Fundamentals For Any Successful Health Journey

Good health is about the quality of the journey. Most people in their 40s, 50s and 60s, in their midlife and beyond, are trying to improve their health in some way.

Good health is about the journey

Most people in their 40s, 50s and 60s, in their midlife and beyond, are trying to improve their health in some way. With midlife years often comes weight gain, expanding waistline, low energy, hair & skin conditions, gut issues or a medical diagnosis like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, hypertension and others.

Most people try to address their health concerns but fail to get the answers they want. Exercise is just not enough. More often than ever before, people are turning to weight loss drugs, supplements, packaged meal programs, or the latest diet fad.

This usually turns into a vicious cycle of frustration and elusive or waning results.

What matters is what we DO on the journey of the aging process. We want to reach a destination, but how will we get there is determined by the journey itself, over years.

The first line of defense is diet & lifestyle.

The weight loss industry is soaring. The U.S. weight loss market is now worth $90 billion (Marketdata Enterprises, March 2024), and drugs to combat obesity like Wegovy and Ozempic are skyrocketing.

When diet and lifestyle efforts fail, most people often self-blame and turn to medical interventions.

I get it! Long ago, I tried miracle shakes, crazy exercise, counting points, paleo, South Beach. NOTHING worked or at least was sustainable!

What happened? Two things:

Unless there's an anchor keeping you grounded on your health journey decision-making, you don't have a reason to consistently drive your choices and actions. (Fundamental #1 below)

You're using the wrong tools for the job (Fundamental #2 below)

Fundamental 1: You Need A Long-Range Target (Your 'WHY')

• This is the question I START any new coach-client relationship with: What is your long-term 'why' for living healthfully?
  
  In coaching sessions, we can get down the road with all kinds of great information, ideas, goals and plans, but without a foundation, a 'true north,' something that guides every action, it's easy to get off track, lose progress, or go back to old ways.

What is your "WHY" for being healthy?

Here are some common WHYs:

• To spend quality time with family

• To be successful in career

• To share life with friends

• To be happy

• To feel good every day

• To participate in favorite hobbies

Today, think about what your WHY is. What is your reason to be healthy. What drives you?
Use that to motivate yourself to live well - starting TODAY. It's a new beginning.

For me, my WHY is family and longevity. I want to fully enjoy retirement when it comes and use our hard-earned money for fun times instead of spending it on medical needs.

What Kind Of WHY Leads To Lasting Health?

There's the short-term kind or long-range kind, and there's the in-the-moment kind...

A WHY to a long healthy life isn't a short term reason like for a wedding, trip, reunion or special event.

Instead, a WHY to a long healthy life has a long-range view, like:

Where do you want to be in 1 year, 5 years, 10 years? With whom? Doing what?
How do you want to feel in a month, next year, when you're ___ years old?

A WHY to a long healthy life isn't the YOLO 'live hard' kind of reason.

If those things aren't serving your health, then maybe it's time to make important changes in your life.

Take Action

Everyone is paving a path to wellness, or illness. How will you pave your path?

Every bite you take is a brick on that path. Use your long-range WHY to motivate your food choices & lifestyle habits. Those are the bricks on your path to wellness.

Fundamental 2: You Need A Target Then A Framework To Follow

Set A Target, Take Aim

You have your WHY in mind now? Great!

Next think about where you want to go with your health. What is your end goal? That's your target.

Do you want to lose weight? How much?
Do you want to get off medications? Which ones?
Do you want to improve mobility, maintain independent living, be able to walk around the park or play pickle ball?

Now, HOW are you going to get there?

Follow A Structure

Most people who fail at reaching their health goals don't use a framework, or they use the wrong one.

If we don't use a framework, a structure, a plan, a map, then we're a paper airplane wandering aimlessly on wind current, hoping to reach the destination.

The right framework is crucial to success.

The wrong framework would be like climbing a ladder that's against the wrong wall! Maybe you'd climb higher, but the end result wouldn't be what you wanted.

For a framework to follow that has helped midlife women reclaim their health and hope, check out my digital course, the Second Youth Wellness Method.

Use The Right Tool

If we use the wrong framework for our health goals, then we likely won't reach them.

We can use a ladder to get to the top of a wall, but if we're using the wrong kind, or it's too short, we may not reach it.

Sometimes when we try to put together a piece of furniture, if we don't use an instruction manual, we may not succeed or it will take A LOT longer.

Closing Thoughts

Your health is your wealth.

Healthy aging doesn't have to be a mystery or a series of failed attempts.

Ground yourself in your long-range WHY and use it as the reason behind every diet & lifestyle decision to help you enjoy a longer, healthier life.

Your WHY is your reason.
Your WHERE is your target.
Your HOW is the framework to follow.

To have a successful health journey, ask yourself:

How can you make changes today to live well & enjoy your WHYs in life?
What are you willing to do today to make that happen reliably?
What framework will help you reach your health goals?

Don't waste your time, money & effort on things that don't work.

Instead, start today in making the meaningful diet & lifestyle changes that will help you enjoy good health for a long time to come.

💚 Melissa
xoxo