Consistency is key. Small steps every day add up to big gains over time. If your health, energy and vitality are not where you want them to be, why not? Are you choosing the small steps every day that will lead you down the path of abundant energy and vitality? Health is the starting point for living the life you want. When you have aches and pains, when you are sleepy, rundown, stressed, tired, or low-energy, when you can’t drag yourself out of bed in the morning, feel foggy-brained and don’t want to move very much, it’s hard to be your best self. It’s hard to be patient, kind, present, and generous when you feel crappy. The good news is, feeling better is possible. The even better news is, the power to feel better is in your hands.
SO WHAT ARE THE SMALL STEPS THAT GIVE YOU THE MOST BANG FOR YOUR BUCK?
- Movement: “If you don’t make time for exercise, you must make time for illness.” – Robin Sharma. It’s so easy to say “I don’t have time to exercise”. That’s like saying “I don’t have time to stop and fill my car’s tank with gas”. It will catch up with you. We all know that movement is good for us, but do you consistently make the time to move your body. Even if it’s just 10 minutes a day, moving your body every day is critical to feeling your best. Find something you love to do, dance, go for a walk with a friend, take your dog for a run, do yoga, go to a zumba class, hike, whatever makes you feel good. But do it. Every day. Daily movement helps make you happier by releasing endorphins, helps you think more clearly which helps you make better decisions, and increases your longevity, energy and vitality.
- Nutrition: Eat nutrient dense foods every day. (Read this post to learn what nutrient dense foods you should be eating.) You get to control what foods you eat, and the foods you eat can make the difference between feeling great and, well, not. So choose wisely and well. Eat organic food. Avoid artificial sweeteners and industrial oils. Eat lacto-fermented vegetables.
- Sleep. There are so many reasons why getting enough sleep is critical to being your best self. (Read this post to learn why and how you should be getting more sleep.) Choose to turn off the distractions at a reasonable hour to go to bed early enough to get 8 hours every night. That way you can get up early to get your daily movement practice in every morning. Daily movement in the morning will help you sleep better at night. A good night’s sleep will help you get up and get your movement in. And when you are well rested from getting enough sleep and energized from getting daily movement, making wise nutrition choices will be easy.
- Practice gratitude. Everywhere we look, there is news about something that is going wrong in the world. It’s easy to focus on the problems. And what you focus on is what you will you get more of. So choose to focus on what is working, what you want more of, what is good and beautiful in your life. Don’t ignore the areas that need improvement, but don’t make them the focus of all your attention. Write in your gratitude journal every evening before bed. Gratitude had been shown to improve the quality of your relationships, mental and physical health, improve the quality of sleep, enhance empathy, improve self-esteem and more. So take five minutes before sleep every night to write in a gratitude journal. the act of writing down what you are grateful for increases the benefits. Just do it!
So there you have it. Small, simple steps that, practiced daily, can add up to big gains in your health, energy, happiness, and vitality. What are you waiting for?
