The Simplest Things Work Best!

Hello everyone! I have a fabulous solution for those "Menopausal off days we sometimes have. But before I get to that I have a question for you! Have you taken the 21 Day Beautiful Posture Beautiful You Challenge yet? If you have congratulations! You're already more than halfway through! You should be feeling right proud of yourself by now and you're probably feeling better physically and mentally too! Hooray!

If you haven't, no worries! You can start at anytime. There is no start deadline but don't wait too long. You want to reap the benefits of having good posture now so you can avoid the pitfalls of bad posture later. Here's the link to the challenge post! http://deevawellness.wix.com/deevapilates#!21-Day-Beautiful-Posture-Beautiful-YOU-Challenge/c11gh/55ce12e80cf2b503a1a41f9a And remember, post your progress and results right on my website!

Now...On to the topic at hand. A few weeks ago I woke up feeling out of sorts. My head was foggy, my body felt stiff, I felt tired, irritated, anxious...you know. The whole menopause thing. My initial reaction to this was to just lie around all day, don't answer the phone, and just basically watch TV and seclude myself in my own misery. After all, they say that misery loves company right? (By the way...WHO are THEY??) So I figured I'd just keep my misery company.

Lucky for me I decided not to do what I had planned after all. It was a beautiful day outside, and I wanted to be out in it! So instead of lying around all day, I forced myself up off of the couch, rubbed some lavender oil on my temples, took three deep inhales and got moving.

I pulled out my mat and did a 40 minute pilates workout. Nothing strenuous, just gentle, stretching with relaxing movement. Sometimes we have to treat our bodies gently when they are in crisis. See with pilates you can do that and still work the muscles for strengthening and toning. (I just figured I'd throw that in there)

Afterwards I had a healthy breakfast of sliced peaches, whole grain toast with freshly made raspberry jam, and fresh squeezed orange juice.

Then I packed a backpack with iced water, a banana, a notepad and a book and walked down to my favorite park. I walked twice around the challenging 2.5 mile track. (Actually it was more like a stroll cause I was treating my body gently that day). Then I found a shady spot under a huge tree. I sat down and read a little, drank some iced water, talked on the phone, breathed in some fresh air, lifted my face to the sun, took some pictures, ate my banana, drank some more iced water, wrote in my notepad, then just sat and did nothing. I mean, absolutely....nothing. I just sat and enjoyed God's green earth and it put a smile on my face.

When I got up to walk back home I felt energized! I felt relaxed! I felt strong! All of those symptoms I had earlier had disappeared. I felt POWERFUL!

Yes, I know, get to the point Deeva! Ok, Ok, Ok. The point is what my title says. During menopause we can have off days where we feel disconnected and off center. A real blah feeling. The truth is, the me of less than 5 years ago would have done my usual and popped a pill, ate a few pop tarts and had a sugary drink to try and feel better. Even though I knew the results wouldn't be lasting or complete.

Today I have discovered that the simple things do work! And quickly too! The simple, natural things like movement, healthy energizing food and mother nature are so much more beneficial for us with much healthier and lasting results. And there are NO side effects to worry about.

I believe that those menopausal off days could be our body's way of telling us "Look! I need some TLC! Can you hook me up???" Remember, our bodies need more attention during menopause, not less. Sometimes we can forget that and our bodies will remind us!

If you find yourself having a menopausal off day, why not "Hook yourself up" and treat your

body to a session of gentle movement, a cardio boost, and some good old mother nature therapy! I'll bet it will work better for you than your old standby, especially if your old standby was anything like mine. So umm...feel free to tell me what YOUR old standby is/was. We can compare notes! 'Wink'

Until next time......

Stay Blessed & Stay WELL!