You probably already know that a messy, disorganized home can make it very difficult to relax and unwind. What may surprise you, though, is that a clean and organized home can be just as stressful if you make the wrong design choices. However, most design mistakes are easy to fix.

First Things First

Your design choices won’t matter if your home is cluttered, so the first thing you need to do is get rid of the clutter. This is easier said than done because a messy home has a way of draining your energy and making you feel defeated before you even start.

The easiest way to begin organizing your home is to stop putting things down and start putting them away instead! Everything in your home should have its “proper place.” It probably won’t take more than a couple of extra minutes to put things away, and within no time at all you’ll see a HUGE difference.

Secondly, make a routine for your chores. It can be as simple as doing laundry on Tuesdays and Fridays, and deep cleaning on Sunday afternoons. Once you get into the habit of doing this, you no longer have to think about it.

Knick Knacks

Filling every inch of your home with knick-knacks can make your home feel cluttered, even if everything is in its proper place. Think about it, a few extra pillows on the couch can feel cozy, but…if you overdo it, you’ll constantly have to arrange them or pick them up off the floor.

A better way is to only display items that make you happy or you really love; learn to love empty space.

Prints

Okay, now that we have that out of the way, let’s talk about design for a few seconds. Having too many prints/pictures in your home can make it difficult to create a pleasing thematic design. However, you can successfully mix multiple prints if you follow the 60-30-10 rule. The dominant print should take up 60% of the home décor, the secondary print, 30% and the accent print only 10%.

Smells

Life stinks! Toddlers, pets, and messy teenagers can leave your home smelling more like a frat house full of sweaty athletes rather than the soothing oasis you’d hoped for. Although you might get used to the smell(s), this doesn’t mean they’re not stressing you out on some level.

Fresh flowers, scented candles, and essential oils are all easy ways to get rid of bad smells, even those that you no longer notice. It’s a lot easier to unwind in a room that smells like fresh lavender than one that smells like dirty socks.

Lighting

A badly lit home is stressful. Natural light has a way of making you feel happier and boosting your energy. So if your home has windows, use them! However, if your home is not as well-lit as you would like, invest in a couple of nice lamps.

Colors

You might be drawn to bright colors like yellow and red, but that doesn’t mean they’re the best colors for your home. It’s much easier to unwind in a blue or white room than a red or yellow one. There’s also scientific evidence that calming colors can reduce your blood pressure and make you feel sleepy.

We all want a relaxing home where we can unwind after a long day. With the above tips, you can change a stressful home into one that brightens your mood and replenishes your energy.

The post Does Your Home Stress You Out? appeared first on Lifestyle.

When you’re trying to break a bad lifestyle habit, routine can be your friend and your enemy. Eating healthy foods and exercising regularly is challenging in the beginning but if you stick with it long enough, it becomes a habit and you go into autopilot mode.

The Challenge

Having big health and fitness goals is great, but can be overwhelming. Think about it, a goal to “give up sugar for 30 days” sounds more achievable than a goal to “be healthier.”

The easiest way to break bad lifestyle habits is through small incremental changes. When you make a small change every day, you hardly notice that something is different.

The Science

Science says that it takes a little over two weeks to break a habit, so if you want to unlearn the old habit and learn a new one, you must be willing to commit for at least 30 days. This is not to say that 30 days is some sort of magic line that makes you immune to your old ways, but it’s a good place to start.

There are three distinct stages that make up a habit: cue, routine and reward. The cue triggers the routine. For instance, stress can be a cue for cravings. When triggered, you automatically go into routine mode and start doing things to satisfy the craving. The satisfaction you get from doing this is the reward.

The first step to breaking bad habits is identifying the cues, routines, and rewards associated with them.

New Routine

While it’s possible to avoid the things that trigger bad habits, it’s much easier to replace the current routine with a new one. This way, it’s a lot harder to go back to your old ways when you inevitably hit a rough patch.

