Author: tom44

Setting boundaries in relationships isn’t easy—and there are several misconceptions about what setting boundaries actually means. You might hesitate to form boundaries in your career, romantic relationships, or friendships because you assume this will make you come across as unreliable, selfish, or inconsiderate. 

You’re afraid to push others away, turn down opportunities, and fall short of expectations, so you just continue showing up—often to your own detriment. A recent survey found that 65 percent of women have trouble saying, “No,” to a request or invitation they don’t want to be part of. 

I know I’ve done this before and I’m sure you have too. It doesn’t feel good—and yet, it feels impossible to just do what you actually want to do. So you stay stuck in that cycle.

The truth is that setting healthy boundaries in relationships is an essential form of self-care and, as a result, is critical for your overall health and wellness. Let’s unpack what setting boundaries means (hint: it might not be what you think!) and the benefits of creating them for both your physical and mental health.

Understanding What Healthy Boundaries Mean for Your Health

First and foremost, I want to be clear on what I mean when I say “setting boundaries.” For me, setting a boundary is about determining what I want or need and then making a decision about how to achieve that for myself. Boundaries give us permission to:

• Honor our own limits
• Restore our inner peace and balance
• Determine where we should invest our time and energy
• Notice what doesn’t serve us
• Trust ourselves to know exactly what we need

In other words, boundaries aren’t always necessarily meant to keep people out or push people or experiences away. They’re more about tuning into what you need and honoring that deeply and completely.

Believing the latter is true might be why setting boundaries feels uncomfortable. You fear that you’ll sabotage your relationships or environments that matter to you. 

The truth is, the more you learn to establish, communicate, and maintain boundaries, the more full and complete all areas of your life will start to feel. You’ll also feel less resentment toward other people and situations in your life.

Here are great things that boundaries can do for you:   

• Make it easier to clarify and align with your main priorities. 
• Help you distinguish your own needs, thoughts, and emotions from those of others. 
• Help you release responsibility for someone else’s expectations.
• Reinforce confidence, resilience, and a clear sense of identity.
• Ensure that your time and resources are being allocated intentionally.
• Promote healthy conflict resolution to enrich your relationships.
• Recharge your mental, emotional, and physical batteries.
• Nurture self-respect by communicating what you will not tolerate.

Different Types of Boundaries for Your Many Relationships

Relationship boundaries strengthen your connections with both people and things in your life. These boundaries can take many forms and each one can create more space for your authentic self to flourish and intentional, mindful living to take root. 

Notice how I’m not just referencing relationships with other people. There are many ways I’ve set boundaries in my relationships, yes with people like friends or partners, but also with technology and work—and so much more. You have a relationship with both things and people in your life—and being clear with how they play a role in your life is powerful. 

Let’s break down some different types of boundaries and how you can set them in your own life.

Emotional Boundaries

Emotional boundaries allow for a healthy relationship. They ensure that you’re safe to communicate how you feel without taking on the emotions of others. These boundaries will help you set the emotional investment you’re able to put forth so you can pull back to regulate your emotions and return to a state of balance. 

Setting an emotional boundary in a situation or with a person also empowers you to combat false narratives about yourself. In turn, you can begin to release the expectations, insecurities, and negative beliefs or reactions. Here are some examples of healthy emotional boundaries:

• I won’t tolerate being spoken to disrespectfully.
• I’m not comfortable discussing my past traumas with someone I just met.
• I need some space to process my feelings before discussing that topic further.
• I won’t take responsibility for someone else’s emotions.
• I’m going to focus on my own needs and self-care right now.

I know this can be really hard, especially if you haven’t set boundaries in the past. But, by practicing little by little, it will get easier and be worth it in the end.”

Physical Boundaries

Physical boundaries establish a comfortable, protective barrier around your own space or body, from choosing to rest when you’re tired to telling a friend when you need space. These boundaries reinforce a compassionate, self-aware, and intuitive connection with your own body, which helps you develop deeper self-trust. 

For example, a physical boundary could be to establish alone time or even a physical space within your home where you can retreat for solitude and relaxation, such as a reading nook or a home office. 

Remember, you’re allowed to ask for personal space, even if you’re in a romantic relationship, live with roommates, or have children.

Work-Life Boundaries

Work-life boundaries create a firm separation between your personal and career obligations. An intentional work-life balance prevents the time you spend on the job from blurring into the time you allocate toward self-care and family activities. 

A good example of this might be a time boundary: turning off your email notifications right at 5 PM. While a lack of boundaries in this area can lead to exhaustion and burnout, a healthy work-life balance will improve your mental health, reduce stress levels, and increase happiness. 

I know this is something you’ve heard before—but do you actually set and respect those boundaries? 

Technology Boundaries

Technology boundaries help you establish restrictions on smartphone usage, so you can unplug from virtual screens and connect with the real world. I know that if I’m not intentional about this, I’ll check my phone continually throughout the day without even thinking about it.  

This is a chance to set some guidelines for when you want to be on your phone or how much time you want to spend on social media. Putting physical space between yourself and these aspects of your life can help you better align with the self-care you want to give yourself.    

Interestingly, a two-week detox from social media was found to result in less anxiety, stress, sleep disturbances, and even sedentary habits. If those are goals for your life, a digital detox or better tech boundaries are a good thing to consider.

Putting Boundary-Setting into Practice

Now, we get to the part that might feel the hardest—drawing the line in the sand and setting those clear boundaries. Here’s an exercise you can use to take the emotion of this practice and instead, focus on what you need and how you can make it possible. 

Take a piece of paper and draw two lines down it so you have three columns. Fill them out as follows:

Column 1: Identify how you want to take better care of yourself. Coming back to self-care and what is getting in the way of that. Start with 5-10 things that your mind and body is craving. Maybe it’s more nutritious food options during the week or extra quiet time before or after work.

Column 2: Determine what’s getting in the way of those things. Write this in column two next to each thing. Maybe you’re eating out for lunch each day, rather than making yourself a nutrient-dense lunch because you’re not giving yourself the time to get to the grocery store. Write that down.

Column 3: In the last column, write what small action you can take to set a healthy boundary and give yourself the thing you’ve been needing. Be realistic here—this isn’t about magically creating more hours in the day. It’s about doing what you can with what you have. 

Finally, choose 2-3 of these things that you can start doing this week. Set those boundaries, get a little uncomfortable as you put them in place, and see what happens. With a little practice, setting boundaries will get easier—and you’ll feel good too!

