Janine Langdon-Lee
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Changes Afoot

/ Body, Inner journey, Mind, Soul

I am a considerably happier person these days compared to who I was this time last year and two years ago. What happened? I made one change which created a ripple effect into the rest of my life I want to share some of the aha moments that I discovered along the way.

Listen to your inner voice

The truth is for some time; I had been unhappy. Outwardly I was happy – inwardly, and on a soul level, I was miserable. I could tell you a long-winded story about why I was unhappy; however, that’s why I wrote my book Changes Afoot. Writing that book was a healing experience for me.

You know when something needs to change – you feel it. For me, I felt the changes physically; my body felt heavy and cumbersome. Some simple everyday tasks felt difficult. I also felt it emotionally, as my moods were up and down. On a soul level, I was being sent messages through my body that things needed to change.  While I put my unhappiness down to grief – which in part they were. A big part of my problem was that I was carrying too much weight. I knew I had to start moving since  I wasn’t interested in changing what I ate.

Where do you begin when you need to make changes and it feels overwhelming. Instead of trying to make radical changes in a few areas of my life, I focussed on one area – health and wellbeing! Now that might not sound like a big deal to you – however, it was to me. You see I had a crappy relationship with exercise – you can read more about that here. I knew I had to start exercising.

If you know you need to make some changes, why not do a life audit. If you have identified that several areas of your life are out of synch, focus on one aspect. Come back and work on the other areas later.  Small steps applied consistently creates change!

hands holding blue glass heart

Make a plan

I sound like a broken record when people ask me where do they begin – my answer is always the same.  “Start where you are”! Don’t wait for things to be perfect; they will never be. I learnt that the hard way when I hit rock bottom at various times of my life.

Create a plan of what you need to do – It could be a simple list, or it could be an elaborate mind map or a specific goal and activities. Make this plan work for you.  I had one big goal, and that was to move again consistently, and one of those steps was to work with a personal trainer who would see me at home.  I didn’t want to go to the gym.  During a conversation with a friend, I mentioned that I wanted to find a personal trainer who would work with me at home. This friend said how her trainer had helped her. She passed on his details, and that was back in June 2018. I had my first session with him on 2 July 2018, and we are still working together. What I could do then compared to now has improved, slowly and gradually over time. I won’t lie – it was challenging due to my mindset. This one action created extensive and positive changes in my life.

I still have a way to go in terms of my physical abilities – however, I now know movement is for life. No matter what age, we need to keep moving. Whatever your goal, break it down into small goals and actions. More importantly, celebrate your progress and milestones.

laptop and notebook and pen on a table

Help/Support

A considerable part of my success has been surrounding myself with excellent professionals and cheerleaders, aka loved ones and friends. I knew that going to classes hadn’t worked for me in the past. I would drop out or find reasons why I couldn’t exercise. Working one to one with professionals in yoga, pilates and water-based exercise meant, I couldn’t hide.  Knowing I was paying for one to one sessions helped me be consistent and show up each week.

My end goal when I began working with them was to move from one to one to sessions to classes.  In February 2020, I started water exercises class and in March Pilates classes. In term 2, I can’t wait to begin yoga classes. I love that exercise has become a part of my life – something I try to do every day in some way – shape or form.  These professionals were my accountability buddies.

Ask for help from friends and loved ones. I know that this is may be difficult for some of you. However, we all know someone who we can count on to be an accountability buddy or cheerleader. Mike was my biggest cheerleader along with a few close friends, who would check in on my progress.

Expect the unexpected

Along the way, expect a few detours. The journey is never as straight forward as we would like. I re-injured myself a few times, and each time I felt like it was the end of the world. I have learned to accept that there will always be moments in our journey where we need to rest – the mind, body and soul. Pushing yourself physically to the limits can lead to further injuries or problems. At the same time, it’s finding that balance of not using excuses not to show up and do the work. Trust me; I was good at that too. Sometimes we focus too much on the destination we forget to stop and enjoy what is around us.

