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If you’re not seeing progress when comes to your weight-loss and lifestyle goals, it’s time to check up on your daily routine. Changes are seen when a person consistently acts in a way that encourages those changes and this only happens when they build a strong daily routine.
A daily routine will look different for each and every person as we all have different circumstances and schedules to factor in. But ultimately, you want a routine to prepare you for the day ahead and create a positive domino effect for the rest of the week. How does a person go about creating a routine that supports their efforts to change?
Start by examining your current routine. Ask yourself: Is what I do each and every day making it harder for me to do what I need to to reach my goals?
Narrow down the activities and actions that are wasting your valuable time and energy, like excessive TV watching and social media browsing. Make another list of activities that are non-negotiable, such as time for family, exercise, and meal prep.
Once you have these lists written out, you can build a template of what a realistic, daily, routine would look like for you. You will more than likely rework this template a few times because life is not always ideal and no two days are ever the same.
What could changes to our routine look like in real time? If we are finding that we don’t have enough time for meal prep during the week, we can start to look for ways to make that a priority by cutting out other activities that aren’t as important.
If we are feeling exhausted and need more time to sleep, we can schedule our day so we can get to bed at a time that allows us to get the sleep our body needs. These are just a couple ideas of changes that can be made to a person’s routine. It’s important to look at your own personal circumstances and goals to see where you would like and/or need to make changes.
Our daily routines include everything from what time we wake up, when we eat our meals, when we spend time with family and friends, plus every activity in between.
There’s a lot we need to factor in so start slow and easy when incorporating changes into your routine. This means starting with one tweak at a time and progressing from there.
An overnight transformation of your routine is not impossible but most likely not sustainable in the long run. What we ultimately want to create is a daily routine that we can rely on and consistently carry out. In turn, this will create momentum that will help us reach our health and lifestyle goals.
Caitlyn Harbottle is a Peace Region nutrition coach. For the original column, click here.