Keeping It Together - Recap of Stay Well Weekend with Love Sweat Fitness
We were so honored to be a part of the virtual Stay Well Weekend festival that Katie Dunlop, founder of @lovesweatfitness, organized to raise donations towards Feed America. It was a weekend filled with workouts, open panels, happy hours, and dance parties. It was an incredible event that brought some much needed love and empowerment to us during this tough time at home. The weekend festivities were packed with some of the most bad ass instructors, influencers, and friends that we truly look up to, and we are grateful we had the opportunity to be side by side with so many of them.
A special thank you to all of you who were able to tune in live to the session. For those of you that missed it, hopefully this recap will bring you value from our session!
We hosted a 30 minute wellness chat talking all about achieving your goals and staying productive, yet being lenient on yourself during a time when our daily lives are looking VERY different. We have all developed a new normal, and wanted to share how we’ve been coping with these transitions. Here is a full overview of what we went over:
We discussed productivity in this new normal, keeping organized and motivated in different ways, but not being too hard on yourself during these difficult times. All about creating that balance (this has been our goal since day one). This looks different for everyone right now. Divided this session into two parts on driving productivity and then finding time to recharge.
REFOCUS / PRODUCTIVITY
Acceptance - Accept that this is not the world we are used to living in, accept that your usual routine, usual marks of success, may be completely different
Do not try to keep the same normal, this is a momentary new normal that we have to accept. Accept the stress and range of emotions you feel are VALID
Your measurements of success are going to look different - don’t judge yourself by the same scale as before both on a personal and professional level
Prioritize your real “to-dos” and don’t overwhelm yourself, but create a few attainable goals to give you that satisfaction of feeling productive.
Beginning of the week - line up what you need to do.
Prioritize chores vs larger tasks and break them down to attainable short term goals. IE. Applying to 2 jobs a week, writing 1 blog post a week.
Every morning go through emails.
This can be unconventional productivity as well, which we’ll dive into more.
Create a structure for your day and listen to how you FEEL. This is going to be different if you have a full time job or not! Obviously there are other factors like having roommates or taking care of kids that will impact this as well.
Celebrate the little things in your structure - making your bed, journaling before bed or lunch break, spending time in the morning to cook.
Visualize at the end of this and you looking back and being happy with what you did with your time
Everyone's situation is different - it can be working out 5x a week, it can be practicing guitar or it can be just journaling or making a sourdough starter because you don't normally have time for it
RECHARGE / CHILL
How to Recharge/relax in a non toxic way
It’s okay to not be far more productive than usual even if you have more time on your hands. Everyone is saying you need to learn a new language and reinvent the wheel while in quarantine, but taking care of yourself is enough. With that being said, there are ways to be patient with your healing mind during this stressful time while not aiding to a downward laziness spiral
SCHEDULE TIME FOR YOU - We've built in time in our calendars for going on walks, meditating, reading, exercise, etc. things that make us relaxed. Not creating bad habits.
I’m forcing myself to SLOW DOWN because I’m used to always being on the go - spending time on things I don’t usually have time to do like reading more
P/ PC Balance (Production and Production Capabilities) balance
PAIR YOUR ACTIVITIES WISELY - Multitask ones that make sense and DON’t multitask important tasks - your self care with audio books and going for a walk or folding laundry, making mundane tasks more beneficial and enjoyable or face mask and taking a bath (self care bundle) - don’t multitask WORK - stop working while watching tv separate them, listen to music while I write blog posts, not tv or facetiming while doing it
Exercise - You don’t need to stress yourself out over creating a “summer body” during quarantine and coming out with a six pack - they way you are is perfect, but take time to give yourself movement to help your mind and body find peace during this time
MAKE WORKING OUT AS EASY AS POSSIBLE FOR YOURSELF since you can’t just book a class to hold yourself accountable
Sign up for an app like LSF so you can simply follow along
Save workouts beforehand - Make a saved tab on instagram of Katie’s videos and other instructors in the stay well festival! This is a good way to try new and exciting workouts or yoga flows
Have a dedicated playlist
COMEDY - Steal you life and moments back - watch standup, laugh with friends, comedy will help get us through - Chris Delia No pain, Ali Wong: Hard Knock Wife, Iliza Shlesinger: Elder Millennial
“Lazy activities” That still stimulate your brain - puzzles, coloring books, facetiming a loved one or playing a virtual game online via zoom.
I keep seeing everyone stepping up their kitchen game and becoming a Top Chef and it can be stressful! Simply sign up for a fresh meal planning service to try new recipes without having to get too crazy in the kitchen, or if you want to try something new make a goal for just one that you want to try so you can feel satisfied when you check it off your list
Communication - you don’t need to call every single one of your family members and friends and overwhelm yourself with trying to be the best friend in the world - shoot for 1 call a day or if that is even overwhelming, make it less! Text 1 person a day, call 1 person a week. Whatever makes your soul feel good and your anxiety stays low. QUALITY of quantity
At the end of the day - CHILL - watch your fav tv show, have a glass of wine, and practice gratitude for being safe and alive during this time.
Four key takeaways:
Productivity looks different for everyone right now
Take care of yourself - P/PC BALANCE, Pairing your activities wisely
Do something that your future self will be proud of
Recharge with self love, comedy, gratitude and communication
Keep it Sweaty,
Jo and Jacqs
