When changing your habits, the transition is so difficult to maintain. You are using more energy in order to get more energy, but in the process you lose more energy. How does that even work?

Changing your lifestyle is and habits will never be an easy task. You are essentially redoing every habit you have known and making it into a different one. That is why sustainable change is your best bet. Just know that this is a slow progression, especially if you have responsibilities that you still need energy for.

Here are some tips to get you started:

Working out: when you work your body consistently, your body is recognizing that there is a new habit in your life that it needs to adjust to. Now I am no biology major or doctor, so you need to know your body and all the slightest of changes, but your body will keep adjusting to how much energy you use a day.

You may be tired, but it is only temporary as your body adjust to new habits and a new lifestyle.

Resting: When you can, rest, but do not nap. This means, lay down and let your body learn and recover from the energy you just expended. As it recovers, then you become stronger. If you are manic exercising, then your body doesn’t recover as well and it could honestly just be working in stress mode, and that’s not what you want. Listen to your body when it says that it is tired. If you are super tired, you can either take a SHORT nap or you can stay awake and rest your body, or you can go to sleep earlier than usual. (click here for more info about sleep)

We typically do nothing but scroll for the last two to three hours in the evening as a society. Instead, force yourself to go to sleep early, so that all your hours awake, are productive.

If you are disciplined enough, take a short nap, and get up even if you are tired. After you get up, your body will force itself awake again and you will still have more energy than before. Granted, it is not a great experience. Neither of these options are. But you are running a marathon. Of a lifestyle change for your future, so the transitions will not be easy.

Eating habits: There are two aspects I want to mention when it comes to eating habits. What you eat and how you eat.

WHAT you eat: If you are talking about weight loss, yes, sure, calorie deficit is what everyone talks about. But are you in this weight loss journey for more energy and more fun? Or for how you look? Either way, I still recommend what I am about to share.

What you eat is so important for your health and how you feel. Foods with fiber help you go to the bathroom and reduce gut issues, foods with protein restore your muscles. Magnesium, restores your muscles and helps you sleep. Berries help with inflammation when your period comes. Pizza, which is so yummy, makes you feel sluggish and makes the workout you do, harder than it should be.

When you eat well, your energy is higher, your body feels better. Your retaining nutrients that you need that help so many health issues. You are more lively and feel stronger and available to workout. Even your skin gets better!

When you eat poorly, yes, it’s totally okay, and eating poorly once in a while will not affect your results, but it will make you feel sluggish and slow when you do work out. Essentially making that workout harder and not as effective.

You may think that this doesn’t affect you, but take a look at what you are eating, is it mostly unhealthy food or mainly heavy? You may not feel a difference because you don’t know that another experience exists. Working out could just feel dreadful in general, and a huge part of it comes from the food you eat.

HOW you eat: When it comes to eating, it is important to eat a full breakfast, a medium lunch, and a light dinner. It is also important to eat at least 3 hours before you sleep. YES. I know we have all heard this, but let me tell you why this is effective.

The food you eat in the morning, sets you up with the amount of energy you will have and use for the rest of the day. It is what you will have burned throughout the day. Eating a decent lunch, pushes you through the rest of the day with how much energy is being used.

Now for dinner. I have experimented on myself to try to figure out how to be the most lively and wake up at five am in the morning. On top of sleeping at 9-10pm latest, I have learned that if you sleep having just eaten, you won’t rest well, and you will feel sluggish in the morning, regardless of what you eat. This is because your body is not resting at night. It is working to digest the food, therefore you are not fully resting, even if you have those 8 hours of sleep. If you eat lightly at night, hours before bedtime, your body would have the time to digest it, but not go to bed hungry and uncomfortable because you are hungry. In this scenario, your body will actually rest well at night because it does not need to work, and in turn, may mean you need less sleep.

Coffee: If you have to, get that midday coffee in. It is temporary, and your body WILL adjust, but maybe a cute little coffee will give you that extra support as your body is transitioning to become stronger.

Water: DRINK THAT WATER. Yes, we all need our cute coffees and matcha, but coffee only works when you had water, and your body restores itself by replenishing the water you lose in a day. And when you drink enough water a day, it honestly gives you more energy than coffee does.

Conclusion

A lifestyle change was never easy and will never be easy. If it was easy, everyone would do it. You need to trust yourself, your body, and trust the process. You WILL feel more tired, your body WILL want to fight back with the changes you are making, but you WILL adjust as long as you trust the process and know it’ll take months to notice these changes. Before you know it, you can endure so much more than you ever thought you could. ❤️