2023: The holistic health journey begins

Okay, I’m a little late to the party, but that’s kind of how the year has started off.

In saying that, not long after I started writing this blog, New Zealand, particularly the East Coast of the North Island, was hit hard by Cyclone Gabrielle. 

My family and I were lucky to be left unscathed, but I know for many living in those areas hardest hit, the damage has been beyond comprehension. My thoughts are with you all as you clear away the debris and try to find some sense of normality.

The scale of the cyclone further helped me to get my own challenges into perspective, and reinforced my focus for 2023. So here goes... 

Welcome to my brand new journey, one that will involve many new things for me as I get started on a new adventure and a new year focused on learning, on creativity, on community,  and most importantly, on fun.

Like many people, the covid-19 pandemic changed my view of the world, inspiring me to reassess where I’m headed, and what I get up to on this amazing journey that is life. If there’s anything I’ve learnt, it’s that life is far too short to sit around waiting for the grass to grow.

Pre-pandemic, I had a love of all things travel, of fashion, of cooking and eating fab food, and of living the best life I could. For me, 2023 is going to be all about taking those things to the next level. I hope you’ll enjoy me taking you along for the ride with this blog (which also happens to be a brand new thing for me). Maybe you’ll even join in on some of my new challenges.

Disclaimer: the things I talk about in this blog don’t come particularly easy for me. I’m just your everyday lady feeling my way along as I go. Because if you don’t try, you don’t know, right?!

Here goes, my focus for 2023 in a nutshell:

First Up: Fun and Creativity

Working for the man in a corporate world can leave the most relaxed person pining for some creativity, and at the end of 2022 I found myself firmly in that camp. 

This year, I’ve made it a focus of mine to get creative in any way that I can, be it through creative fashion, cooking, or just letting my hair down and heading along to enjoy some of the many artists returning to NZ shores since our borders reopened.

So far, I’ve been to Marlborough to enjoy their famous Wine and Food Festival, raved amongst the (much younger) ravers at Fat Boy Slim, listened to some wholesome food wisdom from Yotam Ottolenghi at his Flavour of Life Tour, and have locked in cooking classes with Peta Mathias. Don’t tell me this 50-something-year-old lady doesn’t know how to have fun…

At home, I’ve been cooking from scratch, journaling, trying to meditate; more or less just trying to take note of what lights me up and doing more of it.

Community

The pandemic changed the way we could interact with our loved ones, and in some ways, the changes weren’t limited to the lockdowns. People emerged with a new sense of what was important for them to enjoy in this life, and while my social catch ups are still super important to me, so is branching out and enjoying new things, with friends and strangers alike.

Some of the new things I have lined up for 2023, I’m hoping, will enable me to embrace my fun and creative focus, while also building new communities. I’m already seeing this through the Italian language course I’ve signed up for, as well as my new journey to become a qualified holistic health coach. More on those later…

Health and Becoming the Best Version of ME

Interestingly, my 2023 focus has a ‘full-circle’ sort of feel. Having a strong sense of wellbeing feeds my fun and creative journey, in the same way that it feeds into my sense of community.

My holistic health coaching course is set to be an amazing way for me to learn about who I am, but also to hopefully one day be able to share my knowledge with others to help them do the same. I’ll be sharing more about my course and this journey in blogs to come.

Alongside the course, I’ve begun an eight-week health and fitness challenge and have committed to doing strength training three times a week. I’m by no means an ultra fit gym bunny, but I know that strengthening my body is not only key to a healthy physical life for years to come; for me, it’s also key to a healthy mental state.

Heading along to the Marlborough Wine and Food Festival actually came off the back of a tramp along the Queen Charlotte Track with a group of new and old friends. There goes that health - community - fun circle again.

So, there it is, a (very) brief rundown on my plans to live a carpé diem lifestyle this year. I’m very much looking forward to sharing the journey with you.