Meagan Walker, Resilience In Motion

If something that is supposed to be helpful gets in the way, it’s not helpful!

Recipe below, and also on my blog! (Link in bio.)

Fresh garden produce is one of my favourite things, and this recipe was created with some August surplus. Amounts are very flexible to what you’ve got!

🧅 🍅 🥬 🧄

1 onion, diced

4-5 pattypan squash (2-4 inches wide) or 2 smallish yellow zucchini, sliced thin

1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half

2-3 garlic scapes (12 inches), or 1 med clove of garlic, diced

1 lemon, juiced (2-3 Tbsp)

1 Tbsp capers (I like lots, but you can also make without)

1.5 Tbsp fresh Oregano leaves, chopped

2 handfuls of spinach, or chard with spines removed, chopped

Olive oil for sauteing

Salt to taste (capers are salty, you won’t need much)

Garnish with Parmesan or Asiago if that’s your jam (I like “Parmageddon” as a dairy-free option)

Two servings of cooked pasta (whatever you’ve got - I like spaghetti or fusilli (spirals)

🧑‍🍳

Prep all your ingredients, things go in close together.

Make your pasta, set aside.

Heat oil in a large pan on medium-high

Sauté onions for 2 minutes

Add garlic and sauté for another minute

Add squash, capers, and oregano (and chard here if using, wait to add spinach); sauté for 3-4 minutes, until the squash starts to get soft.

Add tomatoes and lemon juice (and spinach if using); sauté until all veg is hot.

Serve the vegetables over the pasta. If you like, drizzle with extra olive oil, add some extra salt, or add your cheese.

Enjoy! 😊

📝

If your pattypans are big enough that the seeds are no longer tender (4+ inches), you can cut them in half and scoop out the seeds. If the skin has gotten tough, you can peel them. Pattypans can be any colour.

If using a zucchini, I slice them into coins. Green is fine, but I prefer yellow.

Garlic scapes are the snipped-off top stems of the garlic plant, as it’s starting to make a flower. You can find them in the spring in some grocery stores, but almost all summer at farmer’s markets because they last forever.

I add a lot of capers, sometimes more than 1 Tbsp - many people use less but I loooove them.

If using dried herbs, you’ll need closer to a teaspoon.

If you’ve got a fancy flavoured oil, that can also be nice!

One spot has just opened up on the July retreat with myself and Sarah from Root Physiotherapy! If any last-minute planners are available, we go to Killarney from Thursday 18 to Sunday 21.

More details and registration here: https://resilienceinmotion.ca/mind-body-nature-2024

Any questions can be sent my way:
[email protected]
Call/text/WhatsApp 226-789-9087

Hope you can make it!

I did a thing! 😁

Up until a few years ago, I thought I wasn’t smart enough for university. I’d considered it periodically, but always told myself I couldn’t hack it.

However, I realized I’d been carrying around other people’s limiting beliefs, and that I could choose differently. This took a while to sink in, but graduation has proved my new beliefs right!

I’m so grateful for all the support I’ve had on this journey, and am excited to start lining up next steps.

It’s never too late to take new steps for yourself!

There’s a really good chance of seeing the northern lights tonight if you’re in Canada! It’s so worth it to have a peek around midnight!

Reminiscing about last summer’s retreats to Killarney, when I managed to sneak out for a morning paddle while the guests slept in.

There are still 4 spots available for July if you’d like to come experience this for yourself! 🌲🛶🌅

Visit my website resilienceinmotion.ca/retreats (or go to the link in my bio on insta) for all the details.

Where is your favourite place to get a healing dose of nature?

📸 .photography

A low barrier to entry is how we get started, and often it keeps us going!

Especially if you often overwhelm yourself with plans that are hard to make happen.

My current small thing is about meditation - for several months last year I was doing 20 mins 2x daily, but at one point I got overwhelmed and let it slide. I didn’t let myself go to 5 mins, and I had it in my head that I needed to start with that again, but I just couldn’t find where to put it.

