Small Bites to Well-Being
A New Year is just around the corner, bringing to your awareness all that ‘new’ suggests. Perhaps you envision new work endeavors, stronger family ties, or a personal commitment to be more involved with your community. Does your New Year include choosing to become a healthier person? If you try to start the New Year with a big diet goal and a huge new exercise regime, you might set yourself up for failure.
My New Year's advice to you: Take small bites to ensure your success through sustainable effort. What does this mean and how does it work?
What doesn’t work and what does ...
The mistake many make is to set unrealistic goals: “Never again will I eat ice cream!” This rarely works, as most people cannot sustain being in deprivation mode. Also, such a statement identifies what you think of as a “problem” to be solved. Think of your health as something you want to create!
Your life is a work of art ...
... so think of achieving good health as a matter of choices you as the artist can make to create it, one choice at a time. If you concentrate on making small positive changes for your personal health and well-being - taking ‘small bites’ - you create a sustainable effort that works in favor of your success! You are most successful when you create based on what you value in life!
Ask yourself: “Is good health a personal value?”
Be true to yourself! You know that if you are a healthy being, you feel better and have more energy to share. Your actions set a good example for children, your own or others. You create health and vitality by consuming a healthy diet and choosing to exercise regularly.
Here are some small bites for you to chew on ... choose one to begin and add the rest at a pace that makes sense to you. Perhaps, one addition per week. When you concentrate on additions and not subtractions, habits fall away as you feel healthier and stronger. You simply don’t crave unhealthy food anymore.
Additions to make to your current diet:
Make a goal to get some kind of exercise every day. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Just do something. Keep moving and you will feel so much better.. Small bites to health; small steps.
If you yearn for simpler times with family, make a vow to have at least one meal a day with your family, as an example. Again, start with small goals and work up to every night being family night. The goal of course is more family time and less television time.
Extend your efforts to others and to our Mother...
Community is a very important aspect of good health and well-being. There is always a local cause that needs either your funds or time and more likely than not, both. Choose some way to give back. It can be something as simple as attending your local firefighters breakfast or serving a meal at the homeless shelter.
Our Earth needs all the help it can get. Just these three R’s alone will make a big difference. Be sure to
All the best to you and yours this holiday season!
Patty
My New Year's advice to you: Take small bites to ensure your success through sustainable effort. What does this mean and how does it work?
What doesn’t work and what does ...
The mistake many make is to set unrealistic goals: “Never again will I eat ice cream!” This rarely works, as most people cannot sustain being in deprivation mode. Also, such a statement identifies what you think of as a “problem” to be solved. Think of your health as something you want to create!
Your life is a work of art ...
... so think of achieving good health as a matter of choices you as the artist can make to create it, one choice at a time. If you concentrate on making small positive changes for your personal health and well-being - taking ‘small bites’ - you create a sustainable effort that works in favor of your success! You are most successful when you create based on what you value in life!Ask yourself: “Is good health a personal value?”
Be true to yourself! You know that if you are a healthy being, you feel better and have more energy to share. Your actions set a good example for children, your own or others. You create health and vitality by consuming a healthy diet and choosing to exercise regularly.
Here are some small bites for you to chew on ... choose one to begin and add the rest at a pace that makes sense to you. Perhaps, one addition per week. When you concentrate on additions and not subtractions, habits fall away as you feel healthier and stronger. You simply don’t crave unhealthy food anymore.
Additions to make to your current diet:
- Begin each day with breakfast. Ideas include oatmeal with nuts and seeds, cold cereal with fresh fruit, omelets with vegetables, yogurt with granola, leftover soup (try it sometime!) and whole grain muffins with blueberries.
- A mid-morning snack might include 10-15 raw almonds and ¼ cup of raw sunflower seeds, a piece of fruit or a fruit cup, carrot and celery sticks or whatever vegetables are in season
- A sandwich is always an easy lunch, but please be sure to vary the ingredients; add lots of veggies and use whole-grain breads. Salads are a wonderful choice for lunch with some kind of protein such as garbanzo beans, sliced chicken or tuna.
- A mid-afternoon snack would be along the same lines as your mid-morning snack, but please vary your selections. If you had nuts and seeds for your morning snack do not have them for an afternoon snack, choose vegetables instead.
- A hearty bowl of soup makes a wonderful winter dinner with a lovely salad. Use a crock-pot and when you get home after work, dinner is made! Baked chicken with roasted veggies is easy as is a bowl of chili stuffed into half an acorn squash.
- Keep it simple and choose variety!
Make a goal to get some kind of exercise every day. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Just do something. Keep moving and you will feel so much better.. Small bites to health; small steps.If you yearn for simpler times with family, make a vow to have at least one meal a day with your family, as an example. Again, start with small goals and work up to every night being family night. The goal of course is more family time and less television time.
Extend your efforts to others and to our Mother...
Community is a very important aspect of good health and well-being. There is always a local cause that needs either your funds or time and more likely than not, both. Choose some way to give back. It can be something as simple as attending your local firefighters breakfast or serving a meal at the homeless shelter.
Our Earth needs all the help it can get. Just these three R’s alone will make a big difference. Be sure to
- Recycle
- Reduce
- Reuse
All the best to you and yours this holiday season!
Patty
posted by Patty James at
9:13 AM
2 Comments:
Thank you for the blog, Patty. I find if I make changes tiny, then I am more likely to succeed. I have cut out meat, still had congestion with dairy so I reduced eating that, and am gradually heading towards hopefully being a vegetarian. I eat some eggs. I have made strides against clutter and still have more tiny changes to make but I am getting there! I need to create more special spaces for what I need and want. Just a degree a day becomes a big change from the center to the edge of a circle. Happy Holidays, A.
Hello A,
Thanks for your feedback and for sharing your journey. It's important to listen to your body and the signals it gives. Like you, dairy doesn't suit me. I also find that clutter does not suit me either! I find that when I am clutter-free, there is more room for creativity.
I wish you good health!
Patty
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