2024 Starts, Stops, and Keeps [Ep. 76]

This is the eight mile thing. Well love well podcast. I'm Lisa Salsbury, and this is episode 76, 20 20 for starts, stops and keeps. Welcome to Eat Well, Think Well, Live Well; the podcast for women who want to lose weight, but are tired of counting and calculating all the food. I'm your host, Lisa Salsbury. I'm a certified health and weight loss coach and life coach, and most importantly a recovered chronic dieter. I'll teach you to figure out why you are eating when you aren't hungry, instead of worrying so much about what you are eating. Yeah, happy new year, everyone. I know, you're probably tired of me talking about this, but my son got married just this past weekend on December 30th in Texas. And it was so amazing what a way to finish off the year. If you follow me on Instagram, you've seen tons of photos of the flowers, my daughter, and I did. And by the way, if you're not following me on Instagram, why not get over there? Hit that follow anyway. We used a DIY company for the flowers and they turned out better than I could have hoped, and we saved thousands of dollars. So that is a win win. Anyway, check out those photos. My son looked so handsome. We had a custom suit designed for him and it is dark green. It was absolutely amazing. Anyway, I came back super exhausted, walked around like a zombie all day. Uh, but I went to bed extra early last night, got 10 hours of sleep, which is absolutely crazy for me with my hormones lately. And I'm actually feeling pretty awesome today. So I am ready to talk to you today. About my 2024. Starts stops and keeps. I have been noticing a trend going around on social media. I'm sure you have to. It's hard to miss. And that's the ins and outs for the year. All the things people want to include this year and the things they're kind of done with. I love this concept of setting intentions for the year, rather than kind of overhauling in big, giant ways. And I wanted to take that a little further in this episode and show you an exercise I do with my clients. We do this on a big scale, like we're doing in this episode for the year. And also we'll do this occasionally on a small scale for weekly. Like what are, what are our weekly intentions here? So instead of just the ins and the outs, I think they're missing a major category, which is the keeps. I phrase this, what do I want to start doing? What do I want to stop doing? And what do I want to keep doing? And that keep doing category is important. I think, especially at this time of year, When we might get into the mindset or the feeling that we have to somehow overhaul our entire lives, we feel pressure to completely change or alter some area. Of our lives, but chances are, you were doing a lot of things, right? Things that you want to keep doing. And so I just really want to emphasize those. So I'm going to take you through some of mine for examples. And then I want you to do this too. So I'm going to give you some of the things that I've been thinking about that I want to start, stop and keep doing this year. And these are just for you for examples. I'm not. Giving you these as what you should be doing. Okay. Because we're all good at different things. So let's begin with what I want to start doing this year. also, I just want to say that this isn't going to strictly be related to my health and wellness, but in several areas of my life. So this year I want to start eating more vegetables. I have been feeling lately, like I've been skimping on the veggies. This also has to do with fiber. I am interested in increasing my fiber and really the easiest way to do that is increasing vegetables. So for a long time, I was eating vegetables three meals a day, and I have really gotten out of that habit. I really don't enjoy vegetables for breakfast. I gotta be honest and I'm not planning on changing my go-to breakfast. So that means I'm going to be focusing more on vegetables at lunch and dinner. My plan for this is a couple of things. First, I'm going to be making bigger batches of vegetables at dinner when I'm already doing the prep. So I make sure I have lots of leftovers for lunches, with a dwindling number of people living here. And my house as kids have gone off to college, I've been decreasing the amount. I'm a food I make for dinner. But I want to sort of shift my mindset around that with the vegetables. Mostly, this is because I don't want to take the time to make vegetables at lunchtime. And again, that's not something I want to start doing. So I have to figure out how to get more vegetables at lunchtime without having to prep and cook more at lunchtime. So the other strategy I'm going to do to start eating more vegetables at lunch is to make some salad basis a few times a month. So this would be some pre prep and I might do this at lunchtime. I doubt I would do this for dinner. But these are like shredded or finely chopped sturdy vegetables that we'll keep for a while in the fridge that you can then add protein and dressings or cheese or fruits or whatever. On top to make them different each day. So one that I saw recently was like kale, broccoli, brussel sprouts, and a little bit of romaine, and that's all chopped up together at one time. And then you can eat on it all week. So I was intrigued by that idea. I want to try and start doing that. And the final strategy is to bring back my vegetable soups. I used to throw all the veggies. I had an often like a can of beans in too, which also helps with the fiber into a pot and make a soup. Um, this is sort of reminiscent of my cabbage soup diet days. Anyone ever do that? Yeah, the thing is that I really like it and I don't have to be on the cabbage soup diet. To enjoy vegetable soup. I don't like eating salads every single day, especially in the winter. And so I'm planning on doing more vegetable soups