The first step to changing a routine is to come up with a specific plan. For instance, if your goal is to go to the gym more often, sign up for a class.

Secondly, plan to tackle one small goal every week. Science shows that it is impossible to change multiple habits at once. So don’t try to give up sugar and bread and eat more fruit and vegetables all in one week. Do one thing at a time.

The changes should also be incremental. If you give up sugar for one week, don’t reintroduce it during “fruit and vegetable” week. You would continue limiting your sugar intake while adding fruit and vegetables, because this way you don’t lose any ground.

You can have the health you desire by using incremental micro changes to break bad habits and transform your life one day (or one hour) at a time.

The post Break Any Bad Lifestyle Habit in 30 Days appeared first on Lifestyle.

And if you’re married, your partner can make or break your healthy lifestyle! He or she can inspire you, offer encouragement, and provide accountability, OR discourage you and make your goals seem unachievable.

Here are some tips on how to get your family and friends to support your new lifestyle.

Find Your Biggest Fans

Healthy eating and fitness can be deeply personal; not everyone needs to know about it. All you really need are a few close supporters with whom you can share your progress.

Think back to the last time you made a change in your life. Who supported or motivated you?

Alternatively, is there someone in your life who is living a healthy lifestyle? Does he or she inspire you?

Share Your Reasons

As you change your lifestyle, don’t be surprised if you get some questions or criticism from friends and family members. If that happens, don’t be defensive or launch into a lecture on why healthy eating and exercise are good for you.

Have an honest conversation with them and explain why you’re adopting a healthier lifestyle. Saying something like “It makes me feel better, I have more energy or I sleep better” is more sincere (and convincing) than regurgitating scientific facts.

Share Your Struggles

Changing your lifestyle might trigger feelings of inadequacy and shame in the people around you. They could start feeling that you think that you’re better than they are – which isn’t true. The trick is not to allow emotionally charged situations with your loved ones to either shame or guilt you into quitting on yourself.

Just be honest and let them know that this is important to you. Share honestly about how hard it is to make the changes you’re making. This might make them feel less intimidated or jealous. Who knows, it might inspire them to make some lifestyle changes of their own.

Be the influencer, not the influenced.

Ask for Support

Let your significant other and the rest of the “chosen ones” know that you would appreciate their support. Be specific about what you need.

For instance:

• Ask them to be open-minded about your new eating, exercise, and sleeping habits.
• Ask them to accommodate your food choices by buying food or going to restaurants that are compatible with your new eating habits.
• Ask them to share a meal with you every once in a while.
• Ask them not to pressure you to “have just a taste” if you decline their offer.

Plan Ahead

Always plan ahead to avoid putting your friends and family in awkward situations. If you’re attending a social event, bring something that you can eat. If you’re going to a restaurant that isn’t exactly in line with your health needs, suggest a different restaurant or plan how you will modify the meal to fit your needs. Be positive and cooperative, and everything should be just fine.

Not everyone will agree with your healthy lifestyle or support you…but that’s completely okay. All you really need are a couple of genuine “fans” and a little practice on how to confidently explain to your friends and family why you choose to eat and live healthy.

The post Get Your Family and Friends to Support Your Healthy Lifestyle appeared first on Lifestyle.

It’s no surprise that most people fall off the wagon at least once when they begin changing unhealthy habits.

Sadly, many people wrongly assume that slipping up means that they lack willpower and should give up on healthy living.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Don’t beat yourself up…
Stop beating yourself up for giving in to your cravings. One slip-up doesn’t mean that you’re weak or weren’t in line the day God gave out willpower. And it certainly doesn’t mean that you’re a failure or have blown it; those guilty little voices are just your confirmation bias speaking.

If you fall off the wagon because you’re stressed or dealing with some other negative emotion, beating yourself up only makes things worse and could lead to a full-blown relapse if you’re not careful.

So treat yourself the way you’d treat someone in a similar situation. Would you criticize a close friend for giving in to his or her cravings? I didn’t think so.