Communicating Boundaries (With Yourself and Others)

Effective boundary-setting with others requires clarity, consistency, communication, and assertiveness. Clearly articulating your boundaries helps to avoid misunderstandings and conflicts. 

I want you to remember that being assertive doesn’t mean being aggressive or confrontational. It’s about expressing your needs and limits firmly but respectfully, while also being open to negotiation and compromise when appropriate. 

For example, if you repeatedly experience a boundary violation, it’s necessary to calmly but firmly reassert what you need, perhaps with additional clarification if necessary. It might even be necessary to put space between you and the person who’s violating your boundary to protect yourself and your mental health. 

Just as important as communicating to others is holding healthy boundaries for yourself. This requires you to not only recognize your own limits, needs, and desires—but also keep yourself accountable to prioritizing those things. 

In doing this, you empower yourself in other areas of your life too, which allows you to further set boundaries that are needed as your life changes and evolves.  

Strengthen Your Boundaries and Nurture Self-Care with Lindywell

Healthy boundaries in your relationships with people, technology, and work make it possible to regulate emotions, maintain inner peace, successfully navigate relationships, restore energy levels, and, ultimately, prioritize your own self-care. Boundaries are about more than just saying, “No,” to what doesn’t serve you. Boundaries also free you up to offer a resounding, ”Yes!” to what feels most important in each season of life.

To prioritize your well-being in a way that is easy and convenient, I invite you to become a part of our community at Lindywell. Join now and get 14 days free! As a member, you’ll gain instant access to more than 350 Pilates classes, guided breathwork sessions, and nourishing recipes. Shift into grace over guilt while you make time for YOU.

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The idea of eating detoxifying foods might feel like a fad. It’s often linked to trendy teas, shakes, powders, herbs, juices, or supplements that claim to remove all the toxins from your bloodstream in a “miraculously” short amount of time. 

Although it’s been co-opted as a marketing tactic by the diet industry, as a nutrition therapist myself, I can tell you that the process of detoxification offers many health benefits. (And no, you don’t need to be an expert to know how reap those benefits.) 

I want to cut through all the buzz and hype and get right into what we all need to know about eating detoxifying foods. Plus, we’ll talk about how a few simple swaps can have a significant impact on your health and well-being (hint: you don’t need an entire “detox diet” or “expensive juice cleanse” to reap the benefits).

As a disclaimer, I want to emphasize that no foods are inherently evil—food is fuel; we need it for energy, alertness, endurance, strength, and wellness. Some foods have more nutritional density than others, but all foods are permissible and can be part of a balanced and joyful lifestyle. Listen to your body and your own specific needs, then make dietary choices that feel nourishing to you. 

Managing Toxins in Today’s World

There are thousands of toxic chemicals in the products we use, the clothes we wear, the foods we eat, and even the environment around us. Many of us are exposed to these chemicals on a daily basis, which can lead to major health concerns over time. 

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, here are a few ways that toxins impact many aspects of our health, including:

• Compromised immune function
• Hormonal imbalances
• Increased cholesterol levels
• Reproductive or fertility issues
• Hypertension in pregnant women
• Elevated risk of cancer

It’s crucial to be aware that pesticides, antibiotics, preservatives, and artificial ingredients that are in many of the mass-market brands and processed food in grocery store aisles. However, while these chemicals can increase the toxic load in our systems, we don’t have to give them up altogether.

The beautiful thing is that our bodies were designed with the ability to detoxify. It’s incredible. We have detoxification pathways that move toxins through our body to protect our health. The problem comes when either our detoxification pathways aren’t working as they should (they’re sluggish) or our toxic load gets so high that our body’s innate detoxification pathways can’t keep up.

This is why the goal is to balance and bring other foods into your diet to minimize the impact of these toxins and support our body’s natural detox pathways.

How Detoxing Foods Help

Detoxifying foods help your liver utilize GST enzymes, which are responsible for flushing out the harmful chemicals we take in. This lowers oxidative stress to protect us from chronic illness, bolster our various organ functions, and even sharpen our brain health. In short: nutrition cleanses us naturally from the inside out.

When you work some of the foods I share below into your diet, you can reduce your risk of: 

• Chronic inflammation
• Reproductive issues
• Cardiovascular problems
• Immune dysfunction
• Cognitive impairment 

The Best Foods for Detoxification and Their Benefits 

The first thing to know is that products in the grocery store promoted as “detox food” or the newest fad detox supplement are not what we’re looking for. To reap the physical and mental health benefits of detoxifying foods, choose whole foods that are high in antioxidants. (I get into some great examples of these foods in a minute—don’t worry, I’ve got you covered!)

These organic compounds neutralize free radical molecules (which occur due to chemical exposure and cause damage to the cells), so you can metabolize and eliminate those toxins.

Many antioxidant-rich foods also contain probiotics, fiber, and omega-3 fatty acids, which can aid in healthy digestion and contribute to a diverse gut microbiome. Here is a wide range of detoxifying foods to add to your grocery list.

Cruciferous Vegetables

Brussels sprouts, cabbage, radishes, broccoli, cauliflower, and leafy greens will help your liver create a protein called glutathione, which it uses to excrete harmful chemicals. These cruciferous vegetables also contain many vitamins, minerals, and bioactive metabolites that can protect against cancer.

Try our Kale and Brussel Sprout Salad recipe.

Nuts and Seeds

Almonds, walnuts, flax, hemp, sesame, chia, and sunflower seeds can lower your risk of diabetes, stroke, infections, heart issues, metabolic syndrome, cancer, and all-cause mortality. These benefits are due to their protein, fiber, antimicrobial, and antioxidant profile, which helps manage the effects of inflammation.

Try our Homemade Nutty Granola recipe.

Fermented or Cultured Foods

Kimchi, yogurt, sauerkraut, miso, tofu, kefir, seaweed, or pickled vegetables contain healthy bacteria (including probiotics) that will cleanse and improve your gut microbiota. The fermentation process also releases organic molecules to promote intestinal health, lower cholesterol, and boost immunity.

Try our Veggie Packed Kimchi Rice recipe.

Allium Vegetables

Ginger, onions, chives, shallots, garlic, leeks, and turmeric have a high concentration of antioxidants to help lower inflammation, oxidative stress, blood pressure, and metabolic dysfunction. The sulfur content in many allium vegetables has also been found to treat the effects of toxic heavy metal absorption.

Try our Grain-Free Ginger Collagen muffins recipe.

