Hello! 

Today I want to talk about one of the biggest mistakes I see people making when they commit to their healing journey, especially when commiting to having a healthier body. We’ve all done it, myself included. 

This is one of the times when the phrase go big or go home is the opposite of what you want to do. People often fail and give up on their commitments because they put too much pressure on themselves and believe they have to go from 0 to 100 with every change on their list. As much as we wish it could be true, no one changes overnight. Habits we have now took time to build, to become actual habits. Nothing becomes a habit in the blink of an eye.

Healthier habits are better achieved through small steps. Pick one or two things on your list to focus on. Focus on creating a new habit, slowly and consistently. When we approach change with this in mind, it becomes easier. It’s more likely to stick. 

Say a goal of yours for 2023 is to have a healthier body. You want to drink more water, eat healthy at every meal, exercise more, indulge less, have a better skincare routine, get more sleep, etc. If you try and make a big push to accomplish all these things at once, you’re going to give up at some point because it’s gotten overwhelming. When you add this kind of pressure into your life to be an entirely healthier, different person in a few weeks, you don’t leave room for the normal ebbs and flows of life. 

However, when you’re committed to focusing on one or two changes you’re more likely to succeed. Narrow your focus. If having a healthier body is your goal this year, I have two places to start. These are the same two things I ask every client to start with. 

Hydrate and add more vegetables to your diet. 

If your only goal for thirty days is to drink more water, that’s an easy, manageable task. You can look at the reality of your routine and figure out how to get more water in. Is making sure you always have some with you? Is it drinking a full glass of water within an hour of waking up? When I committed to drinking more water, I did two things. I found an accountability partner. Second, I got pretty bottles, slapped some stickers on them and made sure I had them with me everywhere I went. I love Yeti and HydroFlask for big, reusable water bottle options to limit plastic use. 

If your only goal for sixty days is to add in one or two servings of vegetables, that’s easy to do. Really, it is! Start slow. Don’t try and change your entire current diet to include 8 servings of vegetables if previously you only got one or two. Take fourteen days to add in one more serving per day, and when that’s become your routine, add in one more for another fourteen days. It will take longer, but in a few months, you’re now eating healthier. 

Whatever your goal is- take it easy. Slow, steady, consistent steps each day are better than trying to do a full sprint up the mountain. You might get there later, but you’ll be better off having taken it easy. In all things, break your goals into manageable steps. 

Slow and steady wins the race when creating new habits, not trying to do it all at once in what is likely already a busy life. 

You’ve got this! 

In Gratitude, 

Robin