This past month, we were able to learn from some world class leaders and speakers. One of which was Dr. Josh Axe.  He had so much great information to share, but I wanted focus on something he touched on that I think would be beneficial to many people.

When you make the decision to make a healthy lifestyle change, such as: starting to exercise, or changing your eating habits, it can be extremely overwhelming. We find that sticking to these changes can be difficult, thus inaction and paralysis sink in, making us feel like we are back at square one. As this cycle continues to repeat itself, we tend to believe that we are incapable or unworthy of making these positive changes, and we end up becoming victims to our circumstances.

This is the point where many people tend to settle. You can recognize this type of inner monologue when you find yourself trying to justify why you are no longer sticking to your goal with reasons like: “I can’t workout as I just don’t have the time… Gyms are too expensive... I don’t know how... I would love to eat healthier/organic but____(insert excuse here).”

In order to bring these negative thoughts to a halt, a change in pattern must occur. I recently had a conversation with a very wise and powerful person. They said “If you need to eat an elephant, do it one bite at a time.” What she was referring to, was finding a way to avoid this state of paralysis and regression by tackling change one step at a time. When we rewire our thought process this way, change becomes far more manageable.

Dr. Axe had some great advice on this topic. His suggestion was to “just change breakfast!” If we can create a new habit, no matter how small it may seem, and we can maintain it over time until it becomes a norm for us, then we have succeeded. By just creating a healthy breakfast habit that we can maintain every day, we have managed to change 1/3 of our daily nutrition. When you think of it that way, that small change can lead to huge success! We can apply this method to other aspect of our life such as: changing lunch/dinner, starting to exercise/walk 10 minutes every day after dinner or over lunch, etc. As that change becomes a habit, you can continue to develop it over time by introducing new challenges such as: adding more time to your walk, or changing to healthier options for multiple meals throughout your day. Use Dr. Axe’s advice to build habits and lifestyle changes that you have always wanted to achieve. Remember, change is possible!

Your Crystal Lake Chiropractor,

Dr. Josh Young

Crystal Lake Family Wellness

P.S. If anyone is curious about exactly what I eat, install the MyFitnessPal app on your phone, and then look my food diary up at: JcYoung1985. That way if you're looking for healthy options, even just for breakfast, check it out!