Berries and Citrus Fruits

Grapefruits, lemons, oranges, limes, and all types of berries contain a wide range of antioxidants (ex. phenolic acid, luteolin, flavanone, anthocyanin, chalcone, etc.). These nutrients combat the free radicals known to cause tissue damage, viral or bacterial infections, and cancer or other chronic diseases.

Try our Orange Flax Smoothie recipe.

Foods with Natural Oils

We’re all about the healthy fat here at Lindywell because of the goodness it provides our minds and bodies. Avocados, soybeans, mackerel, sardines, tuna, salmon, and pasture-raised eggs contain omega-3 fatty acids from natural oils, which act as a line of defense against cadmium exposure. This heavy metal can harm your immune function, musculoskeletal growth, nervous system, and vital organs. However, omega-3 fatty acids will form a protective barrier around your cells to decrease absorption.

Try our Avocado Egg Bake with Salsa recipe. 

Nourishing and Detoxifying Recipes for Each Meal

Choosing detoxifying foods isn’t just about supporting liver health, boosting your immune system or toxin elimination—though those are all great benefits! The foods you consume can also help cultivate radical self-love, nourishment, and balance. Not only will optimal nutrition make you feel more energetic, and vibrant—but it can also promote mindful, intuitive eating habits that help to heal your relationship with food. 

So, what does it look like to bring this all together? Here’s a little cheat sheet to create some tasty meals each week!

Breakfasts:

• Vanilla chia seed parfait
• Avocado toast with eggs and scallions
• Ginger and grapefruit smoothie
• Almond flour blueberry muffins

Lunches:

• Mexican quinoa, avocado, and citrus salad
• Poached egg, leafy green, and cauliflower rice bowl
• Maple roasted Brussels sprouts salad
• Salmon, tofu, and buckwheat noodle soup

Dinners:

• Broccoli, onion, and tofu green curry
• Chicken orzo stew with lemon, garlic, and leeks
• Slow-roasted salmon with fennel and citrus
• Ginger, miso, and tahini squash soup with brown rice

Snacks and Desserts:

• Spinach, egg, and shallot quinoa bites
• Miso-glazed whole nuts and seeds
• Ginger and turmeric cookies with vanilla icing
• Lemon, blueberry, and yogurt bark

Beyond Nutrition: Other Holistic Detox Practices 

Eating nutrient-rich foods is just one way to stimulate the body’s natural detoxification process. Now let’s turn our attention to a couple of other holistic wellness practices that you can work into your routine—alongside nutrition—for balance, cleansing, and renewal.   

Optimal Hydration: There’s a direct correlation between high water intake and a lower risk of all-cause mortality. That’s because optimal hydration activates the liver enzymes to flush out waste products, carcinogens, and other harmful toxins while promoting healthy nutrient digestion and absorption. Most people need about half their body weight in ounces – and possibly more depending on how rich your diet is in fruits and vegetables, weather, activity level, phase of menstrual cycle, and other factors that impact water intake and needs.

Physical Activities: Regular movement helps open your detoxification pathways and in turn, decreases inflammation. This lowers oxidative stress so your cells can purge excess liver build-up more efficiently. If you struggle to make time for movement, start your 14-day free trial of Lindywell to get instant access to 350+ on-demand Pilates classes.

Nourish and Flourish with the Lindywell Community

Ready to embrace a deep sense of renewal from the inside out and support your overall health, both mind and body? Bring some detoxifying foods into your diet and join us here at Lindywell. Our online community will empower you with the tools to nourish your mental and physical wellness so you can flourish in all areas of life. 

Sign up now to get 14 days free and access more than 350 gentle Pilates sessions, breathwork practices, and nutritious meal plans to cultivate a healthy, non-toxic relationship with yourself!

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The health benefits of gardening go far beyond the delicious food, herbs, and flowers you harvest throughout the season. (Though there are few things as rewarding as biting into the food you grew yourself!) 

That primal sensation of growing plants, touching the earth, basking in the sunshine, and nurturing seeds rejuvenates both your mental and physical well-being. Although I don’t always have time to garden, I have high hopes for starting a garden every year because I love all the benefits of it.

Those who do garden feel deeply rooted in the present in those moments, and that sense of presence is powerful for our mental health. But that’s not the only benefit. Being in nature, having your hands in the dirt, and other aspects of gardening boost feelings of enjoyment and calm and promote self-care. Plus it can actually be a great low-impact movement option and help you feel more connected to others.

If you’re ready to start your first vegetable garden—or already love gardening and just want to learn more—let’s dive into why this is a great addition to your mental health toolkit.

The Wholesome Joys of Gardening

At Lindywell, we believe in living a wholistically healthy lifestyle. That means thinking about more than just what you eat and how you move. We also want you to do things that make you happy, reduce stress, and support your sleep. All of this impacts every aspect of your life in meaningful ways. 

Gardening is a hobby that helps you reap all of those rewards, but it’s about so much more than just being in a green space, which we know reduces stress. Let’s get into the specifics of why you may need to become a garden gal this year!

Gardening for Your Physical Health

You may be surprised to know that gardening has physical benefits! Yes, gardening is a low-impact, moderate-intensity form of exercise that can easily be tailored to all mobility levels. 

Interestingly, participating in this activity for about 150 minutes (2.5 hours) a week could lower your risk of chronic medical issues such as type-2 diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, or even cancer, while bolstering resilience and life satisfaction. Sign me up!

The functional movements associated with this physical activity can also increase flexibility, strength, bone density, balance, and range of motion—all of which we need now and as we age joyfully. Meanwhile, getting sunshine will stimulate Vitamin D production, which regulates your metabolism, enhances sleep quality, reduces inflammation, and protects against arthritis or chronic pain. 

As if it couldn’t get any better, eating fresh produce from your garden will nurture a healthy gut microbiome thanks to the vitamin-synthesizing bacteria in the soil. This helps you digest vital nutrients like fiber, iron, selenium, antioxidants, and Vitamins C and K—all of which the body requires to perform essential organ, cellular, and brain functions. And that’s just the start of the benefits!

Gardening to Connect With Nature

Almost 90 percent of gardeners feel the main benefit of this activity is a connection to nature. Gardening is full of sensory and somatic practices like breathing in the fresh air, listening to the sounds of birds, or noticing how soil feels on your skin. 

This can help you tune out distractions and immerse yourself in natural surroundings, dissipating your stress as the peace sets in. I can feel that ease even just thinking about it. Time spent in nature has a soothing effect on the neuroendocrine system as well, reducing cortisol levels, which can boost immune function and mood.