You’d be supportive and would encourage them to get back on track! Right? So embrace your humanity and shower yourself with kindness and compassion!

Learn from the experience…
Your slip-up could be a sign that your new lifestyle is too restrictive or that you don’t have enough support. To succeed, find the perfect balance between challenge and comfort.

An extreme lifestyle change may be appealing but it is less sustainable.

If you suddenly give up ALL your “comfort” foods and go on a very restrictive diet, your body will hate it (you) and revolt!

It’s better to make a few changes and stick with them than to completely modify your lifestyle and keep falling off the wagon. Just start with the basics like less processed foods and sugar, more vegetables, and exercise, and work your way up from there.

Climb back onto the wagon…
If you fall, get up, dust yourself off, and keep going!

Try not to think of it as starting over because that only makes things harder. What if it were treated as a learning experience instead?

For instance, just because you had fast food for lunch doesn’t mean you can’t have a healthy dinner. Also, just because you haven’t been to the gym in a week doesn’t mean you can’t slip on your sneakers and go for a run today.

A weekend binge or one week without exercise doesn’t negate all of the work you’ve done so far. It doesn’t define you either.

Falling off the wagon is only a BIG deal if you make it one. You’ve got this. So don’t let a tiny bump in the road become a roadblock to your personal success.

The post It’s Okay to Fall Off the Wagon! appeared first on Lifestyle.

This doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy a healthy lifestyle just because you don’t have a big budget. It just means that you have to be a little more creative with your food purchases and workouts.

1. Healthy Eating on a Budget

Healthy food doesn’t have to be expensive. There are ways to keep costs down without compromising your health.

Home-cooked meals

The easiest way to cut down on food costs is to make more meals at home. In fact, home-cooked meals generally score higher on the Healthy Eating Index than restaurant meals and takeout.

The trouble is many people don’t even bother to eat healthy because they assume it’s expensive. This isn’t true.

For instance, you can make about 10 servings of rice from a $2 bag of brown rice. That’s about 20 cents per serving; No restaurant can beat that price.

Some cheap and healthy ingredients that are available at just about any store are frozen vegetables, potatoes, canned beans, dried lentils whole wheat pasta, and, of course, brown rice.

Organically grown

If you prefer organic food, you’ll be happy to know that most “organically grown” fruits and vegetables are just as healthy as the “certified organic” ones.

Many farmers grow food without using pesticides and chemical fertilizers but haven’t been certified by the US government – mainly because certification is very expensive. Such food is labeled “organically grown” and is a perfectly healthy substitute for certified organic food.

Discounts and Coupons

Discounts and coupons are an easy way to save money on groceries.

There are tons of websites on the Internet that compile information on discounts and coupon codes. You can sign up for their newsletters and receive regular emails to help maximize your savings.

2. Working Out on a Budget

You don’t need a gym membership to workout.

Try to find a budget-conscious (cheap) boot camp that is held outside and requires little or no equipment. You can burn up to 600 calories an hour without having to spend a fortune.

Alternatively, find out if the community centers or parks in your area offer any inexpensive or free classes that you can sign up for. Even if there aren’t any classes there’ll probably be a free tennis court, swimming pool, or recreational space that you can use.

Another affordable (cheap) option is to simply take a walk or go for a run. There is no greater motivation to stay in shape than how you great you feel AFTER a training session outside in the fresh air.

However, if you would rather work out at home, consider buying used gym equipment from Marketplace.

A healthy lifestyle doesn’t have to cost a fortune. If you really want to be your healthiest you, don’t let cost stand in the way. Just get a little creative and think outside the box!

The post A Healthy Lifestyle Doesn’t Have to Cost a Fortune appeared first on Lifestyle.

The truth is, it’s really hard to shake bad habits for healthier ones. It’s why gyms are full come January 2nd and empty by February 1st!

Humans just don’t like change.

In fact, your brain is wired to sabotage any sudden behavior change – even if it’s good for you.

