Growing up, it’s been taught in religion classes that the Lenten season is a time of reflection and preparation from Ash Wednesday leading up to Holy Week. This is the time to make sacrifices, to fast, and all-in-all strengthen one’s faith. Some choose to spend it out of town with their families, while others prefer to observe it quietly at home.
And if you decide to do the latter, we’ve rounded up some ways you can make it more intentional and meaningful. This week can also be a period of rest–one that can help us take a step back, recuperate, and reset our bodies and minds, so that we can show up and be the very best of us once again.
Write. Write down anything and everything that you’re thinking and feeling. Sometimes we get too caught up in our busy lives that we forget how liberating it is to just sit and be vulnerable about our thoughts and feelings.
Take this time to ask yourself, “How am I?” Assess what your mind and body have been telling you lately. Have you been getting enough sleep? Are you happy with the circle of people you spend time with? Have you been stretching or moving? What things have you been doing that makes you feel good about yourself?
The more that you dig within yourself and take out everything that hasn’t been said, the more that you’ll realize what it is that you need and what you have been doing so well with. Don’t be afraid to get emotional. Trust us, we do, too, whenever we take time to reflect and check-in with ourselves. It’s important to know all these, so that you know how to better take care of yourself–mentally, physically, emotionally, and even spiritually.
Move. We know you’re probably thinking, “You just told me to rest, and now you’re telling me to move?” But we defer to our pop culture icon, Elle Woods, on this one: Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy.
Getting your body moving is a great way to not just stay fit, but be mentally strong, as well. Studies have shown that endorphins also help you gain better concentration and focus. It helps to relieve stress and boost your mood, making you more mentally fit to take on daily tasks at hand.
You don’t need to spend an hour at the gym lifting weights or sprinting on the treadmill (although, you absolutely can if you want to). Moving can be as low-impact as walking your dog outside for half an hour, doing light stretches on a yoga mat, or getting groovy with an at-home dance party.
Declutter. We’re not just talking about clothes or random stuff you have in your house that no longer spark joy. We’re talking about decluttering what is probably your most used item—your phone.
Start by unsubscribing from email lists that you often just send to the trash bin. Go through your camera roll and delete those screenshots and photos you no longer need or have been backed up already. Uninstall apps you no longer use. Then, go to your social media accounts and start unfollowing accounts or people that have no relevance to you, that don’t make you feel good, or that don’t enrich your life.
When you think about it, we live with so much clutter in our gadgets. We’ve grown so accustomed to more notifications, more downloads, and more messages that we’ve forgotten to be intentional with our clicks. So, turn down the noise a bit. Take an hour or two this week to declutter and make space for people and things that matter to you.
Rest. When was the last time you’ve had a proper night’s sleep of eight hours? Or the last time you woke up and not felt the urge to go right back to sleep? If you’ve been getting inadequate rest for some time now, take this week to recover.
While asleep, this is when our bodies repair cells, restore our energy, regulate our hormones, and more. We’ve all heard horror stories of the detrimental effects of sleep deprivation, so we won’t get into that anymore. Be more intentional with sleep, so that you’re nourishing your body with rest that it needs.
Practice gratitude. When you open your eyes or right before you drift off to sleep, think of just three things that you’re grateful for. It doesn’t need to be something as grand as getting a promotion at work; it can be as simple as having an extra good cup of coffee, your puppy greeting you a good morning, or even the release of a Netflix show you’ve been waiting for.
Practicing gratitude allows you to shift into a mindset where you’re constantly reframing your train of thought to look for the good. Studies have shown that gratitude releases dopamine and serotonin, which are two chemicals released by our brain that help make us feel “good”. This has also been linked to mood improvements, less stress, and healthier immune systems.
Make the most out of this week to nourish your body, mind, and spirit. Grow in love for yourself and relish the quiet, so that you can refill your cup. And lastly, know that if you focus on your health and wellness, everything else that’s good will follow.
Have a good and restful break, Besties!
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