider myself a book lover. I have a bookshelf full of books and I’ve read most of them (still working on it). I think reading (or listening, shoutout to audiobooks) books enables us to expand our perspectives and grow as people. This is so important to me and who I strive to be as a person. Books are essential for personal development.

When I took my two years off before law school, I was definitely obsessed with the self-help/personal development genre. Even now I would say that I am always working on my own personal development and trying to help others do the same. In light of this goal, I have decided to compose a list of some of my favorites in the self-help and personal development genre.

Here are my favorites:

The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz

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I revisit this book at least once a year, sometimes more than that depending on the type of year I’m having. When I used to work at a Recreation Center, I printed out the Four Agreements and posted it in the area where all the staff would keep their stuff. It helped me keep them in mind when I had to deal with particularly mean community members or even when I was frustrated with a co-worker. I also thought it might be useful to others. This book is one of my favorites because Don Miguel Ruiz provides such wonderful insight on just living a better life. I know that when I started applying to the Four Agreements to my life (still a work in progress because I’m human after all) my life had way less inner turmoil and bullshit with other people. It’s truly a great book that I recommend to anyone who will ask.

You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life by Jen Sincero

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I really enjoyed reading this book. I think Sincero does a good job of making herself appealing to younger aged millennials like me by writing about self-help in a very relatable and basic language. I found her book hilarious because she has a knack for cussing while delivering her points (anyone who knows me knows that’s my MO as well). I found this book a little bit more exciting than other books of its genre. Sincero is very good at narrating her life experiences and teaching concepts from them. While there were some parts of it that I didn’t necessarily agree with, (I do not like the way some modern self-help books discuss things like depression) the overall concepts of the book were extremely helpful for me during my post-grad journey and even when I revisited it later. I realized that certain parts stick out to me depending on what is happening in my life at the time. This is definitely a book to pick up if you want to get into self-help books and have a wild sense of humor!

Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person by Shonda Rhimes

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Okay so this book is by Shonda Rhimes aka the mastermind behind Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, and How To Get Away With Murder. I really enjoyed this book because it encouraged me to take more chances in my own life and not hold myself back once I read it. Rhimes wrote this book because her daughter told her “you never say yes to anything” and that was a wake-up call for her. Truth be told I haven’t read this book since 2018 and I probably could stand to read it again. Due to her daughter’s assertion, Rhimes took on a year of saying Yes to everything, even the things that terrified her. The book details her life during that period and gives us an up close & personal view of how that new resolution played out. Now that I’m writing this, I’ve decided I’m going to re-read it! I will give a more detailed post on it in the future. Hold me to it!

The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter–And How to Make the Most of Them Now by Meg Jay, PhD

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The thing I enjoyed about this book was how much applicable advice it has for twentysomethings going through the post-grad struggle. From finding a job, to relationships and marriage, and even family planning, this book touches on topics that many of us like to put off as some abstract thing in the distant future when really…the future will be here before we even have time to blink. I also like this book because for once, there is a book talking to twentysomethings instead of about us. I wrote a more detailed review of this book here if you’d like to know some of my favorite quotes and parts of the book.

Eat That Frog! 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time by Brian Tracy

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This book is one of the shorter personal development books I’ve read but make no mistake, it teaches you a lot in less than 200 pages. What I really enjoyed about Tracy’s book is that it does not have any fluff and gets straight the point. Often times in self-development books they take many many words to say something that could be effectively understood in less words. Tracy does this and that’s why I decided I must re-read this book again just because it was so good at teaching me something. I honestly couldn’t put the book down and finished it in only 2 days. It’s based on careers and businesses but you definitely can take the concepts and apply them to any area in life. If you need help to leave procrastinating as a thing in the past, check this book out!

Have you read any of these books? Do you have another book I didn’t mention that helped you get your life together? Leave a recommendation in the comments below!

Mara’s Musing: Reflecting On This Past Month

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I don’t know know how your July went reader but mine was WILD. I literally committed myself to so many different things. Not only did I decide to participate in the #MJConsistencyChallenge (which was a struggle and a half all on its own), I also signed up for a MF Fitness Pod by @MakingMila (who I talked about the blog recently), also decided on my own that I was going to make it my personal goal to close my apple rings every day by working out EVERY DAY, and to top it off, my law school related demands became even more…demanding haha. This month literally spread me as then as possible…AND THEN SOME.