According to your brain, the fact that you survived yesterday and the day before is evidence that what you’re doing is working. And there’s absolutely no reason to fix something that isn’t broken.

But have hope because you can do it!

You just need to understand how your brain works so you can “trick” it into making healthier choices.

It’s a Marathon Not a Sprint

When people decide to adopt a healthier lifestyle, they tend to jump right into the thick of things and start making drastic changes.

If the goal is to work out regularly, they suddenly start going to the gym for hours every day. This causes their brains to sabotage the process.

Remember: When it comes to lifestyle changes, it’s best to dream big but start small.

Make small incremental changes until you get to where you want to be.

Start with a small step and repeat it until it becomes a habit that you can do on autopilot – even when you’re not in the mood. Then, move on to the next small step.

It’s the Little Things

It’s fun to daydream about how you’re going to lose 50 pounds or run a marathon.

The challenge with such life-changing dreams is that they trick you into biting off more than you can chew, leading to overwhelm, frustration and discouragement because you’re doing too much at once.

Set your goal(s) and choose “mile posts” of achievement along the way.

Maybe you set a mile post of achievement for each two pounds that you lose; you get the idea. You can apply this concept to anything in your life that you decide to change.

When you do this, you’ll have mini-victories along the way as you make progress towards your big goal.

Embrace the process of “little” wins.

Focus on your progress no matter how small because progress = a healthier direction.

Progress = a better life.

Accountability Buddy

Holding yourself accountable is hard, so get an accountability buddy!

An accountability buddy helps you to stay focused on your goals, inspires and encourages you to keep going.

It can be a friend, family member, or spouse who knows your goals and isn’t afraid to be honest about how you’re doing. It can also be someone with similar interests who is happy to walk with you on your journey to a healthier lifestyle.

Remember that momentum is your greatest asset when you’ve decided to make a lifestyle change. So start small because once you get going, there will be no stopping you!

The post Your Brain Is Sabotaging You! appeared first on Lifestyle.

How well do you know yourself?

Are you living your life or the life someone else expects you to live?

Self-awareness requires soul searching. So here are five great tips for getting to know yourself better so you can start living an epic life in 2022.  

Tip #1: Be Still

When did you last sit alone in a comfortable chair without any distractions? No phone, tablet, TV, or computer. Nothing. Just you and silence. Quiet, meaningful, uncomfortable self-reflection.

Being alone with our thoughts and feelings is difficult; the mind is untamed and the heart wild. 

Unplugging from the external world to plug into the soul is uncomfortable but necessary, perhaps even disturbing, and a bit messy. 

Still, it’s an essential step in the process of getting to know thyself. 

So be brave. Take time to be still and listen and observe yourself. Think of it as a form of mindfulness meditation where you focus entirely on the present moment.

Tip #2: Ask Friendly Questions

Talk to yourself as you would a friend. Give negative self-talk a vacation day. You can resume beating yourself up tomorrow if you’d like. But today, give yourself a little grace. Be kind. Show empathy. The best way to do that is by asking self-discovery questions to be acquainted with who you are at your core. 

Write your answers on post-it notes and put them on the wall next to your bed or bathroom mirror. Or write them in a journal. Experts say journals are one of the most effective tools of self-awareness.

These are important questions to ask. Take all the time you need to answer. Don’t be surprised if it takes several days; it’s worth it.

• What are my core values?
• Who’s my biggest role model? Why – what do I admire about them?
• What makes me feel safe? Or Who?
• What are my short-term and long-term goals?

Tip #3: Identify Your Strengths

You were born with a set of gifts, talents, and strengths. Nestled somewhere within is your superpower. Combined, they are a glimpse into your calling; you are here for a purpose. 

Realizing what you’re good at is essential to the journey of discovering who and what you are. It’s empowering!

Focusing on your strengths boosts self-confidence and increases your drive to achieve more. It points your energy and attention in a certain direction where you find yourself saying yes to what gives you meaning and no to that which takes your further away from who you are and your calling.

