This year I started tracking my protein. Way out of my comfort zone and way beyond something I thought I’d ever do. The truth is that I began to realize at the end of the year I was struggling to maintain my energy in order to get all the things on the list done every day. I found myself exhausted, irritable, and pushing the boulder uphill yet again. Something I’m convinced is anti-the-way we are supposed to live life. I am a healthy eater and do my best to get my body the support it needs, so I was stumped at what the issue could be. With a little self-monitoring and a little research, I found out that I should actually be consuming about three times the amount of protein per day in this season of life. My body was trying hard to convert the fruits and vegetables I was giving it into long-term energy, but it simply was not enough to provide what was being asked of it. Wrong key, and the door wouldn’t open. Boulder uphill. Metaphors abound.
Upon reflection, I have thought about other places this is happened to me throughout my life. Sometimes it has been a set of people who I really enjoyed and were good, but weren’t nourishing my soul. Other times, it has been a spiritual discipline that I’ve read was good and helpful for others, but left me feeling exhausted and burnt out. For you, it may be a coping skill learned early in childhood to handle anger, stress, or sadness that just isn’t cutting it anymore. Turns out this is pretty common. It is actually hard to get what you need if you don’t know what you need! I love intuition and following that whole heartedly —AND— I also truly believe that I am excellent at ignoring it when my mind thinks there must be a good or right way to do things. But the body, she doesn’t lie. She shows you exactly what is and isn’t working over time. Boulders…they don’t work for me.
Our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health are interrelated. Affecting one causes the effect on them all. When we consume without intention or value (even if it’s “good”) we often find ourselves inundated with resources that we can’t put to good use. Just like everybody is different and has different requirements at different seasons for physical consumption, we need different values for different seasons. If you have too found yourself stuck at an impasse pouring everything you have into a situation and yet not reaping results it may be time to ask yourself what you really need and what really matters to you. It’s time to get the right nourishment for where you are right now, in this season, regardless of what’s worked in the past or what feels like its supposed to be right. Check out the Core Value Clarity worksheet under workshops in order to download an easy, objective way to figure out what matters to you in this season. Track accordingly ;)