I think it finally hit me last night as I was trying* to go bed but couldn’t because I had a super intense chest pain. Luckily for me, it was on the right side of my chest otherwise I would have thought I was having a heart attack and the idea of going to an ER during these times would have really had me stressed. I couldn’t sleep until like 5am and then I was woken up by my family being loud at like 8:30am. This would have been fine but I couldn’t go back to sleep and it was the “straw that broke the camel’s back”…it’s me y’all…I’m the camel.

My anxiety was in overdrive and I couldn’t deal. One of my best friend’s called me to ask me if I ever finished my goal setting session. I asked if I could call her and I just start sobbing once we started talking about how I was feeling. I had so many feelings and I knew I wasn’t going to be able to finish my research by today’s deadline and would have to ask for an extension…I felt embarrassed and ashamed. However, my best friend told me there is no reason to be ashamed if you’re having a rough mental health week. She said if I needed an extension because I had a fever it would not be a big deal and this was the same.

I’m so glad I called her and I’m so glad I asked for an extension. I know it sounds like my month was horrible, but it wasn’t! As overwhelmed as I was today and probably the last few weeks, I’m also happy I was able to keep some of my promises to myself this month. I was able to be consistent. I strengthened my blogging muscles and now I can write a blog post in like 15 mins as opposed to the sometimes hour or two it would take me before. We truly love to see it!

My main point of this post was to tell you (as always) to take care of yourself. Learn how to deal with your bad days and extend yourself grace but also have pride in the little things you’re able to accomplish. I’m proud of me and I’m proud of you too!

How did your month go? Let me know in the comments!

4 Tips For Winning The Battle Against Your Post-Grad Blues

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CollegeGrads

Post-grad blues are no joke. While not everyone is affected by these feelings of sadness once they graduate, many people are. I know when I graduated I got my degree and said “now what?” I had been in school for the majority of my life, graduated with no job, and really no sense of purpose. Those first 6 months or so were really rough and I felt sad more often than not. I can’t even imagine how 2020 grads are feeling with their ceremonies having been cancelled or online due to the pandemic. However, in today’s post I’m suggesting some things that helped me get through the trying times of  battling with post-grad blues and hopefully they will help you too!

Wake-Up and Say Those Affirmations!

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The post-grad blues period after graduating can definitely get you down (they don’t call it post-grad blues for nothin’). One way I battled this overwhelming sense of emptiness and lack of purpose was through repeating affirmations to myself every morning when I woke up. While each person has to determine what they want out of life to come up with their own, I think the ones I used during this rough time are definitely a good place to start. I found these at this article here.

I also wrote a blog post about creating your perfect affirmations earlier this year. All that matters is you remind yourself that you are deserving and destined for greatness!

Journal About Your Feelings Towards Being Graduated (and your feelings in general)

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For people like myself, it is easy to start feeling down when you are trying to find employment or have too much free time on your hands after graduating. One thing I have made more of a consistent habit is journaling. I try* process all my feelings by journaling at least 3 times a week. When I was unemployed I wrote about how being unemployed made me feel (leave out nothing…even the feelings of worthlessness and sadness). I’ve vented my frustrations and promised myself that I will never take being employed for granted again. While it is usual to complain about one’s job (unless it’s your dream job, which mine is being an attorney so I’m a long ways off), to be ungrateful for one’s job is not good for the soul. In cases where your boss is a jerk it’s different but at the same time, I have always hated being unemployed more than having a job I hate (blame my materialistic desires and FOMO). I hope to look back on my unemployment entries of journal should I ever start hating my jobs (hopefully I won’t).

Find a New Hobby or Invest Time in an Old One

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Whether you’ve always loved painting but college got in the way, or you want to learn how to dance salsa, or anything in between you have plenty of time to do it in your down time on the post-grad job search. One thing I started doing again while I was unemployed is reading. One of my goals this year is to read two books a month and it hasn’t been hard thus far considering I didn’t have really anything better to do. Another hobby I dedicated more time to while I was unemployed was blogging. It felt good to be doing things I wanted to do in undergrad that I simply didn’t have the time to do.

Get Off Your Ass and Get Active

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Seriously! This one is a good morale booster. Whether I was dancing, working out, going for a walk, jog, or run, dedicating time to working out wasn’t something I did until towards the end of my unemployment/post-grad experience and I wish I had a started sooner. Not only do you have time to figure out what kind of workouts you love, you can find a purpose in setting non-work related goals. One of my goals when I was employed was to walk at least 10,000 steps a day. This doesn’t sound like a lot but there would be days when I was unemployed where I sat around ALL day and barely clocked in 2,000 steps, YIKES! If you’re currently unemployed it doesn’t mean you have to sit around all day and become a sloth (I was guilty of this for a while).

