healthy living

Real Talk: It’s OK to take time away from social media

- Stephanie Leave a comment

One of my 2019 goals is to spend way less time on social media. When the idea to take every other week of 2019 off of Instagram came to me, it felt like such a not-normal idea. Not normal for what life says is normal these days, and for me, as a social media loving human. It seemed hard. My excuse for always being on socials was “but I have a business I need to tell the world about!”. Yes, I would do social media marketing, but honestly, I mostly was constantly scrolling with no real plan in mind. So this challenged seemed challenging, as challenges are. But then I remembered the time in 10th grade when someone dared me to be a vegetarian for a week and I lasted an entire year. So I guess challenges are kinda my thing.

My first #InstaOffWeek was a little tough. It was basically a time to retrain my brain to not immediately click on Instagram and start scrolling when I grabbed my phone. It was second nature to do that. I actually think I had become addicted. I’ve had 3 “off weeks” so far, going into my 4th, and it gets easier every time. Here are some positive things I’ve noticed my time away from Instagram has taught me:

  • There is WAY less comparing my day/kid/life/business to other people’s. Space to live my own life, ya know?
  • It gives me time to clear my head. I process the day’s events without feeling the need to talk about it on social media while it’s still happening. Similarly, the time away given me perspective on what and how much to share.
  • This is the best: I’ve been SO productive. The time I usually spend on Insta (and by now you realize it was a LOT of time), I’ve instead spent reading more – my own books, but also to Julien. I’ve been leaning into my hobbies like embroidering, blogging (HI!) and journaling. And also just resting my brain more! These are things I’ve always wished I had “more time to do”, the difference now is I’m intentionally choosing to use my time to do those things.
  • I think this is the most interesting finding so far: The time away has given what I DO share during my ‘on’ weeks much more purpose and focus. I don’t feel the need anymore to post something to just to have SOMETHING there. I’m thinking about my content more, and honestly, it gives me more satisfaction knowing that I am creating this quality feed verses throwing random stuff up just to stay in the algorithm. Yeah, I know, it’s weird that I even had to think like that it the first place. That’s social media, I guess.

So among all the Pros there is also one Con to not being on Insta as much! I obviously follow a lot of my longtime friends, and though we don’t communicate personally every day, it IS nice to keep in touch daily via socials. I always pick Instagram over Facebook to do this, so I definitely feel like I’ve been missing out on some moments over these last weeks.

That being said, I plan on sticking with my plan of being off Insta every other week for 2019. Maybe I’ll add Snapchat and Twitter into the mix one of these weeks (though I do find that those generally aren’t as big time sucks as the ‘Gram is.)

Let me know if you end up doing your own “time off” challenge! I would love to hear how it goes and what you learn!

Easy Hikes Around Greater Boston

- Stephanie Leave a comment

There are a lot of great places to hike and go on nature walks around the Boston area. None of them are very strenuous or intense – you’ll have to go up to the White Mountains in New Hampshire for that! But these are some of our favorite ‘easy’ hikes around the Boston area. They are all easily day trips, and some are even quick afternoon trips. So grab a group of friends, or your dog, or both, and go get some fresh air this weekend!

Noanet Woodlands – So much exploring to do here. Not only is this close to Boston, but you also get a great view of the city (see above). It’s a decent sized area; there are multiple trail options and the wide trails are perfect for a nice walk or run. A couple trails have ruins of old houses and you can even explore an old dam.

Rocky Narrows – Smaller in area, but just as much adventure. You can walk by the Charles River, or hike up to a great view of the Charles River. The trails vary in width, from wide and groomed, to rooted and rocky, but either way you’re in for a good day.

Check out my past blog posts about these other great outdoor spots near Boston!

Hale Reservation

Middlesex Fells 

F. Gilbert Hills State Park

Hiking West Rattlesnake Mountain | Holderness, NH

- Stephanie Leave a comment

Nate and I hiked up West Rattlesnake Mountain with my parents this past weekend. The thing is, it shouldn’t reaaaaallly be called a mountain, considering it only took about 35 minutes to hike to the top, and it wasn’t even that hard! The path is clear and very nicely groomed; some parts even have actual stairs built in. We saw lots of diversely aged and sized humans (and dogs!) along the way, so it’s safe to say that this hike is a good activity for everyone in the family.

