Some thoughts and discussions from me.
Shifting Priorities
Good morning! How was your weekend? I hope it included something fun 
Mine was pretty low key. I worked a little and played a little, but there were two main highlights: Saturday morning I taught a spinning class that was part of a fundraiser called Hear Lyons Roar, which benefited Lyons, Colorado.
Lyons was very badly affected by the Colorado flood back in September, and is still rebuilding, slowly but surely. My class was PACKED, and the energy was so high, and afterward, everyone clapped and gave a round of applause for spinning for a good cause.
The other highlight – I got my ski boots and helmet!
I’m trying to get excited for skiing, I really am. And having new gear always makes that a little easier. I just really hope I like it. I think Shane and I are going to take lessons this week, so I’ll make sure to document how that goes down over on Instagram 
One thing I did try and keep in mind all weekend were my priorities. Lately, it seems they are all over the place, and I needed a good reality check.
Honestly, if you asked me what my highest priorities in life were, I’d rattle them off without a doubt in my mind. I would like to think that my life is all about my faith, my family, and helping others. Yep… I’ve got it all figured out.
My Priority List
1. God
2. Shane and my family
3. Friends
4. Health
5. Sleep
6. Work
7. Food
8. Blog
9. Clean house
Except I don’t.
My actions don’t express my priorities in the least bit. Actually, I took some time yesterday to think about how I spread my 24 hours a day between each priority, and here’s what I came up with:
Real Life Priority List
1. Sleep 30% (I try to get between 8-10 hours a night, so this is where I spend most of my time!)
2. Work (training, teaching classes, KIND, and all prep work) – 25%
3. Blog (writing, reading, social media) – 10%
4. Shane and my family (dates, spending leisure time together – 10%
5. Health (vitamins, working out, skincare, massage, baths, relaxation, etc.) – 5-10%
3. Food (prepping, cooking, eating) – 5%
6. Friends – 5%
7. God – 5%
8. Clean house – 5%
Well, at least one of them is in the right spot haha And that’s not 100% accurate. Some days I spend 1 hour blogging, sometimes 2, and sometimes none at all.
As you can see, my actions don’t mimic my priorities. And here’s how I’m going to try to get it right:
1. Spend more time with God. I used to wake up and read some devotions and pray every single morning, as well as go to church every Sunday. Right now, I pray at night, and usually fall asleep half way through. I pray at random times of the day, and then on Sundays, Shane and I watch a church service online. I need to start making more room for my faith.
2. Spend more time on the phone with friends. I cherish my girlfriends. I think finding a woman that I “click” with, who is also genuine, roots for me, and has my best interests in mind is extremely hard to come by. Looking at my real-life priorities, you wouldn’t know how much I value my friendships. I plan to make this more known by face timing and calling my friends back home more often, and spending more genuine time with my friends here in Colorado.
3. Make my time with Shane count more. Anytime I spend with Shane, I need to make that the only thing I’m doing. No checking Instagram, no half-listening, etc. Be engaged. Be present.
4. Make use of the time I do have with some food prep. I honestly don’t spend that much time prepping and cooking food – maybe an hour a day, with no big prep day on Sunday. Unless I’m making a special dinner, or baking something fun, I really don’t like taking time to make my food. If I had limitless cash monies, I’d hire a personal chef before I’d hire a maid!
5. Make my work time more efficient. When I’m working and/or blogging at home, I often have the TV on, other social media websites up, etc. Basically, I have a lot of distractions. What should take me 45 minutes to write an entire post with pictures, sometimes takes me 1.5 hours. What should take me an hour to write a program, often takes me several hours over several days. I plan on setting aside times to get one specific task done, and stop multi-tasking so much.
Also, I don’t feel guilty about getting that amount of sleep, and spending that much time on my health/well being. If I’m tired, cranky, and worn down, I won’t be able to devote the time and energy to my other priorities anyway.
How do your priorities align with real life? What do you need to focus on more? Or less?
I really love this reminder. You never realize how just a small shift can really ground you in your day.
Alex @ therunwithin recently posted…Like me. Like hell. Like everybody else.
I made a pie chart up showing how I spent all my time in a week and it was totally depressing. I think 80% of it was work/sleep/eating, and left very little for family/friends/leisure activities. It was definitely an eye-opener as to where my real priorities were!
