Taking a look at my life over the past few years, I've come to realize that it's simply not healthy. I don't mean that it's unhealthy. I'm not a pack and a half a day smoker that lives off of fast food, stress, and enough caffeine to cause your heart to explode. I'm more the kind of person that drinks too much soda, isn't active enough, and spends way too much time in front of the computer. I don't take enough care to eat healthy meals and do what's best for my body. It's time to change those patterns.
As they say, Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither will a healthier lifestyle be easy to create in such a short time. It's going to take time for new, healthier habits to form. It's going to take time for my own system to adjust. Nothing happens all at once and it's far too easy to lose it all if you try to accomplish it all at once. It takes little steps at a time. They say it takes twenty days to break a bad habit, which means it takes twenty days to make a good one. Because of that, I'm going to try and institute each new change in a three week cycle, and hopefully I won't give up.
For the next three weeks I intend to institute a couple of new changes for a healthier lifestyle. These changes all kind of relate and should give me more energy, something I need with how tired I've been. More energy will certainly help on this path to a healthier lifestyle.
The first change isn't that much of a stretch from my current lifestyle, I want to do something physically active every day for at least an hour. As things currently stand, I dance three days a week for at least an hour. That means I only have four days to fill with something active and healthy to do. I'm not talking anything challenging, like running for an hour or anything like that. A walk around the neighborhood would be good enough, but I need to be doing something active.
Next, I want to remove caffeine from my diet. Preferably this will be done by removing all sodas as well, but I'll focus on the caffeine. Orange soda is unfortunately well caffeinated, and that is my biggest problem. It's also all to easy to reach for an energy drink when I'm feeling kind of sluggish rather than reaching for something healthier, or getting more sleep. I know full well that I won't be able to kick it all together, but once the rest of my soda is gone, I won't be buying anymore. Instead I'm trying to find healthier drinks, like green tea, to replace my soda habit. Juice and water are also great alternatives.
The final change I want to make could take more than three weeks to start. Once the house is unpacked I want to make a constant effort to keep the house clean. It's all too easy to let it get cluttered and fall behind. Who cares? You're just going to have to clean up later anyways, so what does it matter. Even though it may seem so much easier to let the mess build, I want to live in a healthy environment, and that requires a clean home, something I've never truly had in all my life. That one is going to be a hard habit to get into, but I have confidence in myself.
There are a few expected results that will show in all aspects of my life. On a physical level, I believe I will be a healthier person. I should have more energy, and therefore be able to get more done each day. On a mental and emotional level, I should feel much better about myself. Getting enough exercise and and eating healthy often has emotional benefits, making for a happier person. Increased energy also tends result in a better mood as well. My sleep schedule will improve given that getting enough exercise can help with sleeping, and the relation between caffeine and sleep is obvious. My kids will benefit because a happier, healthier mom with more energy has obvious benefits. It will be easier for them to maintain a regular sleep schedule as well because I will be able to do more with them and won't have such a hard time dragging myself out of bed in the morning.
This is just day one of the whole experiment, but hopefully by week three I will be well in the habit and ready for something new. In the future I hope to add practices that help with personal awareness, energy, and fitness, like yoga. With the local farmer's market due to open again soon, I hope to shop locally instead of making purchases at big box stores. Perhaps there will be research into companies that support green living so I can buy from them. There are many ideas on the horizon as to what the next step will be, but I'm going to do my best to focus on them one step at a time.
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