6 Simple ways to be healthier

Ready for a change?

What happens when you get to a place in your life that you are ready to make some changes? Ready to become a healthier version of yourself? That exact thing happened to me! Now I want to share the 6 simple ways to be healthier. There are many reasons why we want to become healthier. Maybe there is a medical event that happens- like a heart attack, diagnosis of diabetes, or some kind of wake-up call. It could be a life event- becoming a mom/dad or grandma/grandpa, or there may have been an incident that you just can’t do things that you want to do- getting winded while playing with your kids or you don’t like what the scale says or how your clothes fit. Whatever your reason, becoming healthier is simple. I’m not saying it’s easy, but it is simple!

A little history…

Throughout high school, I didn’t really have interest in sports or working out, and I never really thought about being healthy. In my early twenties I had my 2 babies really close together and gained and lost a lot of weight during that time. During that 2 year span I weighed my very heaviest (over 200 lbs, and my lightest 100 lbs). Even though back then, my measure for health would have been tied to being “skinny”, my healthiest time would not be for awhile.

My First 1/2 Marathon- I was terrified!!!

In my mid-twenties I decided to try a half-marathon, which was totally and completely crazy for me. It started with being unable to run a lap on the track. The fact that I couldn’t do, what seemed so easy, was impossible for me. At this time I was around 110 lbs, so I wasn’t heavy. If someone looked at me they would probably think I was really fit- but I wasn’t. I was actually far from it. But not being able to run that lap gave me motivation. I started small. My goal was to run 1 lap without walking, then 2 laps. Then I would run 1 lap, walk 1 lap, run another lap. I slowly increased until I could run several laps and then a mile.

When I started training for my first half-marathon I started learning about how important it was to feed my body. Starving myself to look skinny was NOT the way to do it. Slowly I started becoming healthier and it had absolutely nothing to do with weight or what the scale said. Through the last 15 years I have ran 3 half marathons, competed in several Crossfit competitions, ran a Tough Mudder and a Warrior Dash. All of this from someone who couldn’t run even a lap around the track at the gym! My focus now is on what my body can do, not necessarily what it looks like. Just like anything with life, your intentions matter. If you are losing weight or working out ONLY for how you will look, that is short term. If you focus on what you want to be able to DO- that is long term!