Kimmy's 6-week Wellness Challenge

Thursday, July 30, 2009

Have you guys ever heard of the American Heart Association's 12-week challenge? Well, the basic premise of this event is to make 'lifestyle' changes one step (or one week) at a time. I completely agree with this principle; making major life improvements should start with small changes, so you're more likely to succeed. In fact, I challenge YOU to change you life now, starting today!

Not ready for the AHA's 12-week challenge yet? OK, how about Kimmy's 6-week challenge? Either way, using the following suggestion can help you stay motivated to complete whatever fitness and diet goals you may have.

Let's ALL do this. Find just a few minutes to sit down and write down a list of 6 things in your life that are preventing you from achieving the healthy body that you want and deserve. Be careful to list only those things which you have control over. List them in order from easiest to hardest. Each week, for the next 6 weeks, you will remove/add one of the those things to your "life." The important thing is that you choose things that you can stick to FOR LIFE. Do not choose something that is outrageous for your lifestyle (i.e. never eating bread). PLEASE...you'd be risking your life if you tried to pry my beloved garlic bread out of my hands. There are just some things a girl cannot give up. However, perhaps my goal would be to eat it only once per week. Again, please avoid extreme choices, or choices you have no control over. Also, remember they do not have to be major changes (the smaller the better). Choose things like increasing exercise and cutting back on the wrong foods. Please be detailed in your changes. The more detailed your changes are, the more likely it is you will stick to it.

Additionally, some items in your list may not necessarily be workout or diet specific. Maybe the first change you need in your life is more peace of mind or more YOU time. Sometimes, when your minds not right, it's not easy to take action. Perhaps, your first week will involve a mandatory 30 minutes of meditation or writing in a journal. This process can dramatically improve your stress levels, and you can increase the time as you feel necessary.

Once you complete your 6 weeks, celebrate! You did it! Now, it's time to make a new list. After completing 6 life changes, no matter how small, your views may change. That's why I don't want you to write down too many at one time. As the weeks pass, your changes/challenges will begin to get harder. That's the point....save the hard ones for the bottom of the list (or the next list). If you have to, split the hard ones into several items. OK, enough talk! Here's my first list:

Kimmy's Wellness List:

Week 1

Drink 8 cups of water each day (I've been bad lately).

Week 2

Do my neck stretches for 10 minutes each morning (neck injury; I'm supposed to be doing specific stretches/exercises twice per day...yes, I've been very bad). =)

Week 3

Spend 30 or more minutes at least twice per week to write in a journal or work on my book.

Week 4

Make time to do Bikram Yoga at least once per week (I haven't been in a while, and I miss it terribly).

Week 5

Eat three servings of vegetables per day (I could use more veggies and less fruit in my opinion :P ).

Week 6

Do my neck stretches for 15 minutes each morning.

Notice I listed neck stretches twice. It'll be harder for me to make an extra 5 minutes in the morning to do this, so that's another item for my list. Again, SMALL changes that you can actually stick to. Remember: Be creative and be detailed! Don't forget I am making these changes in addition to continuing the exercise plan I already have and other changes I've made in the past.

I will be checking on your progress throughout each week. Now let's go!!!