This is still me ❤️

It’s been a struggle this week. Jet lag, trying to get back into a routine and the huge list of things I would “do when I am back from holiday” is now looming over me. That’s why doing this weekly gratitude exercise is so important to me, as, despite all the things that haven’t gone as planned, which seem far easier to remember, many things went right this week. Joining my first workshop On Wednesday evening, I attended an online workshop with Writing Launch. Jacob & Ian very kindly gave an hour of their time, free of charge, to go through how to pitch an article to a magazine. Not only that, but they also offered a great package which includes a list of nearly 2000 publications to write for, mentoring and access to their entire catalogue of courses. The cost is $47 per month (around £40) however, you get the first month for free and can cancel at any time. Of course, I snapped up the generous offer and plan to start earning money again as soon as possible. Getting back in...

Revisit my routine After 2 weeks away and being 5 hours behind, everything is a little up in the air. There are things I want to remove from my routine and things I would like to add. Exercise I started using the FIIT app before I went away so I want to get back to that. All that walking around made me realise I need to improve my fitness. Writing articles I write every day but just for my personal blog, I want to write some articles so that when I make pitches they’re ready to go. I plan to work very hard this week! What are your intentions? ❤️

Learn how daily habits can improve your life I’m a huge fan of building habits, so when I read this article in Psychologies magazine, I just had to share. I find that having daily habits and rituals is good for my anxiety. Be productive whilst you move My Fitness Pal shared this blog post. I’ve had some great ideas whilst out on a walk so I definitely want to try some of these suggestions. Achieve your goals I spoke a lot about goals this week and this article has some fantastic tips on how to achieve your goals Manage your tasks I am always looking for new ways to improve the way I manage my day and this blog post has lots of useful info on how to do just that A fab book If you are looking for a new read to keep you on the edge of your seat, then look no further. I just finished Hostage by Clare Macintosh and read it over a few days, although maybe not one for the plane 😉 Song Of The Day - If you missed it, here’s this week’s playlist .

Where the hell did July go? It whizzed by in the blink of an eye. I am slowly learning that the more I reflect, the more I learn and the more I want to improve. It's like an ongoing never-ending cycle, but a good one. With each month, comes the need for acceptance in certain areas of life and I discover that there are some areas I have been focusing on, that perhaps I no longer need, or want to change. Things I Loved About July I read a lot of Medium articles, I commented and clapped for those I enjoyed and I now share 5 of my favourite articles each Thursday on various platforms and again on Sundays in my round-up post. https://thisisstillme.medium.com/5-of-my-favourite-articles-on-medium-this-week-with-a-befitting-bonus-article-c2a8c367d770?source=friends_link&sk=f1e5e4cc7239982dddde55affcddc31f https://thisisstillme.medium.com/5-articles-i-read-on-medium-that-inspired-and-motivated-me-to-keep-going-41a5314deff4?source=friends_link&sk=92a565cd3a8e3f2bf1b1788c7c22e7...

On the plus side, I've noticed that I have started looking forward to my nights out again. Before the pandemic, I went out a lot. Working in the city it was perfectly normal to go to the pub at lunch or after work, when the weekends came, I preferred being at home as I'd been out all week. Going out was such an everyday thing, it wasn't really fun anymore and when a big birthday event came along, I didn't look forward to It. Now, I tend to do my going out at the weekends like a normal person and I have started to look forward to those nights out again, I can think about what I'm going to wear and spend some time getting ready. On Saturday, I woke up at 7 am, excited for a morning to chill out. I sat down and looked at my calendar. 9 am - Intervals. Oh, bugger. I'm doing cardio today. My brain starts to make excuses but I ignore them. It's happening. I'm doing it. No excuses. And I did. Did I enjoy it? Absolutely not. I couldn't find my sports br...

Holiday Clothes I always have problems finding clothes I like, I used to be able to buy any old thing, safe in the knowledge. After too many years of enjoying myself, that privilege has been taken away and now I have to psyche myself up to try on clothes and there are almost always outfit tantrums . I made the mistake of having my first trying-on session in the evening after dinner when I was feeling ill. In the end, I was a sweaty mess, half from fever, half from the heatwave and I hated all of the outfits. I decided to try them again when I was feeling better, so on Thursday morning, I decided to do just that. I ended up keeping half of the things I had ordered, much to the husband's dismay. Yoga This has been on my list of weekly intentions on and off all year and I finally did it on Thursday! I did a beginner session, where I learned the importance of breathing and how to do this as well as some of the basic moves. I've tried beginner yoga a few times and this was b...

