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  • Being Thankful and Expressing Gratitude with Maddie Rose

    1st November 2021

    1st November 2021

    By Innermost

    From the moment you meet nurse and disability analyst Maddie Rose, she has a positive energy which you can’t help but reciprocate - a quality which unexpectedly grew out of some of her most difficult experiences as a nurse. An advocate of the importance of gratitude, we sat down with Maddie to discuss her journey into wellness, how she cultivates gratitude and the importance of being kind to ourselves.

    Tell us a little bit more about you! What do you do and what are you passionate about?

    Absolutely! So hey, I’m Maddie. I’m 24 and am currently working as a nurse, whilst training as a PT on the side. As you can probably tell, I love to constantly be learning, and what better way than to tie in two jobs that will allow me to do just that?! From years of studying academic papers, I definitely have a ‘no BS’ approach to new fads, shakes, powders, exercises, and love to get my evidence from the source and know that what I am ingesting, or training, or teaching, is 100% tried and tested. Over the years I made every mistake in the book with fitness so I want to be the source of honesty I wish I had had when I was younger and more impressionable, in an ever-more saturated fitness industry.

    When I’m not geeking out, I absolutely adore any activity that includes water (have been called a ‘surfer’ vibe more times than I can count on two hands), exploring new places, attending numerous bottomless brunches with pals, training heavy just so I can recover at the spa, and eating copious amounts of pick n mix. Wild, I know!

    How did you originally get into health and wellness and what has your journey been like?

    This question made me laugh. It is safe to say ‘journey’ is quite the word for it! My mum dragged me along to a gym one day when I was 16, much to my dismay. When I was younger I’d done a lot of competitive sport but that all fizzled out at as I went to secondary school and became painfully self-conscious. I often make the joke now when I share my experiences online that “I made all the mistakes so that you don’t have to’: needless to say I tried every diet fad, gadget, quirky exercise, and Instagram challenge under the sun. It was only having muddled through all of these mistakes, and stripping back all the layers to nailing the basics, that I have made immense progress physically and mentally.

    What does gratitude mean to you and how do you feel it connects to health and wellness in a broader sense?

    What gratitude looks to me in my life will be different to everybody’s reading this. For we all live in different bodies with different abilities. But at its core, it is in the appreciation of everything our bodies can do, everything our minds can process, everything our hearts can love, and everything our souls ever need. It seems our bodies were made for cosmic capacities of grace, of love and ability - the gratitude is how we recognise and harness this to fulfil its maximum potential. Much more exciting than the goal of fitting into a smaller dress size, no?

    Was there a specific experience that made you view gratitude in this light and how did this change you as a person?

    Where my career has led me so far has forever changed my perspective of what it is to live. Although I cannot be specific, I will say this - I think the magnitude of poorliness that I, and we all, were seeing day-in-day-out throughout the coronavirus pandemic really impacted me mentally. Speaking candidly, it got to the point where it was hard to find positivity at all – online or in real life. I don’t think I’m alone in that. During the stillness forced upon us, I started to seek out small pieces of gratitude each morning that I had never picked up on before, just to discern one day from another. Like the fact that I got to wake up each day to help those who needed it. That my legs that have walked me thousands of miles still get me out of bed each morning for a lockdown walk. That my lungs have the capacity to fill to bursting, and laugh until I cry with my loved ones on Zoom. Most of the time about nonsense.  That steaming cups of tea are a thing. That for the first time in my life, I have slowed down to process emotions I had never taken note of before. And grow to master this process and change my life. It truly is in appreciating the seemingly insignificant things, that add up to the life-altering perspectives.

    How do you practice gratitude in your daily life?

    The quickest and easiest way: grabbing the Notes app on your phone, a notebook and journal, whatever you can find. And write down 1-3 things you are grateful for in that very moment. At first it seems strange, inorganic, and a bit staged. But keep at it every day or so. Some days will be like a drought, other days will be flooding with gratitude. And that is okay. Soon your brain will be subconsciously looking out for things to be grateful for and you’ll notice it outside of holding the notebook in your hands.

    My biggest tip: take note of what you write down. Of everything good around you. What gives you energy. The people you love to spend time with. The traits you love in others. The foods you love to cook. What you do that makes you feel joy. That makes you feel powerful, and motivated, and driven. The sights you love to see. The things you do that set your soul alight with aliveness. This is your gratitude, go and get as much of it as you can.

    Since you began implementing these practices, have you seen changes in yourself and your life as a whole and what were they?

    Since implementing these practices, almost every part of my life has changed. From where I live, what I do for a job, what I want from a career, who I allow in my life, what I do because I want to do it, how I want to challenge myself. And without a doubt, I am so much the wiser, calmer, stronger and more loving. Because in seeking out the glimpses of positivity each day, I have learned to address what brings me true joy, and focus on building a life around those things.

    Have you experienced a time when feeling gratitude was difficult and how did you deal with this?

    I absolutely have had awful times over the years, and still do experience times when expressing gratitude is difficult. Of course no one wakes up in a good mood every day. Of course no one can have a good day every day.

    Like I said earlier, some days it feels like a drought where you feel there’s nothing to be grateful for. Honestly? Ice cream and your favourite Netflix show are a very good shout. Followed by the acceptance that not everything can be peachy every day. Sometimes we just have to give ourselves a break. The sun will rise again.

    Finally, what is something you’re grateful for right now?

    1st November = Christmas, right? I’m excited for the festivities to begin! All the love, cheer and laughing with everyone whom I adore. What could be better?