Ultimately, the stronger your connection to nature, the deeper the sense of fulfillment you’ll have. Connecting back to nature is specifically associated with mental health, emotional balance, vitality, personal growth, stress relief, self-acceptance, joyfulness, and meaning in life. All of which can help reset the nervous system, too. (And most of us can use more nervous system support!)

Gardening for Mindfulness

Gardening as a therapeutic intervention shares many similarities with mindfulness practices such as meditation, breathwork, gratitude affirmations, or gentle movement. Those who garden often report a heightened awareness of the present, which reinforces attentional focus, cognitive function, self-efficacy, and positive mental health outcomes.

Gardening for Stress Relief and Mental Health Benefits

You may be realizing that the way you feel after spending time in the garden isn’t just in your head. That stress relief you feel isn’t either—there’s a direct correlation between gardening activities and lower rates of chronic stress, anxiety, or depression. 

This is thanks to the restorative effects of nature, which create a psychological response to stabilize blood pressure and cortisol levels, thus increasing your mood, positive affect, and emotional regulation. This is actually called horticultural therapy and it’s been documented since the 19th century!

Plus, interacting with flowers, plants, and other natural elements can calm the autonomic nervous system, which has also been shown to strengthen mental resilience and promote healthy stress management. The more resilience you cultivate, the easier it becomes to recover from stressful circumstances, adapt to challenges, and steer clear of harmful coping mechanisms or impulsive reactions. 

Gardening for Self-Esteem and Connection

As if it couldn’t get any better, gardening can also boost your self-esteem, happiness, quality of life, and mental wellbeing. If you plant in a community garden, social interaction can also cause you to experience less loneliness and feel more connection and cohesion. 

Community gardening is a great way to get to know the people around you if you’re new to your area or just haven’t had a chance to connect yet—another important aspect of your mental health.

Now I’m really ready to finally get into the garden! It’s incredible to me what a positive impact this hobby can have on our lives.

Grow, Flourish, and Thrive with Lindywell 

Here at Lindywell, we’re all about making play a daily habit and taking care of your whole self—mind and body! Gardening checks each of those boxes, not to mention, the results are so worthwhile. Soaking in the beauty of colorful flowers or taking a bite of fresh, juicy tomatoes make summer even better.

If you’re looking for more enjoyable, therapeutic ways to nurture your well-being and flourish in all areas of life, come grow with us at Lindywell. As a member of our vibrant, global community, you get access to nourishing recipes (that you’ll need with all that fresh produce!), mindful breathwork sessions, and 350+ Pilates classes to help you thrive from the inside out. Start your 14-day free trial now!

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Not everyone is a natural “morning person.” I, however, have always been one of those annoyingly chipper morning people who wake up jumping out of bed. That’s not always the case now. From having kids to life getting hard, no matter how much of a “morning person” I am—it’s not always easy to wake up feeling excited about the possibilities of a new day. 

In good times or bad, more often than not, we’re rushing around to look presentable for a Zoom meeting or to ensure the kids get to school on time while downing a cup of coffee and barely remembering to eat breakfast. Does any of this sound familiar? I’m right there with you!

Sure, the frenzied pace of some mornings can feel hectic and stressful—I know I have to intentionally control my flurry of thoughts in the morning. My mind races with energy. But, if your mind starts to race with overwhelming, panicked, or intrusive thoughts regularly, before your feet even touch the floor, a deeper mental health issue could be lurking beneath the surface. 

This might be an indication of morning anxiety. What I want you to know, first and foremost, is that this doesn’t need to be the norm for you—you can shake that morning anxiety. Secondly, getting a deeper understanding of your unique experience will help you overcome it. 

Let’s unpack all of this so you can start to have a fresher, brighter start to the day. 

Understanding the Causes of Your Morning Anxiety

While “morning anxiety” is not an official diagnosis, it’s more common than you might realize to deal with. Maybe some of this sounds familiar to you:

• Fear of not being able to complete all the tasks on your schedule.
• Feeling like you’re disappointing your spouse or kids.
• Worrying about running late and people being mad at you.
• Struggling to navigate work and home expectations, which makes you feel like you’re always failing.  

All of this can (understandably!) make starting the day feel almost impossible—and while many of us experience similar anxieties, the cause for them is different for each of us. 

To combat this morning anxiety, you need to know why it’s impacting you in particular. This will help you figure out what you need to do to overcome it. Here are just a few common culprits to consider as potential anxiety-drivers in your life. 

Chronically High Cortisol Levels

Cortisol (or stress hormone levels) immediately start to rise each morning within the first 30–60 minutes of being awake. This is your body’s way of priming your brain circuits for alertness and optimal function. 

But if cortisol production is too high (due to chronic stress or circadian rhythm imbalance), it can elevate your morning blood pressure, heart rate, and autonomic nervous system. These sensations activate the body’s “fight-or-flight” response, which often leads to anxiety.       

Insomnia or Sleep Disturbances  

According to the Behavioral Sciences Journal, frequent bouts of insomnia, sleep disturbances, or irregular sleep habits increase the overall risk of anxiety. That’s because chronic poor sleep quality throws off your body’s natural secretion of melatonin and serotonin, which are responsible for stabilizing your mood. 

Excess Sugar or Caffeine Intake

We’ve all heard coffee can be bad for us, and in this case, it can be playing a role in your morning anxiety. A recent study in the Cureus Journal found that increasing caffeine consumption leads to higher anxiety levels. Plus, excessive sugar intake can lead to inflammation in the body, which also contributes to anxiety.

Not Enough Balance in Your Life

Being able to maintain an intentional balance between family priorities, work obligations, and personal wellness is hard (I know how challenging this can be personally)—and yet it’s vital for reducing chronic stress, anxiety, and emotional burnout. (This is why we say play is important for all of us to reduce stress!)

From finishing work projects and shuttling the kids to soccer practice to figuring out dinner and ensuring the bills are paid on time, there’s a relentless task list competing for your attention. This can cause mindFULLness to take root, which distracts you from the present and throws you off-balance, resulting in that all-too-familiar morning anxiety and sense of overwhelm.

Practical Strategies to Help Relieve Morning Anxiety

It may not be cut and dry on what is causing your morning anxiety; it’s likely a blend of those causes mixed in with your own unique challenges. That’s okay. For right now, go with your gut—when you read the list in the section above, which ones cause a little “ping” in your mind? (Even if you’re trying to ignore that ping!)

I want you to follow that little gut feeling as you read these strategies so you can focus on the options that are best suited to what you really need. 

