3 Barriers to Owning Your Calendar, Your Wellness, and Your Life
This may sound crazy. Calendar management is just as important as nutrition and exercise to feel as good as you possibly can.
Yes, our out-of-control calendars are often the underlying culprit of weight struggles, chronic stress, and lack of confidence.
You’re probably thinking, “How in the world can my calendar have ANYTHING to do with how fit, how strong, and how good I feel in my body?”
Well, our calendars (and IF we think about them) may be the roadblock to the life and wellness we want.
When wellness is a priority, it means that we work daily on those key foundational things we don’t “see,” like our stress and sleep and, yes, even our calendars.
Here’s why.
Achieving our wellness goals begins with the small habits we create every day. Only with a wellness-centric calendar will we actually stick to those small habits that ultimately build into the life and body you want.
Let’s unpack the power of mindset and why it’s so important for our wellness and how we approach our to-do lists.
Our mindset is a huge factor in our habits surrounding time management and our schedule. Many of us feel overwhelmed by our calendars and the lack of control over our days. Sometimes we believe that working longer hours and taking on more tasks makes us more productive and successful. However, this constant pressure and stress takes a toll and only leaves us feeling exhausted, less confident, and less productive… the exact opposite of what we want.
I’ve said it many times. If our wellness isn’t on our calendar, it won’t happen. When we are running around from one thing to the next all day long, it’s easy to get to the end of the day and realize we “forgot” or “didn’t have time” to take care of ourselves. Scheduling our wellness also offers some accountability. If a workout is scheduled, it’s much more likely that it will happen!
I admit that managing my calendar once felt like operating a yo-yo. I would oscillate between periods of being organized, periods of disorganization, and periods of feeling overwhelmed by my schedule. I never felt good about myself, either! If I was on-task with work, my workouts were falling behind. If I was super on track with caring for my family, I seemed to miss a work deadline here or there.
This inconsistency negatively impacted my mood, energy, and overall well-being. My calendar wasn’t a way to visualize my goals and add ease to my day. It became a point of contention, a source of stress, and a barrier to my happiness and wellness success. My calendar OWNED me!
Then I decided to reframe my mindset, and everything changed.
When I decided that I was worthy of a calendar that reflected my values, I did the work to break down the unhelpful mindsets that kept me in the yo-yo of disorganization and unhappiness.
Here are three common barriers to your wellness that I’ve heard from clients, and yes, even myself in the past:
Overcommitment: I get it, it feels good to say yes. It’s easy to overcommit ourselves and say “yes” to every request or invitation. It feels really good when others “need” us because it elevates our feel-good hormone dopamine. Yet this is something that can wreak havoc on our well-being. The dopamine rush we feel with our initial “yes” tricks us into committing ourselves to more than we can comfortably take on. We should say “yes” to the important things that align with our values, and say “no” to the nonessential. Taking on too many tasks or activities can make it difficult to manage our calendars and make time for what we value. We must be judicious about our “yes’s,” and this will free up our schedule for things that we enjoy.
Lack of boundaries: Women, especially in midlife, have so many responsibilities for so many people. Whether it’s an aging parent, a spouse, a teenager, or a team of coworkers, there is always “more” to do for others. Learning to boundary our days is a critical component of our well being. We are worthy of our own time. I realize it is not easy to do when we work for others and when we have children or others who rely on us. Scheduling small breaks between meetings or tasks, or waking up 15 minutes earlier each day are great ways to create time for ourselves.
Distractions: Social media, news, idle gossip, or constant interruptions can make it hard to focus and stay on track. We are connected by technology 24/7. Phones, emails, you name it – we’re on it. It can be hard to focus when we are constantly hearing new emails in the inbox, phones going off, or just the “noise” in our head of thinking, planning, fretting, and problem-solving. This results in short and simple tasks taking much longer than anticipated, dwindling down the already-limited time we have for ourselves and our self-care. Focusing on the task at hand will ensure we stay on schedule, remain productive throughout the day, and have more time for ourselves, what we value, and our wellness.
Do any of these three “schedule stealers” sound familiar? Don’t worry if they do, I was there once too!
If your calendar feels out of control and is a large source of stress in your life, I suggest starting small. Don’t be afraid to say “no”, schedule small breaks into your days, and limit those distractions which will only result in LESS time for yourself.
Are you struggling to feel good in your body and looking for answers to your questions about perimenopause and menopause? I have created an online course to help women THRIVE during midlife. Be one of the first to get access to my 5-module course, coming this fall, that teaches the importance of holistic wellness and lays out core strategies to help you MASTER Menopause NOW!
