My wellness journey has begun! I don’t know why I decided on a random September day to go just go for it, but I am so grateful to embark upon it. To me, wellness is holistic. It’s not just focusing on physical wellness. I consider my journey in 3 parts; physical, financial, and emotional. Before I go into detail about each one, if you are considering improving some aspect of your life, the hardest part is just getting started!
Physical Wellness
Physical wellness is by far the most vulnerable of these categories. I have some pretty decent excuses, my three ankle surgeries in the past few years and PCOS. However, now is the time I’m stopping the excuses. It just makes my journey a little bit harder, but there have been those before me who have been successful.
Why now? Well, getting older is just a fact of life. If I don’t take control now, then it’s only going to get more challenging as the years go by. Plus, any habits I’m able to form now will allow me to carry that into future years which is what this is all about.
When I decided to take the leap, I knew there were a few things that I needed to do. First, I needed to get new running shoes. I had been skating by on cheap shoes because my ankle prohibited so much. After a lot of research, I decided on the Nike Vomeros. They have made such a difference in my walking already. On top of shoes, I needed to make sure that I had good quality workout clothes. My favorite workout leggings are actually these from Old Navy. I have acquired nearly 10 pairs over the years and they are so affordable. Then, I bought three of these Athleta shirts. I like how they are light, long, and comfortable.
Once I got outfitted, I came up with a plan. I’m really focusing on walking and strength training. I’m alternating long walks with short walks and dumbbell workouts. So far, it’s been successful! I’ve already worked out 12 of the first 17 days of the month.
In addition to working out, I’m also trying to get better with my food choices. They aren’t terrible, but I’m taking the make one better choice approach. Each and every time I eat, I’m aiming to make one better choice. Hopefully, these little incremental changes will lead to a greater change.
Now my goals around this portion of the wellness journey are big. I’m hoping to lose 100+ pounds which feels absolutely crazy to say out loud but hopefully will hold me more accountable.
Financial Wellness
So much of my physical wellness is affected by stress and one of my biggest stressors currently is my finances. Hence why it is an important part of this wellness journey. There are so many factors that apply to this, but long story short, this year has been an expensive one. I’ve moved and and redecorated, had a planned trip to Europe, more weddings then I’ve had in a long time, and so much more.
A lot of my debt is student loans from my MBA, but there is also a significant amount of credit card debt as well. I’ll get into this later on, but I’m at a point in my life where I don’t want to sacrifice the things I love. So where do this leave me? It’s all about increasing my income and diversifying my income streams. Aside from my 9-5, here is how I plan to increase my income:
- DoorDash – This one feels a little embarrassing honestly to admit, but it’s flexible and instant income. I generally average around $20/hr for it, but its also unpredictable. Some days it can super lucrative and successful and other days its dead.
- HYSA – I’m trying to build up an emergency fund as well and an HYSA was a no brainer. While it’s not anything to write home about right now, every little bit counts.
- Blog – Did you know that the ads you see on my blog actually can bring me revenue? Right now, it’s very minimal, but I’m excited that I’m getting enough readers to start generating some income. So, thank you for being here ❤️
- Affiliate Income – Any time I link a product on my blog and someone makes any purchase, I get a small commission. I really try to be authentic with this, but I’ve had some success this year which makes it rewarding.
- Apps – I use a lot of apps to get cash back like Ibotta, Rakuten, Fetch, etc. I actually wrote a post about everything I used that I just recently updated here. It’s been much more lucrative the past few months putting some reminders in to take it.
- Premurosa – I just relaunched my small business, Premurosa. My goal is to be able to sell my greeting cards wholesale so wish me luck! If you need a card, you should check it out.
My ultimate goal for this portion of the wellness journey is to become debt free, but the initial goal is to eliminate all the credit card debt. I would love to get to a point where I don’t need to DoorDash and the other income streams are generating impactful revenue.
Emotional Wellness
To close out the holistic wellness journey is emotional wellness. I use emotional wellness pretty broadly. It’s about anything that can be related to happiness. As I mentioned above, I don’t want to sacrifice the things I enjoy as part of this journey.
Now, it’s not about going crazy either. I want to keep it within moderation, but I don’t want stop the things I enjoy. I still want to travel, go out to restaurants, go to shows, and attend sporting events. It’s all about the choices. For example, I just purchased tickets for the Illinois football game. I really wanted to sit in the $70 seats, but chose the $40 seats. It’s not going to sacrifice my experience, but the smarter choice.
I’m also going to continue with therapy. One of the most important things I have taken away from it is to set my boundaries. I’m always going to protect my peace first and prioritize myself. I sometimes struggle with that and know it will continue to take work.
Lastly, I want to push myself to try new things. It’s always in the uncomfortable situations where the most growth happens. I recently did a Timeleft dinner where you are matched with multiple strangers for a meal. It was nerve wracking, but ultimately successful. I want to continue to find opportunities like that to meet new people and challenge myself in new ways.
This is just the beginning of the wellness journey. I’m optimistic and hopeful that taking these steps is going to positively impact my life. To keep myself accountable, I’m documenting my life on TikTok (and hey maybe that can become an income stream one day as well!). If you’ve made it this far, thank you. Your support truly means the world.
Xoxo
Janelle
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