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The post-grad “Damn I don’t have a job/I’m done with school” blues are real and it can take over your mind, body, and spirit if you let it. Even if you are employed, being out of school after being in school your whole life is a rough transition for me. I have suffered from the deepest of post-grad blues and it is not pretty. Even if you are employed there are times where you can find yourself missing being in undergrad and carefree. The key to surviving this turbulent transition in life is to happen to it instead of allowing it to happen to you. If you already have a job it can be even easier to get caught up in the motions and find yourself still battling those post-grad blues. Find balance between keeping yourself busy and doing things you love. When you’re unemployed, finding things to occupy your time during your job search (and make sure you are ACTIVELY searching) will make the time in between graduation and being unemployed fly by.  You may even walk away from it being more enlightened, educated, and experienced person than the day you got your degree. If you don’t have a job or haven’t taken steps towards career yet, don’t beat yourself up about it. These things take time and there is always a lesson in the struggle! ALWAYS.

(Author’s Note: If you think you suffer from depression or any other mental illness, contact a professional for help. These tips will not cure depression.)

My Failed Attempt At A 30 Day Yoga Challenge (and What I Learned From It)

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Hey readers! Long time no…post? I’m sure it’s of no surprise that life has been extremely hectic over here (and everywhere else, I imagine). Prior to my spring break from school I suffered somewhat of a writer’s block. Just as I was brainstorming new topics to write about and was struck by inspiration, the COVID 19 chaos escalated extremely quickly. I’ve been coping with that and trying to figure out how I was wanting to move forward with both the blog and podcast. Yes, I started a podcast! Click here for Apple podcasts, here for Spotify, and here for Soundcloud. Anyways, I want to acknowledge that the deaths and tragedies from COVID 19 are deeply upsetting to me. I’m praying for everyone affected by it. On my blog, I will be blogging as if it’s business as usual but that’s only because it is helping me not lose my mind. I don’t want people to think I don’t care about this tragedy, but I honestly want to use my blog as a distraction for others and myself.

Now that I’ve made that disclaimer I’m going to talk about something I TRIED to do at the beginning of March that quickly fizzled out prior to any of the current madness going on. In February I had the wonderful idea of starting a 30 Day Yoga Challenge for many reasons. One reason was that I had always wanted to get into Yoga and I figured a 30 Day Yoga Challenge was the perfect way to do some. Another reason was that I’m nowhere near flexible and I figured Yoga was the perfect way to gain flexibility, agility, and strength all at once. It was also perfect for relaxing. Finally, I wanted to do the 30 Day Yoga Challenge so I could document my journey with it for this blog of mine. Everything was going to be great.

Spoiler alert: everything was not great and I definitely dropped the ball pretty earlier on in my Yoga Challenge. Now that I look back on my preparation and attempt, I know exactly where I messed up and where I can improve the next time I attempt a Yoga Challenge (hint: coming soon!)

In preparing for my 30 Day Yoga Challenge I thought I had taken the necessary steps to ensure my success. I downloaded some free Yoga apps, I picked the Yoga Classes I wanted to go to at my local gyms, and I “scheduled” them on my calendar. However, in retrospect many mistakes were made by ya girl. I’ll name them.

Mistake #1: Picking a long time span for my challenge

If I can say one thing about myself it’s that sometimes I can be an all or nothing type of person. If I can’t do something exactly as it should be or perfectly then I can (not always, but often) become discouraged and just say EFF IT, I’m not doing this. Since I knew this about myself, I should not have “committed” to such a long time span for a Yoga Challenge, especially since I had never really done yoga before this. I think I missed a day pretty early on (like day 7 or so) and it made me not even want to do the challenge anymore because I wasn’t perfect and technically already failed the challenge.

What I learned: Make the challenge span shorter, especially if you’re new to an activity. I think next time I will go with 5 or 7 Day challenge. I can do anything for 5 to 7 days!

Mistake #2: Not buying the necessary materials for the challenge

Although I did download the free yoga apps and had my gym membership, I never bought a yoga mat and looking back that was so foolish! How could I expect myself to fully commit to an entire 30 Day challenge if I didn’t even have the most basic yoga necessity: a mat! Improvised by doing bed yoga and standing yoga on the days when I did yoga at home. However, the days I didn’t make it to the gym and grew bored of bed yoga, I really wished I had a mat and just didn’t do the yoga.