While the latter part of 2018 was about movement. 2019 was about nourishing my body with food and sleep. These are a work in progress, and I am continuing to work on these. My focus for 2020 is around work! I want to focus on my writing and speaking to groups of women. With a bigger goal of helping other women who may feel stuck to create a life they love and whereby they genuinely love who they are with one to one coaching.

woman walking down road with a suitcase

Filed Under: Body, Inner journey, Mind, Soul

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👉Okay am going old school & showing my age! 

👇My fav cartoon was👇

 "The Jetsons"....anyone else remember that? 

👇Share with me your fav in the comments👇

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I want to know if you can be alone with yourself⁠
and if you truly like the company you keep⁠
in the empty moments.⁠
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-Oriah Mountain Dreamer⁠
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💕When you are alone with only your thoughts for company, how does that make you feel? Six years ago I felt uncomfortable with mine so I would distract and suppress my thoughts with food.⁠ ⁠I now know I did this to protect myself from pain and discomfort. I didn't want to feel. ⁠
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💕Two years ago when I began the Nourish part of my health and well-being journey, I had to learn to sit with my thoughts, feelings and emotions. At times this was and still is messy.⁠ 
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💕The reality is I will struggle with this. Food was my emotional comfort blanket for six years and it wasn't going to be a quick fix to change.⁠
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💕I still have moments where I stumble.  This happened to me recently. In the scheme of things it was a drop in the ocean compared to what I used to do. That in itself was an achievement. ⁠
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💕 I have made peace with this and the biggest lessons I took from this last speed wobble was to:⁠
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Forgive myself⁠
Get back on track⁠
Don't give up⁠
Nurture myself⁠
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💕After all as they say - "Progress not Perfection"⁠

How do you dust yourself off after a setback? 
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💖Advice to my younger self would be this!⁠
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When we begin and start off on a good note we can reap the benefits at the end. I would also tell her that she didn't have to race to get to the end either! She is exactly where she needs to be right now.⁠
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What would you share with you younger self?⁠
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🏃‍♀️Saturday I am coming for you! 👉I 🏃‍♀️Saturday I am coming for you! 

👉I now know after 2.5 years that fitness is not about being better than someone else, it’s about being better than you used to be!

🏃‍♀️Have a great Saturday lovelies. I am off to Pilates reformer class with a 30 minute circuit class via zoom later this morning followed by a massage in the afternoon. 

💕What are your plans for today?
💕At 49, I knew if I didn't start now, I would s 💕At 49, I knew if I didn't start now, I would spend my 50's feeling fat and frumpy! Damn it, I wanted to be 50, Fit, Fabulous & Fierce! ⁠
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💕It was never about a number, it was a desire to feel good within myself. At 52 I can say I do love and value who I am.  A feeling that has seen me come home to myself. ⁠
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💕Changes to your life don't have to be big transformative things, even the smallest changes can create ripples in your life.⁠
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📝I began self-editing my SWYA (Start Where You Are) book again this week. I want to launch this book into the world in July. I was reminded how these four pillars were the foundation of my journey of self-discovery, love and worth. ⁠
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👉Hit "save" so you can come back to this post
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👉We grow through change! ⁠👈 ⁠ 💕At the 👉We grow through change! ⁠👈
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💕At the age of 49 and 50 fast approaching I was  increasingly aware that I was in a state of transition and change was looming. ⁠
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💕Maybe you have experienced this too whether it's children leaving home, or a relationship ending, a move to a new city or the end of a job or a health and wellbeing crisis.  Add to the mix being peri-menopausal or entering menopause and we find ourselves wondering about life and soul searching.⁠
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💕For me it was craving a deeper connection with my feminine self. I realise this feeling was my soul’s way of getting my attention. To guide me back into alignment from pushing and sacrificing my own needs in order to meet the demands of others to feeling empowered, connected, supported and confident within myself. ⁠
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💕After suppressing my feminine energy for decades, this was a slow awakening. As I began to embracing her, she in turn, helped me reconnect to soul and transform my inner life which created ripples into my outer life. ⁠
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💕If you are a mid life woman I’d love to hear your thoughts about what I wrote or the challenges you are facing in the comments, or lets chat in the DMs.⁠
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