Mindful May 2025

As I walked along the beach on my Easter break, I thought about what I wanted for next month. Every year, I use May as a chance to reset before the second half of the year starts. I reflect on what I'm doing well and what I could improve on.

Mindful May, for me, is about the 3Ms - move my body, make a journal entry and meditate. These simple things that will help me feel calmer and less frazzled. And each year I fail to hit the mark (by my own benchmark that is). I wondered if it's my systems that were failing, were my goals too high or am I simply not prioritising these things?

I reflected upon each goal that I've had in the past few years and realised that they weren't specific or achievable. So it was time for a rethink about my approach. May for me will look a little like this -

Move - 8500 steps every day

This one I've been trying to do for awhile. I purchased a Garmin watch and originally set my goal as 10,000 steps a day. And I was lucky to hit that twice a week (I had to go for long walks to get this). So I dropped it to 8500 and guess what? I hit that most days. I parked a little bit further away at school pick up, did a few short laps around the block or on my busy studio days, I met that goal with no trouble. And the more I met my goal, the better I felt so I kept moving even further. I'll still keep up my Pilates and weights training sessions but as a minimum, I want to meet this step goal for every day in May. But you know what, if I don't, that's ok, I'll try just as hard tomorrow and not let one day of failure set back my progress.

Meditate - simply stop and take 10 deep breaths at any moment in the day. Embrace the stillness when I can get it

I'm not good at meditation. And I don't try very hard when I do do it. So instead, I'm going to set myself something achievable. I am going to work on slowing down my heartrate when I can and that is by doing 10 deep breaths at any given time. Ok, this doesn't sound very specific so it could be hard to measure. What I am referring to is finding stillness in the day, at any time I can. Such as when I wake up in the morning. Stop, breathe, then get up. Or when I finish a class, I can take these 10 deep breaths before my next session. Or when I get out of the car. Or when I'm waiting for the kettle to boil to make a cup of tea. These mini moments might be all I can grab at the moment so for now, that's ok. I'll do my best.

Make a journal entry - three times per week before bed on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday

In past years, I had lofty goals of getting up early, writing in my journal, having a cup of tea and starting the day feeling zen. And you know what? That's not me. I'm a great sleeper and could sleep for 9+ hours a night. I hate getting up early! I do it 1 day a week to get to a 6am weights class and it sucks (but I do it because I'm all about consistency and wouldn't want to let my gym buddy Kat down). I've also tried to journal before bed. But the weeknights are chaotic and this exercise felt like a tick and flick of my to do list rather than something meaningful. What I do think I can achieve is 3 nights a week before I go to bed. I've got a gratitude journal already so it provides me the prompts that I need to start the conversation with myself. If you don't have a journal, here are some helpful suggestions:

• what is something that I am worrying about now that I won't care about in six months time?

• today I want to feel....

• how have I grown in the last five years?

• what boundaries can I put in place to protect my wellbeing?

• if I couldn't fail, I would....

• write down something that makes you happy

• what is something I have conquered in my life?

And as one little extra point, if you only do one thing in May, read the book Let Them by Mel Robbins (likely to appear on Holly's Holiday Reads blog at some stage). It has been a game changer for me. To put it simply - stop trying to control other people's behaviour, fix their problems or change who they are. Just let them. And instead, focus on protecting your precious energy on the things that matter. You are in control of your feelings and your behaviour. There will be more on this concept in future posts as I have a lot to say about it!

As with anything, consistency is key but this year, I'm going to focus on progress and being a little better than April. I'm hopeful that more realistic goals will be achievable.

Does anyone want to join me for Mindful May? Tell me about how you plan to reset your month.

Till next time Wellspringers, may your mind and body be reset during Mindful May month,

Love Holly

xx