Guest Post: Stepping Into A New Way of Living

I’m back again! I mentioned in Monday’s post that I would be back two more times this week. Today I am here to share a very exciting guest post with you! Our guest blogger today is Sarah from There She Goes. Sarah and I met in Okinawa and have decided to exchange monthly series on one another’s blog. I’m contributing to her Flavorful Friday series (check out my first post here) and she is going to be contributing a monthly post about being active since that is a huge part of mindful living! I’m so excited to have Sarah here today .

Hi Everyone! My name is Sarah and you can normally find me blogging away at ThereSheGoes – where I talk about anything and everything that has to do with running, eating, and being an active adult female. Today, I am so happy to be guest posting on Kristen’s blog and I hope her readers enjoy my post.

I met Kristen through an online Bloggy Boot camp we were both participating in and it seems that we really hit it off! We were both living in Okinawa, Japan – her cousin actually put us in touch (who was also in the boot camp) – and we met for lunch…and that’s it! We’ve had a bloggy friendship ever since!

For most of us…a healthy lifestyle is just something we talk about. It’s a vague concept that we idealize and rationalize into this life we just can’t attain. It seems like the moment you make the choice to set your sights on shaping up, eating healthy, and living “healthy” you are bombarded with 50 different “methods” that all promise quick, fast, and amazing results!

Well, I’m here to pull the Vail back from the face of advertising on lifestyle scams! My rule of thumb for all of these books, videos, magazine ads, etc. is, “If it sounds too good to be true it most likely is!”

This motto has helped me keep my perspective on what will really work and what won’t. In reality – making the right choices are always the hardest ones. You have to not give into your inner cravings, go for that walk when you’d rather watch Oprah, and choose your calories wisely.

How can we make a change in our lives? Day-by-day and one issue at a time!

After spending an entire year training for a marathon I have learned so many things about myself – and that is what you will learn too. Anytime we push ourselves out of our comfort zones and attempt to change our lifestyles – we do just that – we learn about ourselves.

I recommend starting with the lessor of all evils for you. Lets say that eating healthy is easy for you but exercising is not. Let’s start with your daily caloric intake. Start a food journal and really be honest. Don’t just eat super healthy for the days that you plan to journal – eat what you would normally. After a few days of this take a good look over your notes and see what one area seems to be the unhealthiest. Is it breakfast, snacks, dinner? You see where I am going with this.

In the beginning of making any change – you need a few wins to set the pace of your willingness to make changes daily. If you had started with the hardest thing for yourself – well, you probably would have already tossed your hands up and said, “This is too hard!”

After you get enough small wins under your belt (and eating healthy always makes you feel better) then tackle the motivation to get moving. Even if you start with a video on YouTube to test your aptitude for exercise – give it a try! I’m not saying to rush out and get a gym membership – those things are over rated!

Start by walking 2 nights, days, evenings, etc. every week. If you are embarrassed to walk your neighborhood – stop at a park on your drive home from the store or work that is outside of your neighborhood. Now – I don’t want to set you up for defeat here – so make sure you at least get a good pair of shoes. This is usually a small investment in the large scope of things BUT it makes all the difference as to whether you will enjoy your walk or not!

After a week or two start going more frequently and for longer periods of time. Don’t worry about distance at this stage – just set a timer or glance at your watch from time to time and try and walk for 30-40 min each time. Eventually you will want to incorporate a little bit of strength exercises (weights) but that will come later.

Remember – It’s all about the small daily decisions we make adding up to make our lifestyle choices in general.

QUICK TIP – are you the type of person who isn’t shy about making change? Need some accountability but don’t have a workout partner? Then start a FB page about your goals. I know a girl who started her “GOALS” FB page titled with her name. She made it a secret group and only invited people who were very positive in her life. She told us all what her goals were and what her plans were to achieve them… and she checks in with the group several days a week. We all ask her how she is doing from time to time or post tips or fun videos of motivation to keep her smiling!

You can give the page a fun name and add fun photos of yourself working out – or your “before” photos and then every so many weeks or months post another picture of your progress.

This would also be a good forum for exchanging recipes with friends and family and sharing the things you are learning. You could also add people who you think might need some motivating themselves…show them that if you can do it – so can they!

YOU CAN MAKE YOUR LIFE HEALTHIER AND BETTER WITH SMALL DAILY CHOICES!

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