Fighting the April Energy Battles

Fighting the April Energy Battles

April is the trickiest month of the year, which is appropriate considering it starts with April fools day. If people wonder why Canadians/Maritimers talk about the weather so much, well it’s because it has such an impact on how we live and how we feel. April is that month of the year where we start to think about spring and warmer weather. The trickery comes into play when generally it starts with a few awesome, warm days and we are ready to throw the snowpants into hibernation and then all of a sudden its freezing and snowing and raining and grey. What the heck? I should probably know by now this is how April rolls but I do always get my hopes up. Truth be told, it’s hard on us mentally. Don’t pack away the jackets yet.

Believe it or not, April is generally one of the slowest months of the year for gym and fitness businesses. I am speaking from my own experience from working in both of those for the past 15 years. People are shaking off winter but yet feel a bit depleted by not having that sun we always feel spring is supposed to promise us. We want that restored energy of spring but April is a waiting period and that directly impacts our willpower to move our bodies and in turn our mental health.

Then you add in the pandemic. We can’t not talk about that.  A normal April can be hard but we are now over a year into a global pandemic which has shown depression and anxiety rates increase from 1 in 10 people to 4 in 10. That’s a big jump.

Why I wanted to share this message today is because one of the awful things about going through a tough period, is you often feel you are alone. If this is you, I want you to know that you aren’t. If right now feels extra hard, give yourself an extra pat on the back today for your resiliency. Be gentle with yourself. It’s ok to not feel ok all the time. No one can operate full steam ahead 365 days a year and your better season is ahead.

Moving your body is one of the greatest tools to fight the fog but it can feel overwhelming when you just don’t feel you have the capacity.

Give yourself 5 minutes today.

Go for a walk, get fresh air, stretch on a mat, march on the spot or do 5 minutes of a class. It may not feel like it’s going to make a difference, but it will. I know on hard days it can be the last thing you want to do but let this be your reminder that it helps. Movement has carried me through the toughest times of my life. There are seasons I do less, there are seasons I have the capacity for more. On the tough ones, know that every little bit compounds. It makes a difference.

It’s not about the workouts that keep you in the best shape of your life that count the most, it’s the ones that help you get through hard times. That is the power of movement.

You are awesome. Remember that today.

xo

Trace