4 Easy Habits To Combat The Overwhelm Of Hustling

The word “hustle” literally makes me cringe. People tend to think hustle is a good thing, but when I think of hustling, I think my emergency/critical care veterinary residency. I was working five to six days a week with 14- to 16-hour shifts. 

It felt at times I was surviving on a handful of hours of sleep and spending the rest of my time studying when not passed out on the floor. Now, granted, I signed up for my residency voluntarily and was extremely blessed to be a part of it. Plus, my resident mates, mentors, and the crew where I worked were phenomenal. 

But, hustle makes me think of that period of my life because it was a wee bit out of balance, with lack of sleep and poor nutrition. Plus, if one stays out of balance for some time, the destination is most likely going to be burnout. No one needs imbalance and fatigue, especially when you are trying to hustle. 

It's like a toddler on a sugar rush.... going... going... going... going... then BAM crashing hard. Drooling on yourself while you snooze from complete exhaustion. Did you get the visual? 

To stay the course without the burnout and all the hustle, I’ll share with you some of my favorite tips: 

MOVEMENT

I aim for some sort of movement every single day.  Movement does not necessarily need to be a full-blown crossfit workout, it can simply mean a bike ride with the Gillies outside.  Or a taking the pups for a walk around the neighborhood.  It simply means moving the body in some way.  Now, I do schedule "workouts" virtually with a friend for accountability and do so at least 5 times a week.

SLEEP

Give your body time to rest (and digest) with at least seven hours of sleep.  I feel my absolute best when I get between 7-8 hours of sleep each night.  One of the biohacking tools which help me keep track of my sleep is the oura ring!  You don't necessarily need this but I'm all about tracking progress and numbers. 

RELATIONSHIPS

Unplug from the virtual space and be present with those you love.  Schedule calls with girlfriends, meet up for coffee or plan virtual workouts together.  

NATURE

Sometimes a dose of sunshine is what you need most. One of the things, we make sure to get on our schedule is at last an hour of outside play time with the Gillies, our twins.  With homeschooling and working from home, it could be so easy to skimp out on getting outside especially during the winter months.  However, there are numerous benefits for getting out in nature, soaking up the sunshine and having adventures.  It's a daily non-negotiable in our house.

Look at your planner and see—are you hustling a wee bit too much? Are you acting like a toddler on a sugar rush? When do you have time blocked to simply just be, and how are you going to give yourself a break today?

If you need a wee bit more assistance with mapping out your schedule so you are hustling less and living more, download your copy of my PERFORMANCE GUIDE! 

Grit + Gumption, 

Langley 

Biohacker Babe

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