over the next few months, at least until it starts getting warmer. So I'll be alternating. Like the soups and that salad base that I just mentioned. So that's my strategy for starting to eat more vegetables. Okay. The next thing I want to start doing is to rejuvenate my spiritual practice. For several years, I was teaching the adult scripture study doctrine type Sunday school class at my church. And it really forced me to study and maintain my own spiritual practice during the week. I don't have that assignment anymore. We volunteer at my church and trade assignments around. And so I'm currently playing the organ. So I don't know if you knew that about me little tidbit there. I play the organ at my church. But in any case, I don't have to do any kind of spiritual prep for that. I just, I just actually know all the songs already. So. I have let my personal spiritual practice die out this last year, especially, I don't know exactly what this is going to look like yet this year. So I don't have as many strategies for this one, as I do for the vegetables. Probably because it feels harder for me to figure out then eating. I think it will be a morning activity because my youngest daughter gets her driver's license this week. So I no longer will have to drive her to school. So that frees up about 40 minutes in the morning for me. So I want to put that towards this practice. I'm still looking for a curriculum for myself. Like either a book I want to study or a podcast to follow along with and study with. I haven't quite decided there. So let me know if you have any good ones on that. And the last thing I want to start doing this year is planning my work time more effectively. So oftentimes I sit down to work and I think, Hm, what needs to be done? And I go for the lowest hanging fruit, which is the easy stuff. And I miss the important stuff, like keeping my calendar updated. So when you guys make your free appointments on my calendar, I'm actually available. This week I had someone scheduled for the exact time. I would be at the DMV with my daughter doing that driver's license test. And I thought, wow, I have got to stay on top of blocking out my calendar better. My strategy for this one involves really blocking out an hour on Monday. To plan out the week, get clear on what needs to be done and put things on my calendar as non-negotiables. I'm going to try this on a paper planner type system. And no, I don't think a new planner is going to solve all my problems. I have. Plenty of planners in my drawer that are empty to prove that day do not. I just made one for myself on Canva that I'm going to try for the first quarter and then reassess to see what is working in it. I just want to be committed to getting to my desk early enough, the formula. Appointment start each day to make some plans and not feel so rushed. All right, moving on to my stops. What do I want to stop doing this year? First, I want to stop eating the amount of added sugars and currently consuming. During the month of December, I actually dropped my sugar intake and I felt so much better. I wasn't trying to crash diet or lose a bunch of weight, but I had noticed quite a bit of waterway and just bloating over the fall months, I had several out of town, weekends, some travel things. Weren't quite going the way I liked them too, with my body. So. I really paid attention after Thanksgiving and I lost five pounds before my son's wedding. Again, I was just trying to get things back in balance and not have excess bloating because my main goal was to not wear any kind of shapewear because it's just so uncomfortable in my dieting days, I was always trying to be thinner. And so I consistently wore Spanx and other shapewear type slips and cammies. And they are hot and uncomfortable, and I didn't want to deal with that in my dress at the wedding. All this is to say that reducing my added sugar intake was really good for me. So this may sound like something I want to keep doing, but in reality, it's a stop for me because it's not really a habit yet. So I want to stop eating added sugars on a daily basis. Notice I've been saying added sugars all this time. I am not concerned in the least about the amount of sugar I eat in fruit. Or in dairy and naturally occurring things. Eat all of that. It is not the same. This isn't a fruit episode, but just so you know what I'm talking about added like cane sugar. those kinds of things. When we add sugar to food. So primarily for me, This is desserts. Okay. You have to decide for yourself if you prefer to have desserts every day or not, but for me, I feel best if I keep these items to a couple times per week. So, this is also for me, like added chocolates. I tend to have, um, you know, a little baby milk chocolate every day. And I just started to realize it was really adding up on all of the added sugars. So I want to stop eating so many added sugars this year. Second, I'm going to stop ignoring the books on my desk. I've gotten several books over 2023 that I have not even cracked open. It's so embarrassing. Now don't get me wrong. I'm actually an avid reader. I listened to books on audio all the time I read on my Kindle nightly. I just actually went through my library app. I actually check out all my books that I read on my library app, my Kindle ones and my audio ones. And so I thought, oh, just for fun. I want to see on my history. And I counted, I think I read about 70 books this year. So a few of those on audio were self-help or business books, but the real. Business books or self-help books. I want to read. I have sitting here. In paperback or hardback on my desk. I have like a podcast book. I have a coaching book. I have a few others. I was given a new one called brain energy for Christmas. I'm really looking forward to, and so this year I'm going to stop ignoring these books. I'm going to