18 | January | 2012

It is easy to become consumed with all of the things you should or shouldn’t be doing on your weight loss journey. Don’t eat the potatoes, choose the broccoli. Drink your water, avoid soda. Eat low carb, no low carb isn’t good. Advice us usually rolling in from so many different people…suddenly the guy two streets over is knocking on your door sharing a diet plan with you, your local grocery store cashier is analysing everything in your cart and making her own recommendations and pretty soon all you here is blah blah blah. Well, here is a little piece of advice that I am hoping that you won’t avoid…

Remembering the spirit.

Remember yourself. Just because you might be putting healthy things into your body doesn’t mean that you aren’t neglecting the spirit. It is easy to become depressed and frustrated when you are working so hard to reach a goal and often times the journey that we are on with weigh loss comes with its ups and downs, literally. I am going to share with you what I do to decompress and to be good to my spirit, something that I neglected doing much of my life…

Nothing rejuvenates me more than soaking in a hot tub while sipping on a glass of red wine. This is MY time. I put on smooth jazz, lay my head back and think. That is exactly what I did today. I poured myself a little Cabernet Sauvignon, filled up the tub, sprinkled in bath salts and I let my cares float away.

Water heals my spirit, rejuvenates my soul. I spent summers on a lake in the midwest. I spent much of my time in the water swimming, skiing, boating and it has always been one of my favorite things to do. Whenever I am stressed or going through a difficult time, I tend to gravitate toward the water and it always has brought me peace. Soaking in the tub takes me back to a time when the only care I had in the world was which bathing suit I was going to wear that day. As the water runs over me I can feel the adult cares run off of me and I can easily wash them down the drain, if only for a while.

The wine brings back fond memories when I was a girl. My adoptive grandparents owned a large vineyard in the midwest and I remember running through the vineyard as the grapes were being harvested at their peak, such electricity in the air. I watched as the men in the family filled the vat with grapes and separated them into juice and filled barrels for wine. Before I was even old enough to attend school I knew what a bushel and a peck really was from my Hungarian grandmother, days of long ago. I have a fondness for wine and my home decor elegantly reflects my childhood. Advice: Find something that takes you back to a relaxing moment and indulge yourself.

Other ways to pamper yourself without going on a food binge…

Treat yourself to an occasional bouquet of fresh flowers from your local market. Often times the grey landscape of winter (at least in here in Seattle) can leave you looking forward to the bright blooms of spring, bring them into your home early! Flowers can be an inexpensive pick me up. If you are in the Seattle area, you already know that the most amazing place for flowers is Pike’s Place Market!

For $10-$15 you can get a bouquet that is absolutely stunning! Guys, this applies to you as well. I know that there are guys out there that like flowers just as much as the ladies. Of course, Valentine’s Day is coming up so many of you guys will already be purchasing flowers….and you won’t be getting them for $10-$15! Tip for the guys while I am on the flower roll: Think outside the box gentlemen, roses aren’t the only flower and red isn’t the only color! While red roses have come to symbolize love and romance, the daisy represents undying love…you aren’t going to get that from a rose! The tulip, in general, holds the meaning that you are a perfect lover. Ladies, you already know that he loves you, what is better than having him follow that up with tulips symbolizing the fact that you are also pretty darn great in other areas! ; ) I know right now half of you just took off to buy tulips. Again, bring something cheerful into your home to put a little “spring” in your step.

Another great de-stresser…

Love an animal. My guy Zack to the left has brought me more laughs and joy than I can even put in to words. We seem to share the same personality. Zack may look like perhaps his elevator doesn’t quite reach the top floor but whose does any way. He was smart enough to make the most pathetic face to get me to take him home as a tiny guy and I have been catering to him ever since. He even has his own Facebook page and a handful of followers, not too shabby I’d say. He posts things like, “Can you go out and buy me some of those Beggin Strips before this whole Rapture thing starts up and the Zombies show up at our door? Kthxbai ~love your dog, Zack Cruz”.

If you don’t have a four-legged friend, I highly recommend one. When you have had a rough day there is nothing in this world that will make you forget it quite like a soft ball of fur crawling up onto your lap and looking at you with big, sweet eyes. Suddenly the day is so much better. Loving an animal gives life to the spirit, at least it does mine.

And finally, help someone less fortunate than yourself. I find that when my glass is half empty, I always feel better when I fill someone else’s glass first. I am a strong believer in paying it forward in life.