New year, new you. That’s how it goes, right? If you are like me, the start of a new year would signify a time for me to eat better, workout more, and get back into shape. But if you are also like me, year after year you may start off with great intentions, but almost always end up right back where you started, or maybe even worse off. And if you are like me again, it’s because you unintentionally set yourself up for failure because you try to commit to things that you know realistically you can’t stick with, such as completely changing what you eat. Maybe you can, but If I have learned anything about myself over the years of trying, it’s that I love food too much to be disciplined enough to ONLY eat certain things, and not the things that I love. And once I finally accepted that, that’s when I finally figured out what works for me at this stage of my life; what are things that I can do to eat better, workout more, and get back into better shape and what I have learned is it’s the small changes that leads to big, achievable results.
I am not a health/fitness expert by any means at all BUT I share this insight with you in hopes it may help you on your health journey too.
Move: I recently read something that said you should walk 30 minutes a day. If I made that my goal, I know I would fail. Thinking about carving 30 minutes (or an 1.5 hours with a workout included) out of my every single day is a tough task and I’m just not there yet. But I do agree with the sentiment but instead of walking, I just move. Whether it’s walking around my classroom or standing while at my desk, my goal is to barely sit during the day while I’m at work. It’s made such a huge difference. I’ve had my standing desk for about 5 years. If you don’t have one, put it on your wishlist.
Drink More Water: This is the easiest of all the easiest of ways to become healthier, friends. Drink. More. Water. Every. Single Day. Once you start doing this, you won’t believe how much better you will feel. You’ll realize it on a day when you don’t drink a lot of water. I drink half my body weight in ounces of water daily. This was a struggle at first but what has helped me is my water bottle. I have one that holds all the water I need to drink in a day. I have found when I used smaller water bottles/cups and ran out, I would delay filling it up thus not drinking enough water. I now ALWAYS have my water bottle with me. It’s a part of who I am now. If you’ve seen me even once over the past couple of years, you know this to be true. 😊
(my current collection. I had more 😂)
Eat Dinner Earlier: Shewee this is a biggee and one I didn’t realize the impact of until I tried Intermittent Fasting. The idea behind IF is to eat your meals in a 8 hour window of time and nothing outside of that. When you do that, during your fasting phase it forces your body to use the stored sugar to burn fat. It worked for me and I saw/felt the difference quickly. What didn’t work is always only eating during that 8 hour window. Again, not realistic for the phase of life I’m in. But what did work, still works is it forced me to eat dinner early. When you eat dinner late, it is a huge culprit in weight gain. Don’t do it (unless you are going out to eat with friends, etc. then DO do it, just not every day). The old people are on to something here. “Well I have kids who have practice, ballgames, etc. so we can’t eat until late,” you say. Get 5 meals from E-Town Meal Prepping weekly to eat for your dinner early then cook for your family later. Save you some leftovers for your lunch/dinner the next day. Problem solved.
(my E'town Meal Prepping dinner in the car before Talon's game)Stop Snacking After Dinner: This one really goes hand in hand with #3. While it’s beneficial to eat dinner earlier, it only makes a difference if you DON’T snack after. This was something else I learned from IF. And it was that I snacked after dinner because I was bored, not because I was hungry. YOU'RE NOT HUNGRY, YOU'RE BORED <- is what you need to tell yourself when you pick up that snack cake at 9pm. You know what solves that? #5….
Go To Bed Earlier: The later you stay up, the hungrier you will become. So go to bed! And let’s not even dive into all the health benefits of getting a good night (8 hours) of sleep. Turn off the TV. Put down your phone, actually set your bedtime routine/reminder on your phone then put it down and GO TO BED!
Workout 4x A Week: Of all the things that I have done over the past year(s) to finally become healthier, this one for sure takes the most discipline. You 100% have to be intentional with your time and make it a priority but I can promise you it will be so so worth it. But here’s the thing, you CAN do it! You just have to commit to it. And what makes it doable is finding the right workout for you. I’m not talking about riding a bike or running here, I’m talking about strength training. Maybe it’s lifting 2 pound weights at home, maybe it’s joining BeachBody, or doing crossfit or just going to the gym, just find YOUR thing.
What have I learned about myself in this part of my health journey? I’m not disciplined enough to do it on my own at home or at a gym. If I do, I don’t push myself near as hard as when I’m working out in a group. After trying all the things, I learned over 230 classes ago that Barre is my thing. It’s a low impact, 50 min class filled with ladies of all ages, sizes, and different levels of fitness and ends with stretching and meditation every single time. I revolve my schedule around it 4x a week and have for over a year because it has made me feel better than I ever have in my life. This is coming from someone who has leukemia and has struggled with their health for the past 9 years.
You know you better than anyone else. If you know you need accountability, put yourself out there and find YOUR THING. If you want to try Barre (and I really encourage you to do so), I’d be happy to coordinate a time we can go together so you have a familiar face. I don’t care if it’s your first time working out ever in your life, you will feel loved and welcome. It’s truly a no judgment zone. You will find your people there.
That’s it! That is it. If it is your goal to become healthier, I personally think this is a really good place to start. If you are wanting insight on WHAT to eat, I’d just say what you want within reason, and less sodium, sugar, and sodas. (If you are wanting more specifics, lean on Becca at E'town Meal Prepping. She offers a plethora of nutrition insight for free. Follow her on Facebook.) You don’t have to completely change your lifestyle, you will still see and more importantly FEEL results with small simple changes. You just have to do it!
Here’s to a healthier new year!
Want more? Learn more about...
- Barre at Cornerstone Fitness here
- E'Town Meal Prepping here
- Hydrojugs here and also includes a coupon of $10 off $40 purchase.
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