Focus on the Can

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monday motivation 2

My healthy living motto has always been “small changes add up to something amazing.”  I love this philosophy because it’s so attainable.  Even in the face of worries (big and small) and changes (big and small), it’s not so hard to make just one more positive choice.  I don’t have to be perfect.  I don’t have to overhaul my entire diet or exercise regimen.  I just need to keep myself focused on making healthier choices, one by one.  And healthy choices aren’t limited to eating my vegetables or doing sit-ups – it encompasses a wide, wide range of physical and emotional actions. 

 

This leads me to my grand plans for this week.  I’m going to focus on making 5 healthy choices every single day, in hopes of achieving a bit more balance, relaxation, and – yup!! – health. 

 

CHOICE 1 – Sweat every day.

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I’ve been relying on the blank training plan method through most of this pregnancy, but this week, I’m scheduling my workouts.  A little focus would do me good right now.  My schedule looks like this:

 

Monday – Treadmill walk workout (I did one of those pre-loaded workouts – it was hard!)

Tuesday – Run in the morning. Aiming for 3 miles.

Wednesday – Swim 750 yards.

Thursday – Walk/run date with my friend Brandi.  <3

Friday – Swim 750 yards.

Saturday – Family walk with the Husband, Henry, and the dogs.

Sunday – Yoga class.

 

CHOICE 2 – Make one green smoothie every day.

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My current favorite combo is almond milk, vanilla pea protein powder, mixed frozen berries, and frozen spinach with a giant glob of peanut butter.

 

CHOICE 3 – Tackle one small organization project each day.

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Organized home = Happy Caitlin.  I have a long, long list of organization/clean-up projects that I want to tackle before the next baby arrives.  Some projects are HUGE and cannot be tackled this week.  But most are little – like sorting random drawers and cleaning behind my laundry machines.  The small projects take 10 minutes, tops. 

 

CHOICE 4 – Play outside every day.

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We are in for a rainy week (the forecast is MISERABLE!), but I need to get Henry (and myself) out of the house.  Whether we do a quick park visit or go to the local soccer field to shoot balls at the goals – we gotta burn some of his energy off in between the rain showers.  Tired Henry = Happy Mom.

 

CHOICE 5 – Write Gratitude Paragraph every night before bed.

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Instead of letting my mind wander to stressful things, I’m going to spend my bedtime wind-down thinking of HAPPY THINGS.  Each night, I’m going to quickly write a Gratitude Paragraph for the day – who or what I’m thankful for.  <3 

fitness motivation

What healthy choices do you have planned for the week? What positive efforts CAN you make?

{ 21 comments }

 

  • Tricia July 22, 2014, 8:25 am

    I’ve been making fruit salads. We always have a ton of produce in the house and we always eat it, but having fruit salads has us picking that as our after dinner “treat.” Who would have thought?

    • Caitlin July 22, 2014, 8:30 am

      that’s a really good idea!

  • Melissa @ Mango About Town July 22, 2014, 9:07 am

    I’ve been trying to eat vegetables with every meal! Sometimes I get so busy and the first veggie I’ve eaten in a day was at dinner! Green smoothies are my go-to and I’ve been packing carrot sticks and tomatoes to eat through the day!

  • Erica { EricaDHouse.com } July 22, 2014, 9:14 am

    I love all of your plans! I do most of them now except for the green smoothies every day. I’m going to start trying to make them more often as I’ve been slacking on getting enough greens in my diet.

  • Maryea {happy healthy mama} July 22, 2014, 9:38 am

    Good reminders! I’m working on the organization thing. 🙂

  • Katie @ Talk Less, Say More July 22, 2014, 9:39 am

    LOVE it!! I started a habit a few months ago where I start each morning by writing in my journal. Some days it’s only a minute or two and some days when I have more time, it’s longer, but regardless it’s my time to wake up, meditate through writing and start my day on the right foot. I was running SUPER late the last 2 days and didn’t get a chance to do it, but was right back to it today and it was amazing!

  • Beks July 22, 2014, 10:20 am

    Definitely working out every day to clear my head. We’re in the process of packing and moving, so to do something that’s not related to moving will be nice.

  • Kaella (KaellaOnTheRun) July 22, 2014, 10:46 am

    I love this!!! I did laugh out loud as I thought of your cutlery drawer hahahaha!

