This Week's Intentions: RECOVERY - POST GLOW SPECIAL EDITION

Welcome a special weekly digest of the Mindful Queer’s Wellness Club!

This week we are focusing on recovery post festival weekend - POST GLOW / SEROTONIN RECOVERY TIPS

Hey Mindful Queers!
Happy Monday, May 1, 2023

Welcome to another week at the Wellness Club & Happy AAPI Heritage Month!

If you are new here, welcome aboard, we are glad to have ya!

Here at the Wellness Club, we realize that we are all going through our own journey, the ups, the downs, the good and the ugly.

So instead of facing life's scary & uncharted areas alone, do it together with the Wellness Club.

Each week Coach John drops golden nuggets of Fitness, Nutrition, Mindset & Wellbeing tips for you to grow & challenge yourself.

This week I am giving you a complete guide to getting back to your normal self after a big festival weekend like this past one at Project Glow in Washington DC.

Although this was my first time attending a large festival, this ain't my first rodeo of getting back to my normal self.

peep me in this video ☺️

So saddle up my tired and sad rave babies, let's get you back to feeling 100%

Some Quick Notes:

First and foremost, everyone is going to recover and return back to their normal selves differently. The best way to get back to baseline is knowing your body & physiology. If you enjoyed some serotonin boosters this weekend or any other goodies, know that recovery is going to take a bit longer, so don't be so hard on yourself this week.

Give your body & self permission to ~rest~

Second, do this on your terms. In today's world the wellness industry has a vast amount of ways & services to go about recovery. From bare bones to ultra luxury. There really isn't a right or wrong way to recover. The only wrong way is not doing anything.

🤑🤑🤑 If you got money honey, go all out.

Go get a massage, get a facial while you are at it.

Heck, be like Gwyneth Paltrow and get an IV drip 😂

Take care of yourself!

Eat well, get major sleep, and move with intention.

🤑🤑If you got some money, be a baller on a budget.

Go to a spa!

Spa world is a great option to get away this week or weekend and really find some peace & recovery + all the natural ways to recover as well.

🤑If you budget is tight, no problem!

Focus on the things you can do / control now.

Sleep, food, and moving your body.
I find the quickest and best remedies are in the basics = sleep, food, movement, mindfulness.

Breathing, walking outside, pre-bedtime rituals are all little to no cost options towards improving your health.

When you on focus the basics, you are setting yourself up to become the best version of yourself.

Finally, on a personal note, add some gratitude into your week.

This can be done by journaling your experiences, sending texts to friends with whom you had special moments, or even social media posts expressing gratitude and your experiences 😁

Whether you had the most mind-blowing experience of a weekend or feeling like you should have just stayed home all weekend, spend a moment dive into those moments.

Something that's helped me enjoy music, nightlife and dancing is not only journaling my gratitude of the things I loved and enjoyed, but also letting the people who helped create that joy know as well.

Old friends, and new friends. Events like these bring in 1000s of people into one space. Getting to share moments of pure bliss with other human beings is one of the greatest gifts music has dawned on me.

They are moments that are unlike no other, and can never be replicated.

I've found journaling these moments helps me better understand more about what makes me happy and who are the people in my life that also do that.

Now back to recovery.

From many years of partying and learning the hard way. This has become the order of operations after a long weekend - to get myself back to being my 100% best.

Again everyones experiences will be different, but at least this gives you a guideline to follow. Hopefully, as you continue to party on, you too will have a order of ops that becomes your guide in the years to come.

If you spent a couple late nights awake later than you normally do, your goal should be get back on track as fast as possible.

How do you do that?

You want to focus on amplifying your circadian cues & zeitgebers (time givers: refers to environmental variables that are capable of acting as circadian time cues - we'll get more into them later) that help organize waking and sleeping.

Zeitgebers can look like:

- having a consistent sleep-wake schedule

- purposeful light & dark exposure (light = morning - dark = evening)

- adjusting your eating, nutrition & hydration

- adjusting your physical activity

1. Starting with Consistent Sleep-Wake Schedule:

Well unfortunately we gotta get back to reality. That means back to work, and not back to werk 💅🏽

I like to start with bedtime. If you are in a major sleep debt, how can you regain that back quickly without completely going off the rails with naps?

