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@28daysof-blog
Day 5: Accountability
I am fortunate enough to be working with someone who is finishing up her studies in coaching. Having a weekly check-in with someone about my conscious eating goal has been highly useful. Today we talked about consistency, which we know is one of the most important things with consuming the right foods for our bodies. Keep on keeping on.
Day 3: Brussels sprouts and tempeh with a dollop of natural yoghurt. Never thought I'd be feeling happy about eating this (and it only took 2mins of consciousness)
Day 1: Good, bad, good
Breakfast was a win. I got up, preparing for a midday yoga class which I was particularly psyched for, and cooked up a little batch of tempeh and vege's.
I sat with the bowl of food, spending the couple of minutes I have committed to, thinking through where the food came from, what is in it, the colors, visualizing how my body will use it and most importantly, is the portion right. I quietly decided that given I was about to bend my body into all sorts of postures, I only really wanted to eat about two thirds of the food, and happily cling-wrapped and refrigerated the rest. Nice.
Lunch (at 4pm) was less successful. How the hell do you eat "consciously" when you're in a restaurant?
Dinner was better. A quick sit with my food, and I ate a good amount of 5 element colored, healthy food.
April: Conscious eating
Oh yes, conscious eating. That fluffy, hippie principal I've heard so much about over the years. Eating in silence. Meditating over food. You've got to be kidding!
BUT, in a session with a coach I'm working with, talking through a goal to do with food, it appeared to me clear as day, that this was what I had to do.
And so begins my 28 days of conscious eating. I promise not to talk to my food in public.
The verdict
I may not have slept a whole lot more, but I do have to say, it was awesome to be highly aware of my sleep habits.
During the month I definitely went to bed a couple of times where normally I would have stayed up, watching TV, staying out later, working on my laptop, generally faffing around.
I definitely made an effort to get up earlier to rise in Vata, but found it hard if I hadn't gone to bed early enough. I even got to 6am bikram classes a bit more this month, with all of the extra morning time I had.
Once again, awareness reigns true and here's to carrying forth this goal, and the focus on quality, abundant sleep into April.... Good night!
Ayurveda
Since a visit to Kripalu back in 2010, I've been enchanted by ayurvedic principles. Ayurveda as a concept originated in India, and literally means "the science of life." It focuses on the three physical energies of kapha, pitta and vata.
Kapha is usually defined as earthy in character: think stable, strong, slow, with good endurance, a high tolerance, sentimental. Pitta: think the elements of fire and water combined - powerful, driven, fiery, passionate. Vata is ether and air combined: movement, light.
For the purposes of sleep, it is interesting to consider the theories that the day is broken into six periods - two windows of kapha, pitta and vata. The actual periods are commonly debated, but Kapha is said to run 6-10am, Pitta 10am-2pm and Vata 2-6pm. The cycle runs again from 6-10pm (Kapha), 10pm-2am (Pitta) and 2am-6am (Vata).
Applying the principle, it is said to be best to rise in Vata (before 6am) to awake during the time of the day associated with movement, and not Kapha, the sleepy, slow time. Our most productive, driven part of the day is between 10am and 2pm (Pitta). We should also go to sleep before 10pm, so as not to get caught in Pitta, and instead lull into sleep during Kapha.
All easier in theory than practice of course, but I really love the philosophy and have started creeping my bedtime earlier, to try and hit that magical rise-with-the-sun 6am rising time.
More info? This site will give you a pretty good overview about ayurveda.
This is what your sleep graph looks like when you drink, oh you know, maybe one or two glasses too many of wine. And 5hrs 24mins avg sleep per night? Don't even get me started on that one....
Building upon yesterday, I started thinking more about martyrdom when it comes to sleep deprivation. I've worn my ability to exist on little sleep on my sleeve as a badge too many times.
It ISN'T commendable, or responsible to do it. It doesn't really gain me anything. There are few people in the world that will look with envy on your decision to sleep less to achieve more, burning your candle of health at both ends.