Establish a peaceful morning rhythm.

All the talk about morning routines is more than just hype. People who form a daily routine are more likely to experience a sense of meaning in their lives. Here’s the thing: this routine doesn’t have to be elaborate for you to reap the mental health benefits. Keep it simple. Choose up to 3 small things you can do to create a rhythm. The goal is to soothe anxious feelings as you transition into a new day. Here’s a big list of self-care activities to incorporate into your morning routine if you want some ideas to get started!

Tune into your body

All that noise that causes the anxiety is in your head. Take time to get out of your head (and all that noise) and instead listen to your body. A few of my favorite ways to do that include meditation, breathwork, body scans, and Pilates. When you tune into the sensations and experiences of the moment you’re in, you can reduce the stress associated with worrying about the past or thinking about the future. 

Integrate movement into your routine.

Exercise is a natural mood enhancer. Block out time in your schedule for physical activities, no matter what time of day it is. But remember: this doesn’t have to mean going to the gym or lifting weights if that doesn’t feel good for you. Focus on mindful movement and choose activities that you actually enjoy doing. If you struggle to get going in the morning, try Lindywell’s 10-minute Energizing Morning Pilates Routine. Start your 14-day free trial and try it tomorrow moring! 

Seek out extra support if you need to.

There’s no shame in asking for help when the anxiety is too debilitating to overcome on your own. Seeking this support was critical to my healing process—and I wish I had asked for it sooner. Check out Psychology Today’s directory of therapists and mental health professionals to find support that’s right for you. Don’t forget that talking to your friends, family, and network can be helpful too. Sometimes just saying it out loud is the relief that you need!

Adjust expectations with compassion.

If your anxious feelings come from unrealistic expectations, rethinking those expectations can be an effective antidote. Rather than holding yourself to certain ideals or performance metrics, embrace self-compassion and shift your mindset to “grace over guilt” (a favorite mantra here at Lindywell). 

Embrace Anxiety-Free Mornings with Lindywell

Ready to swap out morning anxiety for refreshment and renewal? Join our thriving community here at Lindywell where we love mindful movement, focus on grace over guilt, and embrace each season of life. 

As a Lindywell member, you have access to more than 350 Pilates classes, calming breathwork sessions, nourishing recipes, and other resources to help you overcome those anxious feelings and reclaim your well-being. Plus, 91% of our members say that Lindywell helps them stay consistent! Start your wellness journey with a free 14-day trial now!

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Inner peace is so much more than just a brief escape from the chaotic events of daily life—though that’s what I thought it was many years ago too. What I learned, though, is that it’s actually this beautiful, continual state of being that you can harness in all environments, circumstances, and interactions. 

When I began to live from this intentional space, after a few very challenging years life threw my way, I found I could unlock a deeper sense of balance, rootedness, connection, and presence. Even as challenges arose, I felt deeply grounded in my sense of calm. 

Interestingly, even in our chaotic, unpredictable world, the majority of us (61 percent) hold onto inner peace during challenging times. This is uplifting news, of course—but what if you’re among the other 39 percent who do not feel a sense of inner peace? 

Here’s the thing: as desirable as inner peace sounds, it does take intentional work to make it a reality. Let’s explore what it means to find more inner peace in your daily life—and break down how these 5 simple steps can help you get there!

Understanding the Essence of Inner Peace

Inner peace is defined as an essential facet of well-being, rooted in both mindfulness and equanimity (mental and emotional composure in difficult situations). Inner peace can help you maintain resilience, calmness, acceptance, contentment, harmony, and meaning in life—no matter the stressors you might face. 

Research even shows that those who cultivate inner peace are also less likely to suffer from poor mental health outcomes such as anxiety or depression. So, how does inner peace manifest itself in action? 

Inner peace is about learning how to accept this moment you’re in, release the need for control, lean into curiosity and compassion, and embrace your most authentic self. This can result in healthier relationships, stronger mental and emotional stability, and a clearer sense of who you are—all the unique traits you have to offer and the areas where you still have room for growth. Basically, inner peace is a mindset through which you view life. But to experience it, you’ll need to ask the question: What holds me back from inner peace?

Unpacking the Obstacles to Inner Peace

The first step to tapping into that inner peace is being aware of the obstacles standing between you and it. When you know what’s in the way, you can challenge each obstacle to create more of that balance and harmony.

Here are a few common (but totally manageable!) barriers that can prevent you from finding the inner peace you desire. 

Mindfullness

You read that correctly—there’s a clear distinction between being mindfull versus mindful. Here at Lindywell, we love talking about the benefits of mindfulness, but mindfullness is the exact opposite. Operating with a full mind consumes your brain with relentless, anxious thoughts that distract you from the present and cause you to either dwell on the past or worry about the future. Mindfulness, however, will ground you in the rhythms, sensations, and experiences of this moment you’re living in.

Self-Judgment

Everyone makes poor choices, but how you respond to those mistakes will reveal whether or not you’re in a state of inner peace. You can learn, grow, and improve—or you can internalize shame and label yourself a failure. 

Self-judgment can lead you to question your intrinsic worth and fall into the “fixed mindset” trap (a belief that your attributes are unchangeable). To find that daily inner peace, you have to overcome this form of toxic guilt.

Perfectionism

Women are especially prone to feeling like we’re under a microscope (either from society or ourselves) to look and behave by unrealistic ideals. If you have felt these expectations, then chances are, you’re no stranger to the pressure and weariness of striving for perfection. 

Releasing the need to be perfect and maintain rigid control over yourself will create more opportunities to embrace the unexpected joys in life—no matter how wild, messy, and nonlinear your path might be. And in that special place between wild, messy, and happy, is where you can find a whole lot of peace.

False Narratives

The script you’ve written for yourself (whether or not it’s factual) can become the lens through which you construct meaning and perceive reality. While not all of these stories are harmful, a false narrative can hold you back from achieving your full potential, realizing your dreams, or ultimately finding inner peace. 

False narratives are limiting beliefs that shake your self-esteem or deter you from pursuing the kind of life you want. But as the narrator, you can write a new and empowering story! 

5 Strategies to Help You Achieve Inner Peace

Peace of mind ranks just below having basic needs met as a main predictor of longevity, life satisfaction, and subjective well-being, according to the Journal of Happiness Studies. Wow, that is incredible data and so hopeful! 

Peace of mind is something you can choose and these five strategies will help lay the foundation for peaceful living until it becomes your natural and habitual response to whatever situations might arise.