And let’s also remember that it’s just as important to discover what you’re not good at. Eagles are good at soaring high but would lose every time in a foot race with a Cheetah, or even a slow, three-legged dog, for that matter.

Lean into your strengths. Prioritize your time, energy, and effort around what you’re good at. 

Don’t worry if it isn’t clear all at once. It’s okay if the picture of “you” is a little fuzzy. Give yourself permission to try different things. Through trial and error, you’ll identify what you’re good at and what you should steer clear of.

Interestingly enough, your strengths will almost always align with your core values. Together, they will help you navigate your life path at home and work.

Tip #4: Discover Your Passion

Now that you have an idea of what you’re good at let’s find out what excites you. What makes your soul feel alive? What do you enjoy? What do you love? What would you do for free? It can be one thing or twenty.

Passion fuels your purpose and strengths. It gives your life meaning and challenges you to achieve new goals.

Passion is positive energy; it ignites your soul and life’s work. It drives you to grow and unlock your best life, to have, do and become more. Without passion, you’re not really alive. There are far too many people on this planet “fueled” by complacency. Don’t ever let yourself be one of them. And if you are one of them, let this be the day you came to life.  

Tip #5: Determine Your Sense of Style

This might not make sense but let’s talk about fashion for a second. Your style is an expression of your individuality. It gives people a glimpse of who you are; it’s an insight into your likes and interests. Figuring out your style boosts self-confidence.  

Sort your wardrobe. Keep what you feel is a true reflection of who you are. Donate anything that doesn’t make you feel attractive and confident.

For inspiration, check out fashion styles online and in magazines. Pinterest is great too. Find a style you feel is a reflection of your true self. Have fun!

This form of self-care does wonders for your self-esteem. And you’ll feel good and look amazing! 

In Conclusion

Know thyself to live an epic life in 2022. Use these five tips to start excavating your true self that might be buried under other people’s wants, needs, and expectations. 

You don’t need anyone’s approval to live YOUR life! Spend time in self-reflection to become acquainted with who you are so you can finally start feeling comfortable in your own skin. 

Prioritize your time, energy, and effort around your strengths and passions.  

When you know who you are and what you want from life, the only thing that can hold you back is you and your imagination. 

So, be bold and dream big in 2022 to unlock YOUR best life!

The post 5 Tips To Know Yourself In 2022 & Live An Epic Life appeared first on Lifestyle.

You won’t unlock your best life until you make your life a priority.

What Matters Most

Being an “influencer”, wearing designer clothes and traveling to exotic locations are wonderful experiences but they won’t make you happy or healthy because happiness isn’t something to be found somewhere out there or in another person.

Something else besides chasing relationships, status and possessions that keeps people from unlocking their best life is obsessing over what they’ve lost or don’t have.

Do you want to unlock your best life? Then here’s what you should do:

1.     Decide What Matters Most to You

Find a quiet place for thoughtful reflection; observe the different areas of your life… your health, relationships, finances, career, spirituality, passions and hobbies, etc.

Are there areas of your life demanding more of your time and attention than you should be giving? Sometimes life happens and you don’t have a choice. But have you been neglecting important areas of your life because you’ve been tending to stuff that’s “urgent?”

Are there any areas you’d like to give less time to? Anything you want to make more of a priority? Look, you’ll never be happy ordering your life around other people’s priorities.

It’s your life. Live it.

To have a life that you actually enjoy living requires making these a priority (maybe you can think of others to add to this list).

• Full health in mind, body, and soul
• Relationships
• Finances
• Growth and learning
• Shelter and basic needs
• Purpose, passion, drive
• Faith

At the end of the day, gaining material possessions or achieving success has little to do with what matters most, they might add to your happiness or pleasure in some way, but happiness has deeper roots; we unlock our best self by focusing on what really matters most to us.

