How to add more Health and Fitness into Your Daily Routine

It’s easy to say we all want to be more healthier and exercise more in our daily lives. But sometimes life is just too crazy. I defiantly know how this feels, working full time, toddlers, house chores, it can be so demanding. However I’m here to talk to you about easy ways to bring more health and fitness into your daily routines with out feeling burned out after a week, or left feeling overwhelmed.

My household has been embarking on a little journey of being more mindful about adding more healthiness into our routines each week. What better time to share?! Matt is trying to loose some weight and eat better. Personally, I’m trying to keep active to bounce back quicker from having my third baby. (Another reason for a crazy house hold). But if we can come up with an easy schedule, so can you.

P.S I suggest saving this post so you can come back and review as you are embarking on your new health journey!

1. PrePlanning

It seems over excessive to preplan but trust me it helps. What are you looking to change? Are you focusing on just exercises? Or just the meals side? Maybe you want to do both like my family is. Whatever your thinking it’s great to take some quiet time to get organized and focus!

Take Time to focus.

Writing down some ideas and goals is a perfect way to begin to make yourself accountable. There’s something magically about that pen hitting in the journal paper. (At least for me) Once it’s on that paper it’s like a sacred pact; you begin to shift your intentions because your focusing more than just a thought on it.

Try to be within reason during this stage. Your goal might be to do something that is not within your reach yet, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take steps towards it! Keep this stage small and simple, remember the goal is to not overwhelm you.

2. Create a Schedule

Personally, I find this step tricky. Create a schedule that’s going to work for you, not a schedule that is extremely life altering. If you want to having lasting results, you need to start slow and stay consistent.

Changing your daily routine drastically will throw you completely off track. It creates chaos, and makes you feel overwhelmed. A routine like this won’t last, you’ll mostly likely only be able to do it for a few weeks before crashing. We’ve all been there, so if this was you recently, it’s okay. Try again.

Personally we try to focus on three nights a week for exercising. Our main focus has been walking. (Perfect for pregnancy) We do 30 mins to an hour. We have a lot of woods trails where we live so the kids can roam safely, and we sometimes take the dogs. This timing also works best for us because our youngest child is 2, I can’t expect him to walk three miles, the main idea is; we are getting out and active in some way.

CDC Recommends 150 mins exercise daily.

According to the CDC, an adult requires 150 mins. of exercise with a recommended 2 days for muscle strengthening. I know my goal (and maybe yours) might be less than this recommendation. The major point; you’re creating a life style change whether you realize it or not, this takes time and a steady foundation to stay consistent. Just because your schedule currently doesn’t equal 150 mins a week doesn’t mean you’re not successful, it means you’re adjusting your routine to fit you . I always like a guide line, so finding a reputable resource I feel can also give you a guideline of how often you should create your schedule.

If you can’t decide what to focus on and think you need to spend money on a gym membership or personal trainer, I’m here to tell you that you don’t! There are tons of free resources out there! Some of the ones I use are Heather Robinson, Pregnancy and Postpartum TV, Yoga with Adriene (all free resources I use without affiliate marketing). There are tons out there, take some time to do an internet search.

3. Creating Meal Plans

If you are on the flip side and are just focusing on meal plans, then this is for you! I personally struggle a lot with having a lasting meal plan, but I’ve been getting better each week I plan!

Create a meal plan that fits you

I have all too often created weekly meal plans of meals that I actually didn’t care for thinking it would benefit me more. DON’T DO THIS. I ended wasting most of the food. My intention was heart felt, I wanted to eat better nutritious food, but reinventing the wheel?, Let’s not. Find simple meals that work for you.

If you are completely new to cooking then I suggest prior to meal shopping sitting down with some paper and your internet device to search the web. My favorite place is Pinterest for this type of thing, but you can choose where ever. Look for meals where you can batch cook so you can have a day in the kitchen to pre-make meals for the day ahead. This also saves you time each night to help you get out there and get active! (See how this connects together?)

Here are a few of my favorite websites I used recently: 31 Cheap meal Recipes You’ll Love and 47 Sheet Pan Recipes foe Easy Clean Up both by AllNutritious.com. Personally I enjoy simplicity and both of these posts AllNutritious put out were where it’s at for me. (Please note, I am simply sharing, no affiliate marketing is happening)

4. Put Your Planning to the Test

At some point it’s time to stop with the planning and just do the thing! Put your schedule to the test! Pick a day, a week, the beginning of the month, whatever, and just begin! Your goals are your own, no one else’s, remember that as you embark on this journey.

commit for a minimum of 21 days

21 days, commit your schedule to. Why? Because as experts have said, for an individual to create long lasting habits it is best perform whatever the commitment is for at least 21 days. This is also about a month so it gives you enough time for trial and error. It also gives you time for reflection. Life is absolutely going to happen during this time and you might even come to your first hurdle before the 21 days are up. Keep track of how you navigated that time, what you did to adjust your schedule.

5. Review, Reflect, Replan, Repeat

You’re here! The 21 days are up! I always love when people share their health journey with me! I find it empowering when people are courageous enough to change their lifestyle.

Sit with a quiet open mind and your journal, or where ever you wrote your plans on and check in with yourself. It’s a great time to journal at this point. Write your successes, your triumphs,

• How did the 21 days go?
• Were there any struggles?
• How were you able to navigate your schedule during your hardship? ( if there was one)
• What changes do you need to make for the next 21 days.

If you fell off the wagon prior to the 21 days, I’m here to say; It’s Okay. I’ve fallen off plenty of times, what matters is getting back up and trying again!

I truly hope you find empowerment and comfort in this post. Becoming healthier can be challenging, I’m here to tell you it doesn’t have to be! If you want to check out more on mindfulness, visit my post 5 Easy Steps to Becoming Mindful. As always Share, Like Subscribe. Blessed Be.