I Messed Up Today-  And My Body Felt like crap because of it

Happy Sunday and happy almost Spring! Sarah here this morning, and I know a lot of you aren't quiete feelign the "fresh" energy yet- and I was with you when I wrote this.

 I’m an optimist by nature- I'm always looking for the silver linings, the solutions, but today I found myself in a funk of my own doing.

Now let me preface: There are many causes of fatigue and low mood. It’s not always our fault.  We often see underlying health issues like nutrient deficiencies, dysregulated cortisol levels, blood sugar swings and hormone imbalances behind fatigue and low energy levels.  I wrote a blog post on this- But newsletter gets the real talk off the beaten path ways to improve and find your sprak. 

Habits? Mindsets? How do we pivot when life hands it to us ? That’s our super power and our responsibility. 

Let me fess up about where I got in my own way today and how I turend my energy and mood around: 

 Here’s where I went wrong 

• It started with going to bed way late on Tuesday night. I was in front of a screen working til almost 9:30- my workaholic brain took advantage of a night where I was home alone and went wild. It took me a while to fall asleep and I woke up groggy at my usual time and clocked less than wheat my body needs 
•  My personal rule is I don’t open any social media or messaging platforming within the first hour of waking . I broke my rule on Wednesday. Suddenly I found myself at 7am already dealing with the world when i hadn’t had a chance to get my own stuff sorted 
• The above caused me to be late out the door and I got to the pool for my workout 15 minutes late - now I had to wait another 10 minutes instead of being able to jump right in because the lanes were full. Pushing my goal start from 9 am to 915, to now 9:30 
• When I got home, I didn’t have my plans written down. My check lists for the week got all shifted due to both professional and personal appointments that got rescheduled. Instead of re-writing my plan, I left Wednesday up to chance. I Found myself ping ponging between tasks and struggled hard to get into any type of deep work - leaking energy the whole time.
• I tried a short walk break but listened to a podcast and have no idea what I listened to only that i didn’t have the capacity for it and my brain only felt more foggy and full after what was supposed to be a break 
• When I did finally sit down to write this newsletter - I started with 3 different ideas . I tried to piece together something cohesive and was left just confused - oh and was late to have lunch and definitely dehydrated by the time I peeled myself away from the screen.  

How I course corrected 

• When my eyes finally stopped being able to focus on said newsletter, I took a break from my task and went for a walk. This time without headphones 
• I took time to actually connect to my own thoughts, my own needs for the rest of the day and the conversations I've been having with my community (clients, mentees, friends and even on social media) about what we’re needing right now 
• When i got home i immediately drank water and put my phone in another room and started a fresh word document and a clear idea 
•  I didn’t have more coffee for that post swim  work block.  Instead I opted for tea knowing that more caffeine wouldn’t help my sleep or already flighty nervous system. 
• I set my shut down time from work, meaning if this newsletter isn’t /wasn’t down by that time - so be it
• I set an alarm for dinner so I wouldn’t get behind on a meal again 
• I didn’t beat myself up for the previous errors. I didn’t delete the newsletter i started ( i may eventually send that one). I didn’t further deplete my energy with negative thoughts about how may day had been going up until precisely 435 pm as i’m writing this 
• I have a coffee date with a friend to co work wednesday next week- that’s something i know helps my focus and I won’t have another wednesday opening and re opening a blank word doc 

March is the month to spring clean your energy.  

Fatigue, feeling like you’re dragging in the gym, struggling hard to get into a groove with your nutrition routine , maybe even feeling lost with the goals you set at the start of Q1 are all a very normal part of this time of year with the shifts in season. 

The good news is we get to start fresh whenever we want. 

How so? Especially if energy is down- Spring cleaning can feel daunting.  

The conversations I’ve been having with you and in my own brain all circle back to this: 

it's not about trying to optimize everything.

 It's taking a targeted approach to both reduce the mental load and focus on the key health levers that will help you feel stable, recovered, and strong again.

Which means  identifying the primary drivers contributing to the load on your system and reason behind your symptoms and frustrations .  

Essentially- we’re picking your domino(s) that have the biggest downstream effect.  

