Even if there is still a wicked lot of snow on the ground all through the month of March we’ve decided spring is in the air. On Fridays this month the Wickeds are celebrating spring by talking spring cleaning, for the home, for the body, and for the mind.
Jessie: I know everyone knows this but it bears repeating: drink more water. Being well hydrated is the fastest, cheapest, most readily available way to feel vibrant and energetic. I struggle with this daily but when I bother to make drinking water a priority I feel fantastic.
Liz: I’m a smoothie fanatic – and with a Vitamix, it’s easy to serve up all your fruits and veggies in one shot. Even if you don’t have a Vitamix or something like it, you can easily use a regular blender to get a cold, delicious, healthy treat. I love to make my own creations by experimenting with nuts, seeds, veggies and fruit, but if you’re just getting started, check out Crazy Sexy Kitchen by Kris Carr for some awesome smoothies and juices.
Julie: I am trying to get my health in order. I try with the water (why is that so hard?), and my Vitamix is killing the kale. I have also started wearing my FitBit every day, with a 10,000 step a day goal. I am quite convinced that layers of clothing is not registering all my steps, but I am mindfully trying to walk more, and I come pretty close most days. One goal would be to get more sleep, but since I write at night, this isn’t happening right now.
Edith: Totally agree about the water. For me, an hour of exercise every day is critical. I either walk outside or go to the gym. It clears mental cobwebs, shakes off my hours of sitting, and lets ideas percoloate. I don’t run any more, and I might not walk quite as briskly as I used to, but I still get out there and do it. I don’t wear earbuds, either. I sometimes see quirky characters or hear snippets of conversation that could easily end up in my WIP or next short story.
Sherry: I’ve been working on moving more. It’s easy to sit at the computer for long periods of time. Since the New Year I’ve been making a concentrated effort to get up and move. I walk our dog, Lily, two or three times a day. Since we don’t have a fenced-in yard I am out in all sorts of weather. It’s good for her and better for me.
So dear readers, do you have a tip for starting spring on a healthy note?
I rather like the idea of spring cleaning and organization as a kind of renewal that contributes to my spiritual and mental health. This year I’ve added something to this ritual. I felt strong enough a couple of weeks ago to trim back the forsythia a little, just enough to encourage it to grow thick and have more flowers. I went out to the tiny side patio to see how the bushes were doing and saw this little space as a very new space. It was like it had never been there before. There is enough room for a chair or two and a little table. There is a lot of greenery and flowering shrubs. It’s very fragrant. On the way back inside I saw an electrical outlet that I had never noticed before. With a very little work it will be a great writing space and a quiet spot. This will be my spring project, a place to discover and create.
It sounds like a perfect space, Reine.
That sounds wonderful, Reine! And now I know why our forsythia is so sparse — we’ve never cut it back!
Think positive thoughts. When the negative ones come into your head, turn them around and pretend you are talking to a friend.
Great tip!
Ooh, I like the positive thoughts. I have worked in the habit of getting up and moving every hour on the hour. My new spring thing is getting back to yoga. I stopped when I began to have wrist issues. Now I think I can start up again, carefully, and with braces if necessary. I also require a dose of outside time each time, or I am unbearable to the poor souls around me.
Same here for outdoors time, and moving on the hour. I find that keeping well hydrated sort of enforces getting up and moving. To the loo!
You might try Bikram yoga as there’s very little if any work for the wrists to do–no downward dogs. I’m a huge fan of yoga too.
I drink lots of water.
A few years back, I got into mud runs and that turned me into a runner. I’m nursing a hurt knee right now, which is slowing me down, however. Got to get back out there. I’ve got mud runs coming up!
Take care of that knee!
Cleaning out negative people…I’ve noticed that some people are always negative and it just seems to put me in a foul mood as well, even a simple post/response from a negative person on FB bothers me lately. I need to surround myself, even on FB, with people that bring out my more positive and happy personality…I’m sure its in there somewhere, buried deep below my sarcasm.
Excellent idea!