#plantPOWER Round II: W is for…Wellness!

Hey friends! How are ya?

W is for….wow.

I’m still on a high from last night. Myself, Kasey, and a crew of bloggers and #plantPOWER challengers met up at Garden Grille for an amazing night. We had so much fun chatting and laughing away about life and everything in between.

From left: Ashley, Kim, Kasey, Jenn, Me, Becki, Annie, Kristen!

Everyone got along seamlessly. It was like we’d been friends forever and just picked up where we left off. We were all buzzing with energy and soaked up each other’s words and stories. Every so often, I’d glance around the table and just smile. It was an epic girl’s night! All of the girls’ stories were so inspirational and I was so filled. The amazing food helped too. Love me some Garden Grille! Rob, the owner, greeted us and when I told him we were all bloggers and social media mavens he said, “This table could change the world.” Hell yes. Sure we can. WHY NOT?

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Now, onto some “V” highlights!

Steph (@trainlikeachamp) made delicious-looking veggie wraps!

DAY 22 – V: ABC-themed #plantPOWER February Challenge … “V” is for my Very Spicy Veggie Taco! Both raw and steamed veggies wrapped in butter lettuce topped with jalapeños and nutritional yeast.

Adena (@adena86) made an incredible baked tofu dish!

“V”is for Vegetarian Italian Tofu Bake #plantPOWER #tofu #squash #mushrooms!

Awesome job, ladies! Keep it up.

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W is for…WELLNESS!

What would you do if you KNEW everything was taken care of? You would be in a state of “wellness.”

Wellness is defined as “the state or condition of being in good physical and mental health.” Are you well? If you’ve got your recipe for wellness down pat, then you’re half way there.

Physical Health: LET’S GET PHYSICAL!

#plantPOWER is all about adding more plants to your lifestyle in order to POWER you up for life and workin’ out. That’s the goal, and you’re all totally rocking that.

But get honest with yourself here. Are you living WELL? Are you eating more plants because you want to or are you eating more plants because you’re trying to follow what someone else is doing and think it’s “the cool thing” to do.

Mental Health: LET’S GET…MENTAL? Yup.

This is where the mental part comes in. Developing some sort of mental mind cleanse can be really beneficial for us. First thing in the morning, our mind is like a fresh canvas ready to be painted on. The energy behind the thoughts that you think set your tone for the day.

So, if we wake up and say, “Today is going to be a great day,” we’re going to attract great experiences. If we wake up and say, “Ugh, it’s early and I don’t want to go to work,” you’re going to attract things that you don’t want in your life.

How do you start your day? Mind cleanse or mind F*%K?

I used to wake up, roll over, and check my email and social media accounts. Then, I started to notice that this totally did me a disservice. I noticed myself feeling a tight, constricted feeling in my chest right when I woke up. I was checking my social media accounts because I felt like I “had to get to work” first thing in the morning. As a result, I was less inspired throughout the day and was more apt to become annoyed with petty things that came up throughout the day.

Now, I don’t check my phone for at least two hours after I open my eyes. I’ve developed a mental morning mind cleanse that works for me, and helps me to remain “well.” Most importantly, I feel expansion – not constriction – and I can show up for life as my best self. Before I open my eyes, I repeat the prayer from A Course in Miracles: “Where would you have me go? What would you have me do? What would you have me say? And to whom?” This sets the tone for the day, taking the focus off of what I want and shining the spotlight on how the Universe would use me to serve others.

After this prayer, I go downstairs and move! Yoga, pilates, and barre are my go-to forms of movement right now. When I move, I repeat affirmations to myself like, “I am strong,” “I am abundant,” and “I am inspired.” After I move, I meditate and give myself anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes to just connect with my intuition. Without this mental aspect of wellness, I just wouldn’t be all there.

When we have a mental practice like this, we realize that situations don’t happen to us – they happen for us. We are able to go with the flow and are truly #plantPOWERed up for the day. It’s easy to be grateful for the good stuff. But can you open up and be grateful for the difficult parts of life too? Can you be willing to surrender your idea of how you think stuff should go and ask the Universe to show you the way? BE GRATEFUL! This is mental wellness. This is what you already have in you. Be willing to uncover it. You deserve it. You ARE it.

Stay lovely,
Heather

P.S. – Don’t forget to check out Kasey’s post today!

Enjoy your day & Don’t forget you have a few more weeks to enter the GIVEAWAYS!

• Almond Breeze giveaway
• Brad’s Raw Foods giveaway
• Nutrex Spirulina giveaway
• BAMR Bands giveaway
• Julieanna Hever giveaway
• Mary’s Gone Crackers
• NRG Matrix Giveaway
• Real Food Barre Giveaway
• Shakeology Giveaway
• VEGA Giveaway

You have until February 26 at 5:00 p.m. EST to enter ALL giveaways! GOOD LUCK!!