La Dolce Far Niente

La Dolce Far Niente

When was the last time you did nothing and didn’t feel bored or guilty?

When was the last time you did nothing and didn’t feel bored or guilty?

I can’t recall the last time I did nothing all day long.  Yesterday, I did just that, and I relished every minute.  

This weekend my days and evenings were packed with activity and we went to bed late.  Saturday night I didn’t sleep enough and woke up exhausted.  I tried to follow my morning routine but didn’t have the energy to do much of anything.  

I begrudgingly canceled plans with my friends and instead stayed in my pajamas for most of the day.  I read a book, took a nap on the couch, soaked in the tub, and then watched “Eat, Pray, Love” with my family.  Although I’ve seen this movie several times before, and read the book at least twice, one scene in the movie stood out this time around.  

The main character Liz is in Rome with her friends in a barber shop when herfriend Luca states that Americans don’t know the true meaning of La Dolce Far Niente. Loosely translated this expression means “the art of doing nothing”  or “the sweetness of nothing.”  Now, how ironic and appropriate that I was practicing La Dolce Far Niente yesterday and relishing in doing nothing all day long.

In the morning, I enjoyed two delicious cups of coffee while staring out at the trees, flowers and sky. Then, when I was reading my book, a hummingbird flew directly in front of my face and hovered for at least 10 seconds. I was so taken aback by the proximity of this magical creature that I felt my breath quicken.  After my new friend departed, I looked up the significance of a hummingbird spotting, and found that they are reminders to suck the sweetness out of life, to be present and mindful - La Dolce Far Niente. 

I was reminded of how important it is to observe a day of rest and learn again how to pause and give my mind and body a break.  By the end of the day, I was more relaxed, my energy was strengthened, and I felt refreshed.  I now recognize the need to take a day of rest each week.  And, there are ways we can practice La Dolce Far Niente daily. 

How can we practice La Dolce Far Niente more often in our lives?

• Enjoy your cup of coffee or tea in silence

• Sit quietly in nature

• Read a book or magazine

• Put away all of your devices 

• Take a nap

• Listen to music

• Lounge in a hammock

• Take a leisurely walk

• People watch

If doing nothing sounds indulgent and maybe a little uncomfortable, start incorporating small, little moments throughout the day that eventually add up.  Over time, you may start to fall in love with this practice.  

How will you practice the sweetness of doing nothing?

How are you sleeping?

How are you sleeping?

Do you wake up refreshed, renewed and re-energized every morning? Or, have you been feeling extra tired lately?

Do you wake up refreshed, renewed and re-energized every morning?

Or, have you been feeling extra tired lately? 

Do you have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking easily in the morning?  

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you are not alone.  

Most adults need 7-9 hours per night for optimal health. Yet, in our fast-paced environment, many of us forgo sleep and overextend ourselves to catch up on work and other responsibilities. 

The result is that 1/3 Americans suffer from a sleep disorder and we have an energy crisis:  

• We are overly dependent on our phones and electronic devices 

• We have forgotten how to rest, not just sleep 

• We seek fuel for our bodies in energies that are not healthy 

• We eat high glycemic foods 

• We use stimulants such as caffeine and sugar to provide temporary energy 

• We confuse rest with stimulating recreation 

Sleep is critical for our optimal health and wellbeing. Critical activities that occur during sleep: 

• Internal organs rest and recover 

• Hormones that help regulate appetite control, stress, growth, metabolism, and other bodily functions are released

• Memory consolidation, allowing for formation and storage of new memories 

• Increased energy to make better lifestyle choices (cooking, exercise, self-care, etc.)

• Strengthened immune system 

• Heightened alertness, focus, and creativity 

• Improved mood by reducing anxiety, irritability, and mental exhaustion 

• Increased libido 

You can improve the quality of your sleep by focusing on your nutrition, sleep etiquette and daily rhythms.

Nutrition:

• Eat a variety of whole foods  

• Limit sugar and caffeine intake 

• Reduce alcohol consumption close to bedtime  

• Experiment with light evening meals  

• Crowd out late-night snacking with yoga, journaling, reading, or connecting with a loved one

• Avoid late-night beverages 

Sleep Etiquette:

• Create a peaceful bedroom with calm colors, no clutter, and minimal light and noise

• Invest in an aromatherapy diffuser 

• Soak in a hot bath  

• Read fiction to relax the mind  

• Legs up the wall yoga pose

• Meditate  

• Don’t fall asleep on the couch  

• Keep electronics outside of your bedroom

• Reduce blue device light which impairs the product of melatonin more than any other wavelength 

• Write worries down before going to bed 

• End the evening with a gratitude practice 

Daily Rhythms:

• Start your day with positive focus 

• Incorporate moments of rest throughout the day 

• Institute device-free time 

• Take power naps for 15-20 minutes after lunch and before 3pm 

• Exercise or move daily  

• Create a bedtime routine to wind down  

• Experiment with restorative evening activities  

• Eat earlier and drink less alcohol  

• Track your sleep habits  

• Reduce late night excessive thoughts or worries 

Ending the day with gratitude and appreciation is a wonderful way to reflect on the blessings of your day, give thanks for people and circumstances, and also to change our thoughts before we go to sleep. 

If you’d like to improve your optimal health, please schedule a free coaching consultation call.  

What if your FEARS aren’t real?

What if your FEARS aren’t real?

“Your life is the expression of the limit of your thoughts.” - Prem Sadasivananda, Empower Your Life

I’ve been thinking a lot about one of our biggest distractors, something that steals joy from our lives — and that is FEAR!  I re-watched a TED Talk by Tim Ferris on facing our fears and leveraging Stoicism as a philosophy to help us live better lives.  I didn’t know who Tim Ferris was at the time, but his story really inspired me because of the way he approached his fearful thoughts.  

He created a template to list his fears, examine what could happen, identify the mitigation plan to reduce the risk, and then he did another analysis on the upside potential. What could happen, what would he give up if he continued to embrace the status quo?  

Our monkey brain spends a lot of time on worst case scenarios that paralyze us with fear and inaction.   If we could logically examine those fears, have plans in place that reduce the perceived risk, and then push through to visualize the benefits of going through with the plans, then we would be much more likely to do the very things that scare us the most.  

I have learned that facing those things that scare us the most is where we should typically be running towards.  I heard again that we are born with only two fears. The first is the fear of loud noises and the second is the fear of falling.  Seems like two good things to be hard-wired with to protect ourselves from physical harm. The other fears we have are accumulated and learned over time.  Isn’t that incredible?  As a result of our parents, education, friends, media, etc., we learn to be afraid of other things, and are trained to seek comfort instead. 

I did this exercise myself after I watched the TED Talk and it was life-changing.  I have that exercise documented and go back to it often when I am fearful of doing something new.  I can look back and recognize that none of my fears came true, and instead by choosing to take action instead of being paralyzed by my fears, I was able to grow and have amazing experiences instead. 

I do this exercise with all of my coaching clients.  It’s an eye-opener to write down our fears on paper and then to write what we would be giving up on if we chose to stay afraid. 

Here’s how to do this exercise yourself:

1. Write down all of your fears — get everything down on paper

2. Answer “what if the complete opposite of this fear was the truth instead?”  — what would that look like?

3. How could you mitigate the risk or associated with this fear?

4. What would you be giving up on if you choose to stay fearful and not take action?

My hope is that this exercise exposes some illogical thinking and that you do some amazing new things instead!  We have such a limited time here, this world needs what you have to offer.