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This life we live is meant to be fun. It is meant to be filled with joy, happiness, abundance, success, fulfillment, satisfaction, and every other awesome word you can think of! Most of you have downloaded this app for access to some body-loving recipes because either your health is not quite at the level you desire, or maybe you want to remain at the amazing health level you are at. While eating foods that your body loves is one of the most amazing things that we can do for ourselves, there is this one other thing we consume way more than food...and that is, well, our thoughts.
Everyone secretly knows that it would be amazing to think positively all the time about everything, but this is rarely the case. It is usually someone else outside of our own brain that steps in with that positive piece of advice to share like, "Everything is going to be ok", or "You got this", but why can't it start within us from the get-go? How nice would it be for our thoughts in the morning to be just as healthy as a glass of celery juice?
Now we are not here to tell you to force yourself to think positively all the time, or that thinking this way will make all of your pain and problems disappear. And we are definitely not here to say your illness is in your head and if you were happier you wouldn’t be sick or going through what you are going through. Rather this is to remind everyone of a widely known fact: we have a choice in how we walk through our life experience, and that walk can perhaps be one with your shoelaces tied together or it could be a walk barefoot in the sand.
We all have the means within ourselves to be aligned with the high vibrations of joy, fulfillment, peace, happiness, success, gratitude, confidence, and more. They are all around us and within us. By making it your intention every day to find them and to focus on the BEST feelings and thoughts that you can, your body and mind naturally feel nourished. Even in the toughest of times, it can feel nice to say things like, “This too shall pass,” “Everything is going to be ok,” “I really don’t need to figure this out right now,” “I got this,” “I believe in myself,” "Help is on the way", or “I believe in my body”. Make a practice to stop every time you feel conflict arising and a fearful thought entering your head, and choose at that moment to select a new thought that you would tell someone you love. Something that feels kind, that works for you and actually feels true. We aren't trying to lie to ourselves and force thoughts that we don't even believe, as doing so can be counterproductive.
Some of us forget to continue to love ourselves when our body needs it most, and it all goes back to how we speak to ourselves and "think" to ourselves. Would we ever tell someone we truly loved some pieces of advice that would increase their fear, or would we tell them something motivational, uplifting, or perhaps we don't say anything at all and just be there to support them in silence?
Our thoughts really do affect our body, mind, spirit, and reality. There are countless studies, books, research, and facts that back this up. Have you ever felt your body tighten when you overthink about what someone thinks about you, or a weakness in your legs when you have a sudden worry? Has your body ever tensed up when you are waiting in a traffic jam or when you start beating yourself up for making a small mistake?
Have you ever felt your heart lifting in your body when you say, “I love you” to someone you adore? Or the bliss when you’re eating food, and it tastes so good you can’t believe it. You know that moment when you’re done with your day, you fall into bed and relief floods your body as you feel grateful to be relaxing at home. Did you pay attention to how your body felt as you just read the last two paragraphs? Could you feel the shift in your body as you went from reading the first few examples about stress and tension to the next examples surrounding relief, love, and joy? These are all just feelings, emotional responses to your thoughts. You can close your eyes at any time and simply imagine any of these things. You can feel the feelings without even moving your body because they already live within you and it’s 100% your choice which ones you want to focus on. So, will you focus on the dog that peed on your lawn or the fact that you have a hose to spray that dog if it tries it again? Just kidding, but we hope you get the point. We have a choice in what we give our attention to, and the only way to stop thinking about something that is bothering you is really to think about anything else, and this anything else might as well be something beneficial.
Stop being afraid of what can go wrong, and start being excited about what can go right! -Tony Robbins
Our bodies love being in alignment with empowering, inspiring, and love-based thoughts! It has been proven that our thoughts are very habitual and momentum-based. For instance, what happens when you and your friends start telling old happy, hilarious, and nostalgic stories about your past? Before you know it, an hour has gone by, and all you could think about were more and more of those stories. You started a momentum of thought and your brain kept feeding you more of what you were thinking about. Negative and positive thought processes can work the same way. Ask yourself what you hate about the holidays and watch the thoughts coming rolling in. Ask yourself what you love about the holidays and watch those thoughts start rolling in. Finally, try and ask yourself what you love about the holidays right AFTER you made your long list of what you hate. It might be pretty hard to make that positive switch, right? That is because it can be very hard to stop a train of thought. This is why making a morning practice to start your thoughts in a more general, positive manner, can create a great foundation for your day.
So you're waking up to a brand new day and your brain is ready to pick back up its train of thought, right before you fell asleep the night before. This is the opportunity to choose those thoughts instead of letting them choose you. This can be key in how the rest of your day goes. If you start your day thinking about what you don’t like, or what is bothering you with no intent of a solution, your brain will keep pointing out more of those things for you. Instead, start your day thinking about what you do like, believe in, enjoy, and love about your life and we promise your brain will keep feeding you more of that. This is a fun insight into how the brain works. Some examples of easy morning thoughts:
"Wow, it looks nice outside."
"I am so excited to eat some breakfast!"
"Today is a new opportunity for me to do all the things I know will benefit me."
"Today I am one step closer to my goals/dreams."
"I like my sheets, and my comforter, they are so soft."
