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Lifestyle Habits for a Complete Life Renovation- Week 1

I never resolve to do things on January 1st, but when it’s time for a change, I start right then. I’ve been wanting to share some of my favorite tips and habits for a long time now to help on the path to a life makeover when you’re feeling stuck, but my worse habit is that I can never sit myself down and write when I have other things pressing on my mind. Today, I sat down and wrote. I think small habits that build up on each other over time are so powerful (and many agree- the popularity of books such as Atomic Habits proves that people want to make changes and improve their lives, and appreciate systems and incremental changes they can actually master). Most people want better health, great relationships, to look great, and mastery over their money, so each week I will focus on a habit in these areas and add to them each subsequent week for a total of ten weeks and 40 habits. There is something magical about the number 40 (40 days of Lent, 40 weeks of pregnancy, 40 hour work week, etc) and four small habits a week seems manageable when split up over ten weeks, so we settled of 40 stacked, progressive habits to a total lifestyle makeover!

Slow and steady wins the race, and following these step by step, adding on the next habits as the first are being mastered, is a great way to incorporate positive and healthy habits into our lives in a way we can sustain for the long term. If you already follow many of these habits or have accomplished some of these suggestions, you are ahead of the game… for the rest, it’s a great time to start!

Health

Water is the liquid of life, and we need to drink it daily to hydrate our bodies, sfasfd our circulatory system, keep our skin glowing, help move the lymphatic system along, and even keep our energy levels up.

One thing I notice is that sometimes people drink a lot more water than necessary. The 8 glasses of 8 ounces of water a day rule is for a male of about 180 pounds… petite females who aren’t very active really don’t need to force themselves to drink that much water. Too, if you drink water while eating your meals, it dilutes your stomach acid and your ability to digest your food properly (and you end up feeling bloated). Drinking a glass of water when you first wake up (you may be dehydrated from sleeping for hours), and again in midday, later in the afternoon, and about an hour before bed – always an hour away from eating food- may be perfectly fine for most women, and it works great for me. My skin is hydrated, I don’t feel sluggish, and my digestive system is moving along optimally so I feel good about that too 😂

Beauty

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I think most of us can agree that looking healthy is a sign of good health, and clear skin is a subconscious signal to the world that we are healthy. If you have adult acne or other skin issues, visit a dermatologist and see what can be done for it. It’s possible allergies affect your skin, or you are eating something that doesn’t agree with you and your body is letting you know via outbreaks. Take time this week to address any problematic skin issues that bother you or keep you from looking your best, and try to take care of it. You deserve it and if you’ve been putting it off, here is your motivation to prioritize your well-being and taking care of it!

Relationships

I don’t listen to too many podcasts anymore, but I used to listen to Dr. Laura Schlessinger a lot, and she had some incredibly wise advice over the years. One was “Choose wisely, treat kindly” referencing us being really careful who we choose to be our life partner, and once we found our great match, to treat them kindly… after all, they deserve it and we want them to stick around and be happy they chose us. Another piece of great advice from her is to wake up and think “What can I do today to make my spouse happy they married me?”, so for this week, a great habit it to look around at those whom you love most dearly, and each day think of what you can do that day to make them happy you are their mom, wife, daughter, friend, etc. You may find that by the end of this challenge, you have total relationship makeovers too ♥︎

Money

Start working on an emergency fund. I’m a big fan of Dave Ramsey, and think having money that is ready to go in case of an emergency is amazingly empowering. IF you are really struggling, strive to start with a $500 emergency fund. It will get you through emergencies such as a broken air conditioner or speeding ticket without having to go into debt. Since that is a brilliant first step in Ramsey’s baby steps program, I am including it here (but I have many of my own ideas that worked great for me so after this, I will be sharing those. You can find out more about Dave Ramsey’s tips to get out of debt here). Even if you have purchases you’d like to make or debts to pay off, it’s important to have some money on the side for a true emergency, and please don’t spend this money on a great sale item (even if it’s something you wanted for a long time- that’s not an emergency). We will work on those money goals in the future, but for today, start with gathering together your emergency fund of at least $500, but ideally between $1000 and $2000, and setting it aside in an easy to access place so you can get it if your car is towed, or you need to run to the pharmacy for medicine, or whatever your true emergency may be.

Start with these four baby steps to start to take control of your life in various aspects, and each week we will add on additional steps to progress to greater goals… one week at a time. Let’s get going!