My new goal is 5-10 minutes 1x daily, and if that’s what I stick with then that’s fine! 😌

How can you reduce the barriers for your goal?

I used to use perfection as an excuse for so many things, thinking that perfection was something to be proud of.

Too many years of no results had left me with nothing to be proud of though!

There are so many things that I’ve been more consistent with, such as movement and reading, but my favourite right now is knitting!

I have a 5-year plan to make a blanket out of squares, and am teaching myself how to knit in the process. Are there dropped stitches and mistakes among the rows? You bet! It will not be perfect, but it’s still going to be warm! 🧶☺️

How can you embrace imperfection?

It’s finally “winter” here in Southern Ontario (meaning it’s below freezing, but it’s not really that wintry still.) ❄️🤷🏻‍♀️

Many folks will use this as an excuse to stop going outside, and unless ice is a safety concern I urge you not to join them!

There are many benefits to being physically active outdoors, and I feel one of the most important ones this time of year is that it boosts your mood. ☀️☺️🌨️

You may think that you’ll just be grumpy the whole time, and maybe being cold isn’t actually super fun, but you will almost certainly feel more energized when you get back! I have yet to talk to anyone who regrets going outside for a walk. (I never have.)

You also don’t have to go for miles - it is 100% worth it to get bundled up to go around the block. 🧤🧣🧦

You will probably surprise yourself with how not-terrible a time you have! Try it and tell me I’m wrong.😉

See you out there!
Meagan

Part of being successful with your workouts is figuring out how to reduce barriers to starting the workout. If you know what you’re going to do for the very first thing, and you actually feel good about doing that thing, then that’s reducing the barrier.

There are some folks out there who feel like a workout is not successful unless:
a) they hate-love every moment of it
b) it leaves them feeling broken

That kind of mentality is a part of the “no pain, no gain” workout camp, which has thankfully gone largely out of style. Workouts don’t have to feel like pulling teeth!

While I am now at the point in my fitness career where I look forward to most of the exercises (except a few tedious but very useful rehab things), it was not always that way and there are still days where I feel UGH about it.

So most of my workouts start with a short warmup that I do every time, and then a set of rows (cable or TRX). Rows make me feel strong, and they help get me out of “desk gremlin” mode. 🧌

I would love to know, what do you feel good about? It can be anything at all! This is very much permission to “eat your exercise dessert first!” 🍰

-Meagan

Anyone else?

I once heard that buying books and reading books are two separate hobbies. 😆

The pile of things I have to read is now starting to bend space-time around it, but there's this new book that just came out...

To all my 2SLGBTQIA+ friends and fam - I see you and love you and support you.

Hate-based, misinformed, fear mongers who protest your right to be included in society at all levels and ages will not be stronger than the allies.

If folks aren’t able to be at a counter-protest today, please still take time to write your MP, MPP, Mayor, school board, and anyone else you can think of to make sure your voice is heard. ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

The second slide is from - they said it best.

Time to study for exams and read books! 📚

Salad is overrated.😒🥗

At least, that’s what I think.

Despite being a personal trainer, and therefore contractually obligated to eat salad, I mostly don’t enjoy it as a food.

It’s a pain to get a bite with everything on it that will still fit in your mouth, the dressing never adheres well enough, and any small bits meant to enhance the sea of lettuce (like bacon and nuts) always get lost at the bottom.

I don’t have time for that nonsense.😮‍💨

However: I do love a good wrap!🤤🌯

The way I make them it’s basically a salad in a tortilla, but somehow the tediousness of a salad gets replaced by deliciousness and easy operation.

Here’s an example of what goes into mine:

1️⃣ Hummus or another dip

2️⃣ Spiralized carrots and beets - crunchy, colourful, and flavourful! They keep for 1-2 weeks sealed in the fridge.🥕

3️⃣ Cherry tomatoes - they give you tomato-y deliciousness without making your wrap drippy. This is great for taking them for lunch too!🍅

4️⃣ Nuts/seeds - I love pumpkin and sunflower seeds, or walnuts.

5️⃣ Pickled something - on this wrap is onion marmalade that I got from a local roadside stand.

