If I’ve learned one thing throughout my pregnancy and first year as a mother, it’s this: our bodies are remarkable, and we could do a great deal of good to trust them. I’m sure you’ve heard—when someone is asked what kind of diet or exercise regimen they follow—“oh, I just listen to my body.”

In fact, it might be your standard reply.

Whether it’s resting when I need it, eating an extra large salad, or turning to my apple cider vinegar/honey concoction when I feel a cold brewing in my system, I try to listen to my body daily.

Sometimes, though, it’s easier said than done.

Lately I feel like an imposter in the “healthy living world.” I talk about eating well, staying active, and even nurturing my mental wellbeing, but I feel like I’ve been failing in my own life.

Luckily, my body knows best, and it’s given me some signs that I need to reconsider my habits. Lately I’ve noticed:

My muscles are extremely tight.

I still make it a point to walk during my lunch break and throughout the day as often as possible. Maybe it’s extra nervous tension—or just months of being really sedentary when Baby M was a newborn—but I feel no matter how often I move, I’m still incredibly stiff. I’m going to do my best to “fix” this by stretching daily. Whether I get up 10 minutes earlier in the morning to stretch before my shower or forgo 20 minutes of TV in the evenings, I will make it happen.

Similarly, my muscles are weak.

Although I carry a lot of tension in my shoulders/upper back (nursing positions do not help this!), much of my muscle tightness is in my legs/glutes/lower back. In addition to stretching, I’m going to begin this 30-day squat workout in October. I desperately need to increase my mobility and strength or else I’m going to do more damage each time I go to cardio barre or Bikram. Baby M: if you’d gain weight a little faster, you could help make Mommy stronger! 😉

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My face is broken out, my hereditary under eye circles are darker, and my skin is dull.

Sugar, sugar, sugar. I’m eating far too much of it and too little of “the rainbow.” I’m probably not drinking enough water either on some days, but improving my diet is a no-brainer.

I’m exhausted more often than usual.

I think part of this is due to my “new parent sleep debt” catching up to me, but I guarantee it’s also a result of my poor diet. Several days last week, I didn’t eat a single vegetable until dinner. I ate carbs for breakfast, carbs for lunch, and carbs on top of carbs for dinner! Refined flour and sugar make me feel lethargic, so I should know better. I’m going to get back into the habit of healthy meal planning. Cupcakes and donuts will still happen, obviously, but they shouldn’t be the basis of my diet.

I’m more winded during my workouts.

I think if I had time to workout more often, my fitness would improve, but since time is limited, I’m positive that taking care of my flexibility, strength, and eating habits will improve my endurance. Spending more time outdoors in the cooler fresh air can’t hurt, either.

My anxiety seems to be getting the best of me—and I’m having trouble focusing.

This one is a bit tricky. First, I think improving my diet and fitness will result in better mental health, but my stress and anxiety is probably hormonal, too. While we’re not weaning yet, Baby M is eating more solid food and drinking less breast milk. And though my cycle has not returned, I feel like my body may be gearing up for it. Anyway, I’m trying to eliminate toxic feelings of negativity, comparison, guilt, etc. from my daily life. If I feel like I’m doing too much, I will take a break. That might mean taking a blog vacation—or just blogging even less frequently than I already do.

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I’ve preached about listening to and loving our bodies (although, I have to say—maybe we should just focus on having a body and living instead?), but lately I’ve been discouraged with my own. I know my body is the only one I’ve got and it’s done amazing things—but I’m human.

Today—I listen to my body. I will fuel it with nutritious foods, treats (when needed), enough activity to get my heart pumping, and thoughts of encouragement and love instead of criticism.

After all, this body hasn’t let me down yet.

• In what ways do you listen to your body?
• Tell me something AMAZING your body can do (have you run a marathon, climbed a mountain, given birth?…).