3 Tips to Create A Healthy Routine

I’ll admit that I’m not a huge fan of New Year’s Resolutions – in fact, this year I actually didn’t make one. Instead, I decided to focus on finding the best balance for me. This is a different approach than I took last year when I promised myself I would go to the gym (that I was paying monthly dues for) 5 days a week, I would “eat clean” and spend more time outside on fun outings with my kids.

Y’all. It took less than 2 weeks for that to fall apart. So this year, I took a different approach. Ever since I decided to focus on rest as my 2017 word of the year, things seem to come easier and I have finally been able to sit back long enough to create a routine that works well for me, and is helping to promote my health in a way that isn’t frantic or dictated by hours at the gym.

Not only has taking a more rest-oriented approach to life helped me accomplish more (seriously!), it’s also allowed me to really evaluate what’s important.

Once you figure that out, you can figure out the routine that works best for you.

To get started, you need to figure out your biggest sources of frustration. These are the things that suck your time, make you frustrated and you dread doing.

For me, the thing on the top of my list was “finding time for the gym.” To me, that means I need to make a change.

HEALTHY ROUTINE

Ditch The Gym Membership

Raise your hand if you’ve ever joined a gym because you thought you had to. Just me? Well, that’s awkward. When I joined the Y last year, I did so because I had convinced myself that the only way for me to complete a workout was to go to the gym, drop The Baby off at the care center, and jump on a treadmill.

Never mind the fact that I lost the weight the first time working out at home. But that was before kids. Before there were children using me like a human jungle gym.

When I really stopped to evaluate, the money I was spending on the gym wasn’t getting me anywhere. I wasn’t going because The Baby either got sick after every single visit, or he cried for 10 minutes and I had to go get him and go home.

So I canceled my membership last year…and stopped working out. Sure, I did derby and some sporadic strength exercises. So last month, I found a killer deal for 30 days of DailyBurn for free, and I took full advantage of it. I’m loving it.

I’m stronger, a bit smaller, and it’s way cheaper than the gym.

Okay, now that you’re on a roll (and you’ve eliminated your number one frustration), it’s time to add some new things to your list. Obviously, I’m a huge fan of DailyBurn and my FitDesk (I’m riding and typing now). And I’m no longer spending an hour driving to and from the gym.

Did you find extra time? Awesome! The next thing I did was to try something new. I tried smoothie bowls. That did not go well.

Try Something New

Like smoothie bowls. I had a really hard time accepting them as real food. I mean, I love my smoothie through a straw like a normal person…. And while some people love them, I’m apparently not one of the lucky ones. Instead, I’ve been revisiting my old favorite, overnight oats. And this week, I’ve been perfecting brownie batter overnight oats.

You should try them. Seriously. They’re super delicious. And they’ll save you cooking time in the morning since they take all of 2 minutes to throw together before you go to bed.

Brownie Batter Overnight Oats

  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 scoop Viance Vitality Blend
  • 1 ripe, spotted banana
  • 1/2 cup rolled oats
  • dash gray sea salt
  • 2 teaspoons chia seeds
  • 1 Viance Brownie Bite, chopped
  • 2-4 tsp stevia sweetened chocolate chips
  • dash stevia or vanilla flavored stevia, to taste

Using a shaker cup, combine the water and Vitality Blend. Shake for 20-30 seconds to combine. Pour your shake into a lidded container (like these). Add your banana and mash with a fork. Add the oats, chia seeds, salt, and stir. Top with your chopped Brownie Bite and chocolate chips.

Refrigerate overnight, and then enjoy for breakfast. If you prefer your oats to be warmed, simply pop the glass container in the microwave for 60-ish seconds.

brownie batter overnight oats

And, if you need to pick up Viance products, they are offering a 50% discount for first time subscriptions of their Vitality Blend and Brownie Bites.

The moral of this tip is that you need to be eating breakfast. And you need to be prepared that you may get hungry between meal times.

Snack Smart

One of my biggest challenges is making sure that I don’t snack on things I shouldn’t. That means that I have to think ahead, keep snacks in my bag (keeping them in my car is not the best idea since it gets all the way up to 120 degrees in the summers). So, I cleaned out my purse/diaper bag (eventually, I will be able to have a smaller purse, right?!) and gave us a snack pocket. In there, I keep freeze dried fruitViance Brownie Bites (they taste just like a chewy, fudge brownie, they have only 3g of sugar and only 100 calories!), beef sticks, and homemade Larabars.

Sure, it takes some thought, but in the long run, it’s totally worth it. If you’re home, I highly recommend keeping a protein mix on hand for days when you’re craving sweets, want something cold, and really, really need to stay away from the ice cream. I’m currently in love with Viance Vitality Blend.

You’ve probably noticed that this routine isn’t time bound. Rather, it’s about finding (and doing) things that point you toward healthier habits and a healthier lifestyle in the long run.

To Recap:

  1. Find the things you don’t want to do.
  2. Stop doing them.
  3. Find more time-friendly options.
  4. Keep healthy snacks on hand.

That’s it! Figuring out the routine that works for you will take some time (I’m going on month 2 of tweaks myself). Give yourself time, and you’ll get there!

What tip are you going to put to use today?

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Brea

1 Comment

  1. Candace D on February 26, 2017 at 1:02 pm

    I definitely agree that you need to find things that you actually enjoy doing otherwise it’s never going to work. Thanks for sharing!

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