    To keep up with Maddie, follow her on Instagram

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    We sat down with Innermost Insider and mindful wellness advocate Anj Magecha, who shares how she stays on track with new goals and habits whilst remaining true to herself, and what to do when faced with setbacks. Hey Anj! Can you introduce yourself to our readers? Hey everyone, I’m Anj! I’m a 24 year old wellness geek working in consulting. I’m all about navigating life in London, trying to find a balance in my approach to nutrition, exercise and socialising, and improving my mental health and personal development 1% at a time. (And hopefully helping other people do the same!)  How did you become an Innermost Insider and what’s your goal as an ambassador for the brand? I’ve been a Innermost user since I joined F45 TCR in 2018, I was new to the gym, vegan, and in need of some serious protein intake to pack on muscle— at a time where most vegan protein powders were a bit rubbish! I also run on caffeine and hate coffee so got hooked on the pre-workout to fuel going to the gym, uni, working at lululemon and a busy social life!  I joined the Insider program as soon as I was able to, and have seen so much growth for the brand since then! I love all the extra merch, the sweatshirt and duffel are essential - so would love to see more of my go to gym bag essentials become Innermost 👀 Our topic this month is resolution. How would you personally define resolution and has it been a pivotal part of your life?  Resolution means taking control of your own life and making conscious choices that lead you towards the often intangible ‘better’. It's about having the determination and drive to create the future you want for yourself, and accepting the task of navigating the challenges that come your way. To me, resolution is about being true to myself and living with purpose. It's about not letting fear or doubt hold me back, but instead trusting in my own strength and abilities to overcome any obstacle even when it feels like it’s too difficult, or unfair. To be resolute requires a strong sense of self-discipline and self-control, as well as a clear vision of what you want to achieve. It requires a sense of resilience and adaptability, and the understanding that things sometimes get worse when they get better. Resolution has showed up for me in my journey with eating disorder recovery and weight restoration, with difficult conversations with therapists, even with holding boundaries with friends when sometimes it feels easier to let things slide. It’s not just about the big things! Ultimately, resolution is about living a life that is authentic, meaningful, and fulfilling. It's about having the conviction to pursue my passions and make a positive impact on the world around me. How do you go about setting goals in your life? So this is an interesting one. I suck at New Years resolutions. Or so I thought. With a background in disordered eating and a late diagnosis of ADHD I can retrospectively look back at some of my new years resolutions and understand why they felt so insurmountable.  To keep it brief, they were generally unrealistic, overly restrictive or prescriptive, and boring. And to be honest, sometimes goals aren’t going to be exciting.  I’ve read quite extensively around habit forming and achievement and currently quite like the 12 week year format (it’s a book, decent read but for a short version there’s a video on my TikTok!) The 12 week year has really resonated with me - it's all about focusing on what's most important and taking consistent, small steps towards achieving your goals over the course of three months, and then re-evaluating. So a year long goal gets broken into 4 three-month goals, then 12 one-month goals, and so on, until the minutiae of daily habits. It helps you focus on what matters most It keeps you accountable It allows for flexibility It helps you make progress faster Do you ever struggling with sticking to your goals and resolutions? How do you overcome setbacks? Overcoming setbacks in pursuit of your goals can be tough, but it's also an essential part of the journey towards success. Every challenge and obstacle presents an opportunity to learn, grow, and become stronger. I am a very emotionally driven person, when I get sad or anxious or I’m face with a negative life event, my goals are quite easily derailed. So for me it’s important to allow myself time to recuperate after a major setback, as it can be emotionally and physically draining to deal with challenges and obstacles. Taking a break to rest and recharge helps refocus and regain energy and motivation.I practice self-compassion and am not afraid to reach out for support when things feel overwhelming. I’m also a strong believer in setting boundaries for myself to protect my time and energy. Naturally some setbacks are less personal, things like the pandemic or tube strikes. In those cases I try to keep things in perspective: an old manager at lululemon used to say, at the end of the day, it’s just black stretchy pants and I apply that thinking to most areas of my life. Don't let setbacks define who you are or what you're capable of. Instead, use them as an opportunity to learn and grow. Are there certain times where you feel more motivated to set goals or resolutions? Naturally times like birthdays and new years have loads of messaging around goals and time passing, but in my experience I find birthday goals and new years goals are just that. They exist until I feel less festive and then things get difficult. I find the goals that come to me in the other 75% of the year are actually more in line with what makes me feel happy and healthy. The 12 week year method really helps facilitate this for me. Furthermore according to a study published in the journal Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, people are more likely to succeed in their goals when they start working towards them immediately, rather than waiting for a specific time (like the new year) to begin. When we set a goal, we often have a burst of motivation and energy that can drive us to take initial steps towards achieving it. By waiting to start working on our goals, we risk losing that initial motivation and energy, which can make it harder to get started. So why wait for the new year to make changes that will make you happy? What advice would you give to others about setting goals and resolutions for the future? Check in with yourself to make sure your goals are your own and not what you think people expect from you. And don’t be afraid to set goals that people aren’t going to see happen, there have been points in my life where my goal has been to get out of bed every day for a week and they were probably more difficult and transformative than any weight loss or fitness goal I’ve set for myself.  Do you have any important personal resolutions for the next year? I have some goals from my previous 12 week cycle, including the turf games in summer 2023 hopefully, which naturally lends itself to some commitments around training style and frequency.  I think saying no more often is a big one for me. Not to everything by any means but I do a lot of things that I think I ‘should’ do and I usually go in eyes wide open knowing it’ll leave me not feeling great. So hopefully this year I’ll have the resolve to just say no straight off the bat!  That's a wrap! To keep up with Anj, check out her Instagram and TikTok. Read more