3 Solid Habits That Will Make an Immediate Difference

If you are like most people, the start of the coming year is exciting... but a little bit daunting. Everyone is making these grand plans to start new habits, break old ones, and make a change for the better. It may seem overwhelming to even figure out where to begin. Here are a few habits that seem small but can make an almost immediate change in your day-to-day life!

Drink more water!

Did you know that you are supposed to drink between 3/4 of a gallon to 1.5 gallons of water per day, depending on your movement and how much you sweat? If you are feeling sluggish, overly hungry, experiencing drier skin than you normally have, or just "off", you may be dehydrated. Actually... you probably are dehydrated, especially if you were shocked at the first fact about water intake! Everyone is buying new water bottles/modes of consuming liquids at the start of the year, and you now have an excuse to purchase that Stanley cup you've been eyeing because it will in fact help you consume more water!

Every morning, start your day by drinking a full glass of water. It has been awhile since you last drank water, if you did in fact get your 7-9 recommended hours of sleep per night! Starting off your day by consuming 8-12 oz of water can actually help your body stay hydrated throughout the day.

Before every meal, consume another glass of water, AND take breaks throughout your meal to drink water while you are eating. This will not only help with your hydration levels, but slowing down your eating and increasing your water intake can both improve your digestion tenfold.

About 30 minutes to an hour before bed, drink your final 8-12 oz of water. This will help you stay hydrated for longer during your sweet slumber, and you will most likely be able to sleep through the night without waking up and running to the bathroom throughout the night by letting your body absorb the water a little while before bed.

Put your phone down!

I see all over social media (oh, the irony in that that) people posting about their New Years Resolution revolving around decreasing their time on social media. A very simple way to do this is to set time limits on your phone for your social media apps or even setting downtime on your phone. To set downtime (on an iPhone), you can go into your Settings, click on Screen Time, head into Downtime, and schedule downtime hours, either every day or a customizable amount of days. This allows you to blame your phone when you are feeling the need to open another social media platform at 9 PM as you're laying in bed. You can also set App Limits on the most-used social media apps on your phone. Head back into Settings, click on App Limits, and add as many limits as you feel necessary to cut down on your individual screen time.

Another good way to cut down that screen time is to start and end your day without your phone. As a parent and working mom, I understand the need to check your missed calls or texts in the morning as soon as you wake up and right before you go to bed. If that gives you peace of mind, great! But don't you dare touch a social media app! A good time range is 30 minutes to an hour after you wake up and before you go to bed. This allows you to fully wake up in the morning without seeing everything (and every emotion) that social media can bring, and it also allows your brain to naturally begin to prepare for the sleep ahead in the evening without the blue light from your screen waking your brain up as you're lying in bed watching TikTok videos.

As a fellow bookworm, I am always looking for the next best series, the next best read to add to my library, but don't get me wrong, my attention span has been severely altered by how much time I spend on social media. I find myself staring at my screen for hours, when I remember I used to be able to read 300+ pages of a book in the same amount of time. I find myself frustrated at myself for wasting so much time and anxious knowing how much I could have accomplished in that time. Fill your time in the morning and evening by reading a book instead of picking up your phone. Even finishing one chapter of a book a day can help restore your attention span and workout your brain so your memory can be just as sharp, if not better in 20 years!

Get active!

For a lot of people, finding physical activity throughout the day seems daunting. I have a 2 year old son and a husband who works full time away from the house, I understand the panic that comes into trying to plan around everyone's schedule AND get in your 30 minutes of exercise per day. With that in mind... your physical activity doesn't HAVE to be you corralling the herd and hitting the gym, going for a 6 mile run, or completely sweating through a T-shirt. Your 30 minutes of activity could be strapping your sweet son or daughter into their stroller and going for a walk around your neighborhood. It could be completing 30 minutes of stretching before bed. It could also be finding a bodyweight workout to do with your little ones and showing them the wonders of physical activity.

You would be amazed at what 30 minutes of movement per day will do for your physical health, your mental health, and your overall wellbeing. If you can't do 30 minutes, do 20. If you can't do 20 minutes, do 15. There is always something you can do, and everything else is just a sweet little excuse you have developed the habit of telling yourself to make you feel better for not quitting these bad habits sooner. And with that, it is OKAY that you haven't quit these habits sooner. You aren't supposed to be perfect. What fun would life be if you never had to grow into a changing and hopefully better person? What skills would you teach your children if you never had to struggle and show them what hard work and dedication looks like? You are doing the best that you can, but I am here to tell you that just small changes throughout your day can take you from where you are at now to where you want to be at the end of this next year.

At the end of 2023, what do you want to be able to tell yourself, tell your children, tell your spouse, that you did to make 2023 better than 2022? The end of the year is a wonderful time for self reflection, so use these next two days to reflect on how your 2022 year ended and start to make a plan to create a year full of growth and empowerment for 2023. There is no better time than the present to start living the life you dream of. Don't let your fear of not choosing the "right" New Years Resolution or not being able to follow through with your New Years Resolution get in your way! Truly believe in yourself, and everyone else who matters will follow suit.