Silly behavior, and I am putting a stop to it. Everyone knows actually sleeping is better than talking about not sleeping. Sleep is delicious, not something to just be endured while you miss out on other things.
We interviewed Arianna Huffington in our offices about a month ago and she sweetly told the story of giving her friends and family alarm clocks for Christmas so they weren't tempted to sleep with their mobile devices and inadvertently check their emails in the middle of the night.
It's no secret that Arianna is a big sleep advocate, as she communicates in this TED talk - whilst its a little heavy on the power-to-women on the feminism, (female audience), I do like this quote: "Unfortunately, for men sleep deprivation has become a virility symbol. I was recently having dinner with a guy who bragged that he had only gotten four hours sleep the night before. And I felt like saying to him -- but I didn't say it -- I felt like saying, "You know what? If you had gotten five, this dinner would have been a lot more interesting."
The week in Austin comes to a close and I have to say, getting up at 4am for a 6am flight, only to travel straight to work from the airport for a full day of work was not conducive to this goal. So, it was fun, OK, but definitely not a supportive move. Yawn.
Not. doing. well. (At my goal. Doing great at depriving myself at sleep to get it all done).
To Austin for SXSW Interactive, and I'm starting to think I did not put much thought into which month I chose for a sleep goal. Am I really going to get my zzz's at an event that prides itself on late night networking with the nation's finest tech crowds??
I remember being obsessed with sleep cycle when I had my last iPhone, and it's now back in my life. I wake up like a kid at Christmas each morning to get the lowdown on how I slept (even before checking in with how I actually feel, which could possibly tell me the same information!). This is a pretty standard night for me - a bit of movement, and as I sleep with open blinds, the stirring to "awake" when the sun rises.
What this app really does for me though is make going to bed and rising a conscious, recorded decision. I'm a stickler for competing against myself - I want the graph to look good. I want quality sleep. I want my avg per night to be higher than 6hr 46mins. I'm working on it.
March: 28 days of sleep
As glorious as 28 days of sleep might be, this month is all about a dedicated focus on sleeping better, longer and generally getting a quality night of zzzz's.
I am guilty of cutting short my sleep in favor of trying to fit more things in my day, but the skinny is that I feel worse for it, and sometimes end up being a zombified dinner date.
Sounds so easy, but this one's gonna be hard for me...
Day 28: The final day
I have swirled around in elation and disappointment over this last 28 day challenge.
I'll start with the not-so-up side so I can end on a high note...
Part of this whole project was to commit to something for 28 days, and share the progress along the way, daily if possible. The emphasis is on commit — as part and parcel of being someone that wants to achieve it all, is burning out and not achieving it all, at all.
I realized pretty early on that running every day for 28 days was going to be pretty impossible. And I learned that I have a hard time just doing the best I can do, if it falls short of what I set out to do.
Onwards!
I actually did pretty well at running most days—documented, or undocumented. I did a big run of the Central Park loop (6.1mi), and many treadmill and outdoor runs. I mixed up my exercise when I got bored and I kept focused.
The result?
I ran all my legs in the Ragnar Relay this past weekend (11.5miles all up) without having to stop and walk which was the whole reason I chose running as my 28 day challenge. So it appears I achieved my goal after all.
Next up is a half marathon in a little over two weeks. And then, to decide what my March challenge will be!
Day 7: treadmill
Yawn. Damn, the treadmill gets boring. Was shocked into some reality when I noticed the "incline" on my first run for Ragnar is 174 feet (over 4.9 miles), with NO downhill. So that's what they mean about moderate difficulty :)
Only did 2.2miles today, but mixed it up with sprints, and did the whole run btwn 1.5 and 2.5 incline. Youch!
And you can bet your last money, it's gonna be a stone gas, honey!
Day 6: Using motivation from our Ragnar "Sole Train" theme phrase to get me on the treadmill today. Just the 2.0mil, 20mins—no time (or legs) for much else today, but good practice for the 8hr separated runs that are coming up.