by Ben Dearman, KDR Fitness
Life is busy. There never seems like there is enough time and things always seem to take longer then they have to….like fat loss and changing your body. In our fast paced society we sometimes literally hit the ground running as soon as we wake up. That’s an awful thing to do! Not only does it start a stress response but it generally sets up your entire day to be rushed and chaotic.
The key is in the habits that you form, specifically in your habits BEFORE you leave the house. Because, let’s face it, as soon as you leave the house you enter into a world that you have very little control over.
We have found time and time again that if you can get our members to tackle a few simple things first thing in the AM they experience faster and greater results in body composition.
Simply put – do the things and you will lose weight, drop inches, feel better, destress and just generally kick more ass at life!
- Drink 30 oz of water before you leave the house, preferably IMMEDIATELY upon waking.
- Take your multi-vitamins with your water.
- If you normally don’t eat something as soon as you wake up – eat one to two thumbs of nuts. If you do eat something, take your fish oil at this point and skip the nuts.
- Wake up 15 minutes earlier. You’re not in school anymore! Sleeping in for 15 minutes doesn’t do anything for you except makes you feel more rushed when you wake up. I also said, wake up, not get up. Lying in bed for 15 minutes; 5 of which you practice some deep belly breathing with a 4 count inhale and 8 count exhale will help to lower stress hormones which will help you lose more weight.
- Get outside for 5 minutes. You don’t have to do anything, just look around, or bonus go for a 5-15 minute walk.
- The most important thing – write down the 3 most important things you need to get done today. Your whole day should revolve around those three things.
Ok…so WHY?! Why do those things make such a big difference in people’s success?
I could go into a lot of science behind drinking water and taking your sups first thing.
Or, I could go into a lot of bro-science about how water cleanses your colon (sort of), speeds up digestion (kind of), revs up your metabolism (that one is true), kills cancer (no), fights disease (eh…not so much but kind of), etc.
But, I won’t. The best reasons are – it’s rare for people to drink ENOUGH water (males 4-5 liters, females 3-4 liters) and when Jamie takes her sups I notice a big difference and so does she. And I bet you notice a difference when you take yours! And if you don’t, you’re too focused on the outside world and not focused enough on what’s going on INSIDE your world.
The nut thing is pretty simple, you get some fats, fiber and protein in right away. That might also make you poop too. Which is great…because I would say that 50% of females don’t poop every day. That’s a problem. Stop wasting your time and money on cleanses and go take a dump instead. If it doesn’t make you drop a deuce then at least you’re getting in some calories with your sups as well as setting your self up to NOT be THAT hungry when you make the selection for your first meal.
The outside thing is pretty simple too – just do it. You will feel better. When you go through something like cancer, it causes you shift your focus a lot. iPads are cool, but birds are cooler. Facebook is super important, but looking outside to see what the weather is like is more important. Drinking a hot cup of coffee is great, but standing outside at 6 AM for 5 minutes in brisk weather is way greater. Human beings are meant to interact with nature and sometimes just being outside for 60 seconds can totally change my entire outlook for the day around.
The writing things down is probably the hardest thing, but often times, we think we have to get 10 things done in a day and it’s just not realistic. But because we are all over achievers – we get done with the day and we focus on those things we DIDN’T get done, instead of focusing on the things we DID get done. Don’t do that.
Success isn’t built on failure. Success is built on success! If you go to bed every day feeling like a failure because you didn’t finish your 20 item to do list – how do you think you will sleep? Probably not very good because A) you feel like a failure and B) you are thinking about everything you didn’t get done today and have to do tomorrow!
Just focus on three things, if you get more then three things done, great, if you just get your three done then that’s a win too!
Practice these simple 6 habits and you will be on your way to a happier and healthier you!
