#72: Radically Change Your Life with 7 Simple Habits
Radically change your life with these seven simple habits in today’s Change from Within episode. Full disclosure, these habits sound simple, but they may not be easy to implement. The truth is, most of us struggle with at least one (or many) of these habits! I have found over the years, with my clients as well as myself, that these really are the habits that have the biggest impact on our days.
If you’re looking to radically change your life and move through the world, then start with these basics. There is not a magic pill that will make these changes for you. The beauty of change comes in the small steps you take every day. Over time, you will see a difference. I’m sure of it.
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Radically Change Your Life - Episode Transcript
Introduction
In today's episode you’ll learn seven simple habits to radically change your life. Now, I'm going to share this right up front. None of these are shocking, or surprising, or top secret tips that are going to be a magic pill that changes your life. It's not like that at all. If you've been listening to this podcast for a while, you absolutely know that that's not my style. I am very much about small, incremental change building habits, taking the micro steps, showing up every day in the best way you can, and keep going in whatever way you can. So these habits are there going to be things that you probably know already. But there's a difference between knowing them and actually implementing them. And so they can have a simplicity around them, but not necessarily easy to implement. So I'm just sharing that right up front.
I hope it can serve as a reminder to you and you might pick one or two things to start with and say, hey, you know this one, this is an area where I haven't been feeling great. And I would like to make a change here. So let me start focusing on that.
You can bring your awareness to one or two of the areas if you want to. But really, at the end of the day, there are no surprises, we always want to trick ourselves into thinking that there's a quick fix. Well, society tries to tell us that there's a quick fix. There's not a quick fix. And you might end up prioritizing other things or thinking other things can be more important than these things, which is usually just a way of overcomplicating the situation.
Alright, so let's jump right into the seven simple habits to change your life.
Habit 1: Get a Good Night of Sleep
Simple habit number one, get a good night of sleep. This is something that a lot of people don't do. I don't know if you're one of these people, but the average adult needs anywhere between seven to nine hours of sleep per night. It definitely varies. I tend to lean towards the eight to nine hours. My husband for example is probably more around the seven hours. But whatever that amount of time is for you to wake up refreshed in the morning and rested, aim for that.
So it might be going to bed a little bit earlier, if you can't wake up so early in the morning, or having a little extra sleep in the morning, if that's possible for you. It depends on your on your schedule at home. But really making sure that you get that seven to nine hours of sleep every night.
When we don't get enough sleep, we can be:
very irritable
tired
crave sugary foods.
I know for myself, when I don't get enough sleep I'm, I'm prone to headaches, I'm already prone to headaches, but I get them more often if I don't have enough sleep, and even one night of sleep where I go to bed really late. The next day, I'm definitely grumpy. I have a short circuit with my kids and everything.
There are a lot of benefits to rest, you probably are already aware of them. But sharing a few here just in case:
regulates your mood
improves your Immune system
helps to regulate cortisol levels, which impacts your stress
So lots of reasons to get a good night of sleep. I think a lot of the times we we think we can trick ourselves into just getting one more thing done, or, I can go a little bit later tonight. And then we just realize over time that we're in this habit of going to bed later than we expected, getting up and feeling tired again the next morning, and it just repeats and repeats and repeats. So getting a good night of sleep really is crucial.
Habit 2: Hydrate – Drink Lots of Water
The second simple habit, hydrate. Drink lots of water, lots and lots of water. The average person needs to drink a minimum of 96 ounces, 2.8 liters per day. I got that for my trainer, Kalene Walsh, she's amazing.
It's easy to forget why our bodies need water. And it's easy to forget to drink during the day. It's funny, I moved to France, and I noticed a lot of things are smaller in Europe including the size of the cups. When you have a large cup, you don't have to refill it as often. But when you have a small cup, you have to keep really paying attention to refilling it otherwise, you're not really getting the right amount for your daily intake.
I know in the US that the big mugs are really popular, or the water bottles that show how much you're drinking per day. My husband and I joked the other day, he said, ‘Oh, I think I need one of those water bottles that tells me how much I'm drinking’ because he didn't feel like he was getting enough. And really, if you're feeling thirsty, then it means that you already need more water.
It's a matter of being proactive with it. And really allowing that hydration to also cleanse your body. It just keeps everything flowing. It helps all the internal organs. I'm not a doctor, but I'm just saying from my experience, it helps to keep everything flowing. And I've heard too from a friend of mine, that's a nutritionist, Holli Abbott, she has said that it really impacts your gut health. So keeping that in mind, it's really another piece of the puzzle.
