Making one small change each week

[ToriTheStoryteller]

I can't do overhauls, I don't want to count calories but I recognise that I'm living in a way that isn't making me feel very happy or healthy.

So, I'm going to make one change starting today, then add in another next week, and so on. By the end of the year I'm hoping that will ads up to a significant change for the better in how I feel, look and live.

Anyone else up for a more gentle alternative to massive resolutions? I'll update each week anyway even if no-one replies, so I record what I've done😂.

Week 1: No phone use after 8pm. I'm hoping that will improve my sleep, it's got out of hand in the last few months.

The magnesium is a good idea for menopausal sleep think it’s chelated or something best to take.

I have decaff green tea and decaff normal tea in the afternoons and camomile tea in evenings. Like to try different fruit and veg so recently pineapple chunks, cut from pineapples.

Ryvita rye slices or Warburtons thins instead of bread. Vogel soya and linseed bread at weekends.

@happinessischocolate you can do 10-15 mins YouTube exercises which help. I did think a short one when I had sciatica, really worked and toned legs.

I try to replace bad chocolate with good, so M&Ms with Doisy and Daim Double D’s or low sugar or dark chocolate, I do like Crunchie Rocks. Swap crisps for Pop Chips. When you make the big swaps you do see differences in weight.

I no longer feel so tired in the afternoons that I think I'm going cross eyed, or feel I should go and have a nap in the car at lunchtime (I have done this before, and even overslept by 25 minutes making late back after lunch) 🤦‍♀️

I'm tired now at 9pm on Saturday so am going to bed, which is unheard for me.

I've gone from 5 hours to around 6.5hrs and 7.5 last night after having a lay in so I'm getting loads more.

@Gonnagetgoingreturnsagain
*
you can do 10-15 mins YouTube exercises which help. I did think a short one when I had sciatica, really worked and toned legs.*

Thanks, yeah I need to find one for my arms and waist, legs are fine from the dog walking, it's the rest that's the problem 😂

Late to join but have been trying to do this over the past couple of months.

Habit one: Daily Walk- now pretty embedded. I've had one unsuccessful day but have carried on regardless

Habit two: phone curfew after 9.30pm. Time to log off!!!

Can I come in? Santa brought me a fitbit, that kicks off if I don;t move about every hour. It's working, mostly. I think it was Michael Mosely that said turn the shower on to cold for the last 15 seconds. It's brutal, but I've kept doing it, and someone has suggested my skin is looking pretty good. She doesn't normally comment, so I hope it's related!
I also try to do pelvic excercises whilst cleaning my teeth!

@happinessischocolate I use this dvd 2-3 times a week which has two long workouts (one cardio, one kind of weight/cardio); then short concentrated sessions for either arms and shoulders, waist and legs so you can mix what you do.

That's brilliant that you are feeling a difference in tiredness already. Maybe if I think hard, there are some changes to mine: a month ago, I reckon if I was given permission I could have dropped on the spot and slept for two hours at any point in the day: now, I probably don't feel like that until about midday!! I've also read less this week than last week because I'm falling asleep within 5-10 minutes.

@mum2jakie that's great that it feels embedded, and just part of life now.

@SpongeBobJudgeyPants that's a harsh one! I do splash cold water on my face but I can't quite manage the shower😨. I also do the squeezes when I brush, and when waiting for the kettle. That's a long-embedded habit, evolved from straight bum-clenching which was probably recommended by Just Seventeen to give me a pert arse (never worked).😂

So, week 3 beckons....

I'm going to squash a few tiny changes into one. It's going to be using 10 mins morning and night to prep for the day and prep for sleep. I can't think how to word thar well.😂

Morning: vitamins, moisturise, flossing every time I brush teeth and do make up.
Night: HRT gel then while that dries I can take make up off (never usually bother), moisturise (got a lovely body butter for Christmas called "Sleep" with lavender in it), and floss again.

Edited to say these are all things I regularly forget to do.

Following this thread as I too need a kick up the bum to get back to healthy eating and some exercise. I had a nasty fall off my pony last week and my back is very sore but I can start by doing some gentle yoga today.

Forgot to link to the dvd!
https://www.wob.com/en-gb/film/dvd/davina-ultimate-target-new-for-2012/5014138606770#DVDB005DXQKD0LN

Good luck for a new week everyone!

