Success Breeds Success

You have what it takes to be successful.  There are things in your life that are working very well and you can name what those are.  What is it that makes it work?  Is it because you plan, strategize, focus, have a support system in place and/or because you enjoy it?  What are your motivators that make you successful and what are the strategies you have in place when obstacles get in the way?  We all know about those obstacles!


Creating healthy habits in nutrition and fitness is no different than how you plan for and tackle any other project.  If you have been thinking about making a change in this area, there are processes you are using in other areas of your life that you can use to create sustainable behavior change in your diet and exercise habits.  All you need is one in a row...just like in business.  One in a row sets you up for your next sell, your next success, your next negotiation, your increased confidence and your swagger. Success breeds success, and all you need is one in a row.  

What I am going to ask you to do is easy...yes...easy.  It is easy because you are choosing something that you know you can achieve. It is specific and actionable.  Only you know what works for you.  It is the change that will make you feel invigorated and inspired.  You only need one in a row, because one in a row turns into two in a row; and we are taking this one day at a time.  

Below is a list of 50 ideas you can choose from, or create one that works for you.  State what you will do aloud, not what you won’t do. Then write it down so you can see it everyday.  Choose one positive, healthy and achievable change that you know will make you feel better and even more amazing than you already are!  Start today.  Share what your plan is with your supporters and know your strategies for success when obstacles get in the way.  It can be as simple as drinking one glass of water when you think you are hungry and waiting 30 minutes before making that decision.  That one extra glass of water is the life giving resource that you are made of.  That is a big deal if you know you need to drink more water.  Start with one extra glass per day and that is one step toward a healthier you. 

It doesn't need to be a big change.  It needs to be a meaningful change (to YOU), and a step in the right direction.  The goal is sustainable behavior change, and that, most of the time, comes with small steps.

1. Do 10 pushups as soon as I wake up
2. Drink 1 glass of water before I leave the house for work in the morning
3. Keep a glass on my desk at work and drink two full glasses of water from it; one in the morning and one in the afternoon
4. Pack a piece of fruit everyday, so that when I get hungry, that is what I will eat
5. Pack my lunch and include a fresh vegetable
6. Eat my sandwich open faced, therefore only eating one slice of bread
7. Have a side salad instead of chips
8. Replace whole milk with 2%, or 2% with 1%, or 1% with 1/2 % or skim (fat -free).  You get the picture...animal fat reduction in baby steps
9. Replace the butter on my toast with fresh avocado spread thin and lightly salted
10. Replace the mayo on my sandwich with avocado
11. Replace the mayo in my egg salad with avocado
12. Eat fresh blueberries with sliced bananas and strawberries with a little yogurt for breakfast, or any variation of this
13. Try a banana and no more than 1 T of REAL peanut butter for breakfast on the go 
14. Switch out morning pastry with something healthier that you like (even (real) peanut butter on whole grain toast and a little jelly is healthier) or sliced fruit on top instead of jelly
15. Go straight to the gym after work twice a week 
16. Wake up 15 minutes earlier so I can do my pushups, planks, sit-ups, squats and jumping jacks in sets of 10’s or 20’s or whatever works for you...for 10 or 15 minutes
17. Replace my glass of juice with 1/2 water, 1/2 juice until my taste buds enjoy water with only a splash of juice
18. One cup of green tea a day instead of something less healthy that I typically drink
19. Steam my vegetables and toss lightly with olive oil and salt instead of a less healthy way
20. Cut up fruits and vegetables and have them accessible in my fridge so when I am hungry, that is what I can eat
21. Have a vegetable salad of any kind in my fridge at all times. I realize my need to have  healthy choices available and ready to eat
22. Go for a walk with my kids or spouse after work or after dinner
23. Read a book instead of hitting the pantry late at night, or a magazine, or anything but the pantry :)
24. Buy whole wheat bread instead of white
25. Learn to love a new fruit or vegetable, by trying it more than once 
26. Pack one small handful of nuts and put it in your purse for an emergency and portable, healthy snack
27. If I am starving when I get home at the end of the day and that hunger makes me overeat, I have learned to have that handful of nuts on the way home so that I can joyfully prepare a healthy dinner and eat healthy portions
28. Replace soda with green tea, coffee, water with splash of juice, fizzy water like Perrier, even emergen-C for a taste (5g sugar- not as bad as a soda), or find something that satisfies with less sugar than soda, NOT fake sugar...those are chemicals
29. Replace butter called for in recipes with olive oil
30. Make one day a week vegetarian
31. Split that burger with your friend, and each of you add a side salad, skip the fries
32. Split any meal with your friend 
33. Plan not to look at the menu before you walk into a restaurant and decide that you are ordering a salad topped with salmon or grilled chicken
34. Eat a side salad before your meal; eat a salad as your meal
35. Eat slowly and thoughtfully, enjoying every bite.  This is nourishment and fuel for your mind and body and lifts your spirit (Think..."I am taking care of myself!")
36. Choose at least 5 colorful foods a day, or at least one more than you did yesterday
37. Add spinach to your scrambled eggs
38. Buy frozen fish, it is easy to thaw, fast to cook and low fat (broil, bake or grill in minutes (can be as simple as olive oil salt and pepper))
39. Learn to make a salsa fast- open a can of black beans, cut up red /orange/yellow bell peppers and add olive oil, red wine vinegar, cumin, salt and pepper, lemon squeeze if you like- put that on your fish!  Add mango if you like.  
40. Make a fruit smoothie for breakfast, snack, or before bedtime
41. Have hummus in your fridge and cut up veggies for a snack (2T of hummus only!)
42. Change my routine that triggers my bad habit
43. Join a yoga class
44. Start a walking “club”.  You and a friend counts-the buddy system rules!
45. Read a book on healthy foods and let the one thing that rings true for you be the thing you change
46. Instead of a sit down meeting with a colleague, have a walk and talk meeting
47. Buy a whole grain I haven't tried that is packaged as itself and learn to cook it (ex: Ingredients: Brown rice)
48. I will buy and prepare whole grain oats rather than instant (flavor with cinnamon and fresh fruit or raisins...it is fast and easy too)
49. I will eat fish twice a week 
50. I will start my day with a whole foods breakfast, and not processed foods

Go for one in a row today!  Then again tomorrow.  Success breeds success and you can do it!




Health Inspires.

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