Are you ready to adopt sustainable habits that help you feel better, be more productive, and achieve more success?
When you adopt sustainable habits you can create sustainable change in your life, mentally and physically. Best of all, you can create sustainable habits without feeling overwhelmed and frustrated.
If you have felt stuck or like you are struggling in any area of your life, it may be time to adopt sustainable habits for a healthier version of yourself.
It’s time to play
Many times, especially once we hit mid-life, we feel something, go to the doctor, and he or she gives us a laundry list of things to do. This is overwhelming and oftentimes, things are forgotten, or it feels impossible to keep up with them.
Janet uses her PLAY method to help people adopt sustainable habits to create sustainable change in their lifestyles.
Robyn emphasized that people often use anxiety or hormones as excuses. Maybe symptoms or feelings are related to these, but they aren’t excuses. You must take action to navigate them instead of staying stuck using them as excuses. You can’t overcome struggle without action.
What is PLAY and how to use it to adopt sustainable change and create sustainable habits?
PLAY stands for Please Look After Yourself.
Janet suggests that when change is necessary, start with your vision. What is the vision you have for yourself for your future? She mentioned the 5 Why’s, which were also referenced in episode 224 when talking about problem-solving with Sarah K. Ramsey.
Janet emphasized that when you are aligned with your vision and your why, you can create sustainable change.
Your vision and your why are important when you want to adopt sustainable change
Identifying your vision and your why is the first part of the PLAY method.
Second to identifying your vision and your why is recognizing that you do not have to go to a gym.
Janet referenced the Blue Zones by Dan Butner. One of the things that Dan discovered is that people who lived the longest and healthiest never went to a gym. They simply incorporated movement into their day. This is natural and playful. For example, gardening is a form of movement and is playful.
The minimum amount of movement everyone needs is 20 minutes a day or 150 minutes a week – this recommendation is the bare minimum to fight chronic disease.
If you are struggling go back to when you were a kid and what you enjoyed doing. Robyn referenced using the same concept to tap into creativity.
More on living a healthy lifestyle.
The third part of PLAY is to keep it simple.
Janet recommends breaking behaviors into tangible, actionable steps. It is much easier to adopt sustainable change when you make it easy. For example, if you like two vegetables, start eating them every day until you are ready to try more vegetables.
When you keep things simple, you are more likely to be consistent. Consistency will enable you to create sustainable change.
Remember, there is no one size fits all but simplicity will always be key. Fun and simplicity are part of sustainability. Before considering fad diets or workouts, evaluate if they align with your goal to adopt sustainable change.
Sustainable change takes time
There is no quick fix when you want to create sustainable change. Robyn associated sustainable change for health to the time it takes to create a personal brand.
Janet emphasized that a 1% change daily can add up to significant change over time.
Likewise, when you start to make the consistent change you feel better. When you feel better, you eat better. When you eat better you sleep better. It becomes a positive cycle.
In addition, adopting PLAY as a fundamental for getting healthy and inviting friends to play, like going for a walk, it also helps end social and emotional isolation.
Adopt sustainable change today
In summary, identify your vision for your future, recognize that you do not have to spend hours in the gym and that movement can be fun, and lastly, keep it simple.
About Janet Omstead
Janet is a certified behavior change health coach with over 20 years in the health and wellness industry.
Her superpower is knowing how to coach her clients into making sustainable lifelong changes.
Janet’s impact is greater because people don’t hire her to give them a one-size-fits-all plan. With her support, they practice movement/exercise, good nutrition, better sleep, and stress reduction — in a practical, playful way.
Janet’s clients get to create a vision of what will work for them, so it sticks for life. As a result, they improve their health markers, lose weight, move easier, and feel better. Best of all, they pursue what they want most in life, whether running around with their grandkids, chasing their bucket-list goals, or simply enjoying their day-to-day lives.
Janet believes that when you are healthy and playful, life is better.
She is also the author of The Playbook, How to Get in the Habit of Good Health.
Learn more and connect with Janet on her website: Janet Omstead.
Have you or someone you know been struggling with anxiety? Download the free eBook, Alleviating Anxiety by Creating Healthy Habits for a Health Mind today.
