If you’re here then it’s probably because you want to live a healthier and happier life. Maybe you’ve even tried to change things in your life to help in your pursuit. You might have even gotten to the point where you tried to change everything about your life that you deemed unhealthy all at once. For most people it’s kind of hard to change your entire lifestyle in one day and not feel overwhelmed and even stressed about such a huge change. This approach will probably lead you to fail and give up on your goal of having a happier, healthier life and just go back to what your used to.
But, if you take simple steps at a slower pace you may find that it’s easier to change your unhealthy habits, not just for the short term but for the long run. Changing little things over time will be a lot less stressful and overwhelming than a complete overhaul of your lifestyle. Therefore, it will make it easier to maintain your healthier lifestyle. You didn’t get to where you are in one day, so you can’t expect to get to the new healthy you in one day either. It may take a little time, it doesn’t have to be hard though.
I want to share with you the simple changes that I have made in my life that have made a huge difference. When you don’t take care of yourself you’re not going to feel like your best self. It will probably affect your self esteem and your overall happiness. Who doesn’t want to feel like their best self? If that’s you, you like feeling less than you can be, then please stop reading now and go back to living your life the way you have been. We might not all adapt to change in the same way, but if the change leads to feeling better, than most people aren’t going to resist it.
It’s up to you how many steps you want to try at a time and in what order you want to take them. There’s no right or wrong way to do it. The important thing is to take it at a pace that is least stressful to you and start with the one that you think will be the easiest to take. Also, be consistent. Once you try a step, stick with it. Because again, you’re not going yo see a change in a day. It takes time, but’s it’s worth it. Once you feel comfortable with one step, take the next one, but don’t forget about the previous ones.
Step 1
Stay hydrated
There are so many reasons that drinking water consistently is so important. It’s a simple fact that your body needs water to survive. It makes sense that you will thrive when you get enough water and not experience optimal health when you get dehydrated. So drink up (water that is)! If you’re not sure how much water is right for you, you can start off with the standard 8 glasses (8 oz each) every day. Or, you can use the formula to figure it out based on your body weight.
body weight/2 = the amount of ounces you need each day
The only drinks that count are water. If you are drinking other things like coffee, tea (caffeinated), soda, or some other sugary or caffeinated drinks you should actually increase your water intake by one glass for every one of those other drinks.
If you’re not used to drinking much water or have a hard time remembering how much you’ve had then you might want to measure it out each morning in a jug or pitcher to keep track of your intake.
Invest in a good water bottle and take it with you. I never leave home without mine.
Step 2
Get enough sleep
Are you one of those people that can never seem to get enough sleep and feel tired everyday? I admit that this is one of my biggest struggles. I’m a night owl. I never have any trouble staying up late, but always regret it in the morning when I have to get up and get going.
There are so many products out there that you can consume to help you stay awake and alert. However, other than getting you through that day they are not benefitting us in any way. Adding caffeine to your routine is not the answer. We need sleep to stay healthy. Not getting enough sleep is detrimental to our health and adding stimulants to get by on less sleep is not doing us any favors.
Everyone should be getting at least 7 hours of sleep each night and going through all 4 stages of sleep. You might think that you can just get about 5 hours a night most days and then get extra on the weekends to make up for it. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way. Consistently not getting enough sleep, negatively effects weight loss efforts. Not only that, it increases your long term risks of developing diseases such as Alzeimers and Parkinsons.
If you try to start getting an extra couple of hours of sleep each night right off the bat, you’ll probably be doomed to fail. Start slow and work your way toward your goal. Take note of when you usually make it to bed and start trying to get to bed 15-30 minutes earlier than usual for a week or two. If you can work yourself up to an hour earlier each night, that’s a whole extra night’s sleep fit into your week.
Like I said before, the sleep thing has been one of my biggest struggles. I started off with trying to go to bed 15 minutes earlier each night and have worked my way up to getting 7-7.5 hours of sleep each night. Since increasing my sleep, I’ve been able to cut out my second cup of coffee that I always needed to get through the second half of my day.
Step 3
Swap out the bad for the good
Do you know if what you’re eating and drinking is healthy? Does it provide your body with the vitamins, minerals, and the nutrients it needs to promote better health? Or does your diet consist of a lot of things that you just enjoy eating, but have a lot of empty calories (foods with no nutritional value)? Most people know the answer to these questions even if they don’t want to admit it. I’m pretty sure everyone knows that eating an apple or some broccoli is better than grabbing a bag of chips and devouring it.