I don't do a great job every day of drinking the right amount. But I try most days to get it in and if you mostly drink water anyway, instead of sugary drinks or, other things, then then you're probably still pretty well covered. If you drink a lot of other types of drinks, it's just a matter of remembering and trying to add in the water as well.
Habit 3: Eat Well – Healthy and Balanced
The third simple habit is eating well. I am calling these simple habits. Again, they're simple, but they're not necessarily easy to implement. And I'm not saying that I'm in charge of your diet in some way in any way. These are things that I have been working through that have helped me so eating well for me is one that I really like.
I like sugar. I like chocolate. I like salty snacks. I like all of these things. As I become more in tune with my body, I'm realizing that these types of foods really do impact me.
My husband surprised us with ice cream. He made ice cream cones because the weather is getting so nice. I didn't make a big ice cream cone, I put like one and a half scoops in there probably, and the ice cream was great. I love ice cream. So it was great. It tasted delicious. But afterwards, I really didn't feel well. And I noticed this is the first time that I really noticed I didn't feel well. I felt sleepy. And I felt a little headachy. And I was like, geez, I think it was the ice cream.
And just as I'm paying attention to this more for myself, it just has me realizing that once you start on the path of of choosing more vegetables instead of the salty snacks or choosing more fruits instead of the candies or the chocolates, I think it's easier to spot over time when you do have something that messes up your system again. So it's something that I've been exploring for myself, and I'm not someone to restrict myself in any way.
It's really about just paying attention and bringing awareness to it. So that you can add in more of the fruits and vegetables and add in more of the things that will help your body feel good. It's going to change your life so much. It's because it's also taking care of your body. It's not only doing what your mind wants, my mind wants the sugary candy or the salty snack or whatever. But my body doesn't really want that. So that's what I'm learning and leaning into a little bit more.
Habit 4: Movement – Exercise that Works for You
The fourth simple habit is movement. Finding a way every day to move your body, whether that is taking walks, doing workouts, yoga etc. Again, whatever works for you in whatever timeframe that you can add it to your day.
My sister actually got a pedometer a while back, I was so intrigued. She said, ‘I just got a regular old pedometer. And I just put it on. And I just see if I hit the 10,000 steps a day or not. And it just gives me a gauge.’ And I asked her, ‘Do you track it and everything?’ She said, Nope, just at the end of the day, I take a look, I have an idea. It's like a pulse check on how much I walked. And then I reset it for the next day. She brought when she came to visit. And it's so interesting, because yes, it's an old school pedometer.
It's also very effective because I’m able to see how much I do or don't walk during the day and working from home. I really, I could very easily not walk all that much if I didn't put a focus on it. So I'm really enjoying having the pedometer because sometimes if I go for a walk in the morning, but it was a little on the shorter side, I'll see my steps later in the day. And I'll think, oh, do I have time to squeeze another walk in maybe I'll squeeze another walk in and, and then it also forces me to take a little bit of a break right and, and get outside and get fresh air and all of the things so I'm really enjoying it. And I noticed for sure the days that I go into Lyon or that I have appointments outside the house, I definitely get more steps in.
Paying attention to movement and doing something for your body that allows it to do that activity prevents you from having a sedentary lifestyle.
Habit 5: Limit Screen Time & Devices
Alright, the fifth simple habit limiting screen time.
I try to catch myself when I'm on my phone too much and I'm doing a lot of doom scrolling, whether it's right before bed, or in middle of the day. The truth is, we have access to endless amounts of information right at our fingertips and it’s very distracting. Not only is it distracting, but it also is known to cause additional stress, anxiety and self doubt when we over consume information.
Questions you can ask yourself when you find yourself mindlessly scrolling on your phone:
Why am I scrolling?
Am I trying to avoid doing something else?
Do I need a short break?
What am I hoping to get out of being on my phone right now?
What I realized is that being on my phone so much creates more noise in my brain whether it’s from seeing ads or reading comments and opinions of others. When I block out this noise, it brings me so much more peace.
When you become more aware and stay on your phone less, you’ll feel so much more peace to your day and to your mind. It helps to have more control over it versus just taking your phone and scrolling just to scroll, you can be more intentional with when you hop online.
Some tips for managing your screen time and limiting distractions:
Set a time limit on your phone (it will close the app when time runs out)
Check your phone certain times of the day
Put your phone in airplane mode while you’re working
Also limiting screen time before bed, at least a half hour or an hour before bed. I think the recommendation is two hours before but who are we kidding here?
