The principle of going step by step is so important in health. We often forget how important it is. Health and well-being are journeys, not destinations. If we truly want successful and positive changes to occur, it is a good idea to remember this principle. Changing over to a healthy program or routine may not be the best idea. Our bodies fall into their routines and habits just as we do. This is true even when the habits aren’t so great. Look at smoking. Chain smoking for 10 years and then quitting cold turkey may be dangerous. Going from a terrible diet to a fasted juice cleanse may be dangerous as well. We need to give our bodies a little bit of time to adjust to our improved lifestyles. So how do we do this? The hardest step if probably the first step.
1. INVENTORY: Take inventory of where you are at currently. This is usually hard to do, especially if we don’t like what we see. To make true forward progress though, we need to be honest with ourselves and our abilities. This may include listing your perceived current level of health, fitness, weight, emotional stability, diet, and lifestyle.
2. GOALS: Create some REALISTIC goals. A lot of us create goals that are unrealistic for the time we want to achieve them. This often leads to abandoned goals. Small changes do add up. Maybe you just cut pasteurized dairy products out of your diet. Maybe you cut out gluten. Maybe you add juicing into your routine. Maybe you commit to walking every day. Think about things you can stick to. Don’t try to do too much and then fall off the wagon
3. ADAPT: Give your body and mind time to adapt to the changes. Try adding in a thing or two at a time and see what happens. You may feel better immediately. With other things, it may take more time. Let your body reach a new state of homeostasis before jumping in the deep end again.
4. LISTEN: Listen to the signs your body gives you. Maybe these signs are increased energy. Maybe they are cravings for a new food. Maybe they are signs to slow down. All of these are important to listen to.
Health is a lifestyle guys. There are no “crash-diets,” “6 week training courses,” or whatever else that promises good results in a short period of time. The ultimate problem is that our LIFESTYLE is the problem. That is the root cause. Let’s fix it step by step.
-JOE
Optimized Individuals 