Defunk

Yesterday was a bad day. Maybe it was all the recruiters ignoring my job applications; maybe it was the three hours stuck in traffic; or maybe I was just in a funk, but in days like this, I just want to crawl in a cave.

Counting yards, repetitions and seconds, was not in my list of priorities (along with smelling like chlorine and having pool hair), so I was not looking forward swimming. But working out generally helps me relax, so it was worth trying.

I swam in automatic. I had no idea how the set was, how long or how fast. One girl offered me to lead and I simply grunted "No, thanks". I just let my lane mates swim ahead and I followed along. One hour later, the bad mood had stayed at the pool and I was feeling like a normal human being. In fact, my workout was rewarded with a couple mojitos that night!

Sometimes, the only alternative to not doing anything is to allow others to guide us. So next time you're having "a day", lend the driver seat to somebody else in order to stay on the road.

Ripping the rut from its roots

Today was a tough day; applying for jobs that won't make me happy, recruiters that don't call back, emails that never get returned... the last thing I wanted to do was getting in a bikini and going to swim in the cold. But my husband insisted and I didn't have the energy to fight him back. He said, "leave it all at the pool, give your all and you'll feel better." Yeah, whatever.

But even the ride towards the pool made me feel better; and by the time I made it out of the water, the bad day was behind me. I focused on my kicking and trying to glide. So much focus on improving myself made me realize that, at least in the little things, I am in control.

Most of the times when we are stuck in a rut, the first thing we do is withdraw from the world. But we need to snap out of it, rip the sadness out off its roots and get moving. We can't change a crapy day, but we can definitely change the way we look at it!