I think it can be easy to fall into extreme thinking when it comes to our health, our diets, and our well-being. It’s easy to think that if we’re not doing all of the right things and using the absolute best methods to optimize our health, our lives, etc., then we can’t possibly be making an impact or difference. Thinking that we need to have a rigorous or challenging workout schedule throughout the week or that we have to be eating perfectly and hitting our macros every day is not necessarily helpful to us in the end. Whatever your “all or nothing” thought is, it can ultimately discourage you and lead to INACTION and potentially the OPPOSITE effect of what you are trying to achieve. So this week, I’m encouraging you to do TWO things: 1) come up with three small actions that move you toward a health goal, and 2) go for a walk. Sounds pretty easy, right?
So first, come up with three SIMPLE actions that take two minutes or less that you can do to move yourself towards a health and wellness goal, whatever that goal might be. Again, three simple, quick things you can do to move yourself a little closer towards a health goal. Here are a few examples.
- Decide on three easy, healthy recipes you can make for yourself (or for yourself and your family) this week. You might need to google some dinner ideas and maybe jot a few items down for a grocery list, but this shouldn’t take more than two minutes. Don’t go down the rabbit hole of trying to find or come up with the best recipe ever or overthinking what you’re going to make. Just pick the dish that you’re having, e.g. chicken, shrimp, or a vegetarian meal, and then decide on something that looks easy to pull together. Or find an old favorite from your recipe vault and maybe tweak it by adding some extra vegetables. Here is one idea to get you started!
- Another example, look at your calendar and schedule three times that you will exercise this week (it can be as simple as going for a 15-minute walk) and KEEP those commitments. If something absolutely comes up and you can’t honor your commitment, have a back up plan. So maybe, schedule an extra day or have an extra time slot available (i.e. “social media time”) to make up for that missed exercise.
- Last, an easy and GREAT idea is to take 60 seconds to stop whatever it is you’re doing and breathe. Literally just breathe. You don’t have to do any special breathing (although deep breathing is fantastic), just close your eyes and be with yourself. Sit in as comfortable a position as you can. Comfy chair? Absolutely. Just don’t fall asleep! Observe your breath in your body. The goal is to bring yourself into present time and experience the feeling of your breath as it moves through you. Notice where you feel your breathing. Your lower abdomen, your chest, your back, etc.
Each of these examples takes two minutes or less. Now, are they a huge move of the needle? No. On their own each action is quite small. However, as you CONTINUE and MAINTAIN small actions like this, these steps done consistently over a long period of time, make a HUGE difference in our lives. This is how we achieve our goals and solidify actions into habits. It’s not about overwhelming yourself with an unrealistic exercise schedule or an intensely restrictive diet plan that deprives you and makes you overindulge later. It’s about making tasks simple and as much as possible ENJOYABLE, so that it becomes impossible to fail. The easier and more convenient the task the better. After a week of not failing, after two weeks of not failing, after a month of not failing or two months of not failing, you’ve ARRIVED at a place of trusting yourself, counting on yourself, and knowing without a doubt that you will fulfill your commitments. This is you making yourself and your life a priority.
The second thing I encourage you to do is go for a 15-minute walk sometime in the next three days. You can go by yourself, with your family, however you need to do it… maybe you have to load the kiddo(s) in the stroller. Regardless, just enjoy being outside and enjoy moving your body. As you’re walking, take a moment to acknowledge all of the things in your life that are going well and appreciate all that your body does for you on its own without you having to do anything.
So these are my two tips of encouragement for your week. It’s a focus on ease, simplicity, getting in tune with yourself, creating strategies for success, and learning to rely on yourself. If you are in a state of overwhelm or stress or feel incredibly busy, I get it and can empathize. But it is vital that we pull ourselves out of these less than ideal states of being as much as possible. Over time, chronic stress has negative impacts on our health, our bodies, and our well-being. We cannot thrive in a constant state of overwhelm. I promise you… you can come up with three easy tasks that move you towards a health goal, and you can make time for a 15-minute walk. Know there is time, and know you can do it. And when you do these things, comment below and let me know what your three easy tasks were and where you went for a walk. Have a WONDERFUL week!