What I learned: This one is simple, make a full list of EVERYTHING you need for a challenge and make sure to actually buy it and not put it off. This is especially true if you are a busy person and don’t know how or when you’ll have to time to buy a mat.

Mistake #3: Not fully committing to the yoga session I scheduled

I would always tell myself when I was going to go to Yoga but it was really rare I actually wrote it down in my planner, set my google calendar reminder, and stuck to it. If I even did it at all (I don’t think I do more than write it in my planner a few days). I wasn’t fully committed and that was definitely reflected by the lack of yoga scheduled into my life. I would always say “I’ll just do it before bed” if I skipped a session I had written down. God forbid if I got too tired, I would just skip the yoga all together and tell myself “I’ll double up tomorrow.” Like no, schedule it like you do all your other workouts and just get it done!

What I learned: Setting reminders to complete your daily challenge is key. It is not enough to just write it down or put it somewhere you only see once a day. As a busy person, alarms and reminders are lifesavers for me and this challenge was no different. Next time I will make sure to have daily reminders to stick to my schedule and not neglect it.

These are the main lessons I learned from my short-lived stint at trying a 30 Day Yoga Challenge. Now that I have failed, I’m excited to try another Yoga Challenge with this new information I have. I’m going to have a lot of free time in the foreseeable future, so this is the perfect time for me to learn a new activity/pick up a new hobby. I can’t wait to see how my next attempt will go (coming soon!) Be on the lookout for my next yoga shenanigans.

Have you ever done a 30 Day Yoga Challenge or any other month long challenge? How did you do? Let me know in the comments below!

Why 2018 Was The Best And Worst Year Of My Life

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Wow. I can’t believe it’s already the end of this year. It feels like just yesterday I was at some random bar with my best friend bringing in the New Year for 2018. We drank champagne, through back shots, and danced the night away. I woke up the next morning a little hungover and met another friend for some pho and sprite (my age old hangover remedy from undergrad). Like most years, I had no idea what 2018 had in store for me when the countdown ended and the fireworks began.

The idea for this post came from a video I saw of Ariana Grande accepting the Woman of the Year Award at the Billboard Women In Music 2018 event. In her speech, Ariana said “I find it interesting that this has been one of the best years of my career and the worst of my life” and I felt that shit in my spirit. This year was one of the best and worst years of my life, ALL at once. Before I heard Ariana’s speech, I hadn’t really taken the time to reflect on how insane this year actually was.

This year had some great moments like me hiring a trainer and taking my health and fitness seriously, applying to law school, getting into law school, getting a full tuition scholarship for law school, turning 25, going to Coachella for the first time, going to the Dominican Republic with one of my closest sorority sisters, and was featured on my good friend Daniel’s podcast. All in all, some of best memories will come from this year.

However, this year also consisted of my Nana passing away less than a week after Coachella (which was enough on its own to make this this year the worst year of my life), falling off the health and fitness wagon when she passed away because I was sad and out of town for a while, starting law school and falling off the health and fitness wagon again, failing my first midterm, my anxiety coming back full force for the first time since undergrad, feelings of inadequacy throughout the semester, the worst finals season of my life, and a bunch of other shit I don’t feel like getting into.

Looking back at everything, I did have a great year but I would be lying if I said that I was always focused on the positive while I was living through it. There are still days when I get really down, especially when I wish I could call my nana and tell her just how much harder law school is than we expected. Some days I really do have to remind myself that the struggles I’m going through now are the things I used to pray for before they happened. While I’m happy for all 2018 taught me, I’m happy to kiss it goodbye, take the lessons I’ve learned, and hopefully* have a great 2019.

How was your year this year? Let me know in the comments

Goal Check: End of the 2nd Quarter of the Year (Apr-June)

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The month of June end a little bit ago which means that we are now 1/2 way through the year. Just as I checked in with myself and my goals at the end of quarter one, I will be seeing where I’m at now that quarter 2 is over. Now is the perfect time to reflect on what has worked this first half of the year and what needs to change. Y’all know I’m always trying to 100 dif things so I’m just going to focus on the main goals I have.

  • Travel out of the country:

I am officially going out of the country for the first time since after my EuroTrip when I graduated high school (not including Tijuana). I’m going to the Dominican Republic for about a week later this month! I will definitely be writing about this experience once I get back and having time to settle so make sure you keep your eyes peeled for that!

