Why do we want to complicate things so much? I feel like often, when we are approaching a problem, we create drama where there doesn't need to be any. Because this exists in our daily life, it's no surprise to me that this leaks into the way we approach health. Instead of just making the choices that we should make, we make a litany of excuses as to why this supplement is going to help us feel better. Or why this diet is the best and will change your life. Or that it's just not the right time to start a new diet or exercise routine.
So often we think that bettering our life is this huge complication when really sometimes it can be the smallest of things. That's why I LOVE to remember and get my clients going on K.I.S.S. - Keep it simple, stupid. Maybe not the nicest thing, to call you stupid, but if you kept it simple I wouldn't have to! (LOL)
KISS is a great reminder that the barrier to entry can be super super low. And really this is where change can start to take effect in the easiest way. If you are looking to get healthier think of something really low barrier that you could do on a daily basis that would move you in the right direction. Here are some examples:
Currently eating a lot of processed food? Commit to eating one meal a day that has no processed food in it.
Need to get more movement in? Commit to walking 10 minutes a day (broken up however you need to).
Working on improving a technical skill? Commit to working on it 5 minutes a day.
Want to spend more time outside? Commit to spending 5 minutes a day outside.
When you read these things, I'm sure you were like, "But those are so easy!" And that's the whole point! Having a low barrier to entry allows you to make steps in the right direction without feeling like it's impossible. Often we set these HUGE goals and then when we fall short of them, we feel like a failure and then we cease to make any progress in the right direction at all. We throw the huge goal out the window and immediately lapse back into our previous ways.
What you find is that setting these little micro-goals boosts your confidence and gives you more trust in yourself as you stick with them. Trust in yourself allows you to build on top of these goals. The point is to build slowly, over time, creating habit and routine, until things are just a part of your life and you don't remember really when it switched or making a huge effort towards that.
Sometimes coming up with the first step can be difficult because when it's been something you've wanted to change for awhile, you can only imagine the big leap to get you there. If you have trouble breaking it down into smaller pieces, shoot me a message and I would love to help you brainstorm your first step. When you come up with that first step, commit to that change for the next 30 days. After you've embedded that behavior into your daily routine, adding a little bit more to it for the next 30 days doesn't seem so hard. In fact, it feels easy.
Everyone has SOMETHING that they can work on or something that they want to work towards. I encourage you to take that step by KISSing it, make a little micro goal, and then stick to it for the next thirty days. For me, I am working on not overeating. After all this time, I still have trouble with binge eating. Something that helps me with that, is logging my food. I am currently on a ketogenic diet so I'm logging my food anyway, so to add just that little bit more to it, to help me move in the right direction, is that I will commit to for the next thirty days, not going over my calorie allotment by over 200 calories.
What can you do? Come on, join me and let's KISS! ;)
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