Slow Living - Doing It Old Style!

Prudent

Brie said:

So chair yoga.....this means sitting in a chair and stretching and twisting?  I had to stop pilates when it was getting to stressful on my wrists and then my knee but would welcome a way to "fitten" up a bit.

Have you tried the 'Standing Pilates for Seniors' videos from the Girl with the Pilates Mat' on YouTube? She also does arthritis specific sessions which are great for stiff joints. I have mobility and joint issues and her videos have really helped me.

Sorry for jumping in the middle of the Dorset buttons conversation. They are something I would also like to try.

leftatthetrafficlights

@Prudent - thanks for the info about standing pilates, I'll be checking that out later 😉 

Today I'm having a lazy day - I've done a lot of cleaning over the past couple of days and I'm a bit achey today so I think a day of recovery will do me good especially as I am picking up my grandbaby from school for a sleepover tonight so I'll be crawling over the floor for hours later!! 😂 

I am planning on doing some cooking though - I'm going to have grains of some description cooked in stock, dark speckled lentils, roasted carrots in orange, red cabbage and apple, broad beans and, if my grandbaby doesn't eat them all as he goes along, some peas from the garden 😁 

It's raining quite heavily here and has been for several hours now so I'm enjoying sitting in my kitchen with a cup of chamomile tea and watching the raindrops bounce in my pond and make ripples - it really is the simple pleasures in life that make the difference to my day 😍

leftatthetrafficlights

Dinner was lovely - my grandbaby annihilated the peas though so we added broccoli 😂 

leftatthetrafficlights

I felt a bit 'blurgh' yesterday - no apparent reason, I think I was just pretty tired and I ate cr*p on Wednesday night and yesterday (cake and d*oritos) - so did very little. The weather has been poop too so going out in the garden had not appealed! 🤦‍♀️

What I have been doing though is thinking about my health goals and my attitude towards the process - there are things that I need to improve.

I watched a programme last night about weight loss journeys and one of the participants had been doing really well then went to see her family for a couple of months and put on weight.

She then said something which has really resonated with me: 

'It's the small compromises you keep making over time that start to add up and get you to a place you don't want to be'

I know that I'm horribly guilty of that and if I really want to achieve my goals then there can be no compromises - that quote was my 'light bulb' moment and I will remind myself of it daily. 

For my physical health, I need to concentrate more on natural movement for my excercise, make sure that I don't have any 'it's only today/only one' moments where I lose sight of what I want to achieve and have no more excuses for wandering off track. It's not that I've massively lost the plot - I really haven't - but growth is a journey not a destination, and reflecting on my progress and recognising where I can improve is something that I strongly believe in. 

As far as slow living is concerned, I need to make sure that I do my spa days, meditations and self care - I've had so many 'reasons' to skip them recently and they are merely excuses.
I'm also spending far too much time on the internet (including these boards) so I'm going to limit it to a maximum of 30 minutes a day on my phone. I am living a slow life (and loving it!) but I could be more mindful and make better choices. 

Anyway, that's my brain dump for the day! 😂 

Have a lovely slow day 😁 

leftatthetrafficlights

Having a very quiet weekend which has been lovely so far 😁 

Yesterday was mainly reading as the weather was rubbish all day, today we have harvested loads of herbs which are now in the dehydrator and collected the ivy leaves for the laundry detergent which has been cooked and will be bottled tomorrow 😁 dh managed to cut the grass too just before the rain started again at lunchtime which was a major bonus! 🙌 

Food today will be leftovers plus some potatoes we harvested this morning - last night I made a grain tart with harvested courgettes, roasted peppers, roasted tomatoes and a cannellini puree and we've still got a bit of that; we've also  got ethiopian lentils, dark speckled lentils, broad beans, carrots and broccoli leaves cooked in the fridge so it will be an eclectic dinner! 😂 

I've written the meal plan for the week - dh popped to the shop to get the majority of it but will need to get a few more bits tomorrow as the tiny tesco didn't have everything we needed.

I'm going in the shower shortly then I'll be doing a yoga nidra practice - I'm having a 'spa' day on Tuesday so will exfoliate and do a hair and face mask then. 

Tomorrow will be cleaning, walking and finally starting some hands free asana practice - there may be a bit of weeding done too but that depends on the weather! 😳 

Hope you're having a lovely slow weekend 😁

leftatthetrafficlights

I've had a busy morning but very enjoyable 😁 

I stripped the bedding and put it on to wash then made my smoothie then went out for a walk - it was slightly later than usual so a few more cars but still not many. The sun was shining and we have fields of wheat and barley growing so they looked like blankets of gold - I took the time to stop and run my hands through the tops of them, it's a very sensory experience and felt very grounding.

I got home and rinsed my sprouts then prepared dinner - I'm making baked lemon and date tofu (it's currently marinating), mixed grains (barley, oats, rye and short grain brown rice) with barberries and lemon zest, blueberry and black grape salad with leaves and broccoli sprouts. 

Once dinner was prepared I cleaned the bathroom, wiped all the surfaces in the bedroom, vacuumed upstairs, vacuumed the stairs, lounge and yoga room then cleaned all the glass in the lounge. Had a quick break for a chamomile tea, sorted the herbs I dehydrated and bottled the ivy laundry detergent. I then wiped down all the surfaces in the kitchen and utility then vacuumed the hall, utility room and kitchen and mopped the floors. I had my music on throughout so had a fabulous time singing my head off! 😁😂 

I've decided that I'm going to have a shower after dinner then have an early night - I'll have a pot of lemon verbena and hibiscus tea first though and I'll do a meditation and a yoga nidra practice before I sleep. 

Hope you had a lovely slow Monday 😁

leftatthetrafficlights

Dinner was lemon and date baked tofu; mixed grains with barberries, lemon zest and thyme; leaves; broccoli sprouts and black grape and blueberry salad - absolutely lush! 😋 

leftatthetrafficlights

A lovely day today, just pottering around the house and doing some cooking. Tonight's dinner was beetroot burgers, hg new potatoes, hm sauerkraut, hg broccoli sprouts, beetroot and apple 'rice', black grape and blueberry salad. I also made the mushroom and walnut bolognese ready for tomorrow when I have my grandbaby. I was going to have a 'spa' day today but decided against it - the weather was too poor to start off with a walk or spend any time in the garden and I like to do both as part of my mindfulness practice on spa days. I'll do a mini one tomorrow if the weather is better! 🤞 



Have a lovely slow evening 😁

leftatthetrafficlights

Didn't quite end up as a spa day but I had a lovely day anyway!

I spent some time laying on the grass in the garden and cloud watching - I love doing cloud watching, it reminds me of the vastness of the universe and how  privileged I am to be a part of it.

Dinner last was mushroom and walnut bolognese served with wholewheat pasta, a bit of vegan cheese and nutty parm; beetroot and apple 'rice'; sauerkraut; broccoli sprouts and steamed beetroot. 

weenancyinAmerica

@leftatthetrafficlights - I have a postcard I bought in England of two rabbits lying down looking at the sky and the clouds - says they are cloud watching. I framed it as it brought back good memories. I used to do it a lot when I was younger and the days were longer. Someone has been shortening them as I get older.  Don't get nearly as much done any more and it not because of slow living on purpose.