4 things you should do to make living healthy an uncomplicated endeavor.

I like to think of myself as an uncomplicated person. That should not be read that I don’t have layers — or complications in life.  It is more to say that I always try to find that simple way to do or look at things — find the common denominator, leave all the fuss or confusion out of the equation.  Reducing things down to simple just feels…uncomplicated.

And uncomplicated feels easier.

I think it is human nature in a way to complicate things.  And I think in a way social media and our ability to “get” so much more, quicker and easier, is to blame.  We can say it helps make things simpler and in some cases, perhaps it does. But in reality, being able to find information and get “stuff” at a moment’s notice (hello, Amazon Prime!) could in fact do the opposite.  It could, in fact, give too many options, clutter us more, and leave us feeling like there is always something more to do…and buy.

Which doesn’t make for things to be easier.  It adds layers…and stuff. And that just complicates things!

I have certainly fallen into this trap – especially when it comes to Amazon. I try to check myself before I hit the super-enticing  “Buy with one-click”, and ask, Do I really need this, now? Or at all?

It can be hard work to do – this questioning constantly. Yet with out it, it really does make keeping clutter at bay an even more difficult proposition. And keeping it at bay, in my opinion, is a very big contributor to feeling and living healthy.

Living healthy doesn’t need to be complicated, and it might be daunting and overwhelming at times.

But these four tips will help you get there…and stay there.

1. Get organized. Okay this an important step and I know that it is a big term — perhaps even a complicated one. But it is possible, especially when you dumb it down. To do that you need to identify what is driving you nuts, determine how you want to feel, and then schedule some time to declutter – removing whatever is in that space that doesn’t make you feel good or fit with the vision of the space. As I suggested in one of my Facebook LIVE videos, if you set a timer to do this work and chip away at it daily or weekly, you will get organized. What remains once to you purge the unneeded and disliked items is more manageable. Systems for order become clearer and much less complicated.
2. Tidy up daily. Take 10 minutes to just put things away — unload a dishwasher, (or load it leaving the sink clear), hang up coats, put away toys, pick up clothes from the floor, sort the mail. These are small tasks that aid in making your space feel light and your mind clear. And when that happens more magic can happen!  You feel better, and are able to see and then “do” what is healthy – more easily.
3. Don’t keep up with the Jones’s.  It seems, perhaps unknowingly, that people feel they must do more in order to be more. I think social media contributes to this feeling. From the meals we make to the vacations we take, I find when I coach people on living healthy, that people muck it up in trying to do things more perfectly than the next person.
   

   Let that go.

   Remember: You don’t need to cook like a chef to make a good meal, inexpensively. You can shop on a budget, make great meals, and be healthy.  Sometimes all you need to do to prove your worth (to yourself even) in the kitchen is to try and then remember that practice, does make perfect enough.

   And you don’t need to be any more than who we are. Keep track of your successes, your desires, your failures.  This can help keep you in check when you find yourself competing unnecessarily with the Jones’s – who are probably doing the same thing with you.

4. Find your why. The biggest thing often missing from a healthy living mission is the why.  I have written about how knowing how you want to feel is so important when it comes to getting organized or getting healthy.  When you know your “why” you are more easily able to push through the obstacles that are sure to confront you on your journey.When you really know how you want to feel – in life, in your space, in your body – the choices you make around food and living change. They become more deliberate and conscious, clear and definitely less complicated.

The road might still be hard – and let’s face it, anything really worth it usually isn’t a walk in the park.  But it doesn’t need to be complicated.

Simplify, simplify.  And stick with it. What you “get” in the end because of your uncomplicated efforts – makes the healthy road one worth traveling.