First things first: As the “New Year! New You!” ads run rampant, remember, the YOU right now is pretty awesome. We don’t need a “new you” in 2023. We just need one that feels and functions well, however you define that.

Having said that, we are closing out another incredible year of fascinating conversations about our physical, mental and spiritual health. I continue to be astounded at all we learn from my guests, and continue to challenge myself in various ways to implement their wisdom.

Inspired by these guests, I offer you ten simple mini challenges for your final ten days of the year.

Each of these mini challenges are designed to give you pause and reset your body, mind or spirit. They aren’t difficult and many only take a few minutes. But it’s enough to interrupt your rhythms and do something to take care of yourself.

I recommend you pick one per day for ten days. You don’t need to go in order; just do it in a way that works for you.

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1. Take a recovery day. 

More than one if you need it. If you’re like me, you may be battling two things. One, you’re fairly disciplined with your workouts and perhaps fatigued, sore, or in my case a little bored with them. Two, if you’re like many women I speak with, tell yourself you have to work out every day or else. Or else you..gain weight, lose your goals, feel crazy, fill in the blank. 

Let me assure you none of these will happen. You will not gain weight. Your goals are still there, and as I discussed with Dr. Tugg Kargbo on this Graced Health podcast episode covering recovery, it may even help you meet your goals. If your brain begs for movement every day, I understand. Move in a gentle way like yoga, walking (think parade pace, not race pace), or my signature program B.COMPLETE. 

Show your mind and body that you respect and listen to them. Heck, show your fitness tracker watch that you have agency over yourself and it’s ok if you don’t close your rings. 

2. Work out barefoot

You knock two items off this list by engaging in a recovery workout and kicking off the kicks. Exercising barefoot has several benefits, including strengthening your balance (especially important if you’re over 40), giving you greater proprioception (the awareness of the space you’re in), and allowing your ankle to move in a more natural way. 

Your feet are first responders when you trip, get off balance or accidentally step off a curb. Going barefoot helps your nervous system and brain train your feet how to respond. Besides, as Jenn Lormand and Christina Walsh with Tighten Your Tinkler taught us in this episode, there’s a direct line from your big toe to your pelvic floor. Our pelvic floor carries our center of gravity and is a strong component of our core. 

Depending on where you exercise, walking around barefoot may not be an option. But if you can practice active recovery on a yoga mat barefoot, you can easily knock two of these challenges off the list.

And by the way, if you’re in the northern hemisphere you’re in the middle of winter and I’m pretty sure there’s a rule that we don’t have to have our toenails painted. At least that’s my rule, so toss your insecurities about naked toes to the side.

3. Complete a B.COMPLETE

As a 48-year-old woman and a 17-year fitness professional, I both know and feel the need to treat my body with care. Gone are the days of seeing how many minutes…or even hours…of exercise I can do in a day. If I don’t intentionally move in different directions, work on my balance, and focus on the very non-sexy muscles like my gluteus medius, I feel it. I hobble, ache, and wince as I change positions while sleeping.

I developed B.COMPLETE as a comprehensive, complementary online class to however you enjoy moving. Whether you enjoy walking, running, Zumba-ing, strength training, or Peleton-ing, this helps your body stretch in new ways so you can do what you love. I added this to the challenge because I believe in it wholeheartedly. And yes, I practice what I preach and do it once a week (at least).

4. Go meatless and enjoy only whole-food plants for one day

Catch me at any holiday party, and you’ll find me enjoying the food. I do not apologize for this. I’m learning to enjoy every bite, which helps prevent me from overindulging. However, even during the season of special foods, my body craves vibrant plants, fiber, and citrus. What better way to provide your body balance than with a day of eating only plants? I don’t mean only vegetables; I mean plants. Veggies count for sure, but so do fruits, whole grains, nuts, and seeds. The more colors the better. Occasionally on my Graced Health Community Facebook Group, we do max plant challenges, when we see how many unique whole plants we can consume in one week. We’ve noticed our energy levels rise, sleep get better, and bathroom time more productive. 

If you want to participate in this mini-challenge, I recommend you first take stock of what you have in your fridge or pantry, then plan accordingly. This helps avoid unused produce going bad and will set you up for an easy day. Do you have chia seeds lying around? Prep some chia pudding with 2 tablespoons of chia seeds and a cup of coconut or almond milk. Have some rolled oats? Make some overnight oats (a quick Pinterest search will give you plenty of options). Lots of leafy greens? Pre-decide what kind of salad you’ll make, including the dressing. Don’t have dressing? Try EVOO and fresh lemon juice (bonus! Lemons count!) with a little salt and pepper.

As an added bonus, a plant-heavy diet provides a ton of fiber, which is one of the key elements of fostering a healthy gut microbiome. Additionally, it’s may provide your brain with some key nutrients lost during all the holiday festivities. Baked brie, while delicious, isn’t going to fuel your brain and consequently your mental health well.

5. Enjoy a holiday party alcohol-free

WAIT! Before you leave, hear me out. I take no issue with alcohol. I enjoy wine and other adult beverages. I don’t typically overindulge and feel like I model responsible drinking in front of my kids. I hope they agree.

But my conversation with Lori Massicot on the surprising joyful benefits of sober living has been reverberating in my head. Then I listened to a Huberman Lab podcast episode on what alcohol does to your body, brain and health. And it made me start thinking. About what, I’m still trying to find the language for it. But I decided that I wanted to see what holiday parties would look like without alcohol. 

If I’m honest, I wanted to experience it myself before asking you to do it. So last week, I drove to my husband’s office holiday party and stuck with club soda with a lime (Bonus! No uber or car service fees!).

