I’ve always been a healthy eater and pretty active.  Wait. Let me take that back. I’ve always been conscious of the food I put in my body and the exercise I was or wasn’t getting.  If I gained or lost weight, I usually knew the culprit (probably the same ones for you).  And I’ve dedicated my career to encouraging healthy communities. Whether through behavior change or advocating for system changes that impact health outcomes, health is always on my mind.

But, it’s hard. Being healthy and all, right?

It doesn’t have to be. What you’re about to read is not a post about motivation and working hard. It’s about removing roadblocks.  I truly believe we are all inherently motivated to do good, feel good, look good. But sometimes, that flow to get there is blocked.  Here are some ways I’ve opened up the flow to being addicted to healthy.

1. Meditate. 5 minutes or 5 seconds. When I’m able to catch a few minutes of quiet, I like to meditate and allow my brain to just rest.  Sometimes I use guided meditations on podcasts, sometimes I use the quiet time in the shower.  

For encouraging a healthy lifestyle, I like to pose these questions to myself and visualize:

• How do I want to feel?

• How do I want to look?

• What does healthy look like for me?

• What does it look like for my family?

• What does it look like for my community?

• Help me find creative ways to inspire myself, my home, and my neighbors.

• I have everything I need to be successful; it has already been provided. Help me open my eyes to the boundless opportunities for success.

1. Habits.  The good. The bad. The ugly.  I encourage you to test them out and see what works and what doesn’t work. If implementing or getting rid of a habit, try to track any changes you might notice in your lifestyle or your family’s.

• For instance, I found that if I make it to bed around 10 pm, I feel more rested in the morning and more willing to work out before work.

• Or, how about this one – eating protein and veggies for lunch allows me to be more productive during the rest of the day. Those powerfully nutritious meals I was saving for dinner I now eat in the middle of the day.  Smaller, lunch-like meals got pushed to dinner when I’m more likely to eat late.

• That morning workout I mentioned? I found that working out in the morning gets my endorphins going and makes me a happier person. And guess what? That happier person is more wiling to make healthier choices during the day.

1. Circles. Networks. Friends. Family. Coworkers. You get it. The people we surround ourselves with can hinder or help in the blink of an eye.  And if we trust them? Oh man, their opinions and habits can be all the good or bad influence to change our healthy lifestyle (or lack thereof) intentions! Recognize the good influence and soak it up. It doesn’t mean you need to preach to those that may have been negatively impacting you. Use your power to understand who influences you and how, and decide how and when to interact based on your needs.  And…check yourself. How are you impacting those around you?! By modeling a healthy lifestyle, you could be the little push that someone else needs as well!  Win-Win.

Of course, communities are faced with many roadblocks that will take more than these suggestions to make them healthy. Just as you work on yourself, take time to work on your community. We’ll all be healthier for it!