    I’m currently training for a half marathon so I was up at 5:30 this morning to run 5 miles. I have three more runs scheduled this week and, of course, chasing my toddler around at the park is always on the schedule 🙂

  • Julie July 22, 2014, 10:51 am

    Oooo I love the paragraph before bed idea!

  • Kathleen Ojo @ My Ojos July 22, 2014, 11:42 am

    Love this! My healthy choice for the week is trying my best to get 8 hours of sleep per night. Not easy with full time work, my last semester of grad school, a two-year-old, and marathon training (…. boy, typing that out sure makes me seem like a crazy person….) but I’ve been compromising on sleep a lot lately and its wearing me down. A 15 mile run this weekend wiped me out WAY more than it should, so I’ve vowed to do what I have to do to juggle my schedule this week (which means cleaning, TV, and any sort of elaborate meal-making are out) and be in bed for at least 8.5 hours per night, hopefully sleeping for 8 of those. I’m two nights in and feel SO much better.

    Sometimes you just need a little reset in one area of your life in order to make everything else feel easier/less stressful/more attainable 🙂

  • Catherine @ foodiecology July 22, 2014, 12:35 pm

    Great goals!
    I’m with you on the small changes philosophy; it’s when I set grand dietary or fitness goals that I end up failing miserably.
    I really need to start drinking green smoothies again; I’ve completely fallen out of the habit.
    Also, I love your #5 goal. On Jan 1, I started a gratitude jar. Amazingly, I’ve kept it up (even if I have to double down some days) and continue to write down a small (or large) thing for which I’m grateful and place it in the jar. Practicing gratitude was a big goal of mine for the year, and I can’t tell you how much it’s helped my outlook.

  • Jen@HealthyFoodandFamily July 22, 2014, 4:30 pm

    Love this! As a mom of a 3 month old and 3 older kids, you can imagine how insane life is right now…since you’re going to have a newborn again! I have been doing nothing but surviving the last few months, but now that we are all sleeping better and someone can be put down without screaming while I make meals or exercise, it’s time to reclaim my health and sanity again. Thanks for the ideas 🙂

  • Steph July 22, 2014, 6:24 pm

    This is great! I especially like the idea of the gratitude paragraph. Sometimes after a long day with a toddler who is whiny and demanding, this is absolutely necessary to re-focus any negative thoughts. You know?! 🙂 Especially when this mama is also 21 weeks pregnant!

  • AY July 22, 2014, 7:14 pm

    I love focusing on simple changes. The key (for me) seems to be refreshing them every so often without the feeling of “failure.” Carry on, HTP!

  • Rebecca July 22, 2014, 8:12 pm

    I went for a bike ride tonight with my dad! Other than that, mostly I’m working on going to bed and getting up at the same time every day. Having to be to work by 8 has helped me stay kind of on track, but there are still nights I only get maybe five hours of sleep. Oops. But I can make it a habit if I stick with it long enough.

  • Jesse @JesseLWellness July 22, 2014, 10:12 pm

    This week I’m trying to meditate every day and do something active outside like yoga, walk or bike. As a holistic nutritionist I also make a big effort to eat healthy every day. I start my morning with detox tea or lemon water and eat at least 6 different veggies every day. Yum!

  • Sar July 22, 2014, 10:33 pm

    I love this post. I’m going to have a healthy week too!!
    1. A nice long walk each day.
    2. Prepare a decent full meal.
    3. Get to bed when I’m tired.
    4. Talk kindly to myself.
    5. Practice ballet/dance to music!

    xo Sar

  • Laura@SneakersandSpatulas July 23, 2014, 8:45 am

    Did you do a normal yoga class or a prenatal one? If normal, did you do any modification? I’m hoping to get pregnant soon and was wondering what type of positions I’d still be able to do safely. I don’t do any crazy inversions or anything.

    I’ve been trying not to eat dessert every night. The other week I realized I had a bowl of ice cream every night for dessert and how unhealthy that probably was so I’m trying to not eat desert every night or have some fruit instead.

    • Caitlin July 23, 2014, 2:14 pm

      I just do a normal one and sit out the poses that I do not feel capable or comfortable doing – like inversions or on my back. But in the first trimester, I don’t *think* you have to really modify anything, but I would double check.

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