6️⃣ Leaves of some kind - spinach, lettuce, arugula.

➡️ Common additions not shown here are pea sprouts, cucumber, and chicken or chorizo. I also don’t usually put cheese as I’m lactose intolerant and there just aren’t that many vegan options I want in a wrap.

🖐️ When wrapping it up, fold one side over then pull it tight before flipping up the bottom. This keeps it nice and firm!

🫙🌯 If taking it with you, beeswax wraps work great, as does parchment paper: fold up the bottom, roll to close, then twist the top.

And voilà - a nutritious and delicious lunch!

What would you put in your wrap?

These are my August plans!

My term wraps up today, and I just have to study for two exams on the 12th. I then have three and a half weeks until classes start (somewhat inconveniently the day we leave for the September retreat on the 6th.)

I usually go on a social media break around this time, and I’m still going to do that, but I will also be taking time away from podcasts and TV too. Filling the gaps will be some dedicated hours to read as much as possible!

Partly because I have a backlog of great books, some half started, and partly because I have limited time each year where I don’t have to read for classes.

I’m also getting closer to being finished my undergrad (April 2024!) and will theoretically (if all goes to plan) be starting my masters of Social Work in May 2024. I have big plans, and I want to be equipped as I go into the final leg of my formal education.

In addition to what’s here, I’ll also probably have a fiction audiobook on the go for downtime. (I’m thinking Ann Patchett or Barbara Kingsolver.)

If you’re in the midst of a summer of reading, let me know what your recommendations are.🤔

Happy reading!📚

Anyone who has been feeling great but was then disappointed because they thought the number would be different understands.

Many people claim they want to lose weight to feel better, but then reject feeling better in favour of the numbers.

I get the urge, but I also see how it prevents people from ever being truly secure and happy in their bodies.

Has anyone else rid themselves of their scale? If you want to but haven’t, what prevents you?

The best workout is often the one that you’ll actually do, no matter how small!

On the path to body acceptance, I have found that it’s helpful to begin by being angry.

I look at all the companies who profit from telling me that I’m not good enough as-is, and basically say:

“HOW DARE YOU try to make me feel bad so you can make a buck!” 🖕🖕🖕

It’s gotten me out of more than one funk, and has helped keep the momentum as I work towards true positivity!

😡 🔜 🥰

We’ve just wrapped up four weeks of forest bathing walks in KW, led by physiotherapist and nature enthusiast Sarah Eby , and assisted by myself and arborist extraordinaire Sarah Taslimi .taslimi 🌳🌲

It was a great community building exercise, and we’re planning another round in October for the fall colours!

We combine plant and tree identification with a section of forest-strolling mindfulness; also known as forest bathing, or “Shinrin-yoku” in its original Japanese.

If you’d like to join us keep an eye out here, or even better add yourself to my email list! (I somewhat erratically send between 0 and 4 emails monthly.)

Insta: link in bio
FB: https://content.resilienceinmotion.ca/newsletter

(Side note: is going to be running a one day local retreat this autumn, check her bio out for info!)

Do you have a trail in the region you’d like to walk with us? Let me know!

So many times I put off doing something because I feel like if I wait a bit I’ll be able to make it better. I’m not shooting for perfect - I have mostly gotten past that - but I still think that I can create a version that’s somehow superior to the one I have in front of me. I think it’s because I’m afraid of being embarrassed by my early attempts?

However, we primarily get better at doing things by actually doing the thing! And in the future I’ll look back on anything cringy I’ve done and feel glad that I took action, instead of still regretting yet another day of delaying.

So this is a reminder for myself as much as it is for anyone else: done is most likely the best version at any given time.

Let me know - what’s something that you want to do but are waiting until you have some mythical missing piece?

It’s been a tough 6 weeks, and I’m grateful for the various forms of support that have helped me through.

The unexpected death of a cousin one week before the start of my summer term wiped me out, and my usual motivation all but disappeared.

I’m fortunate to have folks in my life that are caring and supportive though, from my husband and family to my friends to the professors who have granted extensions.

