The Wellness Baby Steps
Starting a healthy/fit lifestyle feels daunting. Many of my clients take an all-or-nothing approach, leading to – you guessed it – burnout. Here’s my approach to making sustainable changes – choose TWO things to focus on for any given day, and slowly but surely, it will all become second nature to you. Monday, tackle a workout and proper sleep! Tuesday, it’s hydration and eating extra veggies. Wednesday, maybe it’s sleep and hydration! TLDR: Don’t do everything at once!
Sleep – getting enough quality sleep is paramount to having a good, healthful life. For some people, that’s 7 hours. For others, it’s closer to 9 hours. As long as it’s quality (enough deep sleep, feeling rested upon waking), it’s perfect. And please don’t sacrifice sleep to squeeze in a workout – you’re not doing yourself any favors here.
Hydration – I carry around my gallon water bottle like an idiot everywhere. Enjoy enough water daily so that you’re not actively thirsty – that quantity will change depending on your individual body, the weather, your activity level, and your salt consumption.
Adequate protein – does this mean eating dry grilled chicken at every single meal? Not at all. Work to understand your body to know what works best for you. If the grilled chicken does work and you like it, then go forth and chicken it up! I personally say, mix it up and continue with what feels good in the moment. My favorites are always collagen protein, salmon, tuna, rotisserie chicken, and eggs.
Eating more veggies – I will challenge my clients to pick out ONE new vegetable at the grocery that they haven’t had the pleasure of cooking with yet! Grab it, google a recipe, and then go to town! Check out this site to see what veggies are in season throughout the year to begin experimenting!
Fitness program – my personal favorite! It’s important to just start. Getting the sneakers on and into the gym/outside is honestly 85% of the battle. Once you’re there, the rest will come. If you need a bit of a nudge in the right direction, book an intro call with me here.
Cooking at home – one of the greatest health and wellness gifts we can give ourselves is learning how to cook. There are so many wonderful cookbooks out there that help every home cook create gourmet dishes. My current favorite chefs are Alison Roman, Molly Baz, Yotam Ottolenghi, and wellness expert Dr. Mark Hyman. All their recipes can easily be adapted to any dietary needs/choices.
Extras: having a good AM/PM routine, removing plastics from your day-to-day life, switching to natural deodorants, haircare, & body care, and having hobbies that don’t include alcohol and television (our most common vices).