To be the best Mom we can be we need to take care of ourselves! Too many of us neglect ourselves. It's time to make "me time" happen and #FeelGooder. There are so many ways we can practice self-care. Here are some of the ways I take time for me.
I am a Mom and a blogger, but I don't consider myself a mommy blogger. I talk about my family, but I don't like to give advice on raising kids or feeding kids. I never really looked for advice other than from family when I became a mom. My oldest is twelve, so the online world was really just beginning then. Mommy bloggers did not exist yet. In my opinion, each mom needs to do what's best for themselves and for their family. What works for one mom may not work for another. That's why you will not read posts often about what I do or don't do in the daily care of my family.
What I do often do though is talk about self-care, especially with my patients. As a dietitian, I work very closely with patients who are losing weight, a lot of weight. Many of my patients are women and moms who have spent years, upon years worrying about their families well-being, but not necessarily their own. I talk about self-care a lot with my patients, especially when it comes to eating right and exercising. Mom's often forget to care for themselves. We can't be our best and give our all to our families if we don't take the time to give ourselves some attention.
I am not an expert on self-care. I certainly have room to improve, but here are 7 ways that I practice self-care.
Wake up early
I was always someone who exercised. When my son was a baby and toddler I found it difficult to fit in exercise. After my daughter was born and I had weight to lose, I decided that I need to wake up early in order to fit in exercise. There are days when I don't exercise, but I use my extra time in the morning to prepare for the day before the mad rush begins.
Exercise
We all know exercise is important. You don't need me to tell you that! What I will tell you is how wonderful exercise is for reducing stress and clearing your head. Exercise is my time to improve my health, but also to be alone. It's not that I'm anti-social. Exercise is my quiet time. I don't have an exercise buddy, because it's time where I can to do what I want when I want to do it.
Find a hobby
Often our kid's hobbies become our hobbies. With all the time our kid's activities take up we often have little time for our own interests. Having a hobby allows you to do something that gives you joy. Not that our kids don't give us joy! A hobby is something apart from our family that's all our own. I started quilting when my daughter was a baby. I always wanted to make quilts, so one day I signed up for a class. Quilting gives me the time to focus on something that just for me. I have done less quilting recently because blogging and food photography has become my new hobbies. My sister takes karate lessons, my neighbor is a photographer, my sister-in-law plays soccer. There are so many possibilities.
Take a walk
Walking is not only a way that I get in exercise it's also a way for me to be alone. I usually walk around our neighborhood, so I am not far from home. The silence during my walk helps clear my head. I can think or not use my brain if I wish.
Pamper yourself
I love to get pedicure, massages, facials, but these were all activities that I did every once in a while. They are luxuries that I have felt were not in our budget when we had daycare bills. My kids are older now so I decided recently that I am going to pamper myself. I now get a pedicure about every 4-6 weeks. The spa that I love in town has a re-book program. Basically the program allows you to may on $50 for a facial or massage that would normally cost almost double that.
Stop comparing yourself to others
We can be our worst critics. I admit I often come myself to other mothers, other dietitians, other bloggers. Comparing would really stress me out. This is something that I recently added to my self care arsenal. I need to be me and be happy with me. You sort of need to pat yourself on the back and congratulate yourself for your accomplishments and not be jealous of what someone else is doing.
Nourish your body
Of course, this would be here. Even though I am a dietitian my diet is not always perfect. I believe in the 80/20 rule. Make good choices 80% of the time. To help make good choices I try to have stocked healthy snacks in our house. I am on the go a lot. On my days off I try to be efficient with my time, so I move pretty quick. I use snack/protein bars after a workout if I am not headed straight home to eat. Zone Perfect - Perfectly Simply Bar is just the right snack/protein bar to help keep me going. Flavors include:
• Almond Toffee Crunch
• Bing Cherry & Almond
• Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk
• Roasted Cashew & Dark Chocolate
About Zone Perfectly Simple
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Share your self-care tips with me here in the comments or head over to Instagram or Facebook and share your story.
Melanie says
Great tips! I've recently found that my day goes so much more smoothly if I wake up early (assuming I went to bed early too). I used to love sleeping in, but I realized that getting up early helps me prepare mentally and prioritize what needs to be done each day. Taking a walk is always something that helps me too.
Lauren @ Eating with a Purpose says
Great post- I completely agree with all of your tips. You tip to "stop comparing yourself to others" is so important in practicing self care and something I know dietitians tend to struggle with (myself included) 🙂
Liz - Meal Makeover Mom says
Great tips and so important. I especially love the Pamper Yourself tip!
Jennifer Lynn-Pullman says
I think my favorite is to be pampered!
EA-The Spicy RD says
Great tips! It's so easy to get caught up in taking care of the kids {and husbands too :-)}, but SO important to take care of ourselves. Good reminder that I need to schedule a massage!!
Jennifer Lynn-Pullman says
Just had a pedicure and facial last week!
Jessica @ Nutritioulicious says
Excellent tips. I definitely need to put these into effect more than I do. Whenever I wake up earlier than the kids, the day goes so much better, but some days I just can't make it happen!
Jennifer Lynn-Pullman says
There are days that I can't wake up either. It happens!!
Sally @ Real Mom Nutrition says
This is such an important topic. I'm finding that I have more time for self care now that the kids are getting older. Two things I've been able to reclaim from my pre-kids life are playing the piano and reading. I love doing those two things, so this year I bought a beautiful new piano--and I'm also having moments where the kids are reading quietly and I can read quietly with them. It's amazing! When they were babies and toddlers, I don't think I could've ever believed that would happen. 🙂
Jennifer Lynn-Pullman says
I miss having babies, but it is so nice to have some "me" time back now that my kids are older.
Gretchen | kumquat says
thanks so much for sharing this! even though I'm an old mom I keep having babies and perpetuating my need to hear these tips again and again. you may have just convinced me to get up early...