Shapril – or “Get in shape in April” – is going to be different this year. My husband and I, for the past four years or so, have used the month of April to get into shape after the long Torontonian winter. We set pretty basic guidelines for ourselves at frist, like eating healthy and always taking the stairs. Last year I wanted to try something really extreme: eating no processed food at all. (Check out last year’s ShApril here and my shocking processed food clean out here). That proved to be an illuminating experience of highs and lows and opened my eyes even more to the industrial food complex.
This year is going to be different. We already eat extremely well. We could exercise more, of course. But I wanted to try something I’d never tried before since becoming an adult. This ShApril will focus on inner beauty, self-love and peaceful contemplation.
ShApril 2016
No Alcohol
No makeup
And the usual:
- be concisous of eating healthy
- drink more water
- take the stairs
- do yoga
I want to encourage you to set goals and challenges this month! Cut out sugar, take the stairs, get back to the gym, try meditation, read more, go vegetarian. Do something huge or something small. I can attest to how illuminating and empowering it can be. (I recall fondly the steak dinner my friend and I had May 1st 2015 to celebrate…a month of no processed food for me, and a 30 day yoga challenge for her!)
We are all so much more capable than we think we are.
Happy ShApril, folks. Let’s try something new.
Amelia
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Read on for an explanation of my personal goals.
No Alcohol: Since turning 19 (and probably before that), I have never gone a month without alcohol. I’ve barely gone a week, most likely. Drinking for me is social, for pleasure and taste, and habitual. (Oh boy do I love a good shiraz…) For a long time I rode the “caffeine to wake up and alcohol to wind down” carousel. This peaks during times of extreme stress for me, such as my tortorous internship in 2012 and my grandfather’s illness last summer. I say I’m concious of my alcohol consumption, but am I really? Especially if I’ve been using it as a coping mechanism?
Recently I’ve purposed to become more aware, and I’ve begun tracking days I consume alcohol or not. It became apparent to me that a dry month was necessary.
I look forward to seeing the effects of this on my body and mind! I’ll admit, I don’t have a sweet tooth, I don’t crave junk food, and I don’t smoke…but I do drink.
(No Alcohol since 03/28)
No Makeup: No makeup is more of an experiment in how others react to me, if at all. My husband has commented that when he first met me I barely wore any makeup at all. Like a lot of women I go through stages. While being engaged I really learned how to do my makeup and had a lot of fun doing it! My skin was also particularly probelmatic so covering it up for the wedding was important to me. Ironically, of course, the more makeup I wore the worse my acne flared. (Twas ever thus, eh?). The teacher in me also wants to be the best role model I can be to my students. I plan on sharing with the girls that I’m doing a makeup-free month, if it comes up. I look forward to any improvements/changes in my skin, any reactions from my friends and students, and focusing on self-love!
(No makeup since 03/10…started while on a journey to India & Nepal (link coming soon))
#shapril #shapril2016 #healthyliving #healthychoices #goalsetting #goals #consumerchoice