The Busy Woman’s Guide to Big Results
Remember those pre-empty nest dreams of having all the time in the world for ourselves, with plenty of time to create fancy, healthy meals? Yeah, me too. With today’s lifestyle of balancing career, home life and our personal passions it sometimes feels like fitting in healthy habits is akin to trying to fit into our skinny jeans from our college days.
But listen up, ladies! We don’t need drastic, overnight changes, just some smart tweaks that won’t leave us feeling like we’re constantly battling ourselves. Enter Tiny Habits! Use tiny habits for healthy eating each day and you’ll see a change in no time. It’s not about drastic changes, but baby steps so small we can’t say no. And before you know it, those little steps add up to a healthier, happier you!
Why small, tiny habits for healthy eating works
Picture this: you’re home from a long day at the office, and making a quick dinner because you’re starving, thanks to too many meetings and too few free moments to string together for a lunch break. The perfectionist in you wants to make a delicious, Instagram-worthy healthy meal, complete with at least 10 different vegetables and all the colors in the rainbow. But the overworked woman in you just wants to microwave last night’s rice and beans because it’s fast. But instead of criticizing yourself for not making a healthy meal, you add a handful of spinach or kale to your plate. Boom! Tiny Habit for healthy eating! Now, imagine doing that every night for a week. Suddenly, you’ve snuck in a whole extra serving of veggies without even realizing it.
Do you dream of having more time for yourself, enjoying healthy meals, and feeling your best? Many midlife women envision this freedom, but reality often sets in – we’re still busy, and prioritizing health can feel like a constant struggle.
What are Tiny Habits?
As we age, staying on top of our health becomes even more crucial. But drastic changes aren’t always sustainable. This post is for busy women like us who want achievable steps to improve their diet and well-being, inspired by the Tiny Habits approach.
Tiny Habits are small, easy changes that you can effortlessly integrate into your daily routine. Developed by Dr. BJ Fogg, this approach focuses on making habits so tiny that you can’t say no to them. Over time, these tiny changes accumulate, leading to significant improvements in your overall health.
Dr. BJ Fogg beautifully captures the power of Tiny Habits:
“Making a choice that is 1% better or 1% worse is insignificant in the moment. But over the span of moments that make up a lifetime, these choices determine the difference between who you are and who you could be.” – Dr. BJ Fogg
What constitutes a Tiny Habit? Any quick fix or level up that at first glance seems like it’s not good enough or is too easy. I’ve already shared in this article how a tiny daily yoga habit can lead to great improvements. Here are some Tiny Habit ideas that target your diet to get your juices flowing:
🍽️ Plate Power:
- Add a side salad to your lunch. Think cutie orange slices and a sprinkle of sunflower seeds! In fact, any combination of fruits and vegetables, cooked or raw, can serve as a proper side salad.
- Level up your salad dressing. Here’s a previous article I wrote about ways to boost the nutritional value of your salad dressing.
- Swap white rice for brown rice or quinoa in your favorite dishes. Tiny step, giant leap for your fiber intake!
- Keep a bowl of chopped fruits and veggies in the fridge. Easy snacking that won’t derail your healthy goals.
- Make it a game. Challenge yourself to add one more color to your salad. Or count how many different plants you eat in a week. Studies show that those who eat the greatest variety of plants — 50+ per week — have the healthiest guts!
🛒 Pantry Power:
- Swap sugary sodas for water with a squeeze of lemon or cucumber. Who needs the sugar rush anyway?
- Ditch the butter and olive oil when sauteing vegetables, and water saute instead. Start your vegetables in a hot, dry pan, and stir constantly. When you start seeing sticking or brown bits on the pan, add a little water (about 2-3 tablespoons) and stir. You’ll be amazed how effective this is without the extra fat and calories. Your heart will thank you!
- Limit processed foods and cook at home more often. Fresh is always best! If you normally eat out two to three nights a week, try moving that number down just one notch.
- If you do buy processed food at the grocery store, read the ingredients before placing the items in your basket. If you recognize all of the ingredients (and would eat each one on its own), then go ahead and get it. If you don’t recognize the ingredients, then pass on it.
🧘♀️ Mindful Munching:
- Take three deep breaths before digging into your meal. As tempting as it is to dive in and eat a meal as quickly as possible to move on to other tasks, try slowing down to savor those yummy flavors. Give the work you put in to creating a meal the gratitude and respect you deserve!
- Put away your phone while you eat. Pay attention to the flavors, texture, sight and smell of your food. This can give you a greater appreciation for the quality of the meal, or make you realize you really don’t enjoy eating the junk food you’ve been craving.
- Listen to your body and stop eating when you’re comfortably full. No need to become a human food disposal! You are not doing yourself, the food or someone starving in another country any favors by cleaning your plate. Uneaten food when you’ve had enough is put to much better use in a compost than on your hips stored as fat. Think about it: that uneaten food will break down into fat on your body or it’ll be broken down into nutrients for future plants to thrive on. Which one do you think is more respectful to your body and the food?
Remember, consistency is key with these tiny habits for healthy eating! Don’t try to change everything overnight. Choose one Tiny Habit from each category and stick with it for a week. Celebrate your wins, no matter how small, and watch the magic happen!
And don’t forget your “why.” Why do you want to feel healthier and more energized? Write a list of why’s and keep adding to it for those moments when you need a little extra motivation.
🎁 Here are some additional tips for successful tiny habits for healthy eating:
- Visualize your “why.” Keep a list of your reasons for wanting to improve your health somewhere you’ll see it often, like your refrigerator or phone.
- Focus on your fiber. Plant sources are full of fiber, which helps grow a healthy gut microbiome, regulates blood sugar, helps with weight loss and maintenance, and helps reduce cholesterol. Try increasing your fiber intake each day by adding more plants to your plate at each meal.
- Find a support system. Share your goals with friends, family, or online communities for encouragement and accountability.
By incorporating these Tiny Habits into your life, you can make significant strides toward a healthier, happier you. Remember, it’s not about drastic changes; it’s about small, consistent steps that lead to lasting results.
So, who’s ready to ditch the overwhelm and embrace the Tiny Habits revolution? Share your tiny habit ideas in the comments or DM me!
