Over the past few weeks (or has it been months…) I have put forward a few basic fundamental ideals towards a healthy lifestyle. Need a refresher? Water, walking, vegetables, the occasional bought of sweaty resistance exercise, to try new things, increase the incidental exercise and of course, to be kind to yourself.

So often our minds know what to do, but our bodies seem to let us down. Our intentions get over-ridden by impulsive acts of satisfaction that don’t always support our plans.

Who of you can resonate with the ‘I’ll start on Monday idea’ or ‘tomorrow will be easier than today’? I sure have. Things will be easier, I will make better choices and I will be on my way to a new me. I will do this, that and the other flawlessly and keep on going all the way to perfection. Ha!

But, honestly, perfection doesn’t exist and there has to be an easier way to make progress then that mentioned above. Going bull-at-a-gate restricting nutrition, exercising 2 hours a day will only lead to burn-out and ultimately, failure. So we need to discuss habit change. Why do we perpetually set our bar so high? The sound, sustainable way to change old habits or to make new ones is – slow and steady, one at a time. Habits, once engrained shouldn’t take up mental space – they should be subconscious and require little to no effort. In the beginning you will need to set yourself up with some small wins and acknowledge those victories over and over until they become a part of who you are. One habit at a time; one day at a time. Fully aligned with who you are and where you want to be.