2014 How to Live Your Best Life
Every year I strive to have a better year then the year before. There are just some things you learn ever year and I am always looking to grow and learn every year. I want to be the best version of myself all the time and I want to make sure I am challenging myself with goals that are outside of my comfort zone.
I wanted to share with you some things to keep in mind when trying to live 2014 as your best year yet!
Stop shoulding. You know when you say, “I should have done this, or I should have done that.” I am sure you know plenty of people that constantly say, “I should have said this or I should have done that.” When you are constantly living in the should haves you cannot fully live in the present. When you are continually second guessing your decisions or harping over them you take energy away from your next successes. Ok, so you ate the cookie or three that were staring you in the face. You continually to say “I shouldn’t have eaten that” will not change what was already done. You can only move forward and be more aware of it for next time.
Do what makes you happy. My motto is health and happiness and I am a firm believer that if it doesn’t make you then don’t do it. Life is too short to do things that don’t bring you joy. I used to say yes to things that I thought I should do because “that’s what a good friend does” but I decided that if doing it does not make me happy then it isn’t doing anyone any good to do it. I also feel this way about nutrition and fitness. Of course I believe that you should exercise or move daily and that good nutrition is extremely important but I don’t think you should do things that make you happy. If you hate the treadmill then don’t do it! Find another activity that you love to do. If you hate brussels sprouts then find a better way to cook them or try a different vegetable. Whatever you love to do in life and whatever brings you joy do more of it in 2014 and less of what you don’t like.
Take action. You could talk about doing something forever but the real courage is actually doing it. How many people do you encounter that talk about doing something they want to do and talk about it, and talk about it, and talk about it but never do it! I know plenty of people like that and it drives me nuts!! With all the time and energy you have spent talking about doing something you could have done it already. This year make it a goal to just take action. Whether it be going to the gym 3 times a week or going on that big trip you have always wanted to take. Stop talking and start doing!
Learn to receive. With all this talk about taking action sometimes we forget to just be open to receiving. We as humans are always doing, but we don’t always open ourselves up to receiving. Its the classic thing we do as a woman, someone pays you a compliment and says, “you look great.” and we usually reply by discarding the compliment. It is the year to start learning how to receive things coming to you and own it! Also, we are so used to asking our body to do things for us we forget to listen and receive from it. If we just took a few minutes each day to actually sit and listen to our bodies to learn how to receive information we would be on our way to living a more peaceful and happier year.
Fail. We sometimes look at failure as a bad thing but I tend to look at it as a learning and growing experience. If we didn’t take risks in life we wouldn’t grow and learn. Many people think about failure as the end but I see it at as the beginning to our learning. So many people tell me that when they go on a binge and eat something “bad” that they just think its an excuse to eat whatever they want for the rest of the day or week. Instead of thinking of eating a bowl of ice cream as a fat loss failure think of it as a learning experience. Take a few minutes to think about what actually triggered this response. Was it stress or maybe another emotion? Was it because you didn’t eat during the day and you grabbed the first food you saw instead? How can you remove the trigger? How can you have approached the situation in a different way? Was there a better choice then eating the ice cream and how can you change it for next time? These are questions you can ask yourself about any failure you may have. Look at it as chance to learn and grow instead of trapping yourself in the mindset that you are going to continue to fail.
Give gratitude. What would your life look like if you gave gratitude for what you have and the situation you are instead of complaining about it? You can look at any situation and turn it around with gratitude. Imagine if you started to love your body and give gratitude for it instead of beating yourself up for your faults. Start to think about approaching your fitness journey as a one of building strength instead of losing weight. Think about what you are gaining by being physically active and strong instead of what you are losing. Start approaching healthy eating as what you are doing good for your body instead what you are depriving your body of. It takes a whole new spin on things and makes you feel empowered.
What are you doing this year to make 2014 your best year yet? I want to know!
