I am the absolute laziest when it comes to doing any sort of regular fitness.
It’s the first thing I drop when I get busy and the last thing I put on my schedule. When I’m tired or cold, I just don’t feel like getting out of bed in the morning to even get dressed; let alone to exercise. But that just won’t do.
After months of slacking and getting out of shape, I knew I had to make a commitment to myself to put fitness back on the docket regardless of how lazy I felt. So a few weeks ago, I decided to make a change to improve my health and to lift my droopy buns and saddlebags off the ground. But I had to actually start doing the work.
Remember the article on “trying” from a few weeks ago? I wasn’t going to ‘try” to do better…I was going to commit to doing better. But I also knew I’d have to use every trick in the book to make myself get out of those warm, cozy covers so I could make the change.
My best tips for making any good habit stick.
There are a few scientifically proven tricks that can help you make any new habit stick:
- Make it small. You’ll see below, I only ask myself to do 8 minutes of exercise. Start small and work your way up.
- Create triggers. This idea is that you hook your new habit to something you already do every day. A good example would be doing 3 push-ups after you brush your teeth, or rebounding for 5 minutes as soon as you turn on your tea kettle.
- Eliminate any barriers. Really examine your habits. I realized that I didn’t like getting out of a warm bed into a cold room, so I eliminated that barrier by warming up the room.
- Know if you respond better to a carrot or a stick. Some of us are more likely to stick to our habits when we get a reward; others are more encouraged to avoid a punishment. Know what works for you and set up your own system.
So here are some tricks I’ve used with myself and my clients to help us all make those positive changes we commit to when it comes to self-care and fitness.
1. Wear pants you can exercise in to bed.
The one thing I knew I would never do is get out of bed to put cold clothes on to exercise. No way. Not happening. So, what I started to do was wear yoga pants or pj pants to bed that I could easily exercise in.
Checkmark! Jen: 1 Bed: 0
2. Put a small room heater right next to your bed where you can reach out and hit it.
If you’re cold (and let’s face it, most of us thyroid folks are!), you are NEVER going to want to get out of a warm bed. So, I put a heater right by my bed, within arms reach and the first thing I do in the morning is heat up the room. I take the 5 minutes it takes to make the room warm to check in with myself, meditate for a few minutes and set my intention for the day. Blammo! Jen: 2 Bed: 0
3. Use essential oils to get energized.
While you’re waiting for the room to heat up, dab some essential oils on your third eye and your wrists. Breathe. Aaah!
To create your own energizing blend, try combining three parts grapefruit essential oil with two parts ginger oil. OR, try equal parts peppermint and wild orange. Mmmm…
Jen: 3 Bed: 0
4. Choose a short fitness routine.
Research shows that shorter bursts of exercise are even more effective at helping you get fit and lose weight than prolonged intense exercise. I just commit to myself that I will do 8 minutes of fitness a day. 8 minutes is not intimidating or overwhelming at all so knowing that’s all I’m committing to helps me get. it. done. And I always feel so good after starting that I end up going longer.
Check out these 5-minute fitness ideas, or this 7-minute workout from the New York Times (only equipment required is a chair).
Jen: 4 Bed: 0
5. Soup in the morning (made in the crockpot).
I love to start my day with something nourishing to eat that’s already made and just requires reheating. Some days that means leftovers, but other days, I set a pot of soup to simmer overnight in the slow cooker — and it’s hot and ready when I wake up!
Pho is one of my favorite breakfast soups because it’s warm, just the right amount of spicy, and light enough not to leave me feeling weighed down. This recipe looks delicious and could easily be set up to cook in the crockpot the night before! (Just about any pho recipe can be made thyroid-friendly by leaving out any sugar and the rice noodles if you’re avoiding grains.)
Jen: 5 Bed: 0
BOOM! Done. I get up and move my body and I’m DONE for the day — no excuses, and no regrets.
I’d love to hear what your best tricks are for getting motivated to move your body — come share your best tips and tricks in the Facebook group!
If you found these simple tips and tricks useful, make sure to check out my other resources on healing your thyroid naturally, including:
- Our totally free Thyroid Healing Type Assessment, Report and Coaching Sessions
- Right here on my blog, where I talk about what’s worked best for me and my clients, as well as the latest research and resources I come across. You can subscribe to get new blog posts delivered right to your email by signing up on the righthand side of the page.
- My book, Healing Hashimoto’s Naturally — part memoir, part instruction manual for how I personally healed my Hashimoto’s disease.
- My exclusive free 6 Thyroid Myths That Can Keep You From Healing workshop — with info on the comprehensive Thyroid Fix in 6 program, which walks you through, step-by-step, the exact actions you need to take to heal your thyroid and get your life back! We’ve seen hundreds of participants in the Thyroid Fix in 6 avoid, decrease, or even eliminate the need need for thyroid medications.
- The incredible Your Best Thyroid Life Video Bundle, in which I personally invited 27 of the world’s top health experts to share their best tips for living with and healing thyroid disease.
Jen Wittman is a Certified Holistic Health Expert, Chef, Author & Vitality Coach, who teaches women how to reverse thyroid and autoimmune conditions naturally. She’s helped hundreds of women decrease (or even eliminate) their thyroid medications and has helped others stay off thyroid medication entirely.
Through her free Thyroid Healing Type Assessment, Jen teaches easy and simple steps to thyroid healing that can fit into your busy day. She also provides print outs to bring to your next doctor’s appointment so you can get the support and respect you deserve.