The world and life can be overwhelming right now. I am holding space with you. We may struggle to process the grief triggered by life and current events. Honor and validate our feelings, but also try not to stay stuck. Have a plan, support, and psychologically protect yourself. Learn to be mindful and control your triggers to preserve your peace, energy, and mindset. Much love and peace! Dr. P

In this follow-up to part 1, I dive a little deeper into the simple metaphor I shared- emphasizing the importance of learning to trust ourselves above external opinions and societal expectations. While it’s valuable to consider what others say, true self-awareness empowers us to rely on our inner voice. I hope that through this journey, we can strengthen our self-trust, enabling us to live more in alignment with our core values and define our self-worth on our own terms.

For most of my adult life, I believed I was a size 8.5 in running shoes. Recently, after upgrading my shoes, I discovered that a size 9 actually fit me better. This got me thinking—how often do we go through life holding on to outdated beliefs about ourselves, unaware that we've outgrown them? Forcing ourselves to fit into old molds/roles can feel just as uncomfortable as wearing shoes that are too small, even if they were once the "right" size. This episode is nudge to trust your inner sense of when something no longer fits—whether it's a belief, a habit, or even a shoe.

Dr. P here checking in for a Gritty Genius Minute (GGM) to remind you that people are rewarded in public for what they do for years in private. Success is not an overnight occurrence. Success is a practice- a habit and a mindset of daily, weekly, and yearly, CONSISTENT actions. Stay the course because research says it takes 10 weeks to create a new habit. You can do this!

We all want a little more ease and smoothness in life but that doesn't mean floating by without doing the work. In fact, gritty ease can help us let go of resistance or white-knuckling through life. Choosing ourselves more wisely that has been shaped by the gritty experiences in life so that in each in every situation we are skillful and intentional our moves- like a mental ninja!

In this episode, I reflect on my first 70.3 race since 2016 and my first big race since having my son (he's currently 5!). I discuss my mindset and perspective or race at the age of 43 and juggling the role of mother and recreational triathlete. It was fantastic to experience Hawaii again and swim, bike, and run, but more thrilling to feel liberated from any external pressures or expectations on time or performance. Take a listen and I would love to hear your thoughts on not chasing old versions of ourselves and fully embracing ourselves at this moment in our lives.