Coaching with Gretchen

Movement, Mindfulness & Self-Care Coaching with Gretchen Schock

holistic habits

Ease into Healthy Eating

Coaching, Habit Change, Wellness

From October until now, I have been nursing an appendix issue. I have not been able to exercise the way that I normally would. I want to be really honest with you. I have been eating my feelings: the worry, the anxiety, the stress. I knew what I was doing when I was doing it. All of my other vices are gone, and so I fell on the remaining and easy one- too much eating!

(PS- Those vices I’m referring to, for those that don’t know, I’ve been sober for ten years.) To get you up to speed on the appendix- check out this post. It ruptured, but surgery didn’t happen until five months later.

Weight gain is a tricky ride for me because I’m wearing legging most days, teaching yoga and fitness classes, so I can’t hide in my clothing. And I know that people look up to me as an example of healthy living. But rather than falling into my common response of self-deprecating behaviors due to my body dysmorphia over the weight gain. Or jumping into a new diet or cleanse. Instead, I bought a bigger size of clothing. Yes, I now own these same pants in two sizes.

This isn’t a plea for “you look great” comments. Because I know I look great. I also know that an additional fifteen pounds doesn’t define my worth. It doesn’t diminish my value to my relationships, community, or clients. This post is to remind YOU of that.

Life happens! People get sick, and something stressful takes place that throws you off your plan of eating healthy and working out. And rather than diving headfirst into a marketing gimmick that promises fast results, instead, fall into a surrender of reframing it in your mind.

It took me five months to put on fifteen pounds. It’s going to take five months to take it off! Magic wand results only happen with a scalpel. Remember that!

So buy the next size up in clothing.
Feel confident in the clothing that you are wearing on the body that you are toting around. Don’t wait until you reach some magic number on the scale. That number doesn’t represent who you are, nor is it truly motivating for lasting change.

So what am I doing? Well, per the doctor’s instructions, I’m still not allowed to do anything but walk. So I’m walking. I’m also eating more salads and vegetables and drinking water. Once I get the okay from the doctor, I’ll slowly increase my fitness regime. But the real work is happening internally. I’m giving myself grace. And I’m reminding myself to ease back in.

I hope this message reaches the person that needs to hear it. Give yourself grace! Eat more veggies, move your body more today than you did yesterday, and drink half of your weight in ounces of water. (If you weigh 150 lbs, drink 75 ounces of water a day) Ease into the changes that you know will make you healthier going forward. I believe in you!

When You Feel Stuck in Life – Prioritize Yourself!

Habit Change, Mindfulness

We have all been through some version of feeling the blahs, whether about our job, the house we live in, or the person we are dating. It often begins with feelings of agitation or annoyance. A general state of dissatisfaction that we can’t quite put our finger on.

There are two very common directions that I see folks have gone in after they have come to me for life coaching because they still feel stuck. Guess what? Neither of these directions work!

The first path is to sweep in a different direction drastically. For example, quit the job, break off the relationship, or sell the house. The other approach is to become a zombie within your own life by not changing and keeping things exactly the same. When the underlining issues are not addressed people become angrier and resentful.

So how do we avoid going down either of those paths?

The concept is simple, but putting it into practice is harder than it appears. The answer is MEDITATION. Please don’t download an app. And I don’t want you to sign up for a meditation class or a 21-day challenge. I want you to try sitting with your eyes closed and notice your breathing for 2 minutes. Yes, two minutes, that’s it.

“But doesn’t meditating take longer than that?

No, it doesn’t have to. There are no rules about how to meditate or how long to do it. I believe in building things from the ground up so that you have a strong foundation for creating a new holistic habit in your life.

The hardest part of meditating is being with your own thoughts. What I like to call “sitting in the seat of observation” within yourself is an important step before making any changes in your life and is a wonderful way to prioritize your own self-care.

Begin with two minutes for week one.
Week 2, let’s double the time. Now we are at 4 minutes.
Week 3, let’s stay at 4 minutes.
Week 4, let’s double to 8 minutes.
Week 5, let’s stay at 8 minutes.
Week 6, let’s double it to 16 minutes.

We’ve reached our goal amount of time! Now let’s sustain it by continuing to sit for 16 minutes every day. Keep in mind that if any of the above time allotments seems challenging than stay at that time for another week. Creating this habit in your life may take longer than six weeks and that’s okay!

I find that if I schedule the time on my calendar, always around the same time, I am more successful in completing it. You don’t need a special chair or a cushion. You can sit in your car in the parking lot, on the edge of your bed after waking, or in your office chair with notifications silenced on your computer. The point is to be present in your body and with your thoughts. When we tune out the chaos and the distractions that are all around us when can focus on the underlining feelings that we are authentically having about the person or situation or the direction of our life.

Save the image below and print it out to keep a record of your success. Fill in a box for every day that you have meditated this month, whether it’s two minutes or sixteen. Remember, there is no “right way” to meditate. It truly is a simple practice yet one of the hardest things to put into action. But I believe in you! Keep me posted on your progress.