GRATITUDE Series: Episode 2

Welcome back to the weekly gratitude series! In this series I will share 10-15 things to be GRATEFUL for that will open your eyes, make you smile, help you remember the good or just shift your spirits. New episodes drop every weekend. These are short, light and happy listens. Thanks for being here--you rock. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome to the Knight Fit Podcast. I'm your host, Emily Knight. I'm a running and strength coach whose primary mission is to help runners reach their goals and maintain their strength without sacrificing their true health. On this podcast, we talk about all things health and fitness so that you can stay up to date on some of today's latest research. I host inspiring guests, drop solo episodes where I explore pertinent topics and get to the heart of many of our questions around what it means to chase our fitness goals and prioritize our wellness. So sit back and get ready for an awesome conversation. Welcome back to Nightfit Podcast. Welcome back to the gratitude series, episode two, where we focus every weekend on cultivating gratitude by going through a list of things that we can be grateful for and should be grateful for. And as I mentioned in episode one, the goal of this series is to help you reflect on your life and remember that there really are beautiful things in your life no matter what you're going through. And for those who don't know, um, I am going through some stuff just with my dad being sick with ALS. I'm running the Twin Cities Half Marathon in the fall for him. I'm fundraising right now. Um and it's everyone has stuff. Everyone has stuff behind the scenes. And I think we often forget that. And with all the things we have going on, sometimes we forget that there's also so much beauty in our lives. And I recently heard something, which also inspired this series, is that when we fill our mind and our hearts with gratitude, we are incapable of also feeling anxious at the same time. And that isn't to say that you can't have both emotions in a given day or that you can't be both things in general, grateful and anxious, but when you are actively thinking of things you're grateful for, you cannot at the same time feel anxious. And so sometimes when I start to feel anxious in life, because I am an anxious person, I steer my focus to things I'm grateful for. And it really makes a difference. And so I what I do in this series is I go through a list of things that I think are wonderful in life. And they're, I try to keep them broad so that they're things that everybody can be grateful for or is grateful for or experiences and forgets is wonderful because we take so many things for granted. So yeah, and it drops every weekend on Saturday or Sunday. It's a shorter episode. I just go through a list every weekend, and it's kind of a fun thing to be a part of. So if you are new to the gratitude series, welcome. Welcome, welcome. And I recommend going back to episode one, listening to that one because it was a fun kickoff. But yeah, we're just gonna dive into today's list. So the first thing on the gratitude list this weekend is actually you might find it surprising, but graying hair, aging skin, and an older body. And why do I say these things? Because aging is a privilege, a privilege so many people don't get to experience. And I feel that more than ever in my life, just as my dad is sick and he wishes he wasn't, and that his life and his mind felt longer, um, then there are so many people that came before us and that we know that didn't get the opportunity to age like they wanted to, to get older, to experience what it is to age and have different stages and phases of life. And so while we often complain about things like gray hair, seeing wrinkles on our skin, age spots, having an older body, we complain about how we feel on our skin as we age, and oh, my knees hurt, I must be getting old, things like that. Aging is such a privilege. And then when you spin it on its head and think of it that way, to the fact that you're sitting here now, no matter who you are, and you're older than you were a year ago, five years ago, and you'll continue to get older, that's every day that you wake up, that's an honor, and that's something that someone else wishes they had. So yeah, those signs on your body that you don't like or think are signs of aging that are negative, they're also great. The second thing is the perfect piece of pizza. My husband inspired this one because he ordered us pizza last night. And the thing is, I feel like everyone's perfect piece is so different, and it's kind of fun to think about actively in your head. What is my perfect piece of pizza? And we've all bitten into our ideal piece and been like, wow, this just changed my life. For me, it's kind of what is the name of it? Like Sicilian, probably style pizza with extra sauce, very light cheese. I'm talking like so much sauce that it's like spewing over, and black olives. Light cheese is key because it's basically a marinara pizza. It's like mopping bread in the marinara sauce and adding black olives. That is my with a little bit of balsamic reduction, maybe in a Sicilian style, or like punch pizza, which is a chain in