I wrote this blog post as part of a movement by Weight Watchers to encourage people to remember that loving yourself starts with taking care of your health everyday. Thought I was compensated for my time and commitment, all views, positive and negative, are my own.
As a mom, wife, daughter, volunteer and friend… I love doing things for other people. But when I’ve come to realize recently is that I need to care about myself as much as I do all the other people in my life. That’s where Weight Watchers Simple Start comes in. I decided to incorporate their Simple Start activities into my life. One week ago, I pledged a commitment to myself to do one simple thing for my health each day for the rest of the month.
Weight Watchers Simple Start: A Beginning
Here’s how my first week went:
Day 1: I started getting active with my family… by taking a walk to the park with my son and the dog. Being outside felt great and both my son and our dog Sophie are so fun and loving, I instantly felt my stress melt away.
Day 2: I spent some time cleaning an organizing my home. I had some bags in he garage, full of clothes that I hadn’t worn in a year or more but couldn’t bear to get rid of. I decided to stop procrastinating and get my act together! So I went back through the bags, wrote down what was in them (for tax reasons) and dropped them off at my favorite non-profit thrift shop.
Day 3: I woke thirty minutes early and went on a two-mile run! I was pretty proud of myself since I haven’t run for years. It was a cold rainy morning and my lungs and legs were burning a bit. In other words, it felt awesome.
Day 4: I gave one of my family’s favorite meals a simple makeover. We love Spaghetti Casserole around here but ground beef is not the healthiest. I decided to try it with ground turkey (and seasoned it with taco seasoning for flavor) and it was delicious.
Day 5: I made an effort to pack healthy snacks for myself and for my family’s lunches. I swapped out salty snacks for cut up strawberries. It’s a small thing, but it felt wonderful to be adding more fruit to everyone’s diet.
Day 6: I got a full 7 1/2 hours of sleep. I usually fall asleep on the couch (SO BAD!) and them drag myself upstairs at eleven and then have a tough time falling asleep again. NOT letting myself fall asleep and going right to bed at ten made all the difference.
Day 7: I carved out some “me time.” Just picking up a simple bouquet of white tulips and taking them time to let myself enjoy them felt so refreshing.
It feels really good to take better care of my health!
Connect with Weight Watchers
When I first read the title, I thought you look amazing. Why on earth are you trying to lose weight. Then, I read that you were trying to be healthy. Good for you!! We moms have to take care of ourselves, but unfortunately we are at the bottom of the totem pole. Good job and being healthy! Since January, I’ve been eating healthy (to lose weight) and working out. Love the tulips!!
Thanks Crystal you are so nice to say that. I am not trying to lose weight as much as be healthier. I had surgery last month and couldn’t exercise for a few weeks. I agree with you– we moms always serve ourselves last and I think we should try and care for ourselves as much as we care for our kids! Good for you on your healthy year so far! You rock!
I love these tips, so simple but all so important to do! Thanks!
Too much of this sounds all too familiar…except the 2 mile run (LOL). I think I sleep more on my couch than my bed. Great tips…I have implemented some new routines into our day as well…time to take back control!
Simple changes but they have a big impact … love this encouraging post!
I wasn’t sure what I’d be reading here, because you don’t look like you need to lose weight. I’m SO glad I kept reading because you’ve shared a great point about taking care of ourselves and being good to ourselves. I loved the little things you did for yourself all week long! Thanks for sharing and reminding us that we shouldn’t leave ourselves out of the equation!
I need to do all these things too! Especially getting more rest. If I’m going to be taking care of everyone, I’ve got to start taking care of myself too!
Thanks for the reminder totaled care of ourselves and be healthy!
Oops that should be *to take care of ourselves!
Great tips! I love your tip to use ground turkey instead of hamburger! All these changes can really add up to a big difference!
Good for you!!!