And you know what? Lori was right. No one cared. No one asked me what I was drinking. No one asked why I wasn’t drinking. And I had no less fun than if I’d had alcohol. And as a bonus, we could leave when we wanted and saved money on transportation.

I have also noticed alcohol impacting my mental health more and more. With only a glass or two, the next day I physically feel fine but mentally feel like I could burst into tears at any moment. I’d rather not anticipate the birth of Jesus in a state of anxiety or depression. By the way, Huberman gives scientific reasoning behind this so listen to that episode if you want to learn more.

By the way, over on the free Graced Health Community Facebook Group we are doing a Dry January challenge. I’m going to switch it up a little and create a smaller group for those participating so everyone feels comfortable sharing their experiences. It’s zero cost to join the group and challenge so head over if you’re interested.

6. Intentionally get some light therapy

Sleep coach Morgan Adams joined the show at the beginning of September and offered a wealth of information to help our sleep quality and quantity. One lesson was the importance of getting outside within the first hour or two of waking and getting 10-15 minutes of sunlight without sunglasses. It helps set our circadian rhythm and that way when the sun goes down, our body is ready to kick in that natural melatonin. 

Admittedly, this is hard if you’re reading this real-time and you’re in the northern hemisphere. This is literally publishing before the shortest day of the year. Morgan suggested a workaround for this in the form of a Verilux Happy Light. This UV-free, full-spectrum light is a great alternative to getting those sun rays. It can help improve sleep and decrease those winter blues. I bought one for my husband and he has noticed an improvement in his sleep and psoriatic arthritis. They don’t make the PSA claim, but sunlight helps during the summer and the Happy Light seems to be doing the same.

7. Choose a verb from the Love Chapter of 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

This small challenge is inspired by Kim Sorrelle, who joined the show earlier this season (Season 15 Episode 5). We discussed her book, Love Is, where she focused on one phrase at a time, seeking to understand its true meaning and how it could motivate every daily action.

Here’s your small challenge for now: pick a word or phrase from 1 Corinthians 13 and live it out. I recommend you pick one that will not be easy. Are you traveling? Maybe patient is your word. Going through a hard season with a loved one? Perhaps trust is yours to focus on. Or maybe you have a cousin who just seems to have everything go their way and you don’t feel the same. Focus on not envying.

If you need a refresher, here are the words and phrases. Pick one.

• Patient
• Kind
• Does not envy
• Does not boast
• Is not proud
• Does not dishonor others
• Not self-seeking
• Not easily angered
• Keeps no record of wrongs
• Does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth
• Protects
• Trusts
• Hopes
• Perseveres

We are going to expand this and participate in Kim’s 14-Day Love Challenge in February on the Graced Health Community Facebook group, so join if you’d like to participate.

8. Take three deep breaths

If you’re thinking, what’s the catch on this one? There’s not one. Just take three deep belly breaths. When? Whenever you need them. Here are some ideas:

• Before a workout
• Before you eat (I learned this from my episode with Elise Museles on Season 13 Episode X)
• When your crazy uncle starts discussing politics 
• First thing in the morning
• Before you walk into a large family gathering
• After said family gathering
• As you sit down for prayer time
• Sitting in traffic
• When you sit down at work first thing in the morning
• After a workout
• Right after you turn out the light to go to bed

You get the point. Find fifteen seconds a few times a day to do that deep belly breathing, which will pull you out of that sympathetic nervous state (fight or flight) and help regulate you.

9. Do seated shoulder retractions 

What I really want to recommend is you do them first thing as you sit down at your computer, right after lunch, and at the end of the day before you drive home. This will help your posture, will activate the muscles along your spine, and remind your head to stay over your shoulders rather than hunched over. 

What are seated shoulder retractions, they might be the most simple thing you can do for your spine. Sitting or standing tall, take your arms out in front of you at shoulder height. Grab one hand with the other (it doesn’t matter which), and pull your shoulders back (or retract them) to squeeze your shoulder blades together. Hold for one second, then release. Do this ten times or about thirty seconds.

To see me demo this, check out this post on Instagram.

I told one of my closest friends about these, and she reached out a week later, saying “you have done what no one has been able to do: my headaches are gone.” I also do this on my speaking demo, and had someone reply to me saying “those shoulder things are legit!” Yes, my friends, they are.

10.   Be still time

Be Still time is another one of those things that are so simple to do but we…or I…just don’t take the time to do. 

These are the directions: Go outside if possible, sit with God, and be still. Yep, that’s it. No praises, no prayers, just sitting in God’s presence. It’s amazing how calming and centering it is. The name is inspired by Psalm 46:10 which says “be still and know I am God.” 

We did a Be Still challenge earlier this year on the Community Group, and the general feedback was “wow I really needed this” and “why don’t I do it more often?” 

It’s also the impetus of how I ended up doing all things Graced Health. If you’d like to hear more of that story, you can go way back and listen to Season 3 Episode 7 on the episode “How I heard from God without spending time in prayer or worship.”

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There are your ten simple challenges. I hope you engage at least one of them. If you’re not sure, I recommend Be Still time. 

If you’d like to try all of these, I’ve created a free download. If you’re on my mailing list, I’ve included that in today’s email. If not, grab yours at GracedHealth.com/challenge-checklist or sign up below and you can mark them off as you go. Who knows, maybe you can get all ten done over the next ten days!

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By the way, this post and Graced Health Podcast episode is meant to accompany you for the next ten days, but of course, you can take it into the new year. And speaking of the next ten days, I am taking some time off to enjoy family, friends and Jesus. I’ll be back on January 10 for Season 16.

Merry Christmas my friends. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for listening to this show. I know you have a lot of options and it means so much that you share yours with me every week or whenever you tune in. I hope you have a wonderful holiday season.

Be joyful, be safe, and be still. 

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