Make sure you are getting back on that pre-bedtime routine - whatever it is, journaling, light movement like stretching (if your legs cramped up 4x on Saturday like me, you'll def should do this one regardless)

The Problem with Naps - if we sleep too long (trust me you will) and too late, you'll be up at 3AM trying to cast spells trying to fall back asleep

So if you are planning on taking a nap, be very careful with how long you nap.

-Short naps (10-30 minutes): can boost mental & physical performance - aka rebooting a person when they feel lethargic

-Nappuccino (15-20 minutes): Having a coffee or espresso, then lying down for about 15-minutes (this was my favorite in college)

-Longer naps (60-90 minutes): If you really are hurting today, maybe take a longer nap. But make sure you have alarms set and these naps are no where near bedtime. Not only could you sleep through your alarms and wake up in a haze, but you can also wake up and not feel tired when it is your real bedtime. - Remember this about getting back to your normal self ASAP

2. Purposeful light & dark exposure:

We can use planning light exposure at the right times to improve sleep. By getting light exposure in the morning after we've hit our lowest body temperature (usually after 4AM) shifts our biological clock earlier.

So if you are struggling to fall asleep - try getting light exposure as early as possible in the morning (without forcing yourself to get up)

For dark exposure, this is more at night time. Try to stay away from blue-light (phones, screens, TVs, bright lights) at least an hour before bedtime.

Staying glued to your devices late at night will definitely make that harder for you to get back to your normal bedtime.

Remember a little sacrifice the first couple days will make the rest of the week smooth sailing.

3. Adjusting Eating & Nutrition:

What we Eat, When we Eat, and How we Eat can all play a role in our sleep

Before we get into the foods, MAKE SURE YOU ARE HYDRATING SUFFICIENTLY.

YALL PROBABLY DEHYDRATED - so please replenish with not just water, but electrolytes!

Alcohol and drugs can dehydrate you, so it's important to hydrate plenty to help flush out toxins and keep your body hydrated.

Even adding some sea salt - preferably ones with minerals added - will help with proper hydration

Okay back to foods...

Many hormones and neurotransmitters like melatonin, GABA, and serotonin affect the circadian rhythm - so if you are in desperate need of serotonin - keep reading.

(ALL THINGS WE NEED AFTER ROLLING - If you did)

Foods that influence the production of these things can be used to influence sleep

Carbs - faster digesting & higher glycemic index &

Protein rich meals around bedtime promote better sleep

-Consume moderately sized meals no later than 3-4 hours before bedtime

-Eat meals higher in carbs and protein rather than high fat meals - which seems to make sleep quality worse - higher carbs improve sleep latency times (how long it takes to fall asleep) - while high protein appears to improve sleep quality

Plus you if you danced for two days - your body NEEDS THESE CARBS AND PROTEINS (so please eat and refuel yourself)*

A little sciency nerdy time

In order for the synthesis of sleep friendly NTs like serotonin & melatonin - we need TRYPTOPHAN

Tryptophan is carried in the blood to the brain.

Once it passes the blood brain barrier, along with BCAAs thanks to Carrier proteins.

These large amino acids compete with tryptophan to get into the brain, which means the ratio of tryptophan to other amino acids matters MORE THAN the absolute amount of tryptophan.

Once in the brain 🧠, tryptophan is then converted into serotonin AKA 5-HT, then melatonin

This means:

A low-tryptophan diet might impair sleep - Typically in low-protein diets. Because tryptophan plays in helping to make serotonin, low tryptophan diets have been linked to other mood disorders like anxiety and depression

Conversely, getting plenty of tryptophan might promote sleep - Getting some yummy carbs (like potatoes) you have a delicious and refueling sleepy time meal 😎

Foods high in tryptophan:

Replenish on your vitamins!

When you sweat and dance for countless hours, you are depleting yourself of many of your vital energy stores. So the quicker you revamp them, the sooner you'll be to being your best.