Minnesota here, that kind of style. Um, Neapolitan, maybe. There's I think there's a similarity between Neapolitan and Sicilian. That's my favorite personally. Um and there's this place near me that makes it's called Vagabondo, and it makes this pizza that just changed the game. It changed the game. It's a Sicilian, but it's like fluffy. I don't even know. But the perfect piece of pizza, what a privilege to get to enjoy pizza in this lifetime. My favorite food genre is Italian, so I'm biased and I wanted to share this. But what is your perfect piece of pizza? Please drop it in the show notes because I would love to compare. It's so funny all the different styles there are and preferences, but yeah, I'm very grateful for the perfect piece of pizza. Next one is laughing so hard it hurts. And it's been a minute since I laughed that hard. I try to laugh every day. I think that's just good for your health. But those moments when you're laughing so hard that your ribs literally hurt and you can't even speak and you're almost crying. And sometimes you are crying, you're bent over, you're just like, oh, those moments are precious. And we all have people that we tend to laugh with more than others. And I can think of some people in my head who like my best, my twin sister, my husband, people I just laugh with because we have similar senses of humor, but also just watching things that are comical to us. But laughing so hard it hurts. It is so good for you. And if you haven't had a really good laugh recently, this is a reminder to do so. But I don't there's like few things when it comes to the emotion scale that are as powerful and fun as just laughing so hard. Um yeah, and that's something I want to do again soon. So put it on my gratitude list. I'm gonna open a can of sparkling water real quick. Okay, is that not the best sound ever? Okay, neighbors. Why did I put neighbors on this list? Well, specifically, let's let's make it more crisp and clear. Good neighbors. We live in a great neighborhood. There are so many children running around, but good neighbors, they change the game. People, my husband and our direct neighbor, we like switch off plowing each other's driveways. And there's something to be said about people who respect each other, who um, and they understand we have a baby, so they try not to do anything too loud past like 9 p.m., which we love. Um, I love living in a neighborhood, having neighbors, feeling safe, feeling like you have each other's backs. Um, and if you have that, this is also a sign to get to know your neighbors if you haven't before. And that's that's tricky. We moved in here in June of 2025, so we haven't been here that long. And we still have a lot of neighbors to get to know, but I just think neighborhoods and having neighbors is something to be so grateful for, especially if you get connected to them and you help each other out and you respect each other. Changing seasons. How lucky are we that, especially if you live somewhere with volatile seasons? I think if you live in like Texas, um, and the seasons don't change that much, but I live in Minnesota and we have pretty dramatic shift in seasons. People assume it's cold all the time, but we actually have a great summer here, a great fall, great winter, and a great spring. Right now we're in the spring, obviously. And I just think it's the coolest thing that throughout the year we get to experience these different conditions and try to lean into them. So while it can be annoying when it's raining, it's like lean into the rain, the rainy season, that's April. Lean into the snow when it's snowy season, lean into the heat when it's warm, lean into the fall when it's crisp. I think the changing of the seasons is such a metaphor for life, too. And I think it's something we take for granted that we get to experience that, but it really keeps us on our toes and it keeps us leaning into whatever that season brings. I love how we have seasonal flavors of things at the different coffee shops and at the store and holidays that surround the changing of the seasons and different clothing options. I just think it's the best. I think changing seasons is something that we're so used to that we forget it's so unique and fun, and innately what it is to be human, too, because that is the same as our emotions are constantly changing and evolving. But yeah, the changing of the seasons. Pancakes, waffles, or French toast. And I say this because I had pancakes this morning. I'm probably a pancakes girl, maybe French toast, but I also said these three because I feel like they're hot debate. But all three of them, what a privilege, you guys. They are delicious. I personally would never choose waffles because I think they're a little overrated. But if people, all my waffle people out there, I apologize. But how great are they, you guys? They're so delicious. And I know French toast is kind of like its own thing, it's in its own little camp, but French toast is so good. It is so good, especially when it's done well and it's got that really strong, like gooey. I love the gooeiness of French toast. I don't like it to be too crisp. Anyway, a good pancake waffle or French toast, oh, just hits. Maybe with a little bit of