You can immediately change what’s around you. This includes things like:
- Your daily routine
- What tools you have available to you
- The people you interact with
- What foods you have near you (or far away from you)
- Use smaller plates and cups. We’re often used to just filling the dish and eating till the food is done.
- If there’s a food you don’t want to eat, get it away from you. Don’t keep it in the house. Make it hard to get.
- Conversely, if there’s a food you should be eating, make it easier to get.
- Sign up for a CSA box so that fresh, healthy produce and/or organic meat is delivered to you.
- Have fresh, healthy whole foods on hand and prepared. If necessary, buy pre-cut veggies.
- If you have more money than time, consider signing up for a healthy meal delivery service.
- Put the TV in an inconvenient place or make the seating in front of it uncomfortable. Cut your cable package down so you don’t have 200 channels of junk. Or better yet, get rid of the thing altogether.
- Park your car farther away from where you’re going so you have to walk. Or sell the car and get a bike. (Check out Large Fella on a Bike to see an example of a guy who went from a near-death 501 lbs to a lean, fit 170 lbs after getting a bike and deciding to ride it every day.)
- Join a social group organized around activity: a class, club, or meetup group (e.g. hiking tours). Find a workout buddy. Surround yourself with people who are also working on their health, fitness, and nutrition.
- Organize your social events around activity — get a bunch of friends together in the park for some Ultimate Frisbee!
- Get a dog that needs walking — one that will chew up your couch as punishment if you don’t take it for a daily spin around the block.
You’ll notice that these tips share two features:
They make problem behaviors inconvenient.
They make healthy behaviors convenient.
Credit: Ali Hively; Fitness instructor here at The Wembley Club, and owner/founder of Kijia Living!
Wembley’s Club Coordinator. Passionate about pickleball, tennis, horses, fitness, along with many other things! Loves working for the club, and seeing the growth! Go Cavs!