Working Mom's Principles for Fit and Healthy Living
Since I started this blog a year and a half ago, I've been frequently asked by friends and strangers why I've been doing it and what it is about. These questions really force me to revisit what it is that I want to convey through my blog (check here to learn more about me.)
The main message that I want to share with the community is that healthy living is something that ANYONE can follow. All you need is to identify a few key principles that define healthy living for you and that you can make work for your daily routine. Whether your hands are full with multiple jobs and family members, or you are always on the road for work, or you can't afford gym membership, you can still live healthy. You don't need to spend 24 hours a day in your kitchen cooking healthy meals or in the gym lifting weights, but you do need to have a desire and dedication to living a healthy lifestyle.
It’s more than food or fitness, it’s the lifestyle
My blog is not about fitness or food in particular. It is about living healthy, which relies on balanced nutrition, exercising and self-care, among many other things. And my mission is to help my readers and followers to live healthier by incorporating some simple hacks and tricks into their everyday routines.
While my posts don’t come from years of nutrition and physiology research, they are backed by real life experiences of a working mom of two kids (me). I started accumulating my 'healthy living' principles during my single years, before family and kids. Later on, I continued nurturing my healthy habits and creating new life hacks and tricks through both of my pregnancies and motherhood. These principles really help me feel balanced and deal with stress, feel good about my body, about the food that my family and I eat, and the lifestyle that we follow. And when I do feel out of balance or not motivated to make healthy choices, I remind myself of those principles. I hope you can use some of these tips and tricks in your life and benefit from them.
Healthy Eating Principles
First and foremost, healthy food has to be tasty! I am a big believer that healthy eating should be tasty. Otherwise you will never stick to a diet long-term. If you want to make a healthy dessert, make it also tasty (it might not be tasty for everyone but it has to be tasty for you!) Otherwise you won't get the satisfaction from it and sooner or later end up binge eating the whole cake.
Healthy food also has to be balanced. I don't believe in eliminations as they create cravings. If you want to eliminate something from your diet, make sure you find a good replacement. For example, if you want to avoid sugar, find a sugar alternative that you can use instead so that you can still enjoy sweets and desserts every now and then.
Add variety to your home cooked meals. For example, buy 1 new vegetable every week and then rotate those newly introduced produce items every 4-5 week. Or try one new recipe every week.
Be more creative with some healthy meals that are commonly perceived as boring. For example, if you eat plain oatmeal every morning, you'll get bored of it quickly. But if you top it up with some fun add-ons, such as nuts, seeds, fresh or dried fruit, honey, nut butters, etc., you can create different variations every day. The same applies to eating plain yogurt with healthy toppings instead of sugary one, or making really creative, filling and nutritious salads instead of boring ones.
Our taste buds evolve and can be developed. I'm sure that not everyone will enjoy a burger in lettuce instead of a bun as much as I do, but I am also positive that everyone can enjoy it more over time.
Meal planning and meal prep is key. This can save you a lot of time during the week and really help you make healthy food choices, such as assemble a nutritious meal in 15 minutes instead of ordering a takeout. Check out my series of blog posts on meal planning and my favorite meal prep ideas.
Limit eating out. Try to bring your lunch instead of eating out. Switch from eating out because of laziness or convenience to eating out as a special experience when you really want to try a new place, new food, or celebrate a special occasion.
Drink more water. Among many benefits, drinking plenty of water will keep you hydrated, prevent skin aging, and help to fight cravings.
Exercising Principles
Find the right type of a workout for yourself. Just like with food, I am convinced that the only sustainable exercise routine is the one you enjoy. It might take some time and experimentation to find out what you enjoy the most, but it's worth it in the long term.
Analyze what your true motivation is. Is it seeing the results in the mirror and liking what you see? Is it social approval of your body or feedback from your family, friends or your social media community? Is it fitting into your favorite dress for your friend's wedding? Is it getting healthier and more fit before getting pregnant?
Depending on above, select the right tool to motivate yourself. It can be buying a size smaller pair of jeans, or sharing a specific goal out load with your friend or on social media. Or maybe even sharing before and after pictures for extra motivation.
Select a workout program that you can commit to - in the gym or at home. You can even pick a pre-made workout plan (such as those free or paid ones available online or on DVDs), which takes care of a lot of decision making for you and adds structure to your routine. You can read about my experience with such programs, including BeachBody, 8fit, and numerous fitness challenges in my earlier posts.
Find a workout buddy. If you can't motivate yourself to workout, getting a workout partner adds accountability and makes it more fun. A friend of mine even had a challenge with his friend when they had to exercise daily and pay each other $100 for every missed workout. Quite extreme, but you got the idea.
Make it a goal to carve out time in a day or in a week for exercising. It can even be 15-20 minutes at a time. But you have to be consistent about it. If you say you don't have time, look at your daily routine. Can you cut down the time you spend on social media or watching TV? If you really can't find time, start with taking steps instead of elevator at work, squeezing in short walks during the day, doing some exercises while talking on the phone, watching TV, etc. Once these short stretches of regular physical activity become a norm, your mind will start asking for more and your priorities will shift, allowing more time for exercising. Check out this post for more ideas on how to find time for exercising.
If you have kids, find a way to incorporate exercising around your kids’ schedules. Depending on the age, kids can play near you or even join you when you exercise. My daughter has been watching me exercising since she was very little and she really enjoys 'joining' me in my workouts. She even proudly talks about her morning workouts with mama.
Don't underestimate the value of other physical activities, such as going for long walks, hiking, etc. I’ve noticed that every time I go on vacation I actually lose weight despite all the food. This happens because of miles of walking, exploring, swimming and other activities that I love to do when traveling.
Do you follow any of these principles already? I can guarantee that even starting with a few of these hacks will make a difference in the choices you make on a daily basis. And I'd love to hear about some principles or rules that help you stay healthy.
For more regular updates and fitness and nutrition tips, follow me on Instagram and Facebook @ThrivingBeet.