Post- Justin C. Blomgren

Aug 1

Aug 1 Stop Shoulding Yourself :)

This post is sponsored by Halo Top

What a whirlwind these past few months of quarantine have been, am I right? I feel like the time has gone by both very fast and extremely slow, all at the same time. How is that possible???

This Summer I’m excited to be partnering with Halo Top Ice Cream, and they’ve challenged me to evaluate the things I feel l I SHOULD and SHOULD NOT be doing each day

And I’ve found I’ve created LOTS of lists of things I feel I SHOULD be doing each day. A few examples that come to mind:

I should be going on more walks to try and hit my 10,000 steps goal
I should be trying out new home work outs since all the gyms are now all closed
I should be keeping the house uncluttered and clean since we’re spending more time at home
I ( Actually Harper) should be cooking healthier foods since all the restaurants are now closed
And so on and so on

But why do I feel the pressure to do all of these things? I think partly it’s because there is a lot of societal pressure to look a certain way, be productive, and be healthy. But I also think it has a lot to do with some internal guilt I’ve subconsciously put on myself as well.

Here’s the truth: I’ve always had a BIGGGG sweet tooth. Harper always makes fun of me as I tend to eat ice cream super slow, as if I’m savoring every tiny little bite. And it’s true, Ice cream has always been a treat and guilty pleasure of mine… and I USUALLY always feel that guilt after eating it. Even if I’ve completed my whole list of “Shoulds”, it seems that ice Cream is always on my list of “Should Nots”.

This is one reason why I’ve loved partnering with Halo Top ice cream. Halo Top is an ice cream I can feel good about eating, as it has lower calories and more protein than the others.

I know it’s because I like being healthy and I like setting goals, but guess what, I also love having lazy days curled up on the coach with Harper. And I also love when Harper makes me fried chicken for dinner, and the days where I stay inside to read instead of going for a run. I think we are at our healthiest overall when we find a balance. No need for the extra pressures of the shoulds. Instead of saying “I should”, why not start saying, “I will”, or “I can”, or “I want”. I think that is a more productive way to look at achieving our goals.