One week in….are you feeling the Fire or the Fatigue? If you read my last post, you know that I am not a fan of the “all or nothing” new years resolutions. However, I also know that meaningful change won’t happen on its own.
So, the question is…how do we develop habits that will stick? The keyword for me is Streamline.
According to Merriam-Webster, streamlining is moving in smooth flow without turbulence. I don’t know about you, but that sounds pretty nice. Flow to me is peace, and that is something we could all use a little more of in 2022. But to get there, we need some alignment. We need to find a way to create that flow in all aspects of life.
First item to consider; excuses. How easy is it for you to make an excuse? If you crumble with the slightest bit of resistance, it might be time to figure out why. Over the past month, I fell off track with some of my goals because I was not leaving enough time for them. I was rushing around, feeling stressed and not using my time wisely. The first thing I did was dive back into the Push Journal. I wrote a whole post about this here. The second thing I did was set my alarm for 15 minutes earlier. I cringe just thinking about this, but let me tell you, it made a world of difference. The house is quiet, there are no distractions and it truly changes your trajectory.
Which leads me to the next item; routine. Your morning routine sets the tone for the day. If it starts rushed and chaotic, chances are you will be playing catch up all day. I feel so much more in control when I take my time.
One tool that I have found to be helpful is a Sunrise Alarm Clock. I have been reading about these for a while and finally treated myself for Christmas! Instead of the jolting iPhone alarm, this gadget mimics dawn, slowly increasing the amount of light. There are a variety of colors and calming sounds so that you can try, to customize your wake-up.
Next up is water! It is so tempting to skip right to coffee or pre-workout, but the difference is astounding. One of my goals every year is to drink more water, but it is so hard! My hack is to find different ways to increase my intake. I start the day with 12 oz of warm water, 1/4 lemon and a dash of Pink Himalayan salt. This is the perfect hydration cocktail with the right balance of electrolytes and minerals. It boosts your immune function, fights inflammation and improves digestion.
With water in hand, I spend the next 10 minutes on meditation. My favorite is the Daily Calm, a daily sequence led by Tamara Levitt. You can find it on the Calm app; which I cannot recommend enough. The first part is a traditional, but gentle meditation. For the last few minutes Tamara reflects on the focus topic – which is a different each day. After, I spend a few minutes journaling. Sometimes reflecting on what she said and other times just a brain dump.
I also spend a few minutes reviewing my to-dos for the day and also updating my Health Tracker. This page is included in my journal. At first I found it tedious, but now I find this information incredibly valuable. Which brings me to the next point; tracking! If you don´t track it, you have no point of reference and then it is really hard to improve it. I track sleep, workouts, calories, steps, stress, heart rate and even my monthly cycle using a Garmin watch. I really wanted a Apple watch for a long time, but wasn´t willing to pay for it! I now use the vivomove HR, which is a fraction of the cost and does all the same things. Plus I love the look of it!
Finally, I get ready for my workout. This step wouldn´t be complete without some pre-workout. This is motivation in a cup. Seriously. If you are not feeling it, I promise it will give you the nudge you need to get moving. It is all natural and plant based! Plus it is another hack for getting 12 more ounces of water!
Last point I wanted to touch on is the Wing It mentality. If you have no plan at all, then your day-to-day is really just survival. With that said, it also does not have to be overwhelming or obsessive. I spend about 30 minutes each Sunday planning out my week. Top two things you must plan ahead? Meals and Workouts. If you don´t have the healthy ingredients how will you ever stay on track? You can check out my 5-day meal plan HERE. I also have access to hundreds of recipes through my BeachBody membership, and on their blog. Lunches are easy for me because I use Shakeology. This is the easiest most nutritious meal you can make. I rotate between three different options. Shake, overnight oats and a muffin. See a few recipes below! I also pick out 5 simple dinners for the week. I make sure to stock up on the ingredients I need on Sunday. Right now I am loving ¨bowl¨ recipes. Greek, burrito, hamburger. So easy to put together, full of healthy ingredients and totally delicious!
I also make a chart for my workouts. I add the chart you see here as a widget on my phone so that all I have to do is open my phone in the morning and then press play. Beachbody provides a calendar for every workout program. These programs are designed by professionals. It takes all the guessing out! I love the feeling of finishing a program start to finish. Paying attention to my body, learning about it, noticing how it feels and how it changes is a miraculous thing. I feel better now at 40 than I ever have in my entire life.
I really hope this gives you some ideas for Streamlining for efforts. What changes have you made this year? Do you have any 2022 hacks to share? What do you still need to work on? Let me know in the comments!
See you soon!
