Cyndi gets REAL SIMPLE

By Cyndi On October 8, 2011 · 1 Comment · In Cyndi

Ok peeps, I’m back. After a week of being scared to use the wireless Internet in Tennessee cause my email was hacked, 2 days of driving to Texas, 10 days in Europe, 3 days of driving to Utah, and the last 12 days having bronchitis and sinusitis, I’m up and running.

I’ve fallen totally off the bandwagon in terms of points and taking pics of my food. If I look back at my dietSNAPS app the last day I have pics is 9/22/11. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like I’ve been eating total crap, but I’ve just fallen out of the habit of journaling. And as my pants get tighter, partially due to my growing belly, but mostly due to my lack of normalcy in diet and exercise over the past 2 months…I find myself craving a routine. I’ll get there!

I did have a fantastic time in Europe and I’ll make a separate post with pics, but I just wanted to share an article I read in one of my favorite magazines, REAL SIMPLE.

I started buying this magazine for the recipes. It has fantastic recipes that are healthy and delicious (and low in points). Plus everything is “real simple” hence the name!! Lately they have added more “real simple” ideas for fashion, organizing, cleaning, entertaining, and advice for life. In the latest issue, I found a fantastic article titled, “5 Quick Rituals for a Better Day“. It goes perfectly with my new waking up with awesome motto!! (click on the link to be directed to the article at realsimple.com)

1. Eat the same breakfast every day

I totally do this, or I used to more often than lately. The concept behind it is that it takes a little bit of stress out of your life because it’s one less thing you have to worry about! Obviously make it something healthy that will keep you happy and full.

2. Savor your coffee

So I don’t drink coffee, but the idea behind this is to take a little time to enjoy something. They compare it to the Japanese whose formal tea ceremony can last four hours. It’s a daily exercise of mindfulness.

3. Write and ignore list

Probably my favorite one. As a perpetual list maker of things I have to get done, I love this idea of making of list of things I don’t have to. It’s liberating!

4. Turn off your mind for a few minutes

I think this goes along with #2, except that instead of focusing on one thing, you get to focus on nothing! I often find myself trying this exercise when I can’t sleep. It usually happens when I have anxiety about something or there is so much going on in my life that I can’t quiet my mind enough to fall asleep. So I simply say to myself over and over in my head “nothing, nothing, nothing”. Or I visualize myself asleep or BOTH!!

5. Really listen to the answer when you ask, “How are you?”

Seriously how many times do we find ourselves mindlessly asking how someone is doing, not really caring or listening to the answer. My mom has always told me when I’ve called her complaining feeling sorry for myself or depressed is to focus on others. You really forget yourself when you are focused on other people.

Just wanted to share that with you all. Now I’m off to start getting back on track!