Fall in Love with your WHY.  

Why do you want to be healthier? Do you want to have more energy to enjoy all of the activity for fall fun? Football games and tailgating, adventures with the kids outside, movie night, girl’s night, or date night. Do you want to alleviate inflammation, pain, tiredness, or just break out of your current routine? Are you open to trying new foods, finding new ways to prepare the foods that fuel your body? Are you ready to take on a project, a class, an idea that you’ve wanted to try for a while? Do you want to be a better version of you and live your life the way you want?

Find an accountability partner or two

Invite friends, family, and neighbors to join your adventure. Make time for yourself even if they don’t. Remember why you are doing this. If you keep a personal calendar, go ahead and schedule the time you need. Talk to someone who can follow up with you and hold you accountable.

You can have more than 1 accountability partner. They can be onsite, go with you, and meet you at the park or the mailbox or the path. You will also want someone to check in with who will be strong and ask you questions that support your “why”. They will help to remind you that this is doable and you can get there. They will ask the tough questions while providing support. Once you tell someone you are going to do something and why, you tend to be more resilient.

Evaluate what works

Be flexible. Make changes and keep going. They only way to fail is to quit. There will be things that come up that derail your daily plan. You’ll miss a workout, the weather will cause you to change your plans, and you’ll go on vacation or take a day off and have an unexpected event overlap. All of this is fine. It’s going to happen. Let life be on the way, not in the way of what you want.  

Tip: most people plan to start an event at the beginning of the year, the month, the week. Keep in mind every moment is the opportunity for a fresh start. If you get off track on Tuesday, get right back on Wednesday. Don’t fall into the trap of “next week”.

Whatever it is that you want – to reduce your stress, to move your body more, to eat better, to change your environment – whatever it is, it’s for you. You are important; you deserve to try. Life is short and procrastination turns into dead dreams. Start small, be consistent and change your life!