Health Tip #7

Back in health tip #1, I asked you to start a  start a wellness journal and write down your why for embarking on a new healthy living regime. In that same journal, if you haven’t started already, it’s time to start recording what you eat and how you feel throughout your day.  No one else need see this journal but yourself, so please be honest and record everything you eat.  No one is going to judge you for it, not even you!  Right?  Information is power.   I have found this to be an invaluable tool to find out where I’m on track and where I’m doing a lot of unconscious and emotional eating and when I’m eating for a pick-me-up, not necessarily out of hunger.  It’s a great way to examine your habits.  If I asked you, most of you would tell me that you eat a pretty healthy diet.  That’s that slippery mind thing again and the power of writing things down.  Most of us know how to eat a healthy diet, but we make little concessions all the time, “oh, just one, I deserve a treat, if I eat it quickly and if no one sees, it doesn’t count”.  Writing it down helps you stay accountable to yourself and on track with your goals.   It also helps you see where you might be sensitive to certain foods and notice dips in energy during the day when you go looking for caffeine or something sweet to bolster you up.  Please also remember to write down how you’re feeling as well, both physically and emotionally.  Are you bloated, gassy, achy?  Do you feel tired, irritable, sad?  The more information you record, the better tool your journal is going to be for you to make the appropriate and necessary changes to reach your goals.  And don’t forget to reward yourself for the things you did for your health and for your accomplishments, no matter how small. I add exclamation marks and happy faces for myself whenever I do something that is in line with my goals.  Remembering to drink my water, making myself a green juice or a smoothie, eating a big salad, working out, going for a hike or mountain biking in the forest are all things that get a smiley face reward in my journal! 🙂