I’ve been blogging consistently now for two years, but I’ve journaled on and off my whole life.
Did you ever own one of those journals w/ the lock and key?
Yeah… I stayed stocked and when at the book store, I would salivate at the thought of owning more.
So, it’s really not all that surprising that last summer when I was introduced to bullet journaling as a way of organization that it would stick.
Here’s what most folks don’t know… along w/ the “to-do” list and “chore tracker”… my method of bullet journaling is so loosely structured that when the moment arises and I want… NEED… to capture my thoughts into words, I jump inside whatever page is ready to receive it.
And, as a naturally high strung person… a recovering perfectionist one might say… I find an instant release after I’ve let my pen have it’s say. In fact, writing turns my RESTLESSNESS into instant CLARITY and FOCUS.
That simple pen and paper (or flashing scroll when blogging) takes my brain that moves a million miles a minute and forces it to SLOW DOWN to a snails pace so I sit WITH my discomfort, feelings, confusion, expectations, and mistakes.
My past and present CAN’T GET DISMISSED as a flashing thought…
… that fight I had with my husband, that riff that tore me apart from a friend, my unexpected miscarriage, my late night rendezvous with all the candy in the pantry… all get dealt with or at least begin the sometimes arduous journey towards understanding.
In other words… I can attribute a huge part of my personal growth to taking the time to put MY STORY into words.
That’s where the magic of journaling happens and that’s truly my end goal with this whole email journaling series, #7DeadlySins of Fitness (and anything else really), jumps off on June 5th.
One email per week.
One journal entry.
Each topic dealing with the 7 Deadly Sins – wrath, gluttony, sloth, pride, envy, lust, and greed.
It’s not just, hey! read this super indulging email and write how you feel about it… you’d never journal or get the benefits of journaling if it was structured that way!
I want you walking out of the next 7 weeks having learned a solid PROCESS on how to at least start to get to the bottom of madness that is holding you down.
So much of our “problems and issues” with eating, exercise, comfort foods, judgement on eating and our relationship with our bodies… doesn’t have ANYTHING to do with calories, macros, burpees, or cellulite.
You can’t effectively work through all those tangibles until you’re willing to work with what’s happening INSIDE your head first! So…
Here’s how this whole journaling thing is going to go down… and even if you’re not doing this #7DeadlySins thing I highly recommend that the next time you attempt to journal you’re doing so with these 4 parts key elements in mind…
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What’s your ANECDOTE?
Every email will start w/ one of my stories in wrath, pride, gluttony, sloth, lust, envy, or greed to prompt YOUR OWN story. These “sins” are UNIVERSAL… not a one of us have lived this life without having become victim to them all at some point.
BE HUMAN.
I certainly plan to be, but the point of the email is not my story but yours! SOMETHING about what you read is meant to trigger one of your past or present experiences on the same topic.
However, this time… you’re not allowed to just THINK about this experience, we’re going to slow your brain down to that critical snails pace so you sit with the memories and the circumstances and WRITE FREELY.
That’s the other thing… forget periods, good grammar, correct spelling, or political correctness. Give yourself permission to get totally UNCENSORED! Super important so that the next steps have an impact!
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How are you ACCOUNTABLE?
Read over your story and ask yourself, where am I playing the role of victim? Yes… super hard and can piss you off but such a key point when personal growth is an end goal.
Stop being the angel who got trampled on. Stop being a martyr.
We may not be responsible for how things started, but we sure as hell all are accountable to how we REACTED to it. We can control NO ONE but ourselves so this part is about putting the focus on us rather than wishing and hoping someone else would do x, y, and z.
What is YOUR x, y, z towards resolution?
Lose judgement and exchange it for RESPONSIBILITY. Own your part.
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Are you willing to/should you ADAPT?
Whether it’s a deeper sense of gratitude or learning how to set new boundaries with people, every experience carries a valuable lesson.
The third step in this email journaling series is to … RE-WRITE your story having taken into account where your responsibility lies.
How would things be different if you had… not screamed back, assumed someone’s words were meant to injure, or stayed completely silent? Write a new ending to the story so that you can truly understand what RESOLUTION would look like for you. Then…
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What’s the next immediate ACTION?
Big or small, forward progress is on YOU. Doing, not thinking, creates change!
Little things can get taken care of fast but if you’re dealing w/ something complicated you’ve got simply find that small thing you are responsible for today, right now, to closer to being at your best again.
Action cures anxiety. The best thing you can do is NOT try to do all the things at once. Start small, but DO something!
You guys, I’m super excited about June 5th… again, not because it’s about my story, but because I have felt the benefits of journaling (and blogging) for so long and hope to pass it along!
I’d love to have you along for the ride and hope to provide for you lots of light bulb moments that will propel you out of some of those sad or dark hang ups in friendships, food, exercise, and body image.
