I turned 44 last week and will spare you any deep thoughts about life so far or anything like that. Honestly, my brain isn’t really capable of it right now, either. But, I did learn three crucial things last year. You know, simple health things, and I thought now was a good time to share.
Vamos…
1: Wearing SPF every single day does help. A ton. I used to only use the stuff built into my makeup or only wear it religiously in the summer (or on surf trips.) I mean, I live near Seattle, and the sun is REALLY good at playing hide and seek up here. However, last winter, I bought the DRMTLGY Universal Tinted Moisturizer SPF46 and, after a few weeks, noticed so many skin issues started to diminish. Then I learned that daily SPF protects your skin from stuff other than the sun (screens, pollutants, bad decisions in life, etc.), and it also soothes it. Or at least I found it soothing to my skin, which gets more sensitive each year. I’ve since upgraded to the holy grail of daily SPF’s Pavise dynamic age defense (I even subscribe to it, so I get a bottle sent every three months). This one switch in how I view SPF for my face has dramatically improved my overall skin happiness. I swear my skin is staying more hydrated, too. So wear it, even if you’re not in the sun.
2: Plantar Fasciitis sucks. Not being able to run or walk without your heel feeling like it is splitting in half is seriously draining, and frustrating. But guess what the major culprit was? Me being cheap and not replacing my running shoes, and putting in tons of miles in shoes that hardly pass as running shoes caught up with me. Also rarely stretching my calves. Thankfully, I got it under control, but it took a solid 5 months of pain.
If you’re dealing with heel/foot pain ( A common thing that starts in your 40’s, especially if you’ve been on your feet a lot in life) here’s what helped. *All tips are via foot specialists or Physical therapists. I am clearly not an expert, just love to do my research.
• New squishy shoes: I tossed my old ones and got the New Balance Fresh Foam x More V5– They were on a list of recommended shoes from a Seattle doctor who specializes in foot pain, and they are now my feet’s bestest friends. My husband says they look like moon boots you can run in. Which they are.
• Ice rolling and stretching. Freeze a water bottle and then roll out your foot a ton with that sucker. Then, this video by the guy who also happens to have the best ab workouts, was the catalyst in helping make my pain finally go away. A lot of heel pain is caused by calf tightness. Do the darn stretches he says to do. And cry tears of joy.
3: Sleep really is the fountain of youth, happiness, mental clarity, and I guess overall health. I might not be posting as much because I usually write and work late at night. Well, I’ve swapped that for sleep. I used to pat myself on the back for how late I stayed up working, and then wander around the house looking for my keys as I was holding them.
Anyways, do what you need to do to help yourself fall asleep and zonk out. I currently use this weighted blanket, a puffy silk sleep mask ( My husband stole my nod pod weighted one) , and have so many pillows I pretty much dive into a pillow fort when I go to sleep. My husband always makes sure the bedroom is cold and a fan is on, (that helps him.) And I go to bed around the same time every night (Midnight.) This way I can still get some work done, am super tired, and manage to get almost seven hours of sleep. If I want eight I go to bed at 11. And I always pop two Magnesium Glycinate tablets. Sweet dreams and no 3pm crash the next day. Yep. Learning to love catching those zzzz’s was a much needed lesson.
Yeah, I learned a lot of other stuff. I mean each day serves up some sort of lesson, but those three were some good juicy simple ones. Consider it my birthday wish to pass that info along. If it helps someone finally wear SPF, get rid of nagging foot pain or get a good night’s sleep, that’s a gold star for me this year.
Now, bring it on 44.
* Pic above was me hanging out on a dock on my birthday. I always make sure I do somethign fun outside and get a good workout in. And eat some sort of funfetti.