I’m not saying that you should go cold turkey and throw out all the “junk” food in your house immediately and only eat fruits, vegetables, and lean proteins. That would be too big of a change for most people to live with. You would quickly give up and go back to your old eating habits. I’m suggesting a gradual change over. If you have a certain food that you eat on a regular basis that you know isn’t good for you, just try swapping it out for a more nutritious choice. Maybe you frequently eat sugary granola bars or a even candy bar. Instead try eating some fruit and a handful of nuts or a low sugar greek yogurt. It might be hard at first and may take a little more planning ahead, but not too much. It will be worth it!
The best thing to do is keep a food journal to help you get a better sense of which foods you should be swapping out. Not realizing what your consuming makes it hard to know what to change. Once you know, then start adding in the healthy foods to replace the things that are not helping you be your best self. If you do it gradually, you probably won’t even miss your old “go to” snacks. More importantly, you’ll feel better knowing that you are doing something good for yourself. The healthier foods themselves should also have a positive impact on your mental and physical health.
Step 4
Think before you eat
It happens all the time. There’s food available, so we eat. A lot of times we’re not even hungry. Other than convenience, we might eat because we’re happy, sad, stressed, bored, thirsty, or even just be social. Different people eat for different reasons and don’t really think about the “why” so much. But, they see the affects of it later when they are struggling to get to, or maintain a healthy weight.
Do your emotions control your eating habits? Start thinking about how you’re feeling emotionally when you go to grab for a snack. Are you actually hungry, or are you just trying to satisfy an emotional craving. If you are an emotional eater find a way to deal with your emotions that doesn’t involve food. Do some jumping jacks, go for a walk or run. Work on a hobby, or call a friend just to say hi. Exercise and positive social interactions are great stress and boredom relievers.
Do you use food to celebrate and reward yourself? I think most people would say “yes” to this. It’s pretty much the norm in our culture to celebrate with food. Have you ever been to a party and there was no food? Yeah, me either. It’s what we do. Our culture involves food in so may situations and most of the time those foods are not the kinds of foods we should be consuming in large amounts. Knowing this can be helpful though.
If I know that I am going to a party and there will be things like pizza and cake served, I make sure I eat something healthy before I go. If you don’t feel hungry when you get there, then you’re less likely to stuff yourself with the things you know you shouldn’t be eating a lot of. And it really is ok to say “no thank you” to that piece of cake. I’m not saying never eat cake again. I’m just saying, think about it before you eat it. Do you really want it, or are you eating it because you feel socially pressured?
Do you reward yourself with food for personal accomplishments? I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve heard people say that they are having some greasy or sugary “treat” to reward themselves for meeting some kind of weight loss or exercise goal. What!!! Why do we call this a reward? If you are feeling great about achieving better health, why is it a reward to do something that that counteracts that achievement? It just doesn’t make sense.
There are lots of ways to reward yourself without food. If you want to reward yourself for reaching a weight loss goal, maybe buying yourself some new flattering workout clothes could be your reward. At least that goes along with your goals and might even motivate you further. If that doesn’t excite you, then think of some other non food reward to motivate you.
Many people eat because they’re thirsty. Our bodies have a hard time deciphering between hunger and thirst sometimes. So, if you think you’re hungry, but not really sure, grab some water first and then see how you feel in 10-15 minutes. Stay hydrated and don’t let your mind fool you into eating when you don’t need to.
Step 5
Get moving
Who doesn’t know that physical exercise leads to a healthier life? If you consistently fit exercise into your daily routine you will look, feel, and be better. If you are not used to exercising, it might be a struggle to start. Do it consistently and moving will become easier. Exercise isn’t done just to help you look better. Becoming more physically fit will help you live a better life. We all need to move in this life. Who doesn’t want to be able to move about in this world without difficulty and pain? That is the real goal of fitness, being able to live your life how you want to live it, comfortably.
I understand that not everyone loves exercise the way I do. I don’t know anyone that hates to move at all, though. The key is to find the exercise that’s right for you. If you choose to take up something like bicycling and find out you hate it, don’t give up and go back to sitting on the couch. Get involved with a group or a team that will help keep you motivated. Having other people around you with similar goals will not only help keep you motivated, it will make the time spent exercising more enjoyable.
If you’re not ready for any formal type of exercise program, just start by adding more movement into your normal daily routine. When you go out shopping and you usually look for the closest parking spot, instead try parking out farther to get a little extra walking in. If you live within walking distance to shopping, walk instead of driving. It’s easy to find ways to get more exercise if you think about it a little.
Exercise itself causes an increase in mood and a decrease in mental stress. If you make it a part of your life you will see and feel the benefits which should also lead to a happier life knowing you have been successful at achieving better physical health.
There’s no way for me to include all the ways you could change your diet and activity level in this post, but I hope I have given you enough to to motivate and get you started. If you have any questions about this topic or have successes to share I’d love to hear them. If you have questions that require more specific answers, ask away. I’m here for you!