1. Try Somatic Breathwork

Breathwork changed my life. In particular, somatic breathwork, which we love most here at Lindywell, can be powerful in connecting you to peace and balance. This is a practice that trains you to focus on bodily sensations, like the breath you’re taking in or tingling in your arms, to create deeper awareness and connection to the present. 

The benefit of this style of breathing is that it takes you out of your head and into your body. We spend so much time in our heads but the body has so much to say. Listening to your body in this way can get you one step closer to feeling more peaceful each day.

2. Prioritize Movement—Outside

Most of us know that exercise releases endorphins and serotonin, which can stimulate positive feelings. But there’s also a correlation between physical activity outside and inner peace. Adults, 60 years and older in Brazil, who moved for 120 to 180 minutes a week reported being more likely to have healthy social interactions, robust mental wellness, and a thriving quality of life than their non-active peers—but these results were compounded when they did that movement outside. 

Why? Nature naturally embodies that peace you’re craving. It’s tranquil and restorative and creates a sense of calm when you immerse yourself in it. Move your body outside and tune into the peace you feel as you walk through the grass or breathe in the fresh air.

3. Get Intentional About Stress Management

Stress is an inevitable part of life, but chronic stress can lead to both physical and mental health concerns, pushing you to burnout over time. Fortunately, with a little stress management, you can slow your heart rate, lower blood pressure, and relax the nervous system. 

All of this makes it easier to navigate life without constant mental distress or hypervigilance that can make it challenging to access a greater sense of peace. Some stress management strategies I love, include:

• Breathwork (of course!)
• Walks outside
• Dancing in your kitchen or taking a class (one of my personal favorites)
• Barefoot walking (earthing)
• Humming or singing
• Play (I love building with Legos!)
• Creating (painting, making clay pots—anything with your hands is good!)

4. Build Your Mental and Emotional Resilience

Resilience refers to the ability to adapt, recover, and thrive in the face of adversity, challenges, or setbacks, demonstrating flexibility, strength, and perseverance. And let’s be honest, there’s a lot of this in life! But that’s okay because it’s these moments that not only give us the chance to practice resilience but to tap into that inner reserve of peace within us. 

One way to build your resilience muscle is to sit with hard feelings and emotions. The thing many people don’t realize is that emotions have sensations and that’s part of why we build this type of resilience and awareness—it gives you information so that when you see it again you can make a connection. 

For example, every time I grind my teeth, I notice that I’m feeling an emotion. It’s all connected and the more we can make those connections, the more we can take action from a place of empowerment.

One way to start recognizing these connections is with your breath. If a difficult moment or feeling comes up, I take a few moments to let it be there instead of pushing it away. As I do, I take deep breaths and get curious: 

• What meaning am I giving this feeling?
• Where do I feel it in my body?
• What sensations are coming up?
• What would happen if I could let it just be?

The more we can be present during a hard moment or emotion, the more resilient we become.

5. Explore Hobbies and Creative Outlets

Whether you pick up a coloring book, write in your journal, crochet a scarf, dance in the living room, or just make a little more time for play—there’s a direct link between creativity and inner peace. An artistic or creative outlet can promote self-efficacy, encourage internal reflection and expression, increase positive affect, and nurture a clearer sense of meaning in life, according to the Heliyon Journal.

You don’t have to create a masterpiece either—just give yourself freedom to experiment, and have fun with the process wherever it leads. Even blocking out time in your normal routine to do something fun and playful can unleash new sparks of creativity and inspiration to refresh your soul and make you smile—a win-win!

Make Lindywell Part of Your Journey to Inner Peace

Finding inner peace isn’t something you can do overnight—but it is possible if you choose to intentionally create more peace in your life. More importantly, there’s power in doing it with others. If you want to be part of a community that believes in the power of doing this beautiful work together, I invite you to join us here at Lindywell.

Embark on a free 14-day trial and unlock all our membership benefits, including access to 350+ online Pilates classes, breathwork sessions, and nourishing recipes, all intentionally curated to restore wellness, balance, and peace of mind.

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The importance of recovery days cannot be overlooked. In most health-focused conversations, people and experts are often quick to focus on cultivating habits around physical activity, movement, or nutrition. While both of these are important (very important!), there’s something that gets easily overlooked: rest days.

I was totally caught off guard when I got my health diagnosis a few years ago—lab results showed that my hormones were all out of whack. While the test results revealed that an auto-immune disease was not currently present, she told me that I had to make changes. Thankfully, there were steps I could take to improve my health, but it would take time, intentionality, and perhaps most important of all, rest.

For some of us, that wake-up call to rest comes as a diagnosis, like mine did. For others, it comes in letting go of the belief that rest is lazy or “unproductive.”

Perhaps you’re like me right now: operating in a state of disconnection from your body, receiving warning signs to slow down, but still powering through. The problem is, this is a clear route to burnout.

I get it. In our fast-paced, high-intensity lives, rest can become more of an afterthought than a priority. However, we need it for both physical and mental health. As a busy mom, business owner, and someone who prioritizes relationships and cup-filling activities, I know it can feel hard to slow down. Yet, it’s one of the best things we can do for minds and bodies at every age.

If you to experience, wholistic health results, you have to rest. Let’s talk about why rest days are so important, why burnout is so dangerous, and how you can rest into your routine in a way that feels fulfilling and supportive. 

Without Rest, Burnout is Inevitable

Do you often feel like you’re in motion all the time? I get it, I feel that way sometimes too. The thing is, this puts you at risk for burnout. This state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion is a result of chronic stress or overwhelm—and women can be particularly vulnerable to the insidious impact of burnout. 

In fact, women report higher stress levels than men, according to a recent survey from the American Psychological Association. What’s more, women are also more likely to feel that no one recognizes how stressed out they are, often leaving them to carry the burden alone. I hate hearing this!

While burnout might seem like one of those realities of being an adult, over time, burnout can take a serious toll on your well-being, including:

• Impaired memory or concentration
• Decrease in attention span
• Feeling unable to make decisions 
• Low resilience or self-esteem
• Irritability, depression, or anxiety
• Chronic fatigue or insomnia
• Increase in substance use
• Gastrointestinal problems
• Headaches or musculoskeletal pain
• Compromised immune function
• Detachment or low motivation
• High blood cortisol levels
• General dissatisfaction with life

Although burnout is “considered” normal to some, the harmful effects of burnout don’t have to be your reality.” With rest and sleep built into your wellness routine, you can feel resilient, vibrant, and strong at every age—and still give yourself the slow-down you need.

