Finding balance with Amanda Bisk

At the Utopia Women’s Wellness event in Sydney recently, I had the pleasure of meeting the gorgeous Amanda Bisk, a former gymnast and champion pole-vaulter. Amanda has an awesome Instagram page, which I have been following (with envy) for a number of years. Make sure you check it out and you will understand why!

However what struck me most when listening to Amanda speak was not simply how good she looked doing yoga poses and hand stands, but what she had to say about her personal journey and finding balance in the face of adversity.

As you know, here at Gorgeous Presence I am striving to help you achieve your own version of “balance”, which is why I wanted to share what I learned from Amanda’s talk about her recovery from chronic fatigue syndrome below.

1: Listen to your body

When illness or niggles persist, we need to stop and listen to the message our body is trying to tell us before our long-term health suffers.

Amanda’s tip is that tuning in to the feeling of your body is most easily done through meditation and yoga. If you haven’t tried it, experiment and find a form that you love!

In this crazy world where busyness is a badge of honour, the message is clear. We simply need to… Slow… Down…

2: Create a positive environment

We have ultimate control over everyone and everything in our lives. This includes the people who we interact with at work, in our social life and in our personal relationships.

The people you allow into your environment have a direct impact on your energy, both in a positive and negative way. So do yourself a favour – eliminate toxic people and situations before they impact on your health. When you change as a person, sometimes you need to let go of certain relationships to make space for new ones that serve you better.

3: Remove unnecessary stress

Reducing stress is something that many of us think is beyond our control. However we do have control over the expectations we place on ourselves, and this can be a major cause of stress.

When was the last time you gave yourself credit for something you achieved? Most likely the answer is that you can’t remember right?!

We all need to acknowledge our achievements a little more, and stop berating ourselves when we don’t reach our goals as quickly as we had originally planned. Stop being you own worst enemy and become your biggest cheerleader.

4: Be open to change and uncertainty

As women we like to plan things and know where we are heading! But we tend to forget that life happens.

Sometimes we have to roll with the punches and trust in the process.

Whatever direction you are planning to go, remember that things will always work out the way they should be. There are many paths to the take along the way, not just the one you first had in mind.

5: Break down your goals

Overwhelm is a word I hear often in a woman’s vocabulary and it is easy to see why – we have so many things on our to-do lists and the list never seems to get smaller!

Breaking down your long term goals into yearly, monthly, weekly and then daily steps can be so helpful in reducing overwhelm and procrastination.

Ask yourself, ‘what is the one thing I would like to achieve today?’ Remember the hardest thing to do is simply start!

 

Amanda also left these last words of wisdom with us to reflect on, which I absolutely loved:

Learn :: About yourself and your environment. Knowledge is power and you know yourself better than anyone.

Lead :: Nobody can tell you what to do or what’s right for you. Be the leader in creating a positive environment around you. Share what you have learned to help others too!

Love :: Find that love for yourself. Support your health and wellness by nourishing your body and mind. And most importantly, lead by example to create loving relationships around you!

 

I certainly believe that Amanda’s tips are relevant to anyone, regardless of whether or not you have chronic fatigue syndrome or are currently facing any form of adversity that may be holding you back in your health and life.

I loved meeting Amanda and doing a stretching class with her so much that I have downloaded her stretching guide – “Secrets To Stress Less, Re-Energise And Feel Refreshingly Flexible”, which you can check it out here.

I am looking forward to sharing what I have learned along the way!

Has an illness forced you to slow down and listen to your body? I would love to hear from you in the comments below.