Some habits you can add to your routine instead of doom scrolling on your phone:
Meditation
Body tapping
Breathing exercises
Reading (a physical book, not on a screen)
These are all things I will also mention that I'm, I've been having various degrees of success with but I've been at it for a while, especially over this past year, for sure, very intentionally, that I can see the difference, I can see the difference. That's why I'm sharing all these with you.
Habit 6: Gratitude – Create a Practice
The sixth simple habit is gratitude. This is really about getting in the habit of recognizing what's around you and what you're grateful for. It does not have to be a big thing. I've always been a fan of The Five Minute Journal. But it doesn't even have to be as formal as that.
The Five Minute Journal is where you write at the start of the day things that you're grateful for. And then you write things that went well during the day. And three things that you're grateful for from that day, it takes just a few minutes. But in that same vein, you could do it very simply - first thing when you wake up, say three things that you're grateful for and right before you go to bed, say three things that went well, or three things that you're grateful for.
Things to consider when creating your gratitude practice:
Identify things that you appreciate - it may be people, places, things, etc
Set an intention or focus for the day ahead of you
Recap the day and consider what went well in your day
Give yourself opportunities to recognize positive experiences - the more you do this, the more it helps to rewire your brain to recognize even more positive thought patterns
I try to do this with my girls a lot to just to get them in the habit of paying attention to what's around them. Having that belief and allowing that belief to amplify of wow, look at all the goodness that we have here, instead of always focusing on the negative. So that's another reason that I really, that I really love having a gratitude practice.
Habit 7 – Connect to Your Inner Guidance & Knowing
The seventh habit for radically changing your life is connecting to your inner guidance system. Really blocking out all of the noise, connecting to your true self, and operating from that place.
The way that you do this is by implementing habits one through six on this list. That's what I've found. That's what I've seen. That's what I support clients with, it's really looking through, and paying attention to how you treat your mind, how you treat your body, how all of this comes together for you to then connect you to what feels right for you.
It'll help you make better decisions because you'll come from a grounded clearer place. It'll help you move about the world in a different way because you will have less overwhelm, more fulfillment and more alignment.
None of this comes perfectly. So please do not think that I have this perfectly or that anyone else does. Don't beat yourself up, if you don't have it perfect now, because really, you never will.
It's about showing up every day and giving it a try. And some days look a lot better than other days, some days go really well. And some days do not. And you just have to reset each time and you keep going. So this last one is really about connecting internally to the true you because that's what's going to connect you more to your true purpose and bring you that fulfillment and the alignment to what you really want in life. So whatever you feel like it is not working right now. Whatever it is that you want to change about how something is going in this moment, connecting to this inner guidance will give you a direction for how to solve it. It will show you a way it will show you a way forward.
Where will you focus next to change your life?
These are the seven simple habits to change your life. So again, I invite you to try taking a look at one of these and being curious about it and saying hey, is there something I can change in one of these areas?
Maybe my sleep hasn't been great for a while now. And look, if you have little ones at home and you're you get interrupted sleep every night. I mean that's kind of how it is for a while right? So don't beat yourself up about that and don't say ‘oh well Mary saying I need the seven to nine hours and otherwise I'm not doing good job.’ No, that’s not what I'm saying. So give yourself some grace and some space with that. And maybe it means if you know you're not getting good night of sleep right now, can you be creative about it? And is there a way the next day you can take a nap? I know it depends on the schedule and a lot of things. But are there other creative solutions to reach? Some of these are to shift some things in your life in some way.
Pick one, get curious about it, take action and pay attention to it over time. Again, it's not a it's not an overnight thing. You might have to test out and try a different ways. A lot of these are a journey to keep being explored. We are never set up in one way that works for us for the rest of our lives because we're always in some kind of transition, we're always going through some type of change.
Life is ever evolving in every single moment. So it's about adapting to that and finding the ways that work best for you for this period of time. And then maybe in another period of time, something else is going to work better for you. But it's being curious and it's tuning in, so that as time goes on, you can more easily also see what's best for you and what's not, because you're clear, and you have less noise and you have more connection to yourself.
In Conclusion
Alright, so these, these are the seven simple habits to radically change your life. I really hope you enjoyed this episode. If you feel called, please feel free to share this episode with a friend that it might be helpful for.
Thank you so much for being here. I really appreciate your support. I really appreciate you tuning in and listening to these words. And I hope they help you in some way, shape or form. So with that, thank you again. Have a great rest of your day and I'll talk to you next week.
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