Resolve to Rest.

I don’t know about you, but the job of making a list of New Year’s Resolutions retired for me in 2018. Since then it became more about setting fresh intentions each year: intending to be healthy and happy vs. resolving to lose 20 pounds and get lean like Halle Berry. The only resolution I made that year was to build trust in myself. Trust that as long as my intention and attention were focused and heartfelt that all else would fall into place. Trust that I would no longer need to accomplish specific resolutions to allow myself to feel happy. Trust that I could allow myself to take inspired action and be led to my innate joy, no excessive pressure or stress necessary. Trust in my heart, my desires, and my own unique path forward.

Fast forward four years and I am fumbling into 2022 completely empowered, fully aligned, in a deep trusting relationship with my Highest Self…and tired AF. I mean, like, eyes burning by eight P.M. even with a full eight hours of sleep, logging out of the present moment at completely inappropriate times, using really bad grammar really by accident, kind of tired. It’s been a helluva couple of years on every level imaginable. And while I have full faith and trust in the transient nature of life and it’s challenges, none of that does me any good when I am emotionally, spiritually, and physically exhausted. So the time has come to make another resolution, and since I am only making one every few years (as needed) I better make it both profound and sustainable. To rest. To prioritize rest. To prioritize rest and receive. To allow myself to prioritize my need to rest with every opportunity available to me. This is my focus. This is my need. This is what will take me to my next level.

Rest is not known to make it to the to-do list at all let alone at the very top in bold letters where it belongs. It is something so many of us take for granted (I mean, we get in the bed every night at some point…that’s enough…right?). We have idealized the hustle culture to a toxic level for way too long, praising the ‘work hard, play hard’ lifestyle at the cost of our well-being. Let’s just be straight here…this just won’t work anymore (did it ever, really?). This way of life will not produce the way it used to (or at least the way it appeared to) and we cannot take it with us. Not where we are going. I’m tired. You’re tired. Mother Earth is tired. Enough is enough! I vow from this day forward to honor my mind, my soul, and my body with an abundance of time and opportunity to just be. Here is how.

• Recognize what it really means to rest. Cease to work. Cease to move. Relax. Refresh. Recover.
• Make a list of all the reasons prioritizing rest will benefit me and my life. Better sleep. Better relationships. Greater personal awareness. Healthier, more vibrant body and mind. More joy. More efficient productivity. Greater potential for success in every area of life. All. The Things.
• Notice where rest already exists in my day to day and enhance it to the max! Am I getting 6-8 hours of sleep every night? Is my sleep restful? How can I optimize my sleeping schedule?
• Explore new ways to implement rest in my day to day. Start the morning with a 10 minute breathing exercise. Take a few 60 seconds rest breaks during my 40 minute HIIT workout. Spend five minutes in legs-up-the-wall pose between writing sessions. Commit to one of those long and stretchy yin yoga classes every once in a while. Take 10 minutes away from technology and pet my sweet puppy after dinner. End the day with a 15 minute meditation. Rest is not just for your bed at night, it can be found in bite size pieces throughout the day. Never underestimate the power of even just one minute.
• Be accountable. Leave myself love notes that remind me to rest throughout the day (include why it is important!). Tell my partner. Tell my mom. Download a few go-to meditations. Do some research. Keep my tools on standby. Listen to my body and mind when it is asking for rest. Be consistent.
• Check in with myself! Journal all of this and set a reminder to revisit my resolution for rest in retrospect (in say, 21 days?) Note changes, improvements, and make any necessary calibrations. Continue to engage with what works and be willing to explore new and different relaxation techniques as needed. Stay open. Stay committed. Remember all the reasons why this is important. Is life feeling better?

You know it. I know it. And so it is!