If I am going to be successful in this challenge, I am going to have to make some pretty big lifestyle changes. Starting with how I start and end my days.

If you had asked me 6 months ago if I was a morning person, I would have responded NO – absolutely not! A night owl was how I would describe myself, but really all that meant was that I would spend most evenings on the couch watching Netflix, likely with a glass of wine and snack. That’s how I got through 8 seasons of Game of Thrones in such a short time. And I was proud of it It was like a badge of honour, stay up late, getting to work early and fully functional (or so I thought).

Truth is I was exhausted most of the time.

I would promise myself not to repeat the same behaviour that night. To go to bed early, take care of myself.

And then it would happen again, and again, and again.

It was my comfort zone, I convinced myself that I needed to unwind, relax at the end of the day, that I deserved a treat.

But then the treat becomes a habit and suddenly I am not feeling so relaxed.

And I wondered why I was always so tired.

And weekends were no better, because in addition to staying up late and indulging in too many ways, I would also put enormous pressure on myself to make the most of my time off – like I had something to prove.

Multiple workouts, teaching, time with friends and family.

And I wondered why I was always so tired.

And then repeat.

Wow – looking back, it seems so clear to me, so obvious how I was harming myself – no wonder I felt stuck, unhappy in my body, with my choices and with a shitty outlook. I read an interesting book recently, the Morning Miracle by Hal Elrod. In his book, the Hal Elrod talks about how successful people make time first thing in the morning for themselves which sets them up for a successful day.

It’s a quick read , the gist of is that you get up an hour earlier every day and spend that time on reflection, meditation, journaling, exercise.

Before you do anything else.

It’s like paying yourself first.

Thought I would give it a try as I am in challenge mode – why not add this on?

Day 10 of my F45 Challenge and my mornings look something like this:

 Up at 5 AM

Gym at 5:30, meal organization and eating

Awake during my commute to work listening to a podcast or reading/writing.

All that before I even start my work day!

And my evenings?

Dinner, prep for the next day, herbal tea.

Some nights I will even read instead of tv!

Does that sound boring to you?  Its really not, quality time with family and self care feels pretty damn good.

Are there sacrifices?

For sure.

I go to bed a little earlier, I set 3 alarms and some mornings I still have to kick my own ass out of bed.

But I am falling asleep a little easier and waking up a little more rested.

Mostly though I think it’s an attitude shift that has me jump out of bed rather than pressing the snooze button 2-3 times.

I know there will be good days and bad, days that I feel like giving up, when I am discouraged, resentful.

Is it worth it?

Absolutely!

And for that, I celebrate that and acknowledge myself for my dedication and persistence. This is really working for me.  Jen