Friday Tri: One Little Thing

If you want to really change your life, change one little thing. But change it for reals. Not just once.

I think the biggest problem people have who want to make changes in their lives (and not just in terms of health and fitness) is that they bite off more than they can chew. They get all excited about exercising and they set a New Years Resolution to exercise EVERY DAY for an hour, because someone told them that's the recommendation of the government. Whatever.

If you want to make a change in your life, look at yourself. Look at who you are. Look at what you are doing right now. And then make a teensy, tiny change that will not upset everything that is already part of your life.

There are really extraordinary people who change everything about their lives, who overcome drug addiction by giving up all their friends, and not going to any of the same places anymore. But most people--don't do this.

If you are not a morning person, you are probably not going to want to exercise in the morning. If you are not a night owl, you are not going to want to exercise last thing before you climb into bed. If you love butter, choose something else that's unhealthy to give up. Sure, you have to give up something, but don't give up the things that you care about the most.

I remember when my husband lost a bunch of weight a few years ago, he kept a food diary and realized how many calories he was spending on soda. He likes soda, but he decided that it was so easy to give that up and he didn't have to change a lot of other things. He gave up eating a whole bag of chips, and now pours a bowl of them instead. Little changes.

When I started running with my kids, it was hard to get them to run around a 400 meter track once. That's where we started, and 6 years later, 4 of them ran a 1/2 marathon. It started with a small change, and it grew bit by bit as they enjoyed it more.

If you hate running, don't make a goal to go running (unless you decide you hate it because you're out of shape and want to change that). There are a lot of different ways to exercise. Choose one that you like, and make tiny, tiny goals. Try to get out 3 times a week and do 15 minutes. Come on, anyone can do 15 minutes. But don't let yoursef skip a day. Make a goal you can stick to even when you're not at your best.