The Power of Rest to Help You Combat Burnout

We live in a culture that glorifies constant productivity while minimizing the importance of rest. What’s easy to forget is that energy is a finite resource and the human body was not designed to function like a machine. Rest days nurture both your body and mind, providing essential muscle recovery and easing soreness while also offering your brain a much-needed pause to recharge and heal.

You will be more capable of handling a busy routine when you make it a habit to pause and refresh. But you don’t have to believe me. Let’s see what the science says!

Rest Stimulates Physical Recovery

Movement is an integral part of any wellness routine, but if you exercise without prioritizing rest, it’s much harder to sustain the health benefits you’re working toward. A lack of rest can deplete energy levels, increase stress hormones, and keep the body in a catabolic state (high blood pressure, heart rate, and respiration), which affects muscle repair and elevates injury risk. 

On the other hand, resting after exercise promotes an anabolic state, which will help the body re-energize and the muscles recover from muscle soreness. The physical recovery benefits alone are a good enough reason to rest for me!

Rest Promotes Confidence

When you make time to unplug from distractions or obligations to enjoy a creative, restful form of leisure, this can do wonders for your mental health. A recent study in the British Journal of Psychiatry found that hobbies like reading for pleasure, listening to music, doing craft projects, or cultivating an at-home garden can lower depression and anxiety. 

Slowing down and unplugging are also connected to things I know all of us want to experience, like higher self-esteem, mood state, resilience, empowerment, and life satisfaction! Even in the busiest seasons, intentional leisure is so valuable.

Rest Helps You Manage Stress 

Stressful circumstances are part of life, but chronic stress can make you more susceptible to health issues like hypertension or coronary heart disease. This is why building restful practices, like finding inner peace and setting mindful intentions, into your routine is vital to creating resilience so you can manage the inevitable stress of life. 

For example, research deep breathing techniques (6 slow diaphragmatic breaths for 30 seconds) can ease the body’s stress response, calm the autonomic nervous system, stabilize heart rate, and regulate intense emotions.

Rest Boosts Your Brain 

Mental fatigue will often set in when you have to focus on a difficult task for long periods. This can also drain important mental skills, like alertness, concentration, reaction speed or accuracy, and flexible thinking. 

If you feel maxed out after a strenuous day, mental fatigue could be the culprit. Letting your brain rest periodically (even just for 20 minutes at a time) can alleviate the emotional pressures of mental fatigue and stimulate your brain to work the way you need it to. 

How to Make Rest Part of Your Routine

At Lindwell, we love the science, but we also love practical strategies! Even more, we know that it doesn’t need to be complicated to feel great, and the same goes for building rest into your routine. The whole point of rest is to create balance and ease in your life, not pile onto all the other activities competing for your attention. So, let’s focus on just two simple (and enjoyable!) ways you can make rest a priority for your mental, emotional, and physical well-being.

Schedule a Physical “Rest Day” Each Week

Typically, a physical rest day is a 12-hour period that you set aside to recover from an intense workout or other rigorous activities. The best way to do this is through active rest, which involves gentle movement to help promote blood flow, aid recovery and prevent stiffness and muscle soreness. 

As a result, this type of active recovery day can support lean muscle growth, build strength, preserve bone density, increase endurance, and boost energy levels. Yes, please! To reap the benefits on your rest days, focus on activities that encourage mindfulness and gentle physical movement, like:

• Gentle full-body stretching 
• Pilates (try our recovery classes!)
• Walks outside
• Gentle Yoga
• Breathwork sessions
• Somatic practices

Schedule Mental Rest With Self-Care Practices

You might think of a mental “rest day” as the opportunity for a Netflix marathon on the couch—but that’s not quite what I mean here (although sometimes we need those kinds of rest days too!)

What I’m talking about here is self-care, which refers to any restorative practice that nurtures a sense of inner peace, wellness, and balance. This type of sufficient rest is crucial not just as a counterbalance to your workout routine but as a foundational element of overall health. Plus, self-care also teaches you to cultivate healthy coping skills to reduce stress, which can lower the risk of both mental and physical illness. It seems like a no-brainer!

Similar to physical rest, schedule self-care into your calendar! Choose at least one day a week to take care of you, fully and completely. If you need some ideas to add to your list of daily practices, we have you covered with 25 Self-Care Sunday Ideas to Nurture Your Mind and Body.

Prioritize Rest to Feel Good, Mind and Body

If you’re looking for more effective ways to incorporate rest into your routine, join Lindywell with a 14-day free pilates trial! As a member, you’ll have access to gentle Pilates classes, restorative breathwork sessions, nourishing meal plans, and other self-care resources to help you carve out sustainable rest amid life’s hectic pace. Then if you’ve got your rest days down and are ready for more challenging movement, we have lots of strenuous workouts to choose from, including our strength-training series or Pilates advanced flow series. For additional insights and practical advice, we invite you to explore our related articles, designed to help you elevate your workout routine and overall wellness.

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Daily intentions and mindful living go hand-in-hand. Mindfulness doesn’t exclusively occur in a meditation class or on a Pilates mat (although these practices can be instrumental in helping you cultivate it). Mindfulness can permeate and enrich all facets of your life no matter where you are or what you’re doing. 

But how do you make mindful living a natural, intuitive, habitual response in the midst of other obligations or distractions competing for your attention? 

This is something I struggled with back in 2020 when it felt like the world was crashing down around all of us. The social and political unrest, coupled with challenges in my own personal life, made it feel like living mindfully was impossible—and painful.

I learned that creating daily intentions or even micro moments, can be a simple, beautiful way to start leaning into mindful living—even when life feels hard. At Lindywell, intentionality is at the core of what we do, providing strategies like gratitude affirmations and the healing power of the breath to forge a strong bond between mindfulness and intention. These practices are not just about cultivating a positive mindset but are essential tools for navigating life with grace and resilience.

So come with me as I share about what mindful living means and along with a few simple steps to start infusing meaningful daily intentions into your wellness routine.

The Power of Mindful Living

Mindfulness is a mental state characterized by a focused and nonjudgmental awareness of the present moment. It involves paying deliberate attention to thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and the surrounding environment without becoming overwhelmed or reactive. 

According to Frontiers in Psychology, those who prioritize mindfulness in their daily lives are more likely to exhibit resilience, emotional regulation, acceptance of themselves and others, social sensitivity, personal well-being, life satisfaction, and a capacity to face obstacles without losing perspective. They’re also less prone to psychological distress (anxiety, depression, etc.). This practice plays a crucial role in mental health, allowing you to better manage stress and focus on personal growth. 

