Interrupting the Routine
I love dancing. I really love dancing. I’m also a decent dancer. House music is my thing - if the music is right, I can just get out there and go and only stop for water and bathroom breaks. I also love salsa music and dancing, but it stretches me a little more because of the whole partner/lead/follow thing.
Let me back up. I like to fantasize about being really great at salsa dancing. I’m on the dance floor dancing with a great leader. And I’m a great follower. I’m smooth and sexy and just plain brilliant out there. (I have similar fantasies about playing my dusty guitar, but that’s a different story.) So in order to realize my fantasy, I have tried out some salsa classes. Well, only two. Two separate classes with different teachers. One was maybe in 2016. It was horrifying and embarrassing and humiliating. I never went back. The next one was in maybe 2019. It wasn’t as horrifying or humiliating, but it was embarrassing and… I never went back. I just don’t take instruction well. It’s easier to be a brilliant sexy salsa dancer in my head.
Back to present. I have been having a funky month. Funky means that I have a lot going on, more to do than I want, things to do that I’m not so interested in doing, transitions that I’m not excited about… you know, that sort of thing. And it just feels… funky. Uncomfortable. Someone mentioned that a bunch of planets will be in retrograde until October 18th. Maybe I’ll stop being in retrograde on October 18th as well, but that’s too many days from now. I needed something to shift now, not when the planets decide to float in a different direction, so I called my awesome coach. I outwardly prided myself on the fact that I’m eating really well and getting great sleep because that’s gotta count for something in the department of self-care, right? (I’m a coach, and I should know better… but that’s why I have a coach.) She asked, “When is the last time you went on a bike ride?” I then proceeded to tell her that I just don’t have time to do anything leisurely right now. I have too many deadlines, too many responsibilities. The fun will have to wait until I can fit it in. She then told me about some research on rats. Apparently, rats will take a shortcut to get to a destination even though they get shocked every time. Essentially, the shortcut hurts them, but they still take it because they have tricked themselves into thinking they are cutting corners. But is it really cutting a corner if you’re being physically hurt each and every time?
I quickly understood that by cutting out the things that I love in life, I was hurting myself, shocking my system so to speak. I have to do fulfilling things in order to feel fulfilled.
She then proceeded to remind me about how we have to switch up our routines periodically. See, there’s this thing called neuroplasticity which means a lot of things, but one of those things is that our brains have the ability to create new neural pathways and connections. And switching up routines, habits, ways of thinking/doing encourages our brains to make those new connections. This, in turn, encourages creativity and helps to mitigate burnout.
So while we benefit from having routines, it’s really important that we interrupt those routines at times.
And that, my dear readers, is how I ended up in my third salsa class over a 5-year period, wearing my favorite high-top sneakers. I had the shakes for a couple of hours before I went. (No, I am not kidding even a little bit.) My palms were sweating out waterfalls on the way there. And I had to keep wiping my palms on my jeans in between dance partners. I was so out of my comfort zone that I thought about leaving, but I stayed, I ended up laughing a lot (at myself), and… I even had fun. There must be a new neural pathway in my brain because I felt inspired to write this story even though it’s past my bedtime and….. (drumroll) I’m even going back next week!
So here are my questions for you:
What joys are you leaving out in your life that you know would actually energize you?
Would you like to continue to get shocked by your shortcuts or would you like to feel a little better?
How will you fit that joy in? (Be creative. Maybe you’ll just fit a piece of that joy in for now. This isn’t about getting it perfectly in - this is about getting something in that energizes you.)
Remember: We are all better human beings when we feel good.
Here’s to lost planets, shitty moods, massive discomfort, shaken pride, laughing about it all, and creating new neural pathways.