Of course, this all takes some practice because our brains work in a habitual manner. Our mind isn't going to rewire overnight, especially since so many of these patterns and habits have been lifelong tendencies. A couple of amazing ways to help break some old habitual thought patterns are through practicing meditation daily/every other day, and/or creating long lists of positive aspects in your life as often as you desire. These two things are life-changing. Not only does your mind shift, let go, and loosen up, but your brain starts creating new neuro-pathways to allow for new habits to form. To top it all off, the body is the first that gets to feel the difference because as you think in forms of love, your frequency rises, and the body loves living in a high frequency.
Future medicine will be the medicine of frequencies. -Albert Einstein
We can eat the healthiest diet in the world, exercise daily, or do yoga, but how do we really feel when we are doing these things? If ease, joy, and love are missing in these experiences of our lives then we must step back and change our perspective. Why is it we are even doing these things? If it is out of fear of illness, perfectionism, fear of failure, or trying to fit, then we are just fueling our problem. How can we change our minds to embrace our goals and desires symbiotically with a love for ourselves?
There are many ways to do this, some being to bask in our destination, and to believe! To have faith and stop repeating the story that we are working so hard to change. For example, say there is an illness you are so ready to overcome and you are eating very healthy and exercising frequently. Instead of thinking “I am so afraid of being sick”, “I don’t want to be sick anymore”, “I need to escape this”, change your thoughts to a story of love. A story that reads more like, “I am so excited to have my life back”, “I love the idea of getting back out into my garden or hanging out with my family”, and “I am so happy knowing my body has all the tools it needs to heal itself and I can just do little things to help it along its path!”
Trying to fix a problem while staring into the eyes of the problem can be one of the biggest reasons people do not see results. There is a difference between letting a problem be your only focus and ranting and raving about it, versus focusing on the fact that you know there is a solution to the problem somewhere out there. If you knew the power of the mind, you would never want to speak helplessly about your problems ever again because what we focus on grows and grows, and changing focus is key. Yes, it is easier said than done, of course. If you are living a life that is uncomfortable, unbearable, and seemingly impossible to ignore the suffering, just do your best. Spend as much time as you can dreaming of your future self having the life experience you are meant to have. Get to know that person within, who you will be again on the outside, and never lose faith. If you do have a low moment never beat yourself up, it is a gradual process with each moment acting as a beautiful stepping stone.
Here are some amazing tools and activities to practice for rewiring the brain with new habitual thought patterns that will benefit you greatly!
Making gratitude lists: Write down 10+ things every night before you go to bed that you are grateful for. (It has been proven that the act of writing amplifies your focus of thought.) Then continue the list in your mind as you close your eye to sleep. If you don’t always want to write them down just say them in your head as you lay there. Fall asleep in a flow of gratitude and watch as you wake up with the same mindset! Examples:
I love how soft my bed sheets are.
I like knowing that I ate with respect to my body today.
I love that I don’t have to do anything but lay right here.
I love that I made the most delicious smoothie today!
Practice changing focus: As you go through your day look for things that you like around you. Examples:
If you're forced to have a conversation with someone you don’t exactly adore, think of 3 things you really like about this person. Maybe they have nice hair or a cool shirt on or pretty eyes. If that's impossible, make efforts to remove this person from your life. Life is about feeling good!
As you walk through your house smile at all the little nicknacks you’ve collected in your life.
If your living room is messy think about how lucky you are to have the choice to clean it whenever you damn well please, or start cleaning and then get pumped about how successful you are!
Basically there are always other ways to look at things that will simply feel better.
Watching and reading uplifting & inspiring entertainment: We all love movies and books, right? They have a powerful effect on us and how we view the world and we can use this to our advantage. We know cutting out the news is a massive stress reliever, so it is no surprise that being mindful of your choice of movie or book can have great effects on the mind.
Watch or read something that makes you feel empowered, funny, uplifted, happy, sexy, inspired, and/or excited. We resonate with what we watch and carry it with us.
Not saying you shouldn't watch your favorite scary movies here and there! It’s fun of course! Just saying that we have this amazing somewhat magical tool in front of us that can literally lift us up out of the slumps, or inspire us to do amazing things. Might as well use it for good most the time!
Meditation: This is an incredible tool for all things. It can be used to stop the momentum of the mind or start it. There are meditations for reaching mindlessness that gives your body access to do what it already knows how to do without thoughts interfering. Guided meditations are another option, which is wonderful for allowing in other ideas and thoughts that maybe you wouldn’t normally be thinking of. These can help bring your perspective to something new and beautiful.
We have created a meditation that has both the styles mentioned above that you can find in the "Meditations" section of the app called Letting Go - Morning Meditation. It will begin with gradually uplifting positive thought patterns and transition into gentle music for you to simply be without thought. Sometimes our minds get in the way of our success, our comfort, our flow, or our bliss. Luckily there is a force within all of us that always knows the way to feel the best, to flow the best, and to succeed in the easiest way possible. Setting aside some time, maybe 15 minutes every morning or every other morning to let our minds settle and allow for that powerful loving force to rise to the surface will be a life-changing activity that can only benefit you. We hope you enjoy it!
Tip: When you meditate or make happy lists, do so within the first hour of waking up as this allows you to set the tone for your day.
In the end, anything that has your mind and body feeling really good is always the right place for you! Take care of yourself, for you, simply because you want to feel good. That’s it. This is the momentum for greatness!
Wishing you an incredible journey, we love you, you got this!
-Fully Alive Again