2.     What YOU Like / Dislike Matters

Does your life matter to you? Are your likes and dislikes important? They should be because you matter. What you care about and want to do are important – just as important as what anyone else wants. Remind yourself that you’re a person of value and worth. Love yourself. Once you love yourself you can love others in a way that isn’t needy or forces them to make up for your emotional deficiencies.

Being at peace with yourself and actually liking who you are keeps you from seeking external validation, affirmation and approval. You should never have to prove to anyone that you measure up and are worth loving. Why? Because inherently you already measure up and are worth loving whether anyone recognizes it or not or says something to the contrary.

Give yourself some love – be kind, caring and forgiving to yourself.  When you look in the mirror remind yourself of the good qualities of the person looking back at you. Affirm yourself. Be a great friend to yourself. Focus on the good rather than the imperfections!

3.     Savor the Here and Now

Spending too much time in the past or future triggers worry, regret and anxiety. What matters most is right now because it’s the only moment you have the power to change!

Embrace the world that’s happening around you right now. Time is a precious gift to be appreciated. Every minute matters because time = life.

How much have you been savoring life? What are some blessings for which you could be grateful right now if you so chose?

4.     Pursue Passions

What are some passionate interests you’ve been putting off? It could be anything from training for a Spartan race to diving the Great Barrier or volunteering in your community.

Pursuing your passions and creating memories make life worth living. Want to rid your life of stress, busyness and overwhelm? Then bring things back into balance by pursuing your passions! Enjoy. Your. Life!

Embrace new experiences. Have fun. Laugh. Cry. Serve. Pray. Live! What matters most is living a fulfilling life. Pursuing passionate interests makes life worth living.

5.     Make Positive Choices & Habits

Time for a little math: Good choices + good habits = a good life.

Making better choices that enhance a healthy mind, body, and soul, creates a good life.

Create routines and rituals that take care of your life and support your overall well-being. Stay true to your beliefs, standards and values. Be committed to your dreams and what matters most to YOU; tune-out what the media says should matter most.

Be confident in who you are choosing to become because the kind of person you want to become is important.

Your thoughts and how you treat yourself matter because thoughts create choices, choices create habits, habits create character, character creates destiny. So be optimistic and focus on the positive.

Final Words

This post isn’t a substitute for books on how to identify what matters most; it’s just a gentle nudge. To unlock your best life, decide today to start giving more focus and energy to what matters most to you because you are important.

Remind yourself that other people won’t always agree with you on what should matter most for your life; it’s simply not as important to them – it isn’t a priority. Or their interaction with you might be driven by what they think is best for them, not you.

Either way, it’s your life and you only get one. Show yourself some love by being true to yourself and living life on your terms. Focus on what matters most.

Photo by Bart LaRue on Unsplash

The post Show Yourself Some Love appeared first on Lifestyle.

According to surveys, most people give up on their resolutions by the second or third week of January and resign themselves to the “realities” of life.

The fiery passion that ignited the New Year fades into a weak flicker that dies in days.

Leading the list of resolutions are health and fitness goals, for most people. Ads are everywhere for discounted gym memberships, waived fees, and new diets that promise you will lose those holiday inches in just days.

But you know how it goes because you’ve seen it all before. The gym is full in January and empty weeks later.

But you can make your fitness goals come true – you can be an exception to the statistics this year. Here’s how.

Be Simple

Making things overly complicated kills motivation and progress. Don’t over think your diet, workout clothes, or even your workout routine.

Have as few moving parts as possible.

Which is better, a complicated workout routine you struggle with and quit weeks later, or one that’s simple and easy to stick with?

Same with your diet; don’t make it complicated. Eat healthy most of the time but enjoy your favorite foods some of the time. It’s about balance and enjoying the journey.

When it comes to fitness goals, the secret to success is consistency, not perfection. So choose a workout and diet you can stick with.

Be Realistic

Transforming your body isn’t an overnight process despite what the infomercials promise. Those professional fitness models took more than a few months to sculpt their flawless bodies into perfection.

