As Christmas nears close, so do all of riches of family dinners. With an abundance of calories at an arms reach , alongside the feelings of joy and holiday spirits …this is a time of year to embrace and throw all your restrictions out the window!!
Around the corner lurks January; the beginning of a new year and often times the motivator to creating a new, healthy and vibrant you!! This is when we sit down and go over all of our shortcomings for 2016; All the things we wished we had accomplished that we didn’t. As we beat ourselves up and promise to be better this new year, January turns into the health and fitness industry gold rush; Earning more dollars then any other month of the year!! If you are part of this industry, you better brace yourself!!
With new years resolutions full of momentum, March waits patiently around the corner. January and February breeze by and March, like clockwork becomes a time of dwindling motivations and our new years intentions, slowly left behind. Maybe you didn’t meet your personal goals…maybe that diet was just to hard to stick too, or you gave up as quickly as you started. Now I am not trying to discourage you but maybe to help you recognize this pattern, that year after year continues to line the pockets of these heath and fitness corporations.
What if everyday was a day that you could make change? What if each day was an opportunity to start again or to build on the day before? Each day, like a new year… and if we fail, we try again? Why is it that we wait until the New Year to create changes to our health? Having this time frame, is like a clock ticking in our ear – counting down the days we can continue to make poor choices. Truly this methodical time of overindulging, followed immediately by unrealistic restrictions, create the perfect platform for self sabotage.
As we know habits take time to create and just as much time to break. In reality, our weight and state of health is a reflection of the lifestyle habits we have adopted over the years. To think that counting down to the The New Year is going to magically end all of our bad habits, is merely a fictitious ideology. LETS GET REAL!!! Health and weight loss is a journey not a destination. It is an ongoing learning adventure that takes, time, commitment and perseverance!! Nothing happens overnight.
As a meat eater once upon a time, my personal health journey was an evolution. Months and now years of breaking one bad habit at a time, replacing them with new ones. From omnivore to vegetarian and cream in my coffee to almond milk, everyday I try to be better and build on each change, one day at a time.
So where do we start then?? Lets start on focusing on what we CAN add to our day, instead of what we should TAKE AWAY.
1) Start by adding healthy foods into your meals: Buy foods on the outside perimeter of the grocery store only and begin to incorporate organic dairy, meats, fruits and vegetables. Many of the products that do not have to be refrigerated (your middle isles) are plagued with preservatives, food colourings, artificial sweeteners and many other chemicals that actually can harm our health and hinder weight loss. Slowly you can begin to incorporate new shopping habits, that will lead to new eating habits and eventually phasing out the bad ones.
2) Move More: Start by parking further away from a store and stretching every day. Build on this by incorporating a daily, neighbourhood walk, joining a gym or fitness group and initiating those feel-good emotions that go along with being active. As we begin to feel the effects that movement can have on our bodies, positive habits begin to take form.
Everything begins with a single step…
We are not perfect beings. We all make mistakes and we will all fail at some point in our lifetime. When it comes to wanting to create change in yourself, start small and build on a new foundation. Know that everyday is an opportunity to do better, when you fall off, pick yourself up and dust yourself off!! Try, Try again!
Have A Wonderful Holiday:)
Live, Love, Laugh and Be Healthy!!
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