HEALTHY INTERRUPTED

OK SO TWO WEEKS INTO THE NEW YEAR AND I'M SEEING A WHOLE LOT OF PEOPLE MAKING THE DECISION TO START PUTTING HEALTH FIRST.

Very typical for January. What's also typical are interruptions, distractions, a crisis, a celebration, etc. Just when you think you've finally got yourself organized to, “Let's do this!” (whatever “this” is for you) the car breaks down and needs an expensive repair, or your hours change at work, maybe your kids get sick, someone comes to visit, the neighbour needs you to dog-sit...this resonate with anyone? And you're sitting there thinking, “What the heck happened?”, when you had things so nicely planned out and coordinated, right? It's called life.

Life happens. And in case you haven't figured it out yet, it's going to keep happening, the good and the not-so-good. We can't control the things that happen to us, but we can always control how we react to them. Even when it comes to our health.

When you first think about those little, or not-so-little interrupters, most people see them as just an annoyance. An inconvenience at having to reschedule everything. But do you really have to postpone, put off, push back, reschedule or cancel? I think not. Because those little interruptions are part of life. And if life is going to keep “happening”, you've got to make a decision. You can be at the mercy of life's interruptions, or you can decide not to let them distract you from the things that matter, the things that are important. I was at a workshop years ago and the presenter said something that stuck with me. He said, “The important things in life are often bullied and regulated by the urgent things.” And it's true.

So how can you get started and stay on track with your health journey even when life is happening around you, to you, at you? Simple. You go all in at one percent. The one percent rule is powerful because it allows anyone to get started with anything, anytime and not fail. Because I believe that everyone can do at least one thing, one percent better tomorrow than they did today. This is works especially well when life is happening to you and you're the “all-in” sorta gal/guy.

When it comes to health, one percent can be drinking more water, parking farther away from the door when you shop, taking the stairs, eating a balanced breakfast with protein when you'd normally just have coffee... you get the idea. It allows you to not put off making health a priority. To get started and keep going even when, well you fill in the blank.

Some of you may be wondering what's wrong with actually waiting until the storm passes and then diving in full force, fully committed, no distractions – it's GO time. Well, nothing really. Likely that's how it will work for a lot of you, and that's awesome. But for those of you who are wondering when or even if the crazy will stop, the one percent is for you. Not gonna lie, it will take you a little longer to hit your goals, but if you never start you'll never hit them.

Health is a journey. I like to think of it like a family vacation road trip. You've got everyone packed up, ready to go, jump in the car, cruising down the highway, nice sunny day and then driving through some small town you hit road construction. Traffic is moving slow and you can see the detour sign up ahead. You know it's going to add another hour or so onto your driving time, but you take the detour and you arrive at your destination a little late, tired and hungry. But you made it. Your health is like the road trip and your body is the vehicle that drives you through life. On the family vacation, you wouldn't throw up your hands in frustration, turn the car around and take everyone home just because of a detour, right? Same applies to your health.

As long as you get started and just do one percent better everyday and not turn that car around, you will get there. You will reach your health, weight, fitness, goals. And you'll be able to keep them. Because by making a decision to get started and not letting the urgent things bully and regulate your health goals, you're also creating healthy habits that stick. And that's always a win.

If you're ready to get started, you're invited to join 8 Weeks is All it Takes on Facebook where Tania and the group will be living the program right along with you.