I am not a morning person. Never have been. And even though my house has been on a new time table (waking up much earlier than we are used to) since the school year started I doubt I will ever be one of those people who happily get up at the crack of dawn with a smile on my face. Around this time last year, I read The Miracle Morning: The Not-So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life (Before 8 am) by Hal Elrod wanting so badly to transform my mornings into something I didn’t dread every night even before closing my eyes to go to sleep the night before. I read the book and was so inspired to use my mornings differently.

For a few weeks straight I was busy kidding myself that I could maintain a schedule where I would wake up at 4:00 am – 4:30 am every morning to do yoga, watch the news, get some reading in and have my cup of coffee all before getting the kids up and ready for school. For obvious reasons, this was not sustainable. The Miracle Morning was motivating, I just knew that I had to put Hal’s action items into practice differently than I had originally thought. This was fine because let’s be real, moms are experts at pivoting!

A few months after my “wake up experiment” I knew I couldn’t maintain waking up so early but I knew there was one thing I didn’t want to give up and that was yoga. I wasn’t waking up at 4 am anymore but I started attending a gym, doing yoga almost every weeknight and even some weekends. I had been working out [outside of the house] 2 hours a day; a Cross-Fit/HITT style training + hot yoga, 4 days a week, boxing 1 day a week and practicing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu 1 day a week. I tried new things, I sweat, I was challenged, I did things I didn’t think I was capable of, I watched my body change, I pushed myself every 👏🏽 single 👏🏽 day.

The beginning of the school year came with some unexpected consequences to my routine. Getting to the gym like I had become accustomed to has become damn near impossible with the schedule that my kids have right now. Let me be very clear, I am ecstatic that my kids are active in school, church, and extra-curricular activities but man has it cramped my gym time. I went from being in the gym every day to not going at all. Not going to lie, it’s been tough for me. Yes, I can workout at home but I miss the camaraderie, the accountability, and all I had been learning from my instructors as well as the women and men I was surrounded and encouraged by.

Since coming to the realization that getting to the gym as things stand means peeling myself out of my warm bed at 4:30 AM to make a 5:00 AM class I have had to make some adjustments to how, where and when I can get the chance to meditate or do yoga. Because again, I was fooling myself when I thought I was going to be up that early every day and still make it through getting 3 kids up and out of the house, carpool, homework, and dinner… Nevermind all the stuff in the middle. My yoga practice has become an essential part of my routine and it is important enough to me to make sure it happens as often as possible.

Yoga strengthens me, it centers me, balances me and my body never fails to tell me when I’ve gone too long in between sessions. Physically my practice of yoga and meditation has increased my flexibility, range of motion and helped strengthen my core that had been obliterated by 4 pregnancies. Mentally yoga has promoted a sense of mindfulness in my life where there is almost always anxiety and stress. While everything around me is moving at the speed of light, yoga gives me the opportunity to pause and allows awareness to wash over me; Reminding me of what’s really important and gives me clarity. It’s like therapy just at home, without an appointment in comfy clothes.

Understandably since I had kids my anxiousness has grown, compounding year after year and kid after kid. Awareness of how and when to shift my focus has become a vital part of how I curb, identify and subside any of the anxious feelings that I encounter on a daily basis. Some days it’s hard to hone in on that focus, other days I crave for more time on the mat. Regardless, I try to fit it in whenever I can. Whether it’s in the car loop picking up my son from school, or when I take an extended trip to the bathroom to just take a few deep breaths. I have been learning to be flexible on when and where these meditative sessions take place. It’s not a matter of actually being on the mat but letting the process become a lifestyle. A part of my every day and my every day does not allow for an hour on the mat or my meditation pillow.

I would love to one take get my yoga instructor certification. I truly believe everyone can benefit from yoga and meditation. After all, neither of these practices are about perfection, they are about connecting with yourself. Learning to have peace within one’s self. I’ve been pushing everyone around me to get to a yoga class, download a meditation app, or just take a minute for yourself in the car on the way to work.

I’m sharing my “Stretch & Meditate” playlist on Spotify with you. I hope it gives you all of the feels it gives me. I hope that you might find time to take a few seconds for yourself. You deserve it! Promise. Even if it’s just one song worth of time. Yes, one song! I have barricaded myself inside of my closet just to sit (or lay) in silence on more than one occasion. You’d be surprised what that 2 1/2 minutes will do for you.

My challenge to you is to take 2 1/2 minutes to yourself today. Yes, today. No really, it may be hiding but I promise you can fit it somewhere. Take your time, feel it and let it stay with you for the rest of your day.