What does “Health” mean to you?
For me, it means making myself a priority. It looks like fueling my body with food that blesses it. It looks like meditating, journaling, and moving my body to support my mental and physical health. It looks like reading and being a life-long learner to nurture my soul. It looks like painting and sewing and creating and crafting because it makes my heart sing. It looks like making my personal health and wellness a priority.
Because here’s the kicker. If you don’t do it, nobody will.
Straight up.
And if focusing on my health makes me a selfish person, then I’ll choose that every single day. Because when I care for myself well, I’m then able to show up as my best most vibrant self. And my best self can love and serve those important to me well (including you, my dear LBD Pod Community!).
Without my health – body, mind, and heart – I’m less able to pursue the passions of my heart and pursue my life’s work. So I actively choose to fill myself up first, so that I can pour love into others after.
Do you need to make yourself a priority again? Start right now by giving this episode a listen. And afterwards, I challenge you to do something immediately that fills your cup. Big or small, but do it right away. Making yourself a priority is a daily practice, and it can start right now.
You’re worth it. Every single day. You’re worth it.
Thank you for taking the time to support the podcast! Your Apple Podcast reviews help me spread the LBD Podcast love, and I do a legit happy dance each time I see a new one arrive! If you have two minutes to leave a five-star reviews and two-three sentences about what you enjoy most I’d be so appreciative! And as a thank you, after your review is read aloud on the podcast shoot me an email and your next cup of coffee will be on me!
Welcome to the 2021 Special Podcast Series!
Week 1: Health
In this week’s episode I dive into what health means to me and why I actively pursue it. It all started with growing up with a sibling who’s a Type I Diabetic, on the Autism spectrum, is non-verbal, and more. My brother, David, is a gentle giant of a man (seriously, here’s a good 6″ taller than me!), but I learned from a young age that nothing is guaranteed in this life and that my health is a blessing that I need to respect, nurture, and protect.
Often times in our society, I feel we’re under so much pressure to perform (at work, as a parent, you name it!) that we neglect our health because our days are already too full with other people’s demands on our time.
But what would happen if you made your health a priority?
How would you feel? How would you act? How would you show up for yourself and then in turn for those you care most about?
If you made it an active decision to pursue what blesses your body, to instill habits that lead you to feeling better as a whole, and decided to (maybe for the first time in a long time) make yourself the #1 priority in your own life – how would that shift things?
This week I delve into what that looks like in my own personal life, and I hope it gives you the permission and confidence to reclaim your agency over your health.
In this episode I shared how I love to run 2 miles. Specifically, I like to run one mile from my front door, turn around, and run back slightly faster.
After a foot injury in 2016 I rehabbed for a long time, and when I was cleared by my doctor I started walking, very slowly at first, to my one mile marker. Then I started walk-jogging. Then walk-running. And eventually, running. I went back in my @mskatehouse account to find the below post, because it captures the 20th day in a row that I walked to my mile marker and that felt like a huge win.
I share this because all of our health journey’s are as unique as we are. My “two mile run” might look completely different for you – and that’s awesome! I challenge you to find the thing that makes you feel vibrant, and do it every day. One mile out, one mile back. Or practice yoga. Or shadow box. Or meditate if moving your physical body isn’t possible. Whatever it looks like for you…make yourself a priority. Because YOU have to do it, no one else can do it for you.
Joyful Corner
Welcome to Joyful Corner, my chance each week to share with you something that’s brought me joy or an experience I’m grateful to have experienced. This week I shared how much I’m enjoying my Peloton bike! I’m not going to lie, I was a little skeptical of spending that much money on a stationary bike, but now that I’ve been riding for a couple months now I’m completely hooked and absolutely “get” why everyone loves it so much. It’s more than a bike. It’s a community. It’s the instructors. And it’s choosing to make the time on the bike a priority, because I’m better for it every time.
My favorite to sweat alongside is @robinnyc. She’s the perfect mixture of butt-kicking meets mindset development meets bad-assery. She’s currently expecting her first little one, and this fierce mama-to-be is rocking it and inspiring me along the way!
If you’re on Peloton too and want to cheer each other on, let’s connect! I’m @mskatehouse and I’d love to throw you some high fives during your next ride, workout, or meditation!
I also mentioned the saying, “consistency compounds,” and the profound impact it’s had on my own life. I was first introduced to this idea by Greg McKeown on Amy Jo Martin’s Why Not Now Podcast. If you’re ready to get crystal clear on what’s essential in your own life, then I recommend Greg’s book Essentialism. I’m partway through it on Audible now, and it’s kind of rocking my world.
Joyful Corner Listener Voicemail
And a huge thank you this week to Lauren for our Joyful Corner Listener Voicemail! Lauren shared how grateful she is to be able to move her body and sweat again now that she’s in her second trimester of her pregnancy and finally starting to feel better. As a fellow mama who was completely sidelined by pregnancy, I can understand how incredible this feels! She also shared how her toddler has been seeing her workout and now joins her by grabbing the lightest weight and squatting with it. How adorable is that? I think this is the perfect example of the parenting saying, “More is caught than taught.” He’s learning by his mama’s example. What a powerful thing!
And if you enjoyed learning a bit about The Institute for Integrative Nutrition’s idea of Primary and Secondary Foods, then I’d encourage you to visit these links and do an even deeper dive. Or better yet, wait for Thursday’s bonus episode to air because I’ll be sharing what’s been working well for me in all four sections of my Primary Foods!
If IIN is interesting to you from a personal enrichment standpoint or if you’d like to become a health coach too, then respond to this email anytime because I’m happy to answer your questions or share more about my experience during the year long Health Coach Training program! I’ve written more about my time studying at IIN, so be sure to give that a look as well!
