Simple Changes, or Complex, I’ve Got You Covered

by | Apr 7, 2022 | Health Coach, Healthy Progress, Nutrition | 0 comments

Whether it’s accountability for simple changes or help in navigating more complex subtleties and symptoms, I’ve got you covered!
CONSISTENCY WITH MANY SMALL CHANGES IS USUALLY MORE IMPACTFUL THAN MASSIVELY CHANGING ONE THING.

People tend to try one thing, and when they don’t get immediate results, they redirect their focus elsewhere.  Often times that first change was actually really important; it just didn’t yield noticeable results because it needed to be supercharged by the next one, and then the next one!  

Symptom causes should be evaluated like a pie chart because symptoms rarely come from one habit alone.  Going “all in” on one change is rarely sustainable, and you will see minimal progress if the problem is caused by multiple factors (which it probably is).  So, the overall result of CONSISTENCY with the combination of several small changes often becomes greater than the sum of those parts and much more impactful than one large change.  

Alisa Turner / Integrative Health Coach


LACK OF CONSISTENCY AND PATIENCE ARE BIG ROADBLOCKS BECAUSE  NUTRITION IS CUMULATIVE


You didn’t see negative changes manifest in just a few weeks, so don’t expect to see positive changes in just a few weeks either.   Everyone’s body reacts to change differently, and sometimes you will notice changes almost immediately, but sometimes it takes a month or so of consistency.  If you expect to be on this journey for the long haul, you’ll settle in for the ride and be able to be more consistent with gradual improvements over time.   


ACCOUNTABILITY IS THE SOLUTION


Most people know what to do better to improve their health; they just have a hard time being consistent because it’s overwhelming to make many small changes at once.  This is where accountability works its magic:  Clients touch base with me daily, and each week they have to show up to their coaching session with tracker averages – this accountability alone helps keep them on track with the simple improvements we work on.  Some of those simple improvements include:

  1. ADD MORE VEGGIES — Making AT LEAST half your plate veggies every meal helps crowd out the more calorie dense, chemically laden processed foods.
  1. SHOP THE RAINBOW — The variety of color will help ensure that you get a greater variety of nutrients to help minimize cravings caused by nutrient deficiencies.
  1. BALANCE YOUR MACROS — Making sure you consistently have a balanced plate (ratios should be customized for YOU though) that includes all the macronutrients: protein, carbohydrates and fat is important for nutrient variety, and it will help manage hunger levels and prevent cravings and over-eating. This requires CONSISTENTLY setting aside 1-2 hours of sacred space to prepare these items each week to minimize impulsive (less balanced)  decisions. 
  1. YOUR WATER BOTTLE GOES EVERYWHERE! Using the same water bottle every day and taking it with you wherever you go helps you to track water consumption and hit your hydration target more easily.  It also minimizes the chances of thirst being misread as hunger.
  1. TRACK STEPS AND EXERCISE —  Incrementally increasing movement (the RIGHT kind of movement for your body) is one of the best ways to increase metabolism, boost mood, and IMPROVE quality of sleep.
  1. TRACK SLEEP SCORE —  Using an app every night helps gather a baseline for your sleep quality so we can focus on specific sleep hygiene strategies to improve it.  If your body is chronically unrested, your metabolism will suffer, and many symptoms will worsen.
  1. CONSISTENT AND FREQUENT BREATHWORK — Implementing breathwork to help manage stress is quick, simple and costs nothing.  Stress causes changes in hormones like cortisol and insulin.  Sometimes a few simple breaths systematically incorporated into your day several times can help you become aware of the tension you’re holding and become a catalyst to diving deeper into an even more impactful stress management practice.

STILL NOT MAKING PROGRESS?
It’s rare, but it happens — sometimes people have been tracking and CONSISTENTLY optimizing all those simple things and are still not seeing progress.  In those cases, it may take more fine tuning of macros, alterations in fitness strategy, additional supplementation, healing a long-standing toxic relationship with food, deep emotional processing, and/or really focusing on eliminating some difficult stressors.  But whether it’s accountability to consistently hit all the smaller changes, or strategies and guidance to navigate the larger ones,  I can help!