stop thinking that reading is only for pleasure or for listening while I'm in the car or cooking. I'm going to stop ignoring them and make them part of my actual Workday. Because they will help me help you better. I think these books will make me a better coach, which is why I purchase them. So I'm going to stop thinking. I don't have time to read them. Okay. Now onto the category, I think is missing from the ins and outs lists. And that's my keeps, what am I doing? Well, what am I awesome at? There's things you're awesome at, and I want you to really acknowledge those. So first. I think I'm really good at sleep. I'm going to keep prioritizing my sleep. I do not do well when I don't get eight hours of sleep. I do a really good job of going to bed on time. This is a really difficult one, I think for younger moms. And what I mean by younger moms, I don't mean your age, whatever age that you are is irrelevant. I mean, young in your motherhood journey. When I had small children. That time between their bedtime and my bedtime was so precious because it was, you know, The only time it felt like that I had to myself and I would often extend that way too long and not get the sleep that I needed. So I wouldn't go to bed on time. So I know for me, that was a really challenging time. At this point, am I mothering? Um, my teenagers stay up way later than I do, and I just don't even care. So that's lucky for me. I, you know, I'm in that age where I can. Go to bed whenever I feel like it because my kids do not need any help at bedtime. So I know everybody is not in this situation, but prioritizing my bedtime is actually something I'm pretty good at my husband. I used to also stay up too late, watching shows or just sitting on the couch. And one thing I've done there is to not get on my phone when we turn off the TV. So if we would be watching a show and then it'd be over, we turn it off and then we would get on our phones. We would check our phones and then sit there for another 30 minutes or so. I'm quite certain that nobody has emailed me. At 9:00 PM. That must have a response at 10:00 PM. Like there's nobody, there's no one. So I've just like, I'm not checking my email. I'm not checking Instagram. I really have gotten in a better habit of just getting off the couch as soon as the TV gets turned off. So I don't get sucked in and I do tend to check my calendar while I'm brushing my teeth, just to make sure my alarm is set correctly for the next day. But other than that, I try not to really get on my phone before bed. and I think that's really been helpful for me. I think for me the best way to protect my sleep and prioritize my sleep is just that going to bed on time. I find we have more control over that. If we really step back and look, then what time we get up? Because what time we get up is often determined by what time. Our kids' school starts, what time you have to be at work? What time your first appointment is, those kinds of things tend to be less in our control. And so the going to bed on time is more in my control. The other thing I'm working on on, this is my hormones with my increasing perimenopause symptoms. I've been having some early morning waking like in the four or five o'clock hour. I've been actively working with my natural path on this, getting my progesterone and estrogen dosing dialed in. So this doesn't happen. So I'm going to keep working on that to make sure my sleep is as good as it can be. The second thing I'm going to keep doing is making protein a priority for me at meal time, I do a really good job of this. My typical breakfast for example, has about 40 grams of protein. and I can tell when I don't get this amount, I really can feel it during the day in my cravings and just my hunger level. I don't actively count macros anymore, as you know, but it doesn't mean, I don't know what a serving of protein looks like. I consistently buy rotisserie chicken at Costco. And I use that for my lunch protein several days of the week. I actually love chicken. It's my favorite protein. So I don't mind eating it multiple days in a row. I find that when I really prioritize protein, that my hunger levels. Never get to that emergency level feeling. So I think I'm doing a really good job of this. And lastly, I want to keep showing up here for you on the podcast. When I started this in August of 2022, I was committed. But I also wondered how long I could keep it up. How long could I publish a podcast every single Wednesday without missing. And it turns out I could do it for 76 straight weeks so far. I really love what I've been able to put out in the world for you, the listener and what I've learned from the amazing guests. I've had the privilege of interviewing. It's also allowed me to put myself out there to other podcast hosts. I've guessed it on several other shows this past year as well. I want to keep offering this free content for you. And I hope if weight loss is your goal that you've gotten started and lost your first five pounds from what you've learned here on the podcast. So I'm going to keep showing up here every week for you this year. Okay. It is your turn. What do you want to start doing? Stop doing and keep doing this year. I'd love for you to let me know over on Instagram, come on over, follow me and find one of the posts about this week's podcast. And let me know some of your starts stops and keeps. Mine are just here in this episode, for examples, like I said, you may choose some of my same ones, but you are good at different things than I am. So your keep might be my start, you know? Okay. give me a follow over there on Instagram, and then be sure to schedule a free call with me if you need help with this or any other concept I have discussed on the podcast link to that is in the show notes. Thanks for listening to the Eat Well, Think Well, Live Well podcast.