329. Graceful, Beautiful YOU

Recommended Book: "The Good Life" by Robert Waldinger and Marc Schultzs There are lots of things I do every single day that make me feel the way I want to feel.  Not only on the outside but on the inside too. And when I don’t do them I notice. Someone else may not. But I do. That’s the thing that matters the most. How do I feel about the way I’m going about my day to day life? When we show up in a way that makes us feel beautiful and graceful, when we have thoughts about ourself that are loving and encouraging, when we take the time to be intentional about things it makes everything else a little easier and life can be hard so anything we can do to give ourselves a leg up is valuable.  It’s so important every single day to give yourself the chance to feel graceful and beautiful.  How you feel on the inside is indicative of how you present yourself on the outside.  Each one of us has a certain standard we set for ourself. I know I have high standards and that’s how I like it. And I’m constantly finding new ways to be even better tomorrow. That’s how I’ve always been and how I hope I always will be.  I don’t buy into the “it’s normal to put on weight and feel like crap and be on 10 medications as you get older” crowd. That isn’t the outlook I have for myself. And I look for ways to prove it doesn’t have to be that way, Im not looking for ways to show me  that it’s normal to put on weight and feel bad as you age because there’s plenty of that out there but the outliers that look and feel amazing over 50. Those are the ones I want to listen to and learn about.  I was in the sauna the other day talking about nutrition with my friend Lena and this lady who I’ve seen in the sauna a few times chimes in and said I’m eves-dropping on your conversation because it’s interesting.  Now she is definitely an outlier.  Once we got to taking I started asking her a million questions because she said she is 66 and let me tell you. Her muscle tone was amazing. Her eyes were bright and her hair was healthy and she just had this bright and happy energy.   And it wasn’t by accident. She moves. She eats incredibly healthy but not perfect. She saunas and cold showers. She is constantly learning and growing. I could have talked to her for an hour but now I’ve been in the sauna 40 min which is 20 too long so I had to stop the conversation or die. It was a hard choice. Lol. we will continue the conversation again I just know it.  But you see I just got a quick snapshot of her life and I could have told you by looking at her that she had consistently good habits. You don’t look and feel like that at her age without them. She had figured out that for her moving every day, exercising 6 times per week, eating Whole Foods that you make at home a majority of the time and continuous growth. Those are the standards she lives by.  They are high standards and she’s thriving at 66 because of it. I want to be thriving at 66 and I’m learning more every day of what it takes to do that.  What we do know is it doesn’t happen by accident. And as we also know, it takes us putting ourselves as a priority. And it may sound selfish to say that. But I’m a much better lover to my husband when I feel beautiful. I’m a much better sister when I am healthy and have high standards.  I’m a much better friend when I love myself.