Lindsay Havlicek Bell, Psy.D.

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Flexible is Sustainable

Last week I spent a solid amount of time planning out content for the blog. I was feeling really good about everything, using new organizational tactics, and ready to rock and roll. Today's post was supposed to be a 10 minute destress and loosen up flow (I'm expanding the yoga content here), but then life happened.

Motherhood happened.

We had a really rough weekend here with my son's lack of sleep. By lack of sleep I mean I slept 6 hours total over the entire weekend. This isn't uncommon for him. He's a sensitive little guy, and little things throw sleep off in a big way.  The good news is we had a wonderful night of sleep last night, and he is currently napping.  I think we made it to the other side!  Woohoo!

So... With that said, I was unable to work on the yoga flow for you guys. Usually this would lead to one of two things: 1) Giving up on everything because it feels like an uphill battle; or 2) Insisting that things must happen the way I had originally planned, and placing huge amounts of stress on myself.  I can proudly say that I happily moved on to option 3: Be flexible!

Flexibility is not just for the physical realm.  It's a mental practice... yoga off the mat.  It's an adaptable strategy to help you win at life.

So I looked at my content planner, rearranged a few things, took my son to the beach, and voila!  No big deal!

Rigid thinking leads to stress, irritability, unhappiness, and problems that will reach every aspect of your life in a way that you don't want.  On the other hand, flexible thinking and behaviors lead to long term sustainable practices.  This is essential if you want a healthy, happy, and lasting lifestyle.

Truth: My middle name is not Flexible.  This has been a difficult part of my personal journey.  I remember when I first started getting into wellness.  If something came up and I missed a day of exercise, yoga, or healthy eating I was a mess.  Everything was all or nothing.  My "healthy habits" were actually causing me more stress.  Eventually I began to take it easy on myself, loosen the reigns, and start to roll with things.  My flexibility off the mat mirrored what was happening on the mat.  

If you want to design and live your ideal life, then flexible thinking is essential.  It must be an active part of your process.  A daily choice that you are committed to.  You'll never touch your toes unless you stretch.

Here is to a flexible + sustainable lifestyle...

With love,

Lindsay