“You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe deserve your love and affection.” – The Buddha
The whole self-love/self-care topic is everywhere these days, but seems to me there’s a lot of misconception of what it’s really about.
You see, we each define Self-Love subjectively and give it our own meaning. To some people, it may mean taking time to workout and take care of your physical body, to others, it may mean getting facials and massages, or spending time with their kids. Bottom line is: we all have many different ways to show that we love ourselves.
So the real question is: Why is Self Love so important and why should I care?
I’ve discovered that when I feel down or unmotivated, or when my body is exhausted, spent and overworked, or when I am bombarded with negative thoughts and ideas, the only thing that can pull me up again is bathing myself in self-love. So, I thought I’d share what I’ve learned with you, in the hopes it might help. 🙂
Self-love is not a quick one-time treatment or “fix”: instead it’s literally a journey – a journey of self-discovery that can even take a life time but might very well be not only the most important, but the most rewarding journey of your life!
Required Ingredients for Self Love
- Focus
- Dedication
- Devotion
- Practice
Learn how to love yourself each day and KEEP AT IT then watch yourself blossom and your greatest life unfold! Self-love is an exponential force – trust me, I have experienced it. And when you faulter, just get back at it because like I said, it’s the Journey of Your Life!
How To start
Well imagine how you treat yourself on a daily basis as if you were another person, in a relationship with you. Are you kind to yourself? Is your mind nice to your body and soul? It’s not selfish to care for yourself as you would care for others – it’s equally important! When you create good energy around you, you produce a ripple effect that will improve all aspects of your life. You’ll look better and feel better.
Here are my Top 10 Tips (plus one bonus!) for More Self Love
Practice these things on the regular and you might actually get a sense of what self-love is all about!
- I tell my clients to make a How I Want to Feel List (you know, like a “To Do List” but better;)) Our thoughts precede our emotions and behaviors. So program your mind how you WANT to feel in your life.
- Keep your self-talk positive and give yourself compliments. Turn down the volume of your inner critic and choose to be your best coach or cheerleader.
- Journal your strengths and everything about you for which you are grateful. Document everything you accomplish, feel good about, do right, like about yourself, etc.
- Buy products that make you feel good. Buy only what you love. Don’t allow things in your home and closet that don’t bring you positive vibrations.
- Take the time to pamper yourself and treat yourself as a precious and valuable object – because you are! This means allowing time for brushing your hair, nourishing your skin, putting on makeup and picking out outfits that make you feel good.
- Make time for play. Doing things you get JOY from! This is a very important aspect of celebrating the gift of life and will do wonders for your mind, body and spirit.
- Commit to less things per day. Do not over-schedule, over-book or over-commit yourself (this one’s HUGE for me!) Your life is worth more than being a gerbil on a wheel!
- Create your own personal boundaries and then respect and enforce them.
- Eat healthier. Prepare healthy meals for yourself. I’ve found 1/2 the battle is just having healthy choices available when hunger hits! Put thought and effort into grocery shopping and meal preparation.
- Schedule regular physical, dental and mental health check-ups. Address any health concerns in a timely manner if they arise. Without your health, you have nothing – just ask anyone who’s fighting for theirs.
* BONUS: Give yourself a spa treatment. I’m a BIG FAN of manicures, pedicures, facials, massages and body therapies, deep hair conditioning treatments, etc. Know you are worth extraordinary care!
You see, the point of ALL of this is to increase the #GoodEnergy in your body because when you feel good you attract more good feelings to you – it’s the Ripple Effect you always hear me talk about and I want you to feel its power too! 🙂
What will you today for your self-care, self-love, and self-esteem? Let me know below! #AmyFournier #FitAmyTV
