How This Year Can Be Better.

Are you Embracing 2017 with Energy and Enthusiasm and Geared up to make it the Best Yet?

A lot of people begin the New Year by making resolutions. We’ve all been there. We make a promise to lose weight, exercise more, cut down on alcohol or spend more quality time with family. We start the year with great intentions, but then we quickly relapse into old habits. Why is it so hard to stick to those New Year’s resolutions?

Research suggests that only 14 days into the New Year 30% have already given up on their goals and intentions and fast forward a couple of months only 12% of those that created intentions are actually achieving what they set out to back on January 1.

The reality is unless you do something you’ve never done, you are going to get what you’ve always got. I came across the most brilliant quote last week; Einstein’s definition of insanity; “Doing the same things over and over again and expecting different results.”

Try Something New.

To get new results you have to be open and willing to try something new. If you are sick and tired of nothing changing then take some action. Reach out and get the support you need. With the right tools, support and accountability your life can be different. Use this opportunity to design and create a life you really love. The question is are you willing to do what it takes to get there?

I can help…you just have to be ready.

For some of us, 2016 was a great year of health, wellness, enjoyment and fulfilment. Sadly, for others, this eluded them yet again. The habits that some of us have implemented, that keep us healthy, are the exact habits that others should be implementing to better their own health and wellbeing.

Top 5 Healthy Habits to Embrace in 2017.

Below is a list of some small, simple things you can do today to improve your health; and when put into practice consistently will transform your wellness. This is my ‘Top 5 Healthy Habits’ that will help you live a healthier and more enjoyable 2017 and all the years after that.

1.       Move More. There is no superfood or ‘pill’ with as much holistic benefit for wellbeing as movement. Just 30 minutes of moderate exercise each day will offer you massive benefits for both your body and mind. Maximise your success by doing an activity that keeps you motivated, interested and that you enjoy. Consistency is the key. Some is better than none and more is better than less!

2.       Drink More Water. Not only will you feel better, you will look better and perform better. Many of us do not drink enough. There is a simple formula .04 x weight (kg) will give you an idea of how much you should be consuming each day in litres. More than you think and you will need to drink more than this is you are exercising. You will know if you have consumed enough throughout the day because your urine will be clear or straw-coloured.

3.       Ditch the Diet. They don’t work and can in fact harm our health. A healthier approach to weight management is to not diet but to realise our body wants us to be healthy and comfortable. Strive for plenty of fresh, colourful and unprocessed food. Ideally we should be aiming to eat 5 serves of vegetables per day and around 2 serves of fruit. Combining this with lean protein, legumes, wholegrains, nuts and seeds makes an excellent choice.

4.       Go to Bed Earlier. Sleep affects our mental and physical health enormously. It assists our ability to function well and make good decisions throughout the day. Lack of sleep is a very common problem for ‘busy women’. We need to be aiming for between 7 – 9 hours each night. Research suggests that for sufficient deep, restorative sleep we should be in bed no later than 10:30pm.

5.       Practise Gratitude. When we are ‘busy’ it is easy for us to get bogged down, complain a lot and feel sorry for ourselves.  Being grateful can put us in a very different state of mind. Taking some time out to be mindful of things we are grateful for (big or small) can really help us appreciate what we have. Start a new ritual of writing down or saying out loud each day three things you are grateful for. Watch your perspective change.

Healthy Habits for Life.

So if you would like this year to be different and would like some support and guidance to achieve your very own 2017 health goals, then get in touch. This is not a fad diet, no crazy exercise regime, not a prescription nor a quick fix, but a program that will empower you and give you the skills and knowledge you need to develop healthy habits that stick for life!

I’m taking bookings for February now. Spaces limited.

ENQUIRE HERE.

This is your chance to kick start the new year right.

 

Healthy Habits.

Ever felt confused or frustrated over the conflicting health messages and advice around forming healthy habits? Ever felt like new healthy habits just aren’t achievable in the busy lives that we all lead? Have you slipped into some pretty bad habits? Are you eager to get your health back on track but just don’t know how? Let me help you get healthy, stay healthy and be healthy.

