Hi everyone,
And here we are at C of our ABC’s of the Collective Elements Health Philosophy. This is actually the one that got me started on this series of emails! It was seeing our friends create big shifts in their health with small but consistent daily habits that reminded me of the importance of consistency.
Consistency
"It’s the small things practiced consistently and compounded over time that
create lasting results. Are your daily habits taking you in the direction you
would like to go?"
That 30 minutes of exercise might not feel like much today and it’s easy to make ourselves think it doesn’t really matter but if you do 30 minutes of exercise EVERY day that works out to…wait for it…
3 ½ hours per week
15 hours per month
182 hours per year!!!
It’s an interesting mindset test – when I think of 30mins exercise per day my mind goes ‘oh yeah, that’s pretty good’. But if someone said to me they went on a 3 ½ hour walk on the weekend (even though that’s all the exercise they did that week), I would think wow, that’s amazing! Hmmm...
And if we think of spending 182 hours a year sitting on our butts versus exercising – it’s a no brainer that it will help towards our health.
So let’s think about the foundations for health – sleep, nutrition, exercise/movement, meditation/mindfulness, social connection and time in nature. Pick one that resonates the most with you and then ask yourself, am I doing that consistently? And by consistently, I mean daily for the most part. Even social connection – this doesn’t have to be going out for dinner with friends, it just means ‘are you connecting with a supportive someone in a meaningful way consistently?’. It could be colleagues at work, it could be a phone call with a friend, it could be the 5 minutes you have with your partner at 9pm at night once the kids are in bed.
Take a moment to work out your next consistent step – here are a couple of examples:
Example 1
What foundation of health would I like to focus on?
exercise
What specific aspect of this would I like to be more consistent with?
resistance exercise - upper body strength
How, when, and where am I going to do this?
push ups – work up to 3 sets of 10 on my toes before lunch every day in my office
Example 2
What foundation of health would I like to focus on?
nutrition
What specific aspect of this would I like to be more consistent with?
minimising added sugar
How, when, and where am I going to do this?
swap the breakfast cereal for overnight soaked oats (bircher muesli), swap the mid-morning biscuits for fresh fruit plus 10 nuts, swap the after dinner chocolate for a small bowl of berries and natural yoghurt.
Remember, keep it simple, realistic and do it with a friend or family member to help you stick with it if you lack motivation. Keep in mind the long game - what am I working towards? More energy, more strength, no afternoon brain fades, better mood, clearer skin, feeling more calm...
Once you’ve created this consistent habit you can add on!!
And if you’re interested in learning more about creating habits, have a read of or listen to Atomic Habits by James Clear.
Happy consistenting!
Carla :)
P.S. Want to re-read a previous email but have deleted it? (accidentally of course!) Not to fear - all previous emails are available on the website blog or facebook.
P.P.S. Online bookings are available for current clients.
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