  • Save $2,000 in a savings account

Okay so I’m not ashamed to say I suuuuuck at saving money but that’s mostly because I spend all my money on doing hoodrat shit with friends, and having a trainer! Lmao. Once I start school I want to be more conscious on being financially literate and establishing savings account. I think for the rest of the Summer I’m going to save a little bit of each check. If you have any tips for saving money let me know!

  • Lose fat & gain muscle:

I’ve made some decent progress on this goal since my quarter 1 check-in. Honestly, all things considered with my grandmother passing away back in April, I’m proud of myself for not turning to food for comfort, which I would have done in the past. I have been killing it at the gym and follow my meal plan 80% of the time or so. I’ve only lost about 5ish lbs since April but I feel myself getting stronger and I lost some body fat %. I think I’m on track to hit my first major goal weight for the end of 2018

  • Take my blog to the next level:

My blog has NOT been a priority for me since April and I’m okay with it. I don’t have regrets about putting my blog on the back burner once my life got crazy. The gym became my outlet so all I have been doing is going to work and working out. I’m just getting back in the hang of writing and managing my instagram so we’ll see where I’m at once quarter 2 is over.

  • Read one book every month:

I have read 2 other books since quarter 1 ended, both which I enjoyed a lot. In April I read The Mastery of Love by don Miguel Ruiz and Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes. I recommend both to everybody. I want to write a review on both of them but we shall see how that goes.

  • Get my driver’s license and a car:

This hasn’t been a priority this quarter so no progress has been made on it. I’m going to have my license by the end of this summer. However, I’m not really sure about the car. We’ll see.

All things considered for how HARD life came at me in April, I’m proud of myself for at least staying on track with my health + fitness and doing everything I needed to do to go out of the country. I also read 2 out of the 3 books I wanted to read so that’s I’m happy about that to. I do want to get back on track with my blog but I still have 6 months to make it happen. Quarter 3 check-in I will have made some progress on that goal for sure. Overall, I’m happy and that’s what matters.

What are some goals you set for yourself at the beginning of the year? What goals have you made progress on? What goals could use improvement? Leave me a comment and let’s talk about it!

In Memory of My Nana

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On April 28th at 9am Est, my Nana passed away. It’s been a month and it still doesn’t seem real. There is nothing I want more than to get a phone call from her. “How’s my pretty girl doing?” This past Mother’s Day was our first Mother’s Day without her. Man, I don’t think I’ve ever felt a pain this strong in my life. My Nana, Lydia Wright, is my maternal grandmother and the grandparent I’ve been the closest to my entire life. We talked AT LEAST once a week, sometimes more. She offered me life advice (even if it was a little old-fashioned for my taste), and was always there for me, cheering me on and bragging about me to anybody who would listen. You know, the last few weeks of her life I was in such DENIAL. She had been sick before but she always bounced back. She was tired of fighting. I can’t say I blame her. She had been through SO MUCH in her life! From an eating disorder to breast cancer to kidney failure, emphysema, to much more. She was a fucking fighter and the strongest woman I know. I can’t put into words what she meant to me and I really honestly never thought about the day I’d have to live without her but those days are here now and now I have to figure it out. I have to figure out how to go on when all I really want to do is crawl into bed and cry.

While my Nana isn’t my first family member to pass away (I just lost my maternal grandfather last July), this pain is something different. The grief is almost unbearable at times. However, I know that she is always with me. She was always blunt and said whatever she wanted to say and did whatever she wanted to do and I hope to be as courageous as her. A few years ago she got me a bear that sang the song “I Hope You Dance” and dedicated that song to me. For those of you who may be unfamiliar with it (who are you? And WHY?), here are some of the lyrics:

“I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance
Never settle for the path of least resistance

Livin’ might mean takin’ chances but they’re worth takin’

Lovin’ might be a mistake but it’s worth makin’

Don’t let some hell-bent heart leave you bitter

When you come close to sellin’ out reconsider

Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance.

I hope you dance, I hope you dance.”

I loved the song when she dedicated it to me but now that she’s passed it means even more. I now can’t listen to it without crying but I will make sure I listen to my Nana’s song of wisdom and never let her down. I have to make sure to be there for my mom and not be too sad. While I miss her, it is for selfish reasons because she is no longer in pain and has finally found peace. I’m learning a lot about grief and it’s come and go as it pleases attitude. Grief really doesn’t give a fuck. 

