At last… it is February 28th. We’ve made it to the end of February and to the end of our wellness challenge! I am happy to report I reached my target. Having done this kettlebell challenge for a number of years now, I look at it differently than I did the first time. My perspective has changed.

What I mean is that, the first go around, it was all about the finish line. It was a crazy goal – could I do it? And as we went through the challenge and finally finished it that year, it was amazing.

What is different about this year is that I find myself less concerned with the final result. That struck me as rather odd, but as I think about it, I realize that my perspective has totally changed since that first year’s kettlebell challenge. Or, perhaps, I have gained perspective.

Now, I see February not as a crazy month of “wellness activity”, but as just another part of the year. It has 11 other 30-ish-day-long compatriots in which we can live actively. About a week in to this year’s challenge, I found myself thinking about what to do after February. Well, that and I found myself thinking about how I could make some technical improvements to my kettlebell workouts.

My perspective has switched from focusing on a single February goal to a broader consideration that activity just should be part of my life. All the time, not just during a special month. I enjoy, from time to time, particular challenges (like the kettlebell swings), but I think I have shifted to just always being aware of trying to do something active. If the lake isn’t frozen, then it’s kayaking adventures, or swimming, or zipping around on my old Supercycle bike, or walking out in the bush. And, aside from a few spells when our pool has been quarantine-closed, we make a point of going to the pool a couple of times a week.

These days, I’m taking a wider-angle perspective to see that wellness really has more to do with adopting a “well” lifestyle than doing some special wellness activities now and again. Having said that, those activities are a great place to START. But, really, it is about being more wellness-oriented this year than you were last year. It is about making progress and cultivating an attitude of daily wellness.

As we wrap up February 2021, and this year’s wellness challenge, I encourage you to Be Well, to adopt an attitude of wellness, and a perspective that sees you moving forward on a journey to ever-increasing wellness. 

Well done! And done well.