Developing Healthy Habits for Busy Mothers

Establishing and maintaining a healthy lifestyle is the key to feeling better, fitter and more relaxed. It gives you the power to cope more effectively and efficiently with obstacles that we busy mothers are faced with on a daily basis.

Who wouldn’t want to experience the benefits of healthy living? Through the introduction of regular exercise and a healthy nutrition plan, we can improve our mental health by lifting our moods, save money by not buying as much processed foods, lower the risk of developing illnesses and most importantly take control of our life.

As a busy mother, I understand the demands we all face. Every day we are the cook, housekeeper, driver, role model, mediator, teacher and the list goes on and on. Why is it that we can manage to accommodate every activity for our children, but not for ourselves? Mothers of today are the masters of multitasking; dropping one child at one place while picking up another, then getting to a doctor’s appointment. We know how to get things done! Why do we then fail at looking after our own needs and nurturing our mental and physical requirements?

Let’s change all that! As a united force, get together with some friends and work together to make the required changes. Stop making excuses, procrastinating and putting yourself at the bottom of the priority list. Make the new year about you and trust me when I say that it will have a snowball effect. If you make the changes in yourself, not only will you benefit but you will also become a better mother, wife and friend.

KEY ELEMENTS TO CREATING HEALTHY HABITS

TIME MANAGEMENT

It is time for you to manage time rather than it managing you.

1. Prioritize your day
   Make a list of essential tasks that must get done (e.g. kids’ lunch boxes, soccer training, dinner, wash clothes, daily exercise, etc), followed by things you would like to get done. Crossing off the more demanding tasks gives you a feeling of completion and control. This in turn creates a habit which will make each day run with ease.
2. Delegate Tasks
   It is impossible for one person to do everything on their own. Get the family involved! This might include tasks as little as setting the table for dinner, hanging or folding the laundry, watering the plants or tidying up their rooms. Getting the family involved will free up time that can be spent on yourself.
3. Take advantage of your free time
   Try to utilize your time more efficiently. When you take your son or daughter to after school activities, make use of that 30-minute window of opportunity. Throw in your runners and walk around the oval during that time. If they are at a swimming lesson, bring your swimmers and do some laps for the duration of the lesson. If you have small children, use their nap time to exercise with DVDs . If you are a working mother, use half of your lunch break to go for a walk, take the stairs instead of the lift, park your car a block away from the train station or get off the bus one stop earlier. There are no excuses, you can make it happen!

Start slowly by changing one small thing at a time. Seeing the benefits will then lead you to build on what you already do. By introducing just one healthy behavior, the improvements to your health will be noticeable.

SETTING GOALS

Goals give you direction. To work towards a leaner and healthier lifestyle, writing down your intentions and why they are important are the first steps to making them real.

1. Define specific goals
   You may want to change the way you look by losing weight and toning your body or change how you feel by increasing your energy levels, managing mood swings and stress or improving your eating habits. Perhaps setting a goal of creating healthy habits by stopping smoking, reducing cholesterol and improving the quality of your life is important. The more determined you are the more successful you will be.
2. Set Mini Goals
   Taking smaller steps towards the big goal gives you a feeling of accomplishment and keeps you motivated in moving in the right direction. Setting unrealistic goals and time frames will set you up for failure and the likelihood of not continuing. If increasing your cardiovascular fitness is important, rather than saying I will run 5km every day, start with a brisk walk and work towards increasing the distance and jogging over time. “It is better to take many small steps in the right direction than to make a great leap forward only to stumble backward.” – Proverb
3. Predict your future
   Imagining your ideal life and where you would like to be in five years time will make your goals easier to reach. Setting smaller goals that are measurable will give you confidence and success in sticking to the big plan.
4. Accountability Partner
   Having a partner, friend or mentor to help measure your success will keep you motivated and accountable in reaching your goals.

Keep your goals in sight all the time. Write them in your diary or post them around the house. When you reach your mini goals reward yourself, just like we reward our children for their achievements. Eventually your success will become its own reward. If you make these goals your priority, change will come and it will be long lasting.

By developing healthy habits, we improve the way we feel and look. Bad habits can sometimes reappear when we are stressed, bored or anxious. It is normal to slip up at times. However, rather than giving up, learn from your mistakes. Life is a journey. Be positive and use the experience to better yourself to prevent slip ups to recur.

As mothers, we hold the powerful position of being a role model to our family. We have a strong influence on educating our children to make better nutritional and exercise choices in their lives. Take responsibility and enjoy building the foundations of a life that you and your family deserve to live!

“Our strength grows out of our weaknesses.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

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