If you could do one thing (go for a walk, paint a picture, bake a cake, heal a cat) 100 times, with no promise of financial compensation - JUST JOY! - what would you choose?

I got a business email a while back that suggested that to re-discover your biz passion, you should ask yourself that very - slightly edited - question: if I could make 100 of whatever I wanted to make, on my own time, assuming money was no issue, what would I create?

And honestly, I drew a blank.

I think the idea of money being no issue short-circuited my brain.😵‍

I ALSO think, that at that exact moment in time I was very work/business burnt out - so nothing sounded good. I was donezo. The only thing I could think I wanted to 'make' 100 times was space on the couch for a nap, while avoiding responsibilities and grocery store runs, periodically waking up to eat and watch the Kardashians fight over who has dibs on Dolce and Gabbana.

This same kind of burnout happens with food and body for mannnnnny people. Maybe you?

Allow me to paint you a picture:

You’re so exhausted by the constant worrying and trying and figuring and avoiding and under-eating and overeating and counting and tap dancing to earn lunch, that one day you just give up. You can't conjure another ounce of adrenaline to keep you stress-searching for your perfect body and you resign yourself to a life of avoiding thinking about it while unconsciously eating stale saltines over the sink and staring off into the void.

If this is you, please allow me to offer my unsolicited advice: You're doing the right thing. KEEP AVOIDING IT.

That’s my expert, highly-trained, conflict-avoidant advice.

AVOID THINKING ABOUT or WORKING ON or PROBLEM SOLVING YOUR BODY. Saltines, optional.

Note: I’m not really conflict avoidant I just don’t believe in beating dead horses.

For the record, I don’t believe in beating ANY horses but specifically dead horses because dude, HE’s GONE. Have some respect.

For real tho, when I was burnt out and chewed up by entrepreneurship I took a break. I did the basics to keep things trucking along but I put my energy and focus elsewhere. Like, for example, on the Kardashians.

I took the time I needed to rest, heal, re-fuel, and get some much needed perspective.

And then, when I was good and ready, I found my way back. Back to caring, back to trying, back to curiosity and feeling the spark of passion and excitement that I thought I’d lost forever.

If you’re feeling body burnout, I suggest you stop working on it.

Give it up!

Let it go.

Spend every day just being IN your body, thinking about other things, smelling things, listening to things, tasting things, touching things (with consent!) - experiencing life from inside yourself, instead of outside, looking down on your your body with judge-Judy eyes.

Some things that'll help you along the way:

Comfy clothes
Food that you truly love and enjoy (my favs: pasta, really great chocolate, green smoothies, salad, hot tea)
The word NO (comes in very handy when you get invited back into problematic diet/weight conversations and environments)
Gentle movement to keep you connected to your body (also helpful: hot showers and baths, massage therapy, did I mention comfy clothes?)
Novelty: doing something new, going somewhere new, smelling or tasting something new - it'll re-ignite your senses!

Take a long overdue break from efforting and pushing your body and just be IN it. DO less, BE more.

Three cheers for quitters! 🥂

Jill