Whole Body Whole Mind Introduction and Resources

Whole Body Whole Mind Total Wellness Challenge is starting in less than a week! Have you printed our your challenge sheets and started working on writing out your goals yet? I’m beyond excited to get started with this total wellness challenge and turn my attention towards self-care and real, holistic health. To learn more about the challenge, click here.

Whole Body Whole Mind is just different from other health programs. Instead of focusing on only one element of your health, like working only on diet or only on an exercise regimen, WBWM tackles each aspect of your total wellness at the same time.

Not only that, you set your own goals that support what’s healthy for you. That might be eating a paleo diet, focusing on vegan whole foods, or avoiding sugar 6 nights a week. What you eat and how often you eat it – that’s on you! The same goes for physical activity: I can’t tell you if Pilates is better than running for you. All I’m here to do is help give you the structure to be successful in working towards those goals, offer resources, and provide a community to support you along the way.

I’m just here to help you reach the goals you feel are right for you.

Lots of us are doing a round of the challenge together starting on July 1, so please join us! Join the Facebook group and get access to a supportive community committed to sharing progress and helping each other out.

If you’re already planning to take the challenge, have you started working on your goals? I’m sharing mine to help inspire you to create your own, but I’m feeling pretty ambitious with these goals! My goals are…

– 5 days a week: clean eating for three meals a day: no refined flours, refined sugar, unhealthy oils. Primarily paleo but I’m OK with full-fat cultured dairy, grass-fed butter, super clean whole grain breads, some rice and quinoa, tofu and tempeh – all in moderation. I also plan to reduce my meat consumption a bit, primarily in portion control.
– 3 nights a week: no alcohol  (not even wine!)
– 3-4 days a week: yoga. Doesn’t need to be super long or intense
– 3 days a week: meditation
– 3 days a week: limited phone usage (none at dinner, none before bed, put a limit on your phone with Moment app)
– 2 date nights a month
– 3 nights a week do “standup” with my husband (Talking about what we did that day, what we’re doing tomorrow, what we need help with, how busy we are, how we’re feeling, any stressors, etc)

Once you’ve set your goals, turn your attention to the resources that will support you in reaching them. We’ll work towards our goals over time, each week adding to the frequency of practice (For example, if your ultimate goal is to eat clean 4 nights a week, on Week 1, you would eat clean 1 night that week. On Week 2, you would eat clean 2 nights that week.). I’ve put together some of my very favorite resources for each aspect of wellness to help you get inspired, be informed, and work towards your total wellness goals.

Don’t forget to join the Facebook group and print out your challenge sheets! Check your email if you’ve already subscribed to 40 Aprons, or subscribe now to get the downloads. I can’t wait to work through this with you!

Physical Activity

• Yoga Download. Almost all of the yoga I do at home is with YogaDownload. So many amazing, free classes for any need. So much love.
• Yoga with Adriene. Adriene is my best friend… she just doesn’t realize it yet. She puts out fantastic yoga videos, and I highly recommend giving her a shot.
• Runner’s World 8-Week Beginners Guide. Awesome for getting started
• Yoga mat. A thick and sticky yoga mat is a total must for any yoga or pilates practice.
• FitBit. Perfect for walking, getting your steps in, and running, this FitBit also monitors your heart rate and includes guided breathing… based on your heart rate! Is that not the coolest?!
• DailyBurn. From dance to yoga to pilates to cardio, DailyBurn seriously has it all. I’ve been a subscriber for years and especially loved the prenatal yoga program.
• Couch to 5K App. I’ve used this multiple times and have always loved it.

Mindfulness

• Headspace. Everybody’s favorite guided meditation app! I’ve been using it lately and love it – perfect for beginners, too. 
• Meditation Podcast. I’ve been listening to the Meditation Podcast for years and love so many of their episodes. They’re definitely worth checking out.
• Mojo Gratitude Journaling. An image-based gratitude journal lets you hone in on what you’re thankful for with quick photos and blurbs.
• Moment. Monitor your smartphone usage and set daily limits. I use this every day! It’s amazing to see how much we really use our phones… and slightly terrifying.
• Dinner Mode App. Have a phone-free dinner together with this app – very cool and doable.

Clean Eating

Real / Whole Food Recipes

• 100 Days of Real Food
• 101 Cookbooks
• Real Food by Dad
• Half-Baked Harvest
• Cotter Crunch
• Iowa Girl Eats
• Nutrition Stripped

Vegetarian + Vegan Recipes

• Jessica in the Kitchen
• Sprouted Kitchen
• Isa Chandra
• Cookie and Kate
• Oh My Veggies
• 40 Aprons
• My New Roots
• Naturally Ella
• The Bojon Gourmet

Paleo Recipes

• 40 Aprons (?)
• Paleo Gluten Free Eats
• The Nourishing Home
• Jays Baking Me Crazy: Her chicken salad is incredible!
• Pure and Simple Nourishment
• The Curious Coconut
• Nom Nom Paleo. I could eat those turkey curry bites for every single meal.
• Stupid Easy Paleo
• Paleo Running Momma
• Primal Gourmet

Relationships

• Love Languages: Learn about yours and your partner’s love languages (how you feel appreciation and love) to understand better how to make them feel cared for.
• 8 Ways to Make Your Relationship Work Better, according to Psychology Today
• Date Night Ideas
• The Role of Humor in Romantic Relationships
• 9 Ways to Show Appreciation

Do you have any total wellness resources you’d like to share?