I just got my weekly phone use report: 1hr 10 less per day than the week before. So I've cut down by more than 3 hours per day (since 1st Jan) which shows how much more sleep I'm getting as most of that was between 9pm and 6am.😮

I'm off to find one of the podcasts recommended, to get me through Monday morning's emails.😂

I'd love to do a Davina workout but I don't have a dvd player anymore. I've ordered some weights and my ds is going to train me when they arrive (he's done a sports coaching degree so I'm finally letting him design a workout for me 😂😬)

That's fab to have lowered the phone use that much, I failed massively last night and got less than 5 hours sleep so I plan to make up for it tonight.

I stopped checking my phone useage as it seems to count everything including listening to Spotify when I'm driving.

That's true. Mine showed quite high usage over the weekend but it was because I was using it to study lots of recipes during one afternoon and then DS used it to facetime a friend for an hour.

I suppose because I know that my main usage was overnight it's easier for me to track it than for someone who uses Spotify or listens to podcasts on it etc.

Oooh good luck with the weights.😃

I listened to some of the Michael Mosley podcasts today: one about walking backwards, one about meditation (but he didn't really talk about what to do, so I felt like I'd need to listen to someone telling me HOW to meditate) and funnily one about walking early in the morning which I must have heard before because I basically repeated his theory on it upthread a few days ago! He's nice to listen to so I'll do a couple each day while I work.

I tried to find the one by Emma Guns but there were do many and I don't have most of the platforms they seemed to be on. I'll look again when I have a bit more patience!

I started eating an apple a day last week, and I’ve added an orange this week. I can’t seem to find any true easy peel satsumas, so slicing an orange and eating it that way.

I'm going to start adding in an apple at lunch every day.
This week has been a bit tricky as I've genuinely forgotten to carry out all my little morning/night habits. Sometimes I've forgotten to floss, others I haven't moisturised and I realised my habits are a bit too time-consuming for me to embed them in the space of a week.

A 15 minute walk in the mornings and then a week later 10 minutes each end of the day for self-care. The whole point of this was to become less frazzled and stressed!

So you've inspired me for next week's habit which will be an apple with lunch every day. No time needed and it might even reduce the hula hoop habit.😀

I started to replace a meal with a green smoothie a week ago. Feel so much better

Celery
2 apples
Half a cucumber
Half an Avacado
Lemon juice
Ginger
Spinach
Fresh ginger
3 ice cubes

It keeps you full for ages and so energised!

That would not keep me full for ages, @tearsandtiaras 😂 I need protein to stop me feeling hungry.

In the first week and second week I starting with daily vitamins and supplements to address low blood tests and daily Duolingo.
Week 3, was a large glass of sparkling water each day.
week 4 I’m after ideas

@Thebookdragon I've been listening to the Michael Mosley podcast on BBC Sounds, some of the little things he's talked about are daily squats and push ups, acts of kindness, standing on one leg and daily vitamin D (vital for bones).

I thought the same and often follow it with 100 calories of protein or 200 calories of nuts.

I then eat 300g of protein 4 hours later and find I very full all day.

I combine this with IF - eat from 2pm- 7pm

That's a good one, I've been having a banana with my lunchtime sandwich instead of crisps and I'll start an apple as a snack too. I did try having nuts as a snack but ended up eating the whole bag so that turned into a nope 😂

Smoothie is a nice idea for adding a lot of variety in, but I'm the same as some others in that I'd need to add in some oats or cashews to increase the protein. I do get a bit bored of porridge and fruit every morning but I've never found anything else that keeps me full for so long.

@Thebookdragon what about a 10 min walk early morning to kick-start the brain into waking up? Or 10 mins of stretching before bed? Or even just using a body butter with a relaxing scent before bedtime? Moisturising your hands and doing pelvic floor exercises every time the kettle is boiling???

I've been deciding on mine as I go so I haven't got a list I'm working from, I'm seeing how I feel each week then thinking about what might work next!

I eat carrot sticks instead of crisps with my sandwich. It was the crunch that I was missing.
But I do have the odd naughty day 😈

Hello All
i am still struggling to do long walks but so far have done 2 small ones most days.
For this week I am going to try not to eat after my dinner. I am ok Monday to Thursday but tend to pick and snack on weekend evenings.
Have a good week everyone

I've totally blown the healthy eating todsy and eaten crap. Back on it tomorrow