Nana, All I know is when I wear purple (your favorite color), I’ll think of you. When someone mentions the Steelers (your favorite team and half of your wardrobe haha) I’ll think of you. Whenever I melt a scentsy (why did you have over 100 of them?), I’ll think of you. Whenever I eat something pumpkin (your nickname for me since before I even ate it) I’ll think of you. Nana, there will not be a day that goes by that I don’t think of you and I’m happy you were able to see me get into law school, even if I don’t know how I’ma survive without your weekly phone calls. I guess I’ll have to find a different way to talk to you. I love you and miss you! Say hi to Grandpa for me.

Love,

Mara.

I’m Back and I’m Better

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Hello Readers! Long time no…read? Hahaha, anyways…back in February I went from being unemployed to working not one but TWO new jobs. Adjusting from being unemployed and chilling around my house all day to constantly being at work (both jobs involved working with children who require a lot of care and energy) took a major energy shift that took quite some time for me to get used to. Sadly, blogging was no longer something that was a top priority of mine because I still had to figure out the kinks of what it means to be a blogger and what I wanted my blog to mean to me as well as everyone who comes across it while balancing my work life at the same time. I’ve come to the realization that life isn’t always going to give me the perfect conditions and I won’t become the blogger I want to be overnight, no matter how much this frustrates me.

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A lot has transpired in my life since the last time I was able to bless the internet with my thoughts:

  • I turned 24.
  • I became a Passion Planner Representative for Spring and Summer 2017.
  • I visited my Alma mater and second home in San Diego, CA.
  • My best friend moved to Tulsa, OK.

Somehow in the mist of all this craziness, I’ve managed to…HAPPY (for the most part).

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Being blessed with another year of life is always a great feeling. Tomorrow is really never guaranteed so every year I’m able to celebrate I’m always overjoyed. Since I’ve turned 24 I’m taken soooo many steps towards creating the life that I want, the life I deserve, and the life that is destined for ME. I’m excited to be back in a place where I feel excited to work towards my dreams and do the damn thing! Who’s with me? Let’s get out there and live our best lives and be our best selves, unapologetically, no matter what!

An Open Letter To The Gym

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Dear Gym,

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, one of my goals this year is to get more fit. I’ve been trying to achieve this by eating differently and doing at home workouts since I’m currently too broke for even the cheapest of gym memberships (I blame coming owt shows and birthdays). While they have been cool, I simply no longer enjoy working out at home. I hate it. It’s not the same. I don’t know if it’s being around like-minded people trying to reach their fitness goals or the motivation of wanting to be as fit as the fittest motherfck*er there but I totally LOVE you. There is so much you can get out of a gym membership from the machines (I miss the elliptical), to the unlimited weights, to my personal fave, group fitness classes, the sauna, and just the overall vibes. I MISS GOING TO VISIT YOU! I miss everything about you. My home workouts and the mini-gym at my job will have to suffice until I get my first paycheck.

Alot of people don’t know this but you helped me during some of the most stressful periods in my life, gym. When I was worried or anxious, I would lace up my gym shoes, make my way over there, and my troubles dissapeared (even if for a brief moment) as soon as I walked in the gym. All I would be worried about at the gym is making sure I worked out harder than the day before and left everything there in the thirty minutues or hour I would be there. For me, going to the gym is one of the most vital self-care routines I participate in. The mini-gym at my job is better than nothing but I really miss the dance classes at my old gym. 

Soon, I will be back on the market for a new gym that meets all of my needs. I work Monday-Friday so it’ll deinitely be one that offers Zumba or soemthing similar on weekends. Finding the perfect gym is like finding the perfect pair of shoes. I will shop around until I decide what fits me best. Until then, I’ll be dreaming of you old friend. 

Signed, 

An Ex-Gym Junkie, Mara

Jan 20th, 2017

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Today I did everything I normally do. I went to turn in some paperwork for a future* job. I watched a documentary on Netflix. I ate food. I drank water. I scrolled through all my social media. But, today felt…different. Honestly, more than it ever has since I can remember. Adding the raindrops to my internal stress and I don’t know what to say or do.  I’m supposed to write  about Health+Fitness on Fridays but how could I talk about my favorite quinoa recipe when I feel this sense of…despair. Sadness. But at the same time, I feel apathetic and desensitized. I’m not sure how to snap out of it. I ordered some books because I believe in the power of a strong mind. However, I’m going to need more than a strong mind to get through the next…well you know the rest. Definitely going to be a lot of introspection, planning, and execution this year and the next. But first, self-care.