The first week of March didn't exactly go to plan...
Mid training camp in South Africa I came down with a nasty tummy bug meaning the last few days were spent alone in my room rather than playing matches vs Germany. Needless to say I wasn't really up for completing my March challenge; 15 minutes of daily stretching. The 11th March marked the first day I first managed my 15 minutes of stretching and also marked the last day. A complete fail for this months resolution!
Instead of 15 minutes of stretching, I'm going to break to goal down into two mini goals. I'll aim to complete 10 minutes of stretching and 5 minutes of foam rolling daily. I've bought a new foam roller off Amazon so hopefully this will encourage me to use it this month...
April's challenge will be my stretching challenge alongside a new goal. I think it is going to be a really good one for me to try and complete. The idea stemmed from watching a news report on BBC News one day about phones. It featured a primary school that have banned parents from using their phones at the school gates when collecting their children. "Greet your child with a smile not a mobile phone" reads the sign outside the gate. It made me think what a fantastic idea. I think technology interferes with too much of our headspace, concentration and relationships nowadays. We're all guilty of spending too much time wired up to technology, phones, iPads, TVs etc and I want to cut down.
April's goal is small and simple.
No social media after 8.30pm
That means no scrolling mindlessly through twitter, no replying to emails and no beloved Daily Mail app...
I hope by completing this, it will help in a few different ways:
1) Improve my sleep. It may seem harmless to reply to a few emails before bed or see something exciting on twitter, however I know both activities keep my brain active and engaged. 8.30pm is the time to switch off the phone and allow my brain to unwind a bit more...
2) My focus. I've lost count the amount of times Ive been watching a TV programme and not fully understood what is going on as I'm distracted by my phone. Instead of multi tasking, it's time to focus on one thing at a time.
3) Communication with real people. I feel offline relationships can suffer due to an excessive use of phone and social media use. How many times do you try and speak to a friend who is on their phone and get get greeting with silence? Annoying isn't it.
