Welcome to the Vibrant Habits blog where I aspire to build a community of women over 50 who want to build habits that will lead to more healthy, joyous and vibrant lives! By providing simple habits in each weekly blog post, I hope to give you the tools you need to do just that. And so, we begin…

As women over 50, we tend to look in the mirror and see wrinkles, stretchmarks, age spots, that new gray silver hair or something sagging and wobbling. Go ahead and look. Sit with the fact that you have them. Accept them. They represent the stories of our amazing lives. Had we not laughed a million times, we may not have those beautiful laugh lines around our mouths or wrinkles around our eyes. Had we not survived 50+ trips around the sun, we may not have those gravitational sags. We also tend to beat ourselves up about our internal worlds. Our could’ve, would’ve and should’ve thoughts. Here’s the thing, we need to learn to accept ourselves wholeheartedly, exactly the way we are right now, without judgment or comparison.

So here is our first vibrant habit… the foundational habit that all other habits will be built upon. The one that will follow you and nudge you along your journey toward vibrance. Start by grabbing a sticky note (or small piece of paper) and a writing tool (glitter pens get extra points). Now do your best sexy walk over to a mirror. This step is crucial to the success of this habit so do not skip over it. Now, as you look into the mirror, gaze lovingly into your eyes and take a few seconds to think of one amazingly positive thing you can say about yourself. It can be anything at all! Say this thought out loud (don’t look away from those beautiful eyes yet). I… am an organizational queen, I… love with my whole heart, I… have a smile that lights up the night sky, I… am worthy, I…

Write this on your paper and stick it somewhere that you will see it several times throughout the day… on that mirror you’re looking into, the computer screen, your partner’s forehead. Every time you see it, read it out loud and smile. By doing this consistently and with intent you will build the habit of self-love and acceptance. Change up what you tell yourself often, and when you’re feeling the challenges of being over 50 creeping up on you, remember to allow yourself kindness and grace and some words of love.

Share one positive thing about yourself in the comment section, and we will smile vibrantly along with you!