1. Sleep
2. Move
3. Eat and drink right
4. Unclutter
According to Better Than Before by author Gretchen Rubin, these are the four most valuable areas to start new habit formation, and I couldn't agree more. These "foundation habits" have a domino effect of positive reinforcement because when you improve one, the others are effected as well; "for instance, exercise helps people to sleep, and sleep helps people do everything better". So, if you are gearing up for those glutinous holidays and want to create better habits for a healthier life style, gain more self control, or simply shake things up a bit, try tackling a habit change in one or more of these four areas.
Me and my love of food wants to first urge you to challenge your eating habits. Find a weakness and tackle it to the ground! Is your weak spot after dinner snacks? Take on a 21 day challenge to not eat after supper. Why 21 days? Because that's how long it takes for something to become a habit. Sugar lover? Try limiting your treats to the weekend only. Over-eater? Fix yourself a plate and don't allow yourself to go back for seconds. (eating a pickle, taking a shot of apple cider vinegar, or popping a piece of gum are also healthy ways to curb that urge for more). Whatever food challenges you have, you have the ability to change them! Personally, my weaknesses are snacking on nuts, and red wine. Every year I take January and some other month entirely off from drinking any alcohol, and this year I'm choosing to challenge myself to No Nuts November (I really do love alliteration) - I look forward to the challenge of these months and the power I have when they end to add these things back into my life in a way I find healthy and balanced. Identify the weakness, and do something about it!
Onto movement. Movement doesn't have to be a strenuous hour at the gym every day or some 10 mile run. Just get up and move several times a day; have a dance party with your kids to an old favorite song; take the dog for a walk around the neighborhood; perform circuits of air squats and sit ups during commercial breaks; take advantage of a current habit (ie. fixing a pot of coffee) and stretch out while you wait. A body at rest tends to stay at rest, so get that body in motion and see what else you are motivated to do once you are up and at 'em!
Now, sleep can be a struggle, especially for parents. Once the kids get to bed, it's that constant battle of "do I stay up to get more done/have time with my spouse/do something for me, or do I get to bed early to catch up on sleep". Don't get me wrong, "me-time" is very important for your sanity and those around you, however, so is sleep. More times than not, you're going to feel better about turning in early than staying up late to finish that binge-worthy series. And, if you're getting more sleep, you'll feel more rested for those before work gym sessions or to get those kids up, fed, and packed for school. We do all things better with good rest, so here's that domino effect coming into play; you'll have the energy to cook a healthy meal instead of reaching for what's quickest, you'll feel motivated - and have less excuse not to - get moving in some way, and, having used your extra energy to do these things, you'll sleep well again that night. Boom, full circle.
As far as decluttering, we all know how good that can feel. But, we also know how many rooms, drawers, folders, or cabinets need to be decluttered. Don't overwhelm yourself by thinking of every little thing that could be organized better; take it one thing at a time. I like to keep a list in the Notes section of my phone of things I'd like to get done, but may not always have the time for. This way, when a client cancels last minute, I'm home with a sick kiddo, or my girls ask if there's an extra chore they can do to earn tickets, I have a list to turn to. Also, be realistic about things you are keeping; haven't used or worn it in over a year? Toss it. Or, at the very least, give it away to someone you know will use it - that way, if you ever really needed this thing again, you'd have access. You can also find ways to cut down on clutter by creating photo albums of things you want the memory of, but may not be able to keep. I do this with my girls' school crafts and projects; they keep their favorite picks from the school year, and I snap a photo of the rest to put into a memory album. This way, they don't have an endless amount of awkwardly folded construction paper projects crammed into a storage folder that they really won't care much about when they're 18 and their parents try and give it all to them (sorry, mom and dad, just sayin'). Start small, keep a list, and tackle it one project at a time.
As I've quoted a million times before, "the best way to create a new habit is to tie it to an existing one". Take a look at your daily routine, and see what (good) habits are already in place that you'd be able to expand on in order to improve any one of these four foundation habits. You may surprise yourself at just what an impact a subtle change can have on your daily life, and just how much power you have to create a healthier lifestyle with such minor changes.