coffee. This is your sign to make some of those this weekend if you haven't had them in a while. Porches, porches, and I don't know if you have a porch, we have a porch, but if you don't have a porch, you know the people who do have a porch, and you've sat on a porch, I'm sure, especially screened-in porches or four-season porches. Love a four-season porch. What is it about sitting in a room that also feels like it's outside at the same time? I don't know. I don't know, but it is just magic. It is magic. You can feel the breeze, you can you feel like you're outside, but you're actually inside. You feel cozy, you can have your coffee, the bugs can't get to you, yet you're like in this oasis of feeling like you're in nature, but at the same time, you're in this enclosed space. I don't know, it's magical. Porches are magical. We don't talk about porches enough, okay? Everyone deserves to enjoy porches throughout their life, especially screened in porches. That is kind of the aesthetic I have in my mind. But yeah, I love a good porch, you guys. And it's porch season. It is officially the spring. It is getting to be that time of year. We are going to enjoy our porch as much as possible. And if you have friends who have a porch or you have one, it is time to take advantage of the porch. Maybe get a little fire going in a porch if you're able to. We technically can kind of do that, maybe with a little gas fire situation and just hang out in the porch. Let's do it. Let's do it. They're the best. Underrated, you guys. Underrated thing to be grateful for are plants that you don't have to water. Okay, I have a brown thumb. I'm one of those people who has a brown thumb. If you give me a plant, it will die. Why? Not necessarily because I don't take care of it. That is a part of it. The main part is that I just I don't, I don't care. That's the issue. That is the underlying issue, okay? But if you give me a plant like a cactus, which we recently got as a gift, and it just lives, that thing just survives. Okay, I am so here for that. I am so here for a plant that you don't have to water. Maybe one day I'll have a green thumb. Right now I don't. So let's just appreciate the fact that there are plants that don't need much and they just live. They just survive. You put them in the sun and they thrive. I don't think there's anything more tough and gritty than a plant who doesn't need water. I don't know. It's awesome. So plants that don't have what don't need water to thrive, I'm here for it. Okay, we've got a few more, you guys. Mountains and beaches. Both are pretty epic. I know there's like a debate of do you choose mountains or beaches? But what what why can't we just agree on the fact that both of them are so incredible? And the fact that we have these peaks that go like Everest, they're just insanely high, but then we have these vast pits full of water, the trenches that we can't even get to the bottom of. We have both of these things, but also just the shores of the beach, hiking in the mountains, the pine trees. Both aesthetics are incredible. They're incredible. And getting to experience both in your lifetime, if you're able, totally awesome. So grateful for both of them. And I I uh I go back and forth between which I prefer. Um I think they're both very unique, and I honestly think they're so different. I think like what you choose to do in both environments is pretty different, in my opinion. So it can be tough to choose. And I know there's a lot of people with very strong opinions on the two, but yeah, I just think appreciating both for what they are is awesome. Empty seats on an airplane. Okay, underratedly, the best feeling if you travel is getting on a plane and having a whole row to yourself, or even getting to move to an empty row. Can we just talk about how that is the best thing ever? It is. Um it's just the best thing ever. You just you don't have to smell people's smells, you don't have to squeeze next to somebody, you just get your space and you're like, get away from me. You don't have to hear people coughing, sneezing, get the whole road yourself. The lady comes by with your drink and you're like, Yep, this is my space. This is my space. It's the best because it's like you paid for extra room and you didn't, you didn't pay for extra room, but it's like you did. It's great. Okay, and the last thing you guys are baptisms. To round it out, baptisms. My daughter Lainey, who is currently napping, so I'm taking advantage of that and making this episode today. She's getting baptized today, and I am so proud of her. I love her so much. I'm so excited for her special day and the opportunity to be baptized and to dedicate yourself to God and to baptize our children and to give them to God. It's just, it's beautiful. I think it's a beautiful, beautiful tradition and beautiful, beautiful thing. And today's gonna be a great day. And I hope you're having a great day. Have a great rest of your day, have a great rest of your weekend. We've got a great episode coming on Monday. But yeah, guys, thank you for being here. Don't forget to follow the pod so you can catch the rest of this gratitude series as it unrolls every weekend. Thank you guys, and I'll chat with you on Monday.