Achieving health and wellness can seem impossible with the demand of daily obligations—work, family, school, and even church. But, I am here to tell you that it shouldn’t feel like a job or task added on to our long list of things to do. Wellness is a lifestyle and it looks different for every individual. That said, here are 5 tips to help you achieve your health and wellness goals no matter where you are on your wellness journey.
Tip 1: Reward/congratulate yourself!
- If you’re reading this, you’ve already made the first step, which is thinking of change and that my friend is reward worthy. You are at least thinking of making changes to improve your overall wellness. You’re probably wondering, how do my thoughts affect my wellness? Your mind and how you think is just as important, if not more than exercise. Your mind is very well connected to how the rest of your body functions. If you are thinking of change, you likely have a positive attitude towards change and improving your wellness. Positive perspectives are not only important to making sustainable changes, but it improves your overall quality of life. That’s a 2-in-1! Go on, pat yourself on the back! You deserve it!
Tip 2: Make small changes.
- Making small changes leads to big sustainable changes. Let’s talk about something along the lines of eating and drinking habits. Maybe drinking less soda (or tea, alcoholic beverages, artificial juice, etc.) is your wellness goal. Well first things first, when reducing the amount of soda you’re drinking replace it with water. For example, if you drink 3 sodas a day, try drinking 1-2 soda(s) a day and replacing those other one or two beverages with water. Then progress to 1 every other day, and eventually you will drink 1 soda occasionally. As you make those changes, your body will adjust and you won’t crave soda. You’ll actually want water more often!
Tip 3: Set SMART goals.
- SMART goals are Specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, time-specific. If you are intentional about identifying what exactly you want to attain and put a number to it, it makes your goal more likely to be achieved. As we discussed with small changes, you want to make sure your goal is attainable. Be fair to yourself and keep your goals realistic for where you are currently, in your wellness journey. Finally, give yourself a timeframe so that you can hold yourself accountable.
- When we know exactly what we need to do and when it needs to be done, we operate with more intention and drive. That said, you may benefit from working with a health coach to assist you in setting your health and wellness goals and providing you with individualized strategies to meet your goals. A health coach can also serve as your accountability partner and source of encouragement to ensure you meet your goals and sustain the changes that you make. If you are interested in working with a health coach, contact me with questions.
Tip 4: Give yourself grace.
- You are not perfect! You are on a wellness journey. Key word journey—journeys have highs and lows/ups and downs. If you have a bad moment, it is okay! Wellness is holistic and about what you do day-to-day overtime, not one instance. Be fair to yourself, but also hold yourself accountable to what you are trying to achieve. One bad moment doesn’t equate to “I had a bad day, so I may as well have a bad week”. If today wasn’t a good day or you had a bad moment, pick up the pieces and start over tomorrow! Taking this tip in conjunction with the other tips, you are more likely to make sustainable lifestyle changes. You have to find balance that works for you. FYI: You are going to see that balance, sustainable changes, and wellness journey are my favorite words. Let’s get to the next and final tip!
You are not perfect! You are on a wellness journey. Key word journey—journeys have highs and lows/ups and downs. If you have a bad moment, it is okay!
Jalecia Faison
Tip 5: Assess your lifestyle, eating habits, way of thinking, and exercise habits.
This tip is extensive and has its own blog post. That said, please go read Assessing Your Wellness Pillars for a full explanation of how to assess how you live, eat, think, and move.
- Assess what you do on a daily basis (how you live). Are your relationships positive? If not, what can you do to change them? Are you sleeping enough? Sometimes you have to put a time limit on work and school so that you can get adequate rest (7-9 hours of sleep/night). Even I have to check myself in that area sometimes. What do you do to feed your spirit?
- Assess your eating habits. Are you eating nutrient dense foods—fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, and oils? Are you eating less processed foods in comparison to whole, plant foods? If you are having difficulty achieving that, what can you do this week to work towards eating less processed foods?
- Assess your way of thinking. Our mind is closely connected to how our body functions. It is important to implement positive perspectives into our daily life to attain and maintain our wellness goals. Do you think happy thoughts? When you encounter situations do you think before you react? Often times, taking a moment to think about what you are feeling and why, can help you approach situations more effectively and elicit a more positive way of thinking.
- Assess your exercise regimen. What type of physical activity do you take part in daily/weekly? What can you do to improve or maintain your exercise regimen? Are your exercise goals realistic for where you are in your wellness journey?
- If you feel that you are too busy for exercise, start with an exercise snack—5, 10, 15 minute bouts of exercise.
- Establish an accountability partner (this could be your significant other, a family member, friend, or even a health coach).
- If you are interested in having a health coach assist you in meeting your goals or establishing exercise strategies, feel free to contact me with questions.
Wellness is multifaceted and looks different for all of us. These tips are not the end all be all, but are here to assist you in achieving your health and wellness goals. Remember wellness journeys are not perfect, it is our determination and motivation that matters most!
“Success is not final and failure is not fatal; it is the courage to continue that counts.”
Winston Churchill
When working towards your goals keep this quote in mind. Good luck in all that you endeavor!
Let’s LIVE Healthy + Well—Mind, Body, and Soul, together!
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Published by Jalecia Faison, CHC
Certified Holistic Health and Wellness Specialist | Student Physical Therapist | Health and Wellness Blogger View more posts
The Wellness Queue 