I hope this year is off to a wonderful start. Govt shut down aside; so far so good here. I’ve managed to get in a solid Pilates workout every other day and I’ve carved out a bit of self-care time every day.
I did a cleanse at the end of the year and it was very enlightening. I’ve NEVER done a cleanse, it’s always sounded so torturous to me. The reason I decided it was time to give one a go was my lack of energy and not feeling like myself. at. all. I chose the “Conscious Cleanse,” written by two Boulder yogis. I highly recommend it. For the first time since pregnancy I gave up alcohol and COFFEE. Which was huge. There were lots of other things I gave my body a break from: sugar, gluten, eggs. I feel like a reprieve from alcohol and coffee had the most profound effect on me. I’ve gone back to cocktails and wine, in moderation, but to my surprise I can’t go back to coffee. I’ve read that your average cup of coffee has 100-300 mg of caffeine and a cup of tea has 20-60mg. I feel sooooooo much better without coffee and at this point it’s not worth me going back. Also, I’ve noticed a major change in my skin. So for the moment, my new morning ritual consists of Earl Grey w/ a splash of almond milk.
As for Pilates, my love of all things authentic is soaring to new heights. Have you ever done the mat work from “Return to Life” as-is with no added fluff? We can’t really get any more authentic than that, can we? It’s my challenge for the month. I’ve recorded myself reading the book with a 1 minute pause between exercises. I do 5-10 repetitions of each exercise. Interested? Return to Life is $17 on amazon. Join me!
