It’s LEAP DAY! What does leap even mean? According to Oxford Dictionary.com, it’s a noun, meaning, “a forceful jump or quick movement.” When used as a verb, it means, “to jump or spring a long way, to a great height, or with great force.” Leap Day happens every four years to keep our astronomical calendars in sync, and they purposely chose the word “leap,” not extend, add on, or drag a day, but LEAP! While the Earth uses this day to help complete its orbit around the sun, we can ask, “How are we choosing to leap today?” Make today a motivational tool to kickstart a healthier way!
Taking a message from the sun; that sometimes we need a little extra time to get our healthier acts together, here’s our LEAP acronym on how to jump into quick and effortless ways of being, today!
L – Lifestyle More: Laughing is a gift! If you’ve ever laughed until your stomach hurt, or tears rolled down your face, you know that laughter is awesome. But are you laughing enough? Think about your day so far, how many times did you sigh, roll your eyes, or complain, when you could have just, laughed? Was someone telling a joke and you purposely didn’t laugh? Did you come to a meeting, car ride, meal, or anything with anything but a smile? Taking a LEAP towards laughter is a huge jump towards lifting your mood and everyone else’s around you. It will also change your mindset if you are looking for more places to laugh and smile! You can even fake it and it works, try it now for 20 seconds and your brain will produce a feel-good chemical even if it’s not a real laugh, rewarding you for this great spring in your positive new mindset.
E – Exercise Daily: Yes, daily! We know that we need to move but some don’t. Why? It’s hard to say because you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who started taking daily walks, doing morning stretches, or taking daily fitness classes who isn’t raving about its benefits. However, it’s a hard road to get many people to jump on to the path. Moving is essential for our health, building strength, regenerating cells, and keeping our joints happy. Moving your body can help to stop a stress cycle too! However, to move, you must do it, you must get moving. Take the LEAP and move today, then tomorrow, then the next. Just do it and keep it up. Make this leap and you will not believe how high of a jump this makes in all areas of your life, especially in your mental health and wellbeing.
A – Adopt Healthier Eating Habits: Nutrition matters. Whether you eat too much, too little, not enough of one thing, or too much of another, what, when, and how you eat matters. Take the
LEAP to nourish your body better today. Is it adding in something? Perfect -that’s the leap. Just one jump and that’s all you need! Stick to it, and once you feel yourself hitting the new heights of health, then you can add on. Making one little leap adds up, but only if you do it and stick to it. It takes time.
P – Prioritize Mental Health: If you’re anxious, stressed, overly worried, dealing with thoughts or images in your mind that won’t relax, how can you properly care for yourself and others? Today is the day you LEAP for your mental health in one small jump. What will it be? Can you right now, grab a notebook or journal, and write down how you are feeling? Write a daily letter to yourself! Would you consider taking the leap towards a therapist platform online, locally, or seeing what services you might have in the workplace? Would you leap to trying a 3-minute meditation you find online and commit to doing this daily? What is your one leap for mental health, so that your body and wellbeing can also rise to a new place and healthier space?
Today’s the day for taking the LEAP which welcomes us all to more time, space, and opportunity for health. Yet, any day can be LEAP Day because every day is the chance to step, walk, run, hop, or LEAP towards greater health. You are worth the LEAP. You can do any of these LEAPS in just minutes. Maybe ask yourself: how high do I want to soar this year, this coming month, this coming week, or even today? Choose one leap, and notice what it feels like to propel towards a life that you are present in, purposefully participating in, and leaping forward in. We can do this, let’s go, take the LEAP!
Mary Hoadley
Director Of The Wellness Center