by Lauren Hodges, Sunshima blog writer
‘Just eat better”, “Go to the gym”, “Try this diet”; all common phrases heard from people who have no idea what living a healthy lifestyle actually entails, or even worse, from people who make a profit from the diet industry. I got tired of hearing these phrases, and I’m sure you’re tired of hearing them too. So, let’s change the conversation. Whereas yes, eating right and working out are obviously important parts of living a healthy lifestyle, they are not the critical components by any means. In my opinion, there are six critical components to not only starting, but maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Here are three of them!
Define your “healthy”
Sounds silly, I know. You, of course, know what “healthy” means and if you don’t, Google is your best friend! The thing is, healthy means something different to everybody who hears it. Before you even begin your healthy lifestyle journey, you need to determine what healthy means to you. Are you trying to improve your mental health, your physical health, change your body image, none of the above? Also, determine your “why”. Why are you starting this journey; for yourself, your kids, your health, all of the above? Keep in mind that the primary reason should be yourself, but there are always external factors and that’s okay!
Create a Schedule
Although this may seem trivial and often overstated, I cannot tell you the number of times I have told myself I’m going to go to the gym 5 times this week and then didn’t go. However, when I went and put those workouts in my planner, scheduled time for it, I went consistently and haven’t stopped since! Now it’s a part of my obnoxiously early morning routine! Start simple, don’t go overboard. I recommend starting with a 3x/week plan for fitness goals just to get yourself into this new groove. Be patient with yourself during this process because things will come up. You will get busy, plans will get canceled, times will get rescheduled, that’s okay. You’re learning! You can use a paper planner like I do, use google calendar, write it on a white board, write it on the palm of your hand (okay maybe not that one but you get it)! Create a schedule and keep it simple!
Start with small goals
The fitness industry is based heavily around timelines of “30 day” “60 day” “90 day” etc. and that, in my opinion, is just irrational for someone starting their journey for the first time. The human body needs time to adjust to a new way of life and you need to first learn how to commit to something small, something simple. You need to reinforce and reward yourself for small achievements first to build your own motivation. Starting with something as simple as “I will go for a 30–60-minute walk every day for 7 days” is more than enough to jump start your journey! You don’t need to dive all in, start in the shallow end, nobody is judging you except yourself!
Essentially, the first steps to starting a healthy lifestyle need to be on paper, they need to be about defining what your ultimate goal is, what small goals you can create to get there, and creating a simple schedule to keep yourself on track. There is no need to purchase fancy equipment, subscribe to an expensive fitness app, or go to the gym 7 days/week from the get-go. Give yourself time and you’ll be much more likely to succeed!