Changing Seasons, Changing Habits
With the changing of the seasons often comes changing of habits, routine, expectations for self and of others. Change can be hectic, unstable and frustrating. Just when we got our daily flow/routine meeting our expectations...bump! We hit a speed bump. Speed bumps are indeed meant to slow us down.
I'm from California. I lived in traffic 24/7. Stop and go was a way of life. It used to take me 80 minutes to get to work sitting on the 405 fwy just to go 56 miles. When catastrophizing, Californians would say "anytime you are on the 405 fwy you can expect for it to take you 4 or 5 hours." My patience for traffic grew as the environment I lived amidst demanded it. Speed bumps on the other hand...They always seemed to pop out of nowhere. I appreciate their importance and expect them in places like school zones and shopping malls. However, there always seemed to be a speed bump whose purpose was ambiguous. It forced me to slow my trajectory and that really annoyed me. The less time one could spend sitting in a car driving from point A to B, in Southern California, the greater our probability of life expectancy. I'm being dramatic, but there is scientific research out that supports my dramatization. I'll speak to that in another post. I digress.
So here we are. February 18th, 2017. Just shy of a month away from Spring. For those of us residing in climates with multiple seasons we have the blessing of witnessing, a change of seasons. I hear a lot of talk from patients and clients about a change in habits as well--expectations for greater outdoor physical activity like walking and hiking. From winter to spring, we can look forward to changes that help us get outdoors and move. For instance, we'll feel increases in climate, decreases in snow and ice, and wake up with more sunlight. All these changes can help create momentum for us to feel ready to make a change. Kinda like the New Year does to us with respect to health, fitness and nutrition--"New Year, New You." Speaking of which...
How many of you feel you've lost some momentum with your "New Year's Resolution?" Have you hit a few, unexpected, speed bumps? Rather than letting those speed bumps annoy you to the point you derail yourself from your trajectory, take a moment to slow down. Explore for commonalities among the speed bumps in your life. Perhaps they are less ambiguous then you once may have thought. Recognize your strengths when faced with bumps in the road. Be patient with yourself. Appreciate your resolve to get from point A to B.
For now, up here in the foothills, the snow is melting. I miss snowshoeing, skiing and snowboarding. That was one of the many ways I stayed active outdoors during the winter. It's a speed bump for me--the change in seasons. Remember, I'm from California. I'm adjusting to the beauty and change of seasons that is much different from my past environment. Right now, I'm not much for trail run-muddin'. I prefer it to dry out a bit more. So you can find me on the mountain hunting for deer and (soon) elk sheds. You can log quite a few thousand steps while distracting yourself by admiring nature. P.S. The owl's are showing themselves around the Blue Mountains. If shed's aren't your thing, try logging some steps spotting for owls!