I always believed that I was the type of person, that if something wasn't going how I wanted it, I gave up. If the weight didn't come off after eating well for a few days, I would get bored, eat cake and say screw the diet. If I slept in when I was supposed to get up and exercise, I would decide to stay in bed and then barely move all day, thinking what is the point. Even sometimes in the past with writing, I would miss it for a day and then think "Oh I've blown it now" Whilst consistency is extremely important, it doesn't mean that we have to live our lives by ridiculously strict rules, in order to achieve our goals. For example, going back to dieting. If I put myself on a strict 1200-calorie-a-day diet for a month, I would lose weight, but I would be miserable and this is where I have gone wrong in the past. It's the same with exercising, I put myself under so much pressure with it, that any enjoyment I do get out of it is ruined because it is now...

My week in a rather large nutshell Friday brings PMS. Joy. A recent symptom it has decided to bestow upon me is sore, swollen gums as well as all the usual delightful things. I also had a dream that I went back to my old job it was more of a nightmare, I woke up in a cold sweat. I was a bit rattled by the uncharacteristic negativity I was feeling, but I was determined to push through. I got up, made myself a cup of tea, did some meditation, did my morning reflection, read my daily stoic & set my intentions for the day, but I wasn't feeling my usual sense of satisfaction. It was annoying me. The ring doorbell jangled to let me know someone was approaching our front door, the annoyance that hadn't yet subsided, racing back to the surface, when I realised who it was. Charity Bag Man. After lockdown, when clearly I didn't have enough to moan about, I decided to order a no junk mail sticker for my letterbox. Junk mail never bothered me before, but I developed a passion...

Our Intention Creates Our Reality - Wayne Dyer The start of a new month brings new goals and with new goals, are new intentions. This week I’ve tried to focus on different aspects of my life, so I don’t neglect some areas as I feel I may have been. Read and comment on Medium articles This is something I’ve been trying to do each day but I want to be more concise. I’m going to read and comment on 10 articles on the Medium platform each day. Get up and move After seeing that I only closed my exercise ring on my Apple watch four times in June, I am now going to be more mindful of getting myself moving. My watch goes off every hour telling me to stand, so each time that notification goes off, I’m going to stop what I’m doing and move around. Review my morning routine I’ve been playing around with my to-do list a lot recently, trying to figure out what works well at what time of day, so it’s time to review that morning routine and get that back into play. I need those morning walks...

An extract from this week’s Substack newsletter I like to start each month by looking back on the previous month to see what went well and what didn't, how I can improve, what habits worked for me and any little ways I can make my life a bit easier for myself On the surface, June was a good month, but when I look a bit deeper, I can see that it wasn't without its challenges. I'll start with the challenges and where I can improve, that way we can finish on a positive note, rather than finish thinking how rubbish I have been! Emotional Hangovers Despite knowing I suffer from these, it still doesn't stop me. At the end of this week, I suffered terribly after drinking Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday this week. It's not a regular occurrence, but it is something I need to be more aware of and consciously make an effort to have more alcohol-free days. Not putting my screens away Guilty!! I managed to do this for a few days here and there, but I am still picking up ...

This week, I want to focus on my physical health. I've been feeling sluggish and don't seem to have much energy lately. I'm going to try out some different exercises this week, I want to find something I enjoy, there must be something surely?! Drinking water is back on the list. Again! I've noticed my skin has been feeling a bit dry too so I need to try and get to grips with this water drinking malarkey if anyone has any tips on how to get more water on board, let me know. I also want to add more fruit and veg into my diet. My diet has improved, I've not been having many takeaways and have been cooking lots of healthy food, I just need to make sure that veg takes up a lot of my plate and maybe have some fruit for breakfast. What are your intentions for the coming week?

It’s not only a new week, but a new month and I’m really excited to see what May will bring. I had a busy week last week, so I didn’t have much time to read the submission rules to write for the publication on Medium, so I am going to dedicate some time to do that this week and I already have an idea for my article. I want to get two strength training sessions done, I did one last week, which I enjoyed but I was aching soooo bad for a couple of days afterwards, this time I’ll plan them so I can’t use aches and pains as an excuse. I also want to update my vision board. April was a really good month for me, a lot of things on my vision board are now in progress so it’s time to refresh it with updated goals, I love doing vision boards! What are your intentions for the coming week? ❤️

As of yet no miracle has been invented to prevent me ageing so I am finally going to have to accept that I actually have to start looking after my body. I want and need to get myself back in shape. I’d like to have more energy and just generally feel less sluggish. I’ve read in many articles that strength training is better for women in their 40’s, so I am going to include some of this in my weekly routine. I also want to try and get a hold of my water intake, my skin is clearly feeling the effects of my lack of water so I just need to make more of an effort to not only incorporate this into my daily habits but stick to it. I have a really busy week this week and after (another) weekend away, I need to not only plan, but schedule my blog posts and newsletter. I’ve got myself into a really good rhythm with this and things are going well so I don‘t want to let things slide. I only plan to move forward from now on.