Health and Happiness
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Currently - this is a topic very close to my heart. Every little habit, behaviour change, lifestyle choice I am making at the moment, I am doing with the thought of my health (in particular, my long term health) in mind. And I have never been happier - health leads to happiness, and happiness leads to health, they follow each other and they are multi directional. I do not believe you can have one without the other.
As soon as I stopped living my life for the way I looked, I honestly felt like a weight had been lifted. Yes, I know some people have lots of weight they want to lose, and if they are significantly overweight, this is important for them, but this does not need to be done in a restrictive way, in a stressful environment with immense pressures.
It is all about little habits each day, to get you to the big picture. Implement habits that seem so easy, it would be harder not to do them. For example if you never eat veggies, do not just try and eat an entire days serving in one go and force it down, this is unsustainable and will not last. Eat a tiny stalk of broccoli, or use spinach as a garnish. This is so easy, you won’t really notice it, and therefore it will be sustainable.
Whatever your goal may be, small attainable steps. The journey is going to be longer, but trust me it will be so worth it. I am honestly basing my whole business around this - around health, and long term, impactful behaviour changes. If you want a quick fix, go find someone else - and when you lost - then gained all the way back, and you are reconsidering your choices, then come find me! Because you need to be ready - we are in this for the long haul, whether your goal is fat loss, muscle gain, strength, happiness - all the above, this is not going to happen overnight. Let me tell you right now, if you are embarking on a “health” journey, and it is not making you happy. It is not a health journey.
Right now, I am not focussing on anything aesthetic - it is no secret my main focus is getting my cycle back. I don’t want babies but I don’t want to run into issues in the future with my fertility, becoming at risk of dementia (as it is hereditary in my family) or get brittle bones (all very possible if you have ongoing amenorrhea, so please don’t ignore it). For this to happen, I need to eat a lot, and stop overtraining. Now this may sound like heaven to some people, but to me it is a bit scary as I love to work out - but I force myself and go OTT when I am not recovered and I over reach my potentials - does this make me happy? no. It makes me exhausted and forces the whole thing into a chore, then getting extra hungry and not allowing myself to eat, all of this, making me miserable, all for a figure that looks no different to my body now.
I am eating a lot (all healthy-ish), I don’t feel the need to go OTT on the sweets, I exercise when I want and FEEL like it, maybe its two times a week, maybe four (no more than four at the moment). I have never felt stronger, sexier, more comfortable in myself. This is all helping me to feel less stressed, focus more time on the things that are really important to me aka my clients, my boyfriend, my dog, my family & friends. I am not afraid to go out and have a good time and order whatever I want. I have been sitting below maintenance basically forever, and its not healthy, and I was not happy!
Find yourself a lifestyle you can stick to - it may take you a long time to reach your goals, but trust me, when you get there you are like “oh that’s it” - it is not WORTH the restriction, the stress, the binge, the fatigue. Trust me, when you get there you just want more anyway. So make the journey enjoyable, and focus on happiness and health - remember you simply cannot have one without the other. And if you do not have either of these things, is what you are doing really worth it?