Prioritization. And Understanding what your body actually needs and what doesn’t deserve your energy. 

On Wednesday when I wrote this- I let a lot of energy leak. 

I’m glad I have a lot of foundations in place - at least I had food prepped, frozen veggies in the freezer, I'm up to date on labs and my supplement routine is solid,  I know my signs of being dehydrated, over-stimulated…. 

 But if you don’t ? Now is a great time to tap in. 

Blood Work and Lab Testing  

We recommend using serum lab work to identify which areas of the body may need extra support and pinpoint underlying conditions that could be contributing to fatigue. For example, one sign of low thyroid hormone levels is  fatigue. A CBC and iron panel may reveal nutrient inadequacies. B12 and iron are two common micronutrients that someone with low energy levels may need more of in their diet … or dig deeper into why they are deficient. 

Read more here: Useful Labs to Consider

 After gathering lab results Our approach involves using those insights to make targeted adjustments to diet, lifestyle, and training so you can start not only improving energy and focus, but positively impacting all areas of health.  Even before receiving lab results, we encourage focusing on these key areas. 

 Habits and Routines You May Not Have Thought Of

Small additions or tweaks can go a long way. I affectionately call these “ways to stir the pot.” 

1. Hot or Cold Therapy: Sauna, cold showers and ice baths , all have a powerful energy boosting component.  There’s some big endorphin rushes that come from staying a little past the uncomfortable point. The even bigger benefits may be teaching oneself to stay calm in a physically demanding environment- which is how these tools help foster stress resilience. 

2. Check in on your breath - Not getting enough oxygen is a great way to physically and mentally drain yourself of any energy. Try it right now - big inhale through your nose, feel your rib cage expand 360 degree, big exhale through your mouth - felt good huh?

3. Mix it up
- Especially if you’re super routine and regimented 

• Be a goof and dance in while you meal prep 
•  Send that email tomorrow and go hang out with friends instead

• Take a different route for your neighborhood walk

• Mix up your training- maybe try a class switch up your cardio modality

Allowing “play time” is a great way to get some fresh creative juice flowing that translates to better physical energy and mental sharpness. 

4. Stay moving 
 An object in motion stays in motion. And it doesn’t have to be physically draining: 10 minute walks indoors or out , some lunch break mobility, vacuum on your lunch break instead of scrolling IG … mentally moving on from a “problem” and letting yourself figure it out later… 

5. Audit your calendar . What needs to be there, what doesn’t ? Maybe there’s some zoom meetings that can get crossed off. Maybe you don’t really find that heated pilated class to be as helpful as they sold you on it to be in January. The weekly coffee date with your friend? Maybe you need more of those pm Sundays and less THursday night happy hours 

6. Take a macro tracking break and eat intuitively. Especially if you have tracked macronutrients for years- a data deload and focusing on eating seasonally (asparagus, kiwis, beats, peaches , strawberries , fennel for March) and balanced without numbers or apps for a few days 

7. Make it a game See how long you can wait to open Instagram or your email when you wake up in the morning. When the temptation rises after 10, 15 minutes, see if you can make it a minute longer. Ideally building up to the first hour of the day sans social media 

8. Go on a side quest 

• Check out that farmers market you drive by every Sunday 
• Start actually trying to do some hand stands against a walk that you see your favorite influencer posting daily on your sties 
•  Volunteer at an animal shelter 
• Go to a park and watch a sunset just because - pack your meal prep!

Test them out, see how you feel! We always stress that not everything needs to be an elaborate, 10-page-long protocol to improve health, performance, or physique.

In conclusion 

You deserve to have the mental clarity and pep in your step to accomplish all the big goals you have for yourself. And so often, our own habits and routine can be the one thing standing in our way. 

Awareness is step one- that includes a habit audit, taking tcare of your body by checking under the hood with labs, and regular (perhaps monthly ) check ins about what your body needs. Amd finally, there’s no shame in asking for guidance or support - i know i’m glad i called myself out here this week, and that I have a new plan and accountability buddy for next wednesday 

That’s the whole purpose of a strategy session.

Not more optimization. To understand:  what actually deserves your attention and what doesn’t need your energy anymore.