Run the Dishwasher Twice
A while back there was a post circulating a Facebook (linked below) about running the dishwasher twice. The author didn’t have the energy to scrub her dishes prior to putting them in the dishwasher, so her therapist suggested that she simply run her dishwasher twice. This post resonated with me because at the time I was struggling with Oula. My perfectionism and all or nothing mindset had let me to stop dancing in 2020 when I felt I couldn’t go all in. Pre-covid I was taking Oula classes every chance I got and was dancing several times per week.
When covid hit, that all stopped for obvious reasons. Once we were able to do outdoor classes that summer, I started dancing regularly but once the fall hit and it got cold, I struggled again. I was in a season of being too emotionally exhausted to commit to anything “extra.” I was in my first trimester of grad school and working part time, and it felt daunting to come home from work, do homework, and find the energy to even change for a workout let alone commit to an hour. After reading the dishwasher post, I decided there were no rules for how I do Oula. I would take off my shoes, leave my work clothes on (often leggings anyway), and play a class that was only 30 min. I took out more jumps than I left in most days. Some days I felt extra good and chose the hour class but I told myself that I don’t have to commit if it’s too much (I always feel better once I start a class though, and usually I did complete it).
All of this rambling is to say that if anyone has similar struggles, I really encourage you to give yourself grace and move your body at whatever level you are able to right now. I really missed the community of in-person classes. I really missed having the energy to do 5 full hours of Oula a week. But when these were not options, I found that doing something was better for me than doing nothing. Allowing myself to practice Oula in an imperfect way really, really helped me to feel better mentally and physically. The mistake we make with fitness is feeling like we have to do it perfectly. We start intense workout programs and 90 day challenges, then quit them when we feel that we don’t have the energy to commit to the whole thing. It is okay to scale it back and meet yourself wherever you are at day to day. I think that your mind and your body will thank you for it.
Dishwasher article: https://www.upworthy.com/woman-shares-therapists-mental-health-tip-for-doing-dishes