I’ve spent the first half of this year dialing in my habits. Although I’m impatient as hell and want results yesterday, I know that great things take time, particularly if you want to sustain the results.
And I’m no longer interested in easy-come-easy-go results. It’s just not worth it to me.
So I wanted to share the top 5 changes I’ve made (and stuck with) this year so you can steal my ideas or get some inspiration for your own fitness journey.
The best part about them is they are all simple. Complexity kills, and I find I get better results from the things I can do consistently.
It’s a “small hinges swing big doors” kind of idea.
Enjoy!
#1 – Drink a BIG glass of water first thing in the morning.
We all know we need to drink more water, and few of us get enough. If you’re anything like me, your top priority when you wake up is coffee.
As my wife will attest to, I’m useless and incoherent until that first drop of that delicious bean-juice hits my mouth.
So despite what my brain craves (caffeine), I force myself to drink a big cup of water (roughly 500mL) while my coffee is brewing to help me hit my water intake goal of about 3L/day.
#2 – Morning Journaling
One of the best ways to make sure I “win my day” is by starting with something I can control. I used to poo-poo journaling, and in the last year or so it’s really grown on me.
It’s helped me set my intention for the day, and I find it’s a keystone habit that keeps everything else on track.
Plus, I can do it while I drink my aforementioned coffee, so it’s a double-win.
Here’s my template (that only takes 5 minutes to do)
- 3 gains (aka wins) from yesterday
- 3 things/people I am grateful for
- My #1 focus for the day
#3 – Don’t miss twice
Missing workouts is inevitable, despite our best intentions, and although I own a gym I’m also a human. I get sick, I get tired and irritable, and things don’t always go as smoothly as I planned.
One of the best ways I stick to a routine is my golden rule of “never miss twice”. It’s simple – come hell or high water, don’t miss 2 workouts in a row.
Feeling under the weather on a Monday and can’t work out? No biggie – my next one just has to be unavoidable.
Out of town on a long weekend? I enjoy myself, and the next workout is non-negotiable (even if I have to do it at a cottage).
You get the idea. Sometimes that means I work out on a day I don’t want to. Sometimes it’s at a time I don’t want to. Sometimes I only get half a workout in.
But I don’t miss twice.
#4 – Post workout smoothie
I like to work out around 11am, and after a workout I really need 2 things – my second coffee for the day, and some food.
So instead of eating a bowl of my son’s honey nut cheerios while my coffee brews (I love junk cereal), I’ve swapped in a protein shake, and I make it in less time than it takes my coffee to be made.
Here’s my recipe:
- Roughly 8 ounces of water
- 2 scoops of LSFW protein powder
- 1 cup frozen fruit – usually the mixed berries from Costco, but mango is good too
- 1 spoonful of greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon of psyllium husk
It gives me about 65 grams of protein (1/3 of my protein goal), is only a few hundred calories, and I get 1/4 of my fibre intake.
#5 – No screens of any size in bed (no exceptions) and no screens within 1 hour of bedtime
Katja and I used to be in the habit of watching a show on our laptop in bed every night, and we both found we were hitting “next episode” far too frequently. Our sleep suffered, and it just wasn’t the quality time we wanted to have together.
As the incredible Coach Pam has said your bed is for 2 things – sleep and sex.
So we went cold turkey on screens in bed, and we both feel less lethargic, well rested, and more energetic in the morning.
I still like to wind down after a long day, so I bought a Kobo to replace my TV time with reading and have read about a book a week this year. It’s rekindled my love of getting lost in a tremendous sci-fi or fantasy book and I’m happier because of the change.
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