There are two main reasons people find it hard to kick old habits.

1. They rely only on good intentions.
The reality is it’s not enough to just want change and hope for it. So many people I meet crave changes but aren’t prepared to make any. If the choice is to change then you need to commit. Full stop. No excuses. It’s not enough to simply hope for something. The worst thing in the world is for you to make the decision to change and just sit there and sit there and sit there. It’s like the saying goes, “If you change nothing, nothing will change!”

2. They rely only on willpower.
We only have a set amount of willpower. We all know this because we’ve each reached that point in the day where we just can’t do it anymore. Willpower is a bit like a muscle. It will engage as you flex, but will eventually weaken and fail when it is fatigued. Willpower is NOT the best way to create lasting transformation. It is fine for short-term projects, like studying for an exam, or fasting but not for sustained, long term changes like those that are required for lasting transformation. But, that’s where habits come in. Motivation and willpower is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.

Change can be hard.
There is no doubt about it – change can be hard but I’m a living example that it is possible. In tiny, baby steps, I’ve changed quite a few bad habits in my time and replaced them with new, healthier rituals and routines. I started running, stopped impulse spending, stopped mid-week drinking, started meditating, began meal planning, stopped saying ‘YES’ to everyone and everything, started a morning ritual, invested in my more meaningful relationships, started using ‘Affirmations’…you get the picture! It’s possible.

So what is a habit?
Habits are routine, unconscious behaviours we perform on a regular basis. They allow us to learn do something that eventually we can perform without having to think about it like driving a car or brushing our teeth or having a shower. Forming habits is the process by which new behaviours become automatic. For example if you buy a coffee every day on your way to work you have a habit. If you set an alarm and wake to exercise early you have a habit. Old habits are hard to break and new habits are hard to form. This is because the behavioural patterns we repeat most often are literally etched into neural pathways in our brain.

Practise makes perfect.
The good news is that through repetition it is certainly possible to form positive new habits. They key to creating a new habit is to practise it often. This starts the process of creating a new brain pathway. Research has shown that on average it can take up to 60 day to form a new habit so you will need to make a deliberate and consistent effort to commit to each new habit for at least two months. After that, you won’t have to flex your willpower muscle so much. You won’t have to think about what you are doing, the behaviour will be automatic.

To change a habit you need to understand the logic.
There is a science behind the way we form habits and it’s this simple logic that will help you understand your own habits in order to change them and replace them with positive new ones. It’s important to know that all habits run on a simple loop of:

Cue – this could be a time, place, person or situation that triggers the habit.
Routine – what you actually do
Reward – what you get for doing it.

Simple steps of habit change.
Habit change is not that complicated. The steps are:
1. Write down your plan. One habit at a time.
2. Identify your triggers and replacement habit.
3. Focus on doing the replacement habit every single time the trigger happens, for at least 30 days.

For example if you want to start exercising each morning you can apply this process.
Cue – Upon going to bed, lay out exercise gear for the following morning and set alarm.
Routine – Alarm goes off, get out of bed, get dressed, lace up and head out the door.
Reward – Feel energized after completing morning exercise. (NB: You might like to set an overarching reward of a massage or a new pair of tights at the end of your 30 x days for extra incentive and motivation)

Question Time.
Are there any new habits you’d like to introduce?
How can you cue these habits up?
What will you do to create a routine?
What are some ways to reward yourself?

The initial discipline is the hardest, but momentum will build, small steps, every day and you will keep moving forward. It won’t be hard forever.

Be kind to yourself.
It can often be a challenging process. Treat yourself like a best friend. Be gentle, accepting, kind and most importantly celebrate your success. If sometimes you do slip, it’s not the end of the world. Just get back on the horse and remember tomorrow is a new day.

Help is here.
Change can be hard but it is possible. By taking control of your habits you’re one step closer to creating the life you want. I can help you break a habit and build new healthy rituals and routines into your every-day. Positive rituals and healthy habits can be the turning point in becoming the well woman you want to be.

“We are what we repeatedly do.” – Aristotle