What a great cause! Glad the class was a success. I am SO with you on the priorities. I am trying to devote the time I am with Kaylin and Josh to just BEING with them….silly instagram getting in the way 🙂
I have made a similar list myself to get myself where I want to be. 🙂
Shaunna recently posted…2014
Definitely needed this little reminder – thank you! It’s tough to prioritize things correctly sometimes when “life” gets in the way and society may tell us otherwise, BUT it’s so important to recognize what and who needs to come first. I’ve been a lot better at doing my devotions in the morning, but sometimes I feel more rushed than I would like – need to work on that!
Ashley @ My Food N Fitness Diaries recently posted…Booty Strengthening (& Shaping!) Exercises
making a list of how you prioritize vs how you want to prioritize is a great tool for refocusing time and energy! i may have to do something similar soon. i love charity spin rides!
Caitlin recently posted…Marvelous Mohegan Trip!
I need to work on this as well! It’s easy to let certain things take over your time and not even realize that you’re paying little attention to other things/things that matter.
great post!
Patty @ Reach Your Peak recently posted…Motivational Monday!
I need to reevaluate my priorities as we’ll I totally relate!
Jackie recently posted…Weekend recap
amen! I was thinking about this all weekend actually. I need a priority shift as well. I so need to email you!
Brittany @ Delights and Delectables recently posted…Your Kind of Beautiful
I suggest you to come on a site on which there are many articles on this question. Vitamina Orthomol
I need to focus on more spending more time with Gary and friends. I get so caught up in my business that I push family time away. something that I am changing 😉
Purelytwins recently posted…bb ‘booty’ purely training workout #44
My daughter’s boyfriend works in Lyons (and was out of work for a while), so I really appreciate that you did this fundraiser! I’ve thought about how the way I spend my time does/not reflect my priorities. Like you, there are ways I waste time, but some things you just can’t control — like traffic. I’d gladly give that time up for something higher on my priority list. 😉
Coco recently posted…Say Yes And Don’t Be Afraid To Fail
Lately, my priorities have been out of wack. I know school is my primary focus, but lately I have not made any time for “me.” I’ve been just worrying and stressing out. I’ve been spending hours on end doing assignments, getting less sleep, and I have felt a total shift in my mood. I devote and hour to fitness a day as my therapy, but I need to fit in some relaxation time. Hopefully things start to get better.
This was a well written post. Have an amazing day.
Natalie Staeckeler recently posted…Currently
Great post. I just wrote down my list of priorities. It differs a lot on the weekdays and weekends. I hardly spend time with friends or family on weekdays (maybe an hour total) and then on weekends, I binge. I hang out with them for 5-7 hours at a time. Some things like health, food, and sleep stay constant and are non-negotiable. The only change then is really work and friends/family. I’ve been doing so much better not being on my phone while out with family and friends!
Julie recently posted…MIMM: Happy hour with new girlfriends
oh friend, i am with you. In fact, i was just emailing lindsay W about this yesterday. Needing praying. Been in a funk and need to refocus and rekindle my relationship with the Lord. It’s time to PRIORITIZE!
lindsay recently posted…Move it Monday: Core and More
Emailing you <3
I think we all need to take a look at our priorities and some things in our lives do need more attention than others. For now I need to focus more on my kids as the new school year is starting tomorrow.
blackhuff recently posted…I hope for this when I start training with coach Will
Hi Paige, just something to think about to encourage you in your walk with the Lord…I think it helps to look at our relationship with Him as Him being the center versus Him being at the top of a list. If He is the center of our lives, He will be integrated into every aspect and He will be the core of everything we do–the core of who we are. What does that look like? For me, it makes me more aware of talking to Him throughout the day, starting my day off by spending time in His word and in prayer (I fall asleep at night halfway through prayer all the time and would get frustrated so I simply switched to mornings!), and talking about him with clients and friends, etc. I’m not as stressed about wondering if I’m keeping Him first (because really who does that in actuality?), but by meditating on keeping Him the center/core gives me freedom to live my life (strive for a life that honors Him) and let His light radiate out. At least, this is my hope for my life and for fellow believers as well. Hope this encourages you today!
What a great perspective! Thanks, Holly 🙂