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If you don’t spend much time at the top (which you should) you can do this hike in under an hour and fifteen minutes. But I would definitely suggest taking some time to enjoy the view and maybe even bring a picnic with you! The body of water you’ll see from the summit is Squam Lake, a mid-sized lake for the region. We went on a pretty cloudy day, but it really didn’t hinder the great view.

 

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We’re hiking more in the coming weeks, so stay tuned! 🙂

Covered Bridges Half Recap!

- Stephanie Leave a comment

Race: Covered Bridges Half Marathon
Date/Location: June 5th, 2016 in Woodstock, VT
Weather: Constant rain for all 13 miles
Pre-Race: Coffee, half a banana and a Lara bar
Post-Race: Harpoon Cider and vanilla ice cream 😉

This was my third half marathon (1, 2) and it’s a trend that I have never loved to train for them. I started running in 2010, was consistent through 2013, but then put running on the back burner for most of 2014. It took me until basically the end of 2015 for me to even feel like a ‘runner’ again. I ran a lot last fall and winter, but training for this half officially started in March. I signed up with 2 friends, Kay + Josh, and having them to keep me accountable with runs during the week was helpful. We encouraged each other from afar and it was awesome. My training was pretty on point, miles-wise, minus our 2 week trip to Italy in April, but I got back on the wagon as soon as I got home.

Going into this half, I had a feeling I wasn’t going to be anywhere close to as fast as I was the first two times. YUP, my training definitely proved that. I was bummed at first, but eventually had to accept the fact that I’m slow (for now, but I want to work on that!). I set a rough goal of 2:40 based on my training runs, but told myself I wouldn’t be mad if I went slower.

GET TO RACE DAY STEPHANIE, they said. 😂

Nate dropped us off at the starting area about an hour before the start. As it turns out, a few women from my town PLUS a good friend from childhood/life, Erin, and her friend, Mar, were all going to be running too! (as well as my 2 friends I already mentioned! squad!🙌) It was really easy to find each other because the area was small and we all had to pick up our race bibs anyways.

Covered Bridges Half Marathon Letters from Rita Boston Bloggger_0101

It had already started raining before the race started, so Kay, Josh and I took cover under some trees to stay as dry as we could before being continuously soaked for 2.5 hours. About 10 minutes before the start we got into our loosely divided corrals and waited/stretched. Josh went up to a fast corral, while Erin, Kay and I stayed near the 2:30 pacers. Kay and I decided to try and stick with this group for a bit, which we actually did for about 3 miles. Then we kinda fell behind, but kept a strong and steady pace on our own. (Erin was going strong with the pacer though!)

Covered Bridges Half Marathon Letters from Rita Boston Bloggger_0099

I was feeling good and optimistic until mile 7, when I drank maybe too much water and my stomach was heavily gurgling. Luckily I walked it off quickly. I knew mile 8 was where Nate was cheering for us, so I looked forward to seeing him. It gave me a boost of energy for a minute! But only a minute, because then we had to go up a huge hill! 😳 It was steep and Kay and I both walked it. From 8 to 9 Kay was ahead of me and I honestly felt like walking the rest of the way. Nothing was hurting too badly, but I was just tired and very wet haha. But I checked my watch and realized that I might actually be able to make the 2:40 goal, so I sucked it up and picked up the pace. Right around mile 10 is when we realized Erin was in front of us! So we caught up to her over the next half mile and pretty much from 10.5 to the end, the 3 of us were running together. It was really cool, actually.

Kay took off sprinting the last, maybe, 800 yards and finished at an EVEN 2:40 time! And Erin and I came in ONE SECOND apart, 2:40:41 and 42 (all our finish photos are together! awww) We all had our struggles during the race, but we all pushed through 💪 and it was really special to finish it with two of my oldest friends (Erin since kindergarten and Kay since we were 15).

