5 Hobbies for Life Balance

The food we eat is ONE piece of a balanced life. 🧩

I’m a dietitian here to help you with your eating habits, but we’ll likely end up talking about other areas of your life too.

Why?

They are actually all interconnected. 💞

Wellness is about nurturing our mind and body in many ways in addition to food.

When we bring other areas of life into balance, our eating habits become more balanced. ⚖️

My “5 Hobbies for Life Balance”:

1. One that makes me money. 💰

Nutrition counseling. 😄 As much as I believe life is about so much more than money, having money is clearly important because it helps enable me to live the life I want to live. I am extremely fortunate to have found a way of making money that gives my life meaning and makes me happy.  It wasn’t always this way.  Take a look at some of my jobs over the years: Tops Market Bulk Foods dept (1st job ever- high school- stocking bins with candy 🍬, a dream job!😅) , medical office assistant, rollerskating car-hop, waitress at a couple of Newport restaurants, GNC assistant manager, crew member on Blount cruise ships, team member in the Whole Foods Market Bakery, Grocery and Whole Body depts… and I even got my Series 7 and 66 licenses and had a brief stint in the stock market field.  I’m exhausted reminding myself of all of that.  Even though most of those were mainly a means to an end, they did provide a sense of purpose and structure.

👉 Money is important, but once you figure out what you are passionate about… Go for it.  Life is just too short.

2.  One that moves my body.  🏃🏻‍♀️

If I had to pick one– running. 👟 But what would I do without yoga? 🧘🏻I think we need to have several outlets for moving our bodies.  I also love biking 🚴🏻 and walking 🚶🏻.  And now I’m even getting back into rollerblading.  🛼 Activities of daily living count too– vacuuming, yard work, laundry, hauling in the firewood, etc.  Moving our bodies is right up there with nutrition when it comes to longevity and achieving a better quality of life– both physically and mentally- as we age.  We need to keep moving to keep our muscles, bones, vascular system, brain, etc functioning as optimally as possible.  💪🏋️ What you’re able to do in your 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s will have a lot to do with how you’ve cared for your body in your 20s-50s.

👉 Do it now so you can do all the things later.

3.  One that is an outlet for creativity. 👩🏻‍💻

As much as I’m desperate to get off the computer, it has also become a big outlet for creativity.  💻 Between my website and blog, Facebook, Instagram and creating music videos of my dog 🐶, being creative with technology can be fun.  😁 Hopefully creating social media posts and writing blog posts is helping someone out there feel inspired. 💫 Find something that causes you to lose track of time because you get so involved and focused (the zone).  We all have something– music🎵, writing✍️, painting🎨, drawing🖍️, puzzles🧩, crafts🧺, baking🧁, gardening🧑‍🌾, the list is endless.

👉 Tapping into creativity is a way to reduce stress, express yourself and achieve a sense of accomplishment.

4.  One that connects me with others. 🧘🏻‍♀️🏃🏻‍♀️🚵🏻‍♀️

Not to duplicate my answers from #1 & #2, but my connection with others happens to involve talking with clients through nutrition counseling & being physically active.  Listening to clients’ stories, establishing trust and being a source of support all involve connecting. 💁‍♀️ Going to a yoga class is a much more rewarding experience than doing it alone at home.  Biking is almost always more fun with others too.  And while I am usually a lone runner, I also love running with a friend!

👉 Surround yourself with like-minded people for that necessary sense of connection we all long for.

5.  One that supports learning and a healthy mindset. 

I love reading and learning. 📖 How anyone can ever be bored in this life is beyond my comprehension.  There is always, always, always something to learn! Right now I am reading Outlive by Peter Attia and Die with Zero by Bill Perkins.  I recently finished The Body by Bill Bryson.  All very interesting. 👍👍  I’m also working on practicing consistency with daily meditation.  🤌 I notice the mindset benefits when I quiet down and let the dust settle.  🙏 We’re meant to continue learning and growing though life.

👉 Find the things that interest and excite you and learn more about them. 💗

🤔 What are your “5 Hobbies for Life Balance”?