So don’t believe the hype that “All it takes is fifteen minutes a day, three times a week!” Hey, fifteen minutes a day three times a week is better than nothing, but it’s probably not enough to get the results you see in those ads.

Transforming your body takes time. So create a process that you can enjoy by setting realistic goals you will stick with.

Start small. You might aim for two to three workout a week, and avoid your favorite junk foods five days a week, allowing yourself a few treats on the weekend.

Own Your Why

Transforming your health and body is about consistency. And the reality is, some days you’ll feel like doing it, some you won’t, but you have to do it anyway.

The fiery motivation you had at the first of the year will die down, which is why you need more than inspiration to keep you going. You need a strong reason to keep you moving forward when you’d rather be sitting on the couch after a long day at work.

Some strong reasons include having more energy, being stronger, maintaining functional independence, looking and feeling good, losing weight to lower the risk of chronic disease, and boosting longevity to have many more quality years of life with your loved ones.

Own your “why” because it keeps you going when you feel like quitting.

You absolutely can achieve your fitness goals in 2021 – or at least get closer than last year. If you don’ want to be back at square January 1 next year, remember to create a fitness plan that’s simple and easy to stick with, set realistic goals, and own your why to stay intrinsically motivated on the days you feel like quitting.

Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay

The post How To Stick With Your Health & Fitness Resolutions In 2021 appeared first on Lifestyle.

Take fitness, for example. The gym is packed at the beginning of January, but not so much by the end. Sound familiar?

Why do people give up on their resolutions so soon? Usually it’s because their goals are either too vague, aren’t sustainable, or they have unrealistic expectations.

Here are three ways to achieve your fitness goals in 2021.

Go Small 

Baby steps. Everybody says it. And you’ve heard it a million times before. Boring!

Listen, I get it. You’ve bought the perfect pair of shoes, several gym outfits, and headphones to go with your shiny new gym membership. You’ve even planned a week’s worth of meals. Good!

For some people, taking massive action is just what the doctor ordered. For others, after a few days, it feels like a wrecking ball is smashing their life into a million pieces.

Making a fitness resolution is a commitment to changing your lifestyle. You won’t stick with any change you can’t live with. Small changes keep you on course.

You don’t have to be in the gym six or seven days a week or eat bland meals and eliminate junk food altogether to see massive changes.

Keep it simple; make it enjoyable. Workout 2-3 times a week, and save your ice cream and brownies for the weekends. Don’t be miserable!

Go Long

Are you looking to transform your body overnight? Want six-pack abs by next Friday? Well, there’s probably an infomercial for that, especially this time of year. Do yourself a favor and don’t buy into the hype.

Unrealistic expectations leave you feeling discouraged and burned out.

The truth is, transforming your body takes time. Sure , you can start losing weight this week, but it takes a couple of months to transform your body, maybe longer depending on the shape you’re in.

Fitness is a long game; it’s a process that takes time and effort. But that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be enjoyable. The people you see in infomercials or on magazine covers spent a lot of time getting their bodies to look like that.

So what if it takes two, three, or four months to start seeing the results you want? What’s better, that it takes a little bit longer to see results, or never?

Do your best to have a realistic understanding of what you’ll have to do to achieve your health and fitness goals. This approach, going long, makes sticking with your resolutions easier.

Enjoy

Consistency is a secret to success. And enjoyment is a secret to consistency.

If you enjoy your fitness journey, you’ll stick with it. But if your diet and exercise routine are unpleasant, you won’t stick with them.

Don’t choose activities and foods that make you miserable!

Have fun and enjoy life! Someone said it’s about progress not perfection.

Embrace the process of transforming your lifestyle; stay the course with small changes; keep the long game in mind because this sort of thing doesn’t happen overnight – but it DOES happen. Before long, if you stick with it, you’ll have the body and health you’ve been dreaming of year after year.

Photo by Jonathan Borba on Unsplash

The post Achieve Your Fitness Goals in 2021 appeared first on Lifestyle.