It’s a reminder that grief can take people down in ways that don’t always involve tears, and that healing timelines and methods are different for everyone.

I had a thousand important tasks to do, but taking a few hours on Saturday afternoon to have an artsy gathering with friends was definitely the right choice for me.🎨❤️

I also believe that compassion is a universal requirement, both for ourselves and others. We need to understand and accept that how we process loss might not be the way it’s often expected, and to grant ourselves time and space wherever possible.

And most importantly, reach out when you need help. To your friends, family, coworkers, me, anyone. You don’t have to do it alone.

❤️

If you're in the Kitchener-Waterloo area, I'll be co-guiding some local forest bathing walks in June/July and would love to see you there!

If you're not familiar with the term "forest bathing," or "Shinrin-Yoku" in it's original Japanese, it's the art/science of spending mindful time in nature for physical and mental health.

Organized by Sarah Eby (physiotherapist and my July retreat co-guide), I'll be assisting along with Sarah Taslimi (landscape architect and arborist.) We're going to walk, relax, appreciate, and nerd together.

They're free of charge, although we are accepting cash donations that will go to supporting park maintenance.

​

Come join us on Sundays from 6-7pm at the following locations:

June 11 – Huron Natural Area (Kitchener)

June 18 – Breithaupt Park (Waterloo)

June 25 – GeoTime Trail (Waterloo)

July 2 – Idlewood Park (Kitchener)

Sign up here:

https://rootphysio.ck.page/1f4bf26351

Come to just one, or to all of them! Specific meeting point details will be sent out in advance via email. (Make sure to check your spam.)

If you have any questions you can message me here, or:
email - [email protected]
call/text/WhatsApp - (226) 789-9087

Hope to see you there!

Forest Bathing Walks Each session will start with a Forest Bathing mindfulness practice and continue with a nature walk, highlighted by information about each of the unique parks/ trails that we are exploring. All three of us are very passionate about sharing our love of nature, trees and plants with others and are exci...

It’s that time of year! End of term uses up all my capacity, so to spare a little I will be going off the (socials) grid until the second week of April.

I highly recommend you give it a go if you’re feeling a little overwhelmed!

See you soon,
-Meagan

Just a friendly reminder that you don’t have to be hustling around yelling “no pain no gain!” to prove to yourself and everyone else that you’re working away at a goal.

❤️

-Meagan

I have a lot of pictures of myself that I haven’t posted, because I get super anxious about how I look and back out at the last second. 🙅🏻‍♀️

I think most of us know that feeling of gut-wrenching vulnerability and the shame that rides shotgun. 😣

Is it logical or reality based?

Nope.

But that doesn’t mean it isn’t powerful, and hard to overcome.😰

This photo is from 2019, when I attended a health and fitness event. I alternate between liking it a lot and almost deleting it for good.😬

I’m on a bit of a quest to put myself out there though, so here it is! 🫣

I know deep down that it’s a nice picture so I don’t need reassurance. What I would like you to do though is to find a picture of yourself that you’re on the fence about and share it - either publicly, to a friend, or to me! (Tag me if you post!)

The world needs more kind, authentic humans in the spotlight, and I feel like this is a small but important step.❤️

-Meagan

How many of us are truly comfortable with accepting and owning compliments when they’re given?

Not many of us! More often than not, it plays out something like this:

😍 “Oh hey, I like your shirt!”

😬 “Oh thanks, it was cheap and has a stain and it’s not that great and…”

It’s either become virtuous to deflect compliments out of modesty, or from outright denial that the compliment could be true.

I used to do it, but now I’ve trained myself to accept the compliment and add it to a little feel-good scrapbook in my head.

Here’s how you do it - when someone delivers a compliment, you say some variation of:

😊 “Thanks!”

Then graciously accept the compliment and put it in your proverbial pocket.

No “thanks but” allowed. It’s a small thing, but it’s a life changing thing!

I’d love to know: are you comfortable accepting compliments?

And if you need some practice, this is for you: “I appreciate you reading my posts and think you’re great!” 😁

- Meagan