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A day of rest is way more beneficial to your body and mind than over pushing yourself
It’s so easy to get carried away with life, especially when living in the city. Work, eat, gym, study, friends, family, eat again, lovers, children, social media, eat again, you get my point. Life can get pretty stressful and start to pass by in a whiz.
Well, it seems I have recently accidentally fallen into the slow life. For once I’m not complaining about it.
I’ve always been one of those people that have to be doing something every second of every day. When I was younger we would spend the whole day out. On the way home at the end of the day, I would start asking my Mum what we were doing next and where we were going. I literally just couldn’t sit still. I wanted to be doing something, seeing people, exploring, eating, moving. Coming to think of it, not much has changed really. That actually sounds so like me.
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Since leaving school, the past 5/6 years of my life have been a complete whirlwind of chaos really. I’ve spent so much time working, studying, working some more, working out and doing everything possible to help towards my future. I spent four years in London at University getting a degree. Meanwhile, I kept active EVERY day, whilst working my ass off to save enough money to travel the world. I also volunteered at three different places to gain experience working with charities for the homeless and kids with disabilities. This was something I absolutely loved.
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Travelling South East Asia for 7 months was my chance to relax. Instead, I spent the whole time planning where we were going next after 2 days of staying in each place and figuring out how we were going to get there. I also kept up working out every other day.
Arriving in Melbourne. After moving to Melbourne, Aus and thinking life would be so much more chilled on the other side of the world. I decided I felt like I was getting nowhere in life. I began to worry that I would get back to the UK in three years time with an old degree under my belt and nothing else. So I decided to study for my Personal training course, whilst working full time and being active every day. I then decided to continue and get my Certificate III & IV in personal training.
Anyway, you get my point. I’m always keeping myself way too busy then wondering why I’m absolutely exhausted and have no idea what I want to do with life. I guess the truth is, I probably keep myself so busy that I don’t really have time to dwell on it too much.
Take it all in
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I have to admit this wasn’t the plan, but I’m going to grab it with both hands while I can.
Before we arrived in Byron Bay, I had decided that I would like to cut my working down to four days. I wanted to have an extra day to focus on my blog and enjoy living in Australia before we have to leave (our visa is up in March). It turns out I have actually really struggled to get hours at work, besides the fact I have two jobs, I have had soooo much more free time on my hands than I expected.
At first, I got really down about it, I felt like I wasn’t doing anything with my life and actually got pretty depressed about being so low on money and being a failure. After a couple of weeks of dwelling on it and feeling sorry for myself, I decided to grab the slow life with both hands. Yes, its taken some time to get used to, but this is what I secretly wanted wasn’t it?! I wanted time and an excuse to focus on my blog and online work. Now I have the perfect opportunity.
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I’m living week by week and I’m loving it. I have time to enjoy exercise, and writing my blog posts. It’s so nice to not feel stressed out about rushing my posts. I hate the fact that quality of my writing may suffer due to lack of time. I’ve had so much time to experiment in the kitchen which has been so much fun since going plant-based. I made a deal with myself to go to the beach EVERY SINGLE DAY!
The sand and sea have never really been my best friends. I guess just because I haven’t grown up with it, but I’ve definitely grown to love. Every single time I head down the road and see how insanely beautiful the nature and community around me is, I tell myself just to “take it all in”. That’s what my Mum used to say to me and we all know Mum’s advice is always the best.
So that’s what I intend to for these last three weeks of living in Australia. Just take it all in, and enjoy every single moment of slowness.
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People tend to spend the start of the year figuring out ways in which they can improve themselves. Learning a new skill or sport, gaining a hobby, meeting new people. Which can be great and very beneficial.
I think one thing we tend to overlook is how much rest can benefit us. Especially in the fitness world. People get scared to rest. They tend to think they will lose all their progress. Trust me on this one. A day of rest is way more beneficial to your body and mind than over pushing yourself. Yes, it is good to push and challenge yourself. It’s the best way to grow, but we definitely underestimate the benefits of rest and stillness.
I want you to set yourself a challenge. Only this challenge is slightly different to the rest. I want you to chill out. Take some time out. Read a book, watch a movie, have an afternoon nap, walk along the beach as slowly as possible. Just take 30mins a day to switch off. There are so many ways you can slow down your life. Just be sure to “take it all in” when you do.
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P.s Don’t forget to get your hands on one of these bad boys. Perfect for those Slow Life Days
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Want to hear more about how I keep fit, healthy & live an eco-friendly life whilst travelling the world? Why not subscribe to my #planetlove newsletter now? I wouldn’t want you to miss out
Love Annie | Rocket & Honey
Social Media | @rocketandhoney
xxx
Take it all in. Focus on what you’re doing in life, enjoy things thoughtfully. These moments will stick with you. Don’t forget to pursue slowness ♡
