Baby Steps

(source)

Hi! I hope that you’re having a good day so far.  I have been making it through my workweek and a Liver & Gallbladder Cleanse.  I always feel a little more tired when I’m on a cleanse and this week is no exception.  When it comes to working out while on a cleanse, I listen to my body and do not over-exercise.  Long walks, yoga, light cardio and weights are all great ways to stay active without putting too much strain on the body.

While in the sauna this evening, I started to think about the easiest ways to transition into a healthy lifestyle.  I know what doesn’t work – deciding to give it an all or nothing approach.  This mentality sets you up for failure because you are tempted to throw in the towel as soon as you have a slip-up.  Be gentle with yourself and realize that no one is perfect.  If you go against your goal to have desert once a week and you have a cup of ice cream two nights in a row, relax.  Your world is not over! You are not a bad person!  You had a human slip-up.  Do not feel awful and consume the rest of the carton.  Instead, appreciate, your indulgence and move on.  Tomorrow is a new day and a fresh start towards your “once a week desert” goal.

So, we have accepted the fact that we (and everyone else on this planet) are not perfect and that there will be slip-ups on our path towards a healthy lifestyle.  The next thing to keep in mind is that a slow transition can become a life-long healthy lifestyle.  My favorite way to approach healthy lifestyle changes is to take “baby steps.”

(source)

“Baby steps” are small, continual changes which over time, create a lasting, painless change.  An example would be my (12 ounce) can of Diet Coke that I drank with lunch each afternoon during college. Even for a few years after college, I’d occasionally indulge in that afternoon craving.  After a while I learned about the dangers of drinking regular and diet soda and decided that I did not want to put it in my body.  Instead of telling myself that I could never drink a drop of soda again, I devised a “baby step” plan to painlessly remove it from my diet.

(source)

The first thing I did was think of other bubbly drinks that were less harmful to my health.  La Croix sparkling water and Emergen-C packets made the list.  After lunch each day I would treat myself to one of the substitution beverages and remind myself how much better they are for my health.  After awhile it got to the point where I didn’t need to drink one of my new drinks and could do with just water.

(source)

This is just one example of the many “baby steps” that we can take for our health.  Please don’t take the all-or-nothing approach to health.  Readers: what “baby steps” have you taken or want to take for your health?