Ultimately, the goal of mindfulness is to cultivate a deeper sense of connection to yourself and to others, more intentionality in your relationships, improved focus, more self-awareness, better concentration, and an overall better quality of life. A clear intention and goal setting are not just strategies but pathways to a more authentic self.

As such, “mindful living” is a holistic integration of mindfulness into your present life, which allows you to:

• Improve your relationships and social interactions. 
• Nurture self-compassion.
• Cultivate a deeper sense of curiosity about the world. 
• Pause, notice, and honor your own needs at any given moment. 

Who doesn’t want to experience those incredible benefits? I know I do. And I do experience them as someone who lives mindfully more often than not—though not always because I’m not perfect, no one is!

The Link Between Mindfulness and Intention

Daily intentions reflect deliberate choices to cultivate the experience and outlook you want in life. The objective of intentional living is not to enforce rigid expectations on yourself or to manufacture a certain performance outcome. Rather, the goal is to honestly reflect on which thoughts, decisions, commitments, actions, and priorities align with your intrinsic values as a person. 

Intentions help clarify what matters to you and how to chart your course in the right direction. They also empower you to ask courageous, introspective questions that reveal which aspects of yourself need extra care, focus, accountability, or even change. In other words, adopting daily intention setting is a powerful way to stay mindful as we navigate the challenges we’ll all inevitably face.

This can feel vulnerable and uncomfortable at first. The more you push through the discomfort, however, and live from this intentional space, the more mindful you become and the greater ease you’ll feel in all aspects of life. 

Start your free trial of Lindywell to practice this mindfulness with a little guidance. Whether you’re doing one of our 300+ Pilates workouts or sitting through an on-demand guided breathwork with me, you’ll be building your mindfulness muscle!

5 Steps for Building Daily Intentions Into Your Routine

On average, it takes about 90 to 110 days of repetition for a new behavior to turn into a habit, so I want to start with this reminder: you have to commit to this practice of daily intentions if you want to see change long-term. When you do that, though, mindful living becomes natural. And let me tell you: it’s absolutely worth it!

Use these five steps to build intentions into your routine for a life of abundance, joyfulness, connection, and presence.

1. Ask Yourself Thoughtful Questions and Answer Honestly

Think about your goals, desires, values, and aspirations. What you care about helps determine which intentions to focus on. I want you to let go of toxic guilt and tap into your true desires. Carve out time for self-reflection and journal your answers to the following questions. From there, some potential daily intentions can begin to take shape.

• What lights me up inside? Can I focus my energy there?
• Where do I want to grow in my life?
• What is an unfulfilled desire I have been putting off?
• What mindset shifts do I want to cultivate, or what attributes do I want to embody?
• Where could I make an impact in the world?
• What limiting beliefs presently hold me back from being fully alive?

2. Be Sure Your Intentions Are Clear, Simple, and Attainable

The human brain is a multi-faceted organism, but it also needs a certain degree of simplicity. According to neuroscientist Amishi Jha, if whatever you’re focusing on feels too complex, your attention span will start to wander, making being present (being mindful) difficult.  

To make your daily intentions effective and sustainable, don’t aim for the loftiest ambitions. Choose something clear and simple that you can feasibly incorporate into your routine. This will keep your attention fixed on a singular, attainable focal point, so you don’t get lost in the minutia of unrealistic expectations, which can lead to disappointment and frustration. 

Powerful daily intentions, when set as a clear specific goal, not only foster motivation but also make success possible! You’re not just thinking about what you want to do—you have a plan to get there.

3. Frame Your Intentions Through a Lens of Empowerment

I like to say, don’t should all over yourself! Make sure your daily intentions empower you to embrace growth, authenticity, evolution, and well-being. If your intentions are rooted in shame or built around the assumption of how you “should” behave, this will only reinforce intrusive thoughts, harmful patterns, and limiting beliefs, which act as a barrier to mindful living.

Another study from Frontiers in Psychology found that negative emotions lead to ruminations on failure, counterproductive behaviors, and feelings of incompetence, all of which can stunt your growth potential. Intentions are meant to inspire and motivate, not burden you with pressure— that’s why we believe in the mantra of “grace over guilt” here at Lindywell.

4. Write Down Your Intentions and Keep Them Within Reach

New goal-setting research indicates that writing down what you hope to achieve in descriptive terms and even imagery will make you more likely to accomplish it. The reason for this is a neuroscientific process called encoding. When you write something, it tells your brain this information is worth storing as a long-term memory, similar to the way documenting positive statements for affirmations reinforces their importance. 

Bottom line: writing down your intentions will help you articulate and remember the intentions you’ve set, which boosts the capacity to act on them. The more colorful your description, the easier it is to recall, so have fun with this! 

Once you establish the right intention, you can also jot it down on a sticky note or note card and put it in a visible spot that you read as part of your morning routine or just notice throughout the day. This visual reminder will be a powerful tool to keep that intention front and center. Here are some examples of daily intentions: 

• I will honor my needs in one small way every single day.
• I will spend time maintaining relationships with long-distance family members. 
• I will create space for joy every single day.

5. Turn Your Intentions into Meaningful Action

The final component in this mindful living journey is to transform your intention from words into action. Below are some examples of daily intentions and the action steps needed to achieve them. You’ll see here that the action is very specific. When you know exactly what you need to do, you’re more likely to do it!

Intention: I will honor my needs in one small way every single day.

Action: Each day I will choose one thing to do solely for me, whether that’s a workout, a walk, or drinking a cup of coffee during my alone time.

Intention: I will spend time maintaining relationships with long-distance family members. 

Action: I will prioritize honest communication and quality time with my loved ones each week. This could mean scheduling a phone call, or sending a text message to let them know that you’re thinking about them.

Intention: I will create space for joy every single day.

Action: I will add one spot in my weekly schedule for a playful activity or fun creative hobby and I will find an opportunity to laugh or smile at least once each day. You can read more about this in Robin’s chapter on ‘Play’ in her book, Well to the Core. It inspired me to be more intentional with this.

Take Your Intentions From Words to Action with Lindywell

Ready to embark on this pursuit of daily intentions and mindful living? Join our Lindywell community! As a member, you get instant access to nourishing recipes, dozens of conscious breathwork sessions (led by yours truly!), and 300+ Pilates exercises to help you invite balance, wellness, and presence into your life. Start your free trial today and embrace the power of mindful living.

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