Here is my suggestion for this list. Take a look at what you are doing now and add in one thing from this list at a time. Start with the one that would be easiest for you to make a habit, then go from there.
1. Just Eat Real Food
If you did nothing else on this list, you could cure a lot of problems if you just followed this one thing. Cutting processed and fast food out of your diet and eating things that come from the Earth is exactly what your body needs.
Crazy stat from Dr. Mark Hyman- There 600,000 processed food items in our environment. 80% of them contain added sugar.
More on sugar later.
2. Don't fear fat
Fat has a bad reputation because it is high in calories, but it is also very beneficial too. Food like fish, nuts, avocado, and coconut oil are all excellent examples of beneficial fats to have in your food plan.
Trans fats (man made fats) should be avoided at all opportunities. Shortening, fried foods, canned biscuits, margarine are all chock full of trans fats that will lower your good cholesterol and raise your bad cholesterol.
3. Shake the sugar habit
Sugar is absolutely killing America, especially our children. It is extremely addictive and has a vicious cycle that is very destructive to our bodies.
The end result? Your hormones get out of wack, you gain weight (among other side effects), and then you crave even more sugar!
Because of this threat, I've been working on a book on how to sugar addiction for good. It should be ready by next week and I can't wait for you to read it!
Fun fact- Having 1 soda per day increases a child's chances of becoming obese by 60%. And 90% of kids have at least 1 soda per day. That is a big reason experts are predicting that be 2050 obesity rates will sky rocket from 36% where we are now, to 50%.
4. Read the articles
If you read nothing else today, start reading your food labels. The package on the outside, is 100% marketing. The true story is told in the food label.
If nothing else, look at the first 3 ingredients (they are listed from the largest amount to the smallest). And if it has a bunch of stuff you don't recognize or can't pronounce, don't eat it.
5. Upgrade your carbs
Carbs have been demonized over the past few years. Carbs are not the devil. The simple starches (chips, fries, aka junk food) are the real problem and should be avoided for sure.
Whole grains, fruits, and vegetables are all excellent sources of carbohydrates. It all gets back to the first step we discussed. Eat carbs that are nor processed.
6. Move more, sit less
Energy is a weird thing. You have to have the energy to at least get out and move a little bit, but then that little bit of moving can give you back more energy than you had before. You just need to start.
More and more studies are showing that sitting is worse than smoking and can actually undo all of the exercise you have been doing. Get up at the very least, once and hour and walk around a little bit.
7. Do you even lift bro?
Strength training is the fountain of youth. It can be weights, bands, bodyweight, milk jugs, or whatever you have that provides resistance but you need to get strong and stay strong.
You will build muscle, which will help you get rid of fat, which will make you more mobile, which will make you have better quality of life. Everything get better when you get stronger.
8. Never settle
You have to continue to challenge yourself. The workout you did 6 months ago does not get you the results it did then. You need to always try to get more reps, more distance, more weight, etc... in everything that you do if you want to keep getting results.
9. H2O you didn't!
I hate you can't see me say this with my attitude face on. It is beautiful. I have talked about the importance of water a lot lately because it is that important.
Try getting up and drinking a tall glass of room temperature, filtered, water every morning for a week and see if you notice any changes.
10. Eliminate the negative self talk
I have an experiment for you. Start talking about or thinking about someone you have not seen in awhile. An old roommate, a friend you haven't see in awhile something like that.More times than not, you will hear from that person shortly after that.
It's almost a little spooky but it work. It's called the Law of Attraction. Some might call it a self fulfilling prophesy.
Whatever you call it, you want to avoid negative thoughts about yourself. Constantly calling yourself fat, old, tired, and other insults does you absolutely no good. On the other hand, it actually cements those thoughts in your head and bleeds over into your behaviors.
