Chances are you made at least one "New Year's Resolution" about something diet-related earlier this year.
Well--how's it going? Hmmm....?
Judging from the abundance of fitness equipment on display at our local Costco when I went in January, most of us made resolutions to lose weight. Or maybe it's just that the marketers know that we need to after all those Christmas cookies :-)?
Anyhow, I know I often have grandiose ideas of how I'm going to make improvements in my life. I set a goal--only to fail, get discouraged--and give up.
Well, ladies--it's time to get back on the wagon today.
And I promise...it's doable.
It's pretty easy to read about whole foods and healthy eating and feel completely overwhelmed. You know--you read a blog where the owner bakes only with whole grains and makes only sugar free desserts (uh, sounds like me--sorry)...
And instead of feeling motivated, you end up feeling like a failure, or like going out and eating a large Snickers bar or a 1/2 gallon of ice cream (no, I've never done that....ahem.)
Well, the truth is, I didn't become a "whole foodie" overnight.
In fact, when I met my husband, my idea of a healthy snack was Jelly Bellies since they were fat free :-).
All of our changes were made little by little. Looking back, I can't believe where I was uh....that many years ago :-). You can check out my About Me page to learn a little more about where I've been (but I do need to spruce that page up a bit.)
Small steps are good. In everything.
And I still have bad diet days.
My adrenal fatigue and blood sugar issues have made it so that I for sure don't eat a bunch of sugar these days, but I do get tempted to make some bad decisions some all days.
We all need help making right choices and giving grace (to others and to ourselves) when we don't do it right.
(The inspiration for these tips came partially from the great book, Rebuild from Depression by Amanda Rose. Couldn't put it down.)
Small Steps to Healthy Eating
1. Make a favorite meal a bit healthier than it was before.
2. Make one better choice for your pantry the next time you grocery shop.
3. Say "no" to that next cookie, chip, spoonful of ice cream when you're not hungry (right now I'm fighting nighttime munchies BIG TIME and am accountable with a friend. It helps having to "fess up".)
4. Choose one item from the "Dirty Dozen" list and make a choice to buy the organic version.
5. Cut the sugar in half for the next sweet treat that you make (or I can teach you how to go sugar free!)
6. Make a healthier beverage choice one day like Homemade Sugar-Free Lemonade, Coffee Substitute--or just plain filtered water!
7. Try a homemade version of one packaged food. How about:
Little by little, you can incorporate good decisions into your life--and eventually you'll look back and say...
Wow! Look at what a difference little steps make!
It's like that saying about eating an elephant.
"How do you eat an elephant?
One bite at a time"-- right?
And no, I don't know anything about where to get good elephant meat :-).
(By the way, my son picked out the photo for this post from a myriad of elephant shots. He liked the "family one.")
What's Your Next Step?
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/_mrs_b/4717427429/
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