We all know the basics of a healthy lifestyle, but one of the biggest challenges can be sticking to new lifestyle changes so that they become habit-forming. We also sometimes forget that a healthy life includes being healthy on the inside as well as on the outside. Here are some great ideas to help you not only develop healthy habits in your life, but to stick to them.

Find Exercise You Enjoy Doing to Help You Stick to it!

Finding Exercise You Enjoy

One of the most basic rules about sticking to any exercise program is that it has to be something you enjoy doing or chances are good you will not stick with it. Whether it is cycling, running, aerobics or yoga, your exercise will become part of your weekly routine if you actually like doing it. Some folks discover that while the type of exercise they find themselves doing is not rewarding in and of itself, the effects of their exercise (such as sleeping better, feeling stronger, experiencing less pain and losing weight) become their motivation to continue to their exercise.

Find an Accountability Partner

If you have already had a history of not sticking to exercise, find a partner to exercise with. Knowing your friend is waiting for you and will hold you accountable if you don’t show up can be one way to help you stick more closely to your exercise routine.

Eliminate All Junk Food and Drinks

It does little good to develop a healthy exercise routine and then turn around and fill your belly with chips, cookies and sodas. One way to eliminate empty calorie, high fat, high sugar junk foods is to simply avoid buying them altogether. Sometimes it is an adjustment that they entire family must make in order to successfully avoid junk food, but it is often one with a huge reward of a healthier lifestyle for all!

Refuse to Eat in Fast Food Restaurants

Have you ever really wondered what is in your burgers and fries that make them taste so appealing? The more we know about fast food, the more motivation we should have to simply refuse to patronize them. It is no surprise that our country is now suffering from an epidemic of obesity since some of the most profitable businesses are fast food restaurants. If you are traveling or away from home and fast food restaurants are the only option, why not choose some of the healthier food choices such as wraps or salads with bottled water instead of the burgers, fries and a soda or shake?

Restrict Refined Grains

The new USDA “My Plate” recommendations advise that at least half of your daily intake of grains or carbohydrates should come from whole grains rather than food sources made from refined grains. When purchasing your weekly groceries, look for breads, cereals and pastas that are labeled “whole grain”. Buy brown rice instead of white rice. Fortunately these products are becoming more popular due to consumer demand, so it is easier to find them. However, then tend to be a bit more expensive, but remember the payoff is huge when it is comes to developing healthy habits.

Use Your Slow Cooker to Make More Meals from Scratch

Prepare More Meals from Scratch

If you look in the center of traditional grocery stores today, you will often find the least healthy foods. The center aisles often contain freezers full of heavily processed or packaged dinners or breakfast items that tend to not only contain lots of fat, salt and carbohydrates, but they often have lists of preservatives, flavorings and additives that you cannot even pronounce. A good rule of thumb is to not buy any food with more than a handful of ingredients. The longer the list, the more processed your food is. Instead look for easy ways to prepare your meals from scratch. Whip up eggs and fruit or oatmeal for breakfast. Use your slow cooker to make home-made stews and soups and freeze leftovers to eat later. Grill or broil meats and add a fresh green salad for dinner. Chances are great that you and your family will feel better when you avoid processed foods and eat more meals that are prepared from scratch.

Grow a Garden

To help you develop healthy eating habits, one suggestion is to grow your own vegetables in the summer. If space is a challenge, you may find that some vegetables such as tomatoes can grow well in large pots. If you do not have a green thumb, be sure you learn the basics about gardening including types of soil and how much water your garden vegetables will need before your start.

Buy Organic Meats, Dairy, Fruits and Vegetables

The good news is that more and more consumers are asking for organically-grown meat and produce today. As a result, organic foods are more plentiful and affordable. Not all of your foods need to be organically-grown. According to the Environmental Working Group, here is a list of some of the items you should purchase with an organic label when possible since otherwise the amount of pesticides contained in the foods can be too high:

Explore Ways to Relieve Tension and Stress

While everyone has some level of stress in our lives, most of us are not aware of how much stress plays a role in our health and well-being. If you are experiencing a particularly stressful event or you tend to wear your stress in your body with lots of muscle tension, you should explore various ways to relieve some of your stress and tension. Common tension-relieving techniques include prayer, yoga, massage, relaxation exercises, taking long walks and hydrotherapy.

Learn to Say “No”

As women we tend to get too involved in multiple family, community, work or church activities and think we can somehow do it all perfectly at the same time. Sadly it can sometimes take having a meltdown or physical health problems for us to realize we are simply doing too much. One of my personal goals has been to start recognizing when I am becoming over-committed in too many areas and learning to say “no” even when I think I could or should be involved, or worse yet, someone needs my help. Otherwise my family, marriage or health begin to suffer and sometimes they all do! A good rule of thumb is if you look at your calendar and it is already full, start saying “no” when you are asked to help out. Developing healthy habits often begins by taking care of yourself and your family.