THE ROOT 9: 14.1

This quote beautifully asserts our happiness isn't random; it's a direct reflection of our thought quality. It's a call to conscious curation. Just as a ship's captain stands at the helm, attempting to steer clear of hazards though natural conditions may make certain portions of the journey harder than others, we too can influence the journey of our life through our thoughts. I know, I love metaphors, I can’t help myself.

Planning my bachelorette alongside my best friends came with a lot of overwhelm in the beginning. I actually tend to think that this was a result of me saying that “that’s just how I am” and not actually ever trying to address how / if I should change some of the ways I operate to to be less overwhelmed, in general. The quality of my thoughts was burdened by immense pressure for it to be "perfect." I worried that if it wasn't what I envisioned, I wouldn't be happy, and others might not have the best experience. This made me lose sight of the true importance: simply being together. Nagging thoughts like, "What if it doesn’t come to life the way it should?" stemmed from fear and perfectionism, actually jeopardizing the weekend's joy. After a much-needed nudge, I tried my best to actively change the energy I was feeding into it. I shifted how I was calling in my best friends, trying to make it a collaborative process, instead of task delegation and execution. I shifted my internal monologue from "I have to do this perfectly" to "How can we all create something exciting together?" This transformation in my thoughts has genuine happiness and excitement towards to weekend. It wasn't about achieving perfection, but the priceless time spent with the girls I love most.

This week, let's become more aware of our thought quality. When a negative or unhelpful thought arises, pause. Ask yourself: Is this thought helping me steer towards happiness, or pushing me off course? If not, consciously reframe, dismiss, or replace it with a constructive alternative. Take hold of the helm of your mind; steer it with purpose, and watch your journey become more joyful.

Intentional Hack Squats: The Power of Foot Positioning

Honestly, I'm a huge fan of hack squat machines. When I first started my strength training journey, I spent about three years pretty much glued to the hack squat. Barbell squats used to terrify me—the balance, coordination, and spinal load had me constantly anxious about hurting myself with improper form or not knowing how to safely fail on a rep.

That's why I think hack squats are perfect for newer lifters who might feel a bit overwhelmed taking over a squat rack in a busy gym (even though I totally believe in you and you can definitely barbell squat! More on that another day).

But even as you get more advanced, hack squats stay super valuable. They're great for convenience if all squat racks are taken and I just want to get my workout in, mimicking a squat movement. But, they're especially great for really isolating specific muscles. While barbell squats primarily target your quads, glutes, and hamstrings, they're truly a full-body movement, engaging your back, abs, and upper body stabilizers like traps, lats, delts, and rhomboids just to support the barbell.

Let's dive into how you can make some really simple adjustments to your hack squat, using your feet positioning to be more intentional with the muscles you target throughout the movement:

Here is a great visual 🙂

Objectively, this is one of my favorite songs of all time. I spent a huge chunk of this past weekend at home, getting ready for a trip, cleaning, and meal prepping – basically, an indoor marathon. When I'm cooped up like that, I love to dive deep into one artist's entire discography. This weekend, it was Radiohead, easily in my top 5 artists of all time. (It's always tough to rank, but my definite top tier includes Radiohead, Pink Floyd, The Weeknd – mainly 2013 and earlier, Kings of Leon, and Deftones.)

I've known this song forever, but I got curious more curious about its history after I replayed it ~12 times (it’s a fun one to clean to). That led me straight to the music video, which is worth a shout-out. It feels like a quirky, dated GoPro video, just the band jamming out. I absolutely love it—it's funky, authentic, and just plain fun to watch. Since Radiohead is (supposedly) never touring again after their final run in 2018, this is probably the closest I'll ever get to seeing them jam out together live. Woe is me.