Covered Bridges Half Marathon Letters from Rita Boston Bloggger_0100

The name of the half is the Covered Bridges half, so you’d think we’d run over a couple covered bridges, right? Nope, we only ran OVER one bridge, and ran PAST two others. They were still cool to look at, though. The whole course was gorgeous, even in the rain. Oh yeah! And every few miles there was live music! A high school jazz band, a troop of boy scouts and their drums, a local folk group, a guy and his guitar, and most notably… a bunch of kids playing recorders. Ha! I thought that was a really cool addition to the course. OH VERMONT.

Overall, minus being soaked to the bone, it was good and I’m glad we went through with it and I love Vermont. And I might sign up for another half in November. 😆

How to Set Your Morning Routine

- Stephanie Leave a comment

Let’s talk MORNINGS! I’ve been working since October to perfect my morning routine. It’s been a huge deal, actually. If my mornings are ‘right’ my whole day is more productive and what is better than a productive day?

My day begins when Nate’s alarm goes off, which could be any time between 6:00 to 7:15 depending on where he is working (he’s an auditor, so he goes where they need him.) He gets up and I stay in bed and peruse Instagram and Twitter for a while (yeah I’m one of those people. I should really stop doing that. Oh well.) I am physically out of bed by 7:45 or 8:00. I drink a big glass of water and eat a banana or a Lara bar. Then I get dressed for a run or Crossfit. Working out in the morning is CRUCIAL to my daily routine, because otherwise I’ll put it off until 2025.

Once I’m home from my work out I shower and immediately make my precious coffee. French press is my go-to, which you can read all about here. I make a bigger breakfast and read either my Bible or a book while I eat. I make it a point not to check my email or do any “work-y” things until at least 10, but usually 11 am. That gives me enough time to do my routine without feeling rushed. If I don’t do those “me” things each morning, the rest of my day seems stressful or just a little off.

How to set your Morning Routine - Letters from Rita blog

Working from home makes my mornings a little more flexible than those of you who have a 9-5. But, for those of you who also work from home and get to pick your own schedule, here are a few variables that determined how I set my morning routine. The most helpful thought I can give you is this:

What is most important to you?
Do you like to work out, read, meditate, eat a healthy breakfast? You probably already know the things that will make your day the best it can be, so write them down and then plan your routine around how long those things will take.

FOR EXAMPLE:

Length of snoozing (or checking socials)
Do you want to snooze (or read, or be on Twitter) for 30 minutes? Ok, well, set your alarm for 30 minutes earlier than your ultimate BE OUT OF BED time. And then when that time comes, wake up! Or get off your phone 😉

Work out / fitness class schedule
My morning routine is very, very dependent on my workouts. If you are the type who works out early in the day, a set class time is super helpful to planning out the rest of your morning.

Preferred breakfast type
Are you a simple breakfast person or an elaborate breakfast person? This trait will determine how much time you should allot to the best meal of the day. I prefer fried eggs or oatmeal, but on the lazier days, oatmeal is the better option.

You time
I make a point to read my Bible and journal or read a few pages of a good book for at least 20 minutes every day. It helps me find focus in my day. What recharges you? Do that for a while before you start working on the hard stuff.

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Once you factor in all this stuff, it’s easy to see how much time you need to allot to your routine!
STICKING TO IT: Once you come up with your perfect morning routine, try it for one week. If it’s working well for you, awesome! Keep doing it! But if you notice that maybe you didn’t give yourself enough time to snooze, or too much time to eat, you can always adjust it to make it better!
REMEMBER: It’s not the end of the world if your morning routine doesn’t happen perfectly every single morning. Sometimes a friend needs to talk so you grab a spontaneous coffee with her. Sometimes you really need to get those 4 important emails out as early as possible. It’s ok to tweak your routine some days, but it is also wise to try and stick with it as much as possible, so your important things become habits in the long run!

Was this blog post helpful to you guys? What is your current morning routine? I’d love to hear how other small biz owners are spending their mornings!

<3 Stephanie

photo by kris atomic ( i wish my mornings looked that gorgeous! )