A year and ½ ago, I wrote a blog on how to create a better morning routine. That blog is full of tips and ideas on creating a fantastic, personalized morning routine, including actions you could consider adding to your routine and what I was doing each morning at that time. While comparing my morning routine from a year and a half ago to my current morning routine, I realized enough has changed to warrant an updated blog. So, without further preamble here is what this wellness coach 😉 is up to from when the alarm goes off at 5 am to when my first client calls at 7:15 am.

Several weeks ago I wrote about my experience renting a digital piano and the six health benefits of playing an instrument as an adult. In this blog, I explore the incredibly easy and intuitive SKOOVE app which I’m using to learn how to play the piano. I hope you enjoy this blog which is a bit of a departure for me because most of the info is in the embedded video. So, sit back and enjoy the (mostly) video tutorial of me practicing the piano with the assistance of SKOOVE.

We say we’re listening to our bodies when we complain about its various aches, pains, or discomforts. However, maybe those sensations are just the ‘Cliff Notes’ version, and that gimpy knee or upset stomach has more of a story to tell. This blog explores several ways to interact with your body when your initial reaction is, ‘I don’t like what it’s doing!’

A key to a fulfilling life is the people in our lives, and you and your people form groups and communities. In this blog I invite you to explore how your community’s goals, values, and purpose align with your own and how your participation in the group is valuable to you, meaning what do you offer them and what do you receive in kind.

Making art reduces stress and anxiety, fosters a flow state, improves connections in the brain, activates reward centers, and fosters social relationships. In addition to those benefits, I like stone carving because my partner and I are spending time together, our teacher is wonderful, and the other students are fun yet serious about their work. Mostly, it’s a good lesson in patience, perseverance, and focus all while having a fun time.

Whether you played an instrument as a child or not, it’s never too late to reap the health and wellness rewards of creating music. Playing an instrument brings you into a flow state, grows grey matter in the brain, relieves stress, brings blood flow to the brain - energizing you, improves reflexes and multitasking abilities, all while creating a sense of accomplishment.

Sudarshan Kriya is a breathwork and meditation practice that is research-proven with over 60 studies. This course is taught by the non-profit Art of Living and I’d recommend it for either experienced meditators who want to expand their practice or newbies who want more direction than simply ‘close your eyes and focus on your breathing.’

Over the last several weeks, I've devoured the book: Breath - The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor. It’s the most recent book my book group is reading, and because of what I learned from this book, I took a 3-day course in Sardashana Kriya, a breathwork and meditation course taught by the non-profit organization Art of Living. I’ll talk more in length about that in next week’s vlog. And, I’ve started taping my mouth shut at night while I sleep. What? Taping your mouth shut? Yes, you heard me right! Ha! I'm taping my mouth shut while I sleep to ensure that I breathe entirely through my nose. Check out this blog to see the health benefits of breathing entirely through your nose.

As I goal-set with my clients, I employ 8 points: clients need specific goals, they need both short term and long term goals, effective coaching is about collaboration, impactful goal setting builds self-efficacy, use the 1-10 importance and confidence scales, goal setting boosts overall performance, ongoing feedback is essential, and internal motivation and rewards work as opposed to external rewards—right, telling someone what they should do usually backfires!

Do you need to hire a coach or a therapist? What are the similarities? What are the differences? How do you know which professional will support you and your needs the best? Well, by the time you finish this blog my aim is for you to have all the knowledge you need to make the best decision for you and your goals.

It takes time, and commitment, to look inside and explore what’s important to you, your strengths and what you desire. So, yay, you’ve put in the work and written your wellness visions! (If not, then I invite you to read the last four blogs about creating your wellness visions). Now, it’s time to answer the ten questions in today’s blog, supporting you in brainstorming your next steps, setting up the support you need and getting you up out of your comfy chair, and taking that first action toward your healthier future self.

This is the last blog in a four-blog series about creating your unique wellness vision. In this blog, you will explore wellness vision examples and synthesize the information you discovered in the last 3 blogs about your values strengths, and desires, and start writing your own unique wellness vision or a statement that defines you at your most actualized, energetic self.

This is the third blog in a four-part series about creating your unique wellness vision. A wellness vision is a statement that defines you at your most actualized, energetic self. In this blog, using the Domain Satisfaction Scale you will explore what you want more of or less of in your life. Or, more simply put: what do you desire?

This is the second in a four blog series about creating your unique wellness vision. A wellness vision is a statement that defines you at your most actualized, energetic self. In this blog, you will explore where you are confident, the skills you use to face challenges, or more simply what are your strengths. We are often in touch with what we want more of or less of in our lives, however, it’s often more challenging to see the inner tools we possess that make our goals a reality.

This is the first in a four blog series about creating your unique wellness vision. A wellness vision is a statement that defines you at your most actualized, energetic self. In this blog, you will explore what’s essential to you, what motivates you, or more simply what are your values. We are often in touch with what we want more of or less of in our lives, however, it’s often more challenging to see how what we desire relates to our values.

My Junior High school gave out awards for perfect attendance, and there was one classmate who received the perfect attendance award every year. She always seemed a bit embarrassed because my classmate probably knew that the rest of the kids, myself included, although, I’m not proud to admit this, at the time, we thought she was kind of a nerd and a bit nuts. Ha! Now a wellness coach this perfect attendance award winning student has a lot to teach us.

You can hire a coach, take courses, and read books, but how do you sink in and listen to your gut, intuition, inner teacher, and inner truth? And more significantly, when you get that inkling of inner truth, how do you know you’ve hit pay dirt, so to speak. How do you know it’s The Truth with a capital ‘T’ and not just another good idea? Well, in this blog, I explore how accessing your intuition feels in your body, mind, heart, and soul.

Mantras originally were words or phrases used to aid concentration during meditation. Today, mantras are considered to be any statement or slogan repeated frequently. You can google mantras and find many useful suggestions of both traditional mantras and more slogan or affirmation style mantras. However, in this blog, I describe my technique for how to create personal mantras that genuinely resonate with you and address challenges you are striving to overcome.

Where in your life could you let go of that quick fix/diet mentality and instead adopt small sustainable changes or lifestyle changes that, over time, will get you to the places you want to go? Or, maybe, you are already noticing the contagious influence of adopting a lifestyle change in one area of your life and watching its domino effect in another arena.

As you would make a packing list for your vacation, I suggest you make a list of your daily health and wellness habits as well. Then make a conscious decision about which practices you will maintain, which may need some creative editing, and which ones you will temporarily let go of while on your vacation.