Magnesium - can help with sleep, muscle cramps, and mood

L-theanine - sleep & mental function

Fish Oil - (joint health

Multi-vitamin - overall general health - good to get if you don't normally take any vitamins.

4. Adjust Physical Activity:

Movement is a major zeitgeber that contributes to regulating our circadian rhythm.

Now you might have danced a marathon - and burned a whopping amount of calories this weekend, so just like an athlete who competed in a major event, you need to make some adjustments to your workout plan this week.

BE KIND TO YOURSELF

Forcing yourself to get back on that 5x / week workout plan right after a dancing weekend might not be the best way to recover.

But ultimately you know you best.

Something I've learned over the years is learning how to balance recovery & getting back on track.

In one instance, if you go right back into it without fully recovering, you can increase the risk of getting injured or sick.

On the other side of things, taking too much time off can disrupt any progress you've made and can disrupt your sleep / energy balance especially if you are someone who needs movement to help with relaxation.

Here's my guide to getting back to 100% in just under a week

Monday:

Hang in there gurl, try not to consume so much caffeine today as it can disrupt your already broken sleep schedule. Make sure you are getting nutrient dense meals (proteins, carbs, veggies and healthy fats), maybe take a nap today, get some sun, and a long stretch session or utilize the sauna for a recovery day.

Bedtime: What's your pre-bedtime ritual? Stretching? Face Mask? Journaling? Breathing? Do something or do it all. But get it in and get ready for bed.

If you are feeling major zonked today - maybe plan for an extra 30-60 minutes of sleep. So the earlier you start your bedtime routine, the quicker and faster you'll be on the road to being you :)

Tuesday:

Get some light in the morning. You probably are still not feeling your best, so make sure you take care of yourself today. Maybe a short nap at some point of the day?

Have you hydrated sufficiently?

Eaten 3-4 nutrient dense meals?

Get some light movement or stretching in?

Just do something.

Adulting is hard, but not doing anything is only going to make this week seem even longer.

Make sure you are still doing your pre-bedtime rituals.

Go to bed.

Wednesday:

It is Wednesday.

ONLY WEDNESDAY.

By now, you contemplated calling out the third time this week.

Hopefully last night's sleep was somewhat a decent one.

You probably still feel like you got hit by a train, but you're a trooper, you can do this.

Get your morning light, hydrate, eat, go for a walk outside, maybe take a nap, hydrate, eat, get ready for bed, go to bed. (and work I guess)

Thursday:

If you've made it to Thursday, please give yourself a pat on the back.

You deserve it

Just two more days and you are on your way to the weekend.

Today would be a good day to get back on your movement routine - whether its cardio, strength training or yoga. Get something in to start getting your body back to baseline.

It doesn't have to be super intense, but getting your HR up after a couple of low days will help with any post - festival blues

By now if you've followed the M-W plan, you should feel like your sleep is catching back up and your nutrition should be supporting your recovery.

If you still feel like dog 💩, take a moment to pause and identify what your body really needs.

Do you need more rest?

Do you need more nutrients?

Do you need more sunlight?

Do you need a massage?

Once you've figured that out, prioritize it.

Identify where you are at - Am I at 60% of my normal self? 40? 70? Give yourself some markers to know where you are at.

Friday:

Its Friday baby.

You really did it.

If there was a medal, I'd hand it out to you.

Because you are a star!

Making through the week after a festival weekend is no easy task.

Not only did you survive. You are getting back to your normal self, faster and better than ever.

Gone are the nights crying in bed because you have no serotonin, the zoom meetings where you've disassociated and napped, and brain feeling like mush.

Enjoy your weekend - just don't go too crazy again - okay?

Heck no one is going to listen to me haha.

Do whatever you want.

Just take care of yourself 💕

I hope you truly and sincerely feel much better by now and feel like a human being once again 💕

That's all for this week's intentions at the Wellness Club!

If you are looking for a coach to help you become your best, fill out this coaching application, by clicking here 

Send a DM on socials or email for any questions, tips or feedback!

With Love,

💕

The Mindful Queer

Tag me in your story @mindfulqueer on instagram with ways you are recovering for the week that promote resilience! Use #WELLNESSCLUB in your post!