5 Healthy Habits that will change your day

Habits and routines by themselves are not an end; they are simply a means. As believers, we should be focused on grace-based habits and routines in all that we do (at home or in the workplace) so we can be completely present with the people who matter most. Everything I show and teach is with the goal of ultimately being famous in heaven and at home.

Much of what I share comes from things I have learned in different seasons of life and motherhood. When I graduated from college I was 21 years old, managing 15 college students and working from home. No clocking in or out, just knowing I had a job and goal to meet and needing to manage my time wisely in order to reach them. This forced me to figure out productivity tips and time management that worked well for me and my personality. I stayed in that position for 10 years, which brought about many different seasons of life. Single, Married, Mom of 1, Mom of 1 with a side hustle and mom of 2 with a side hustle.

Today I’m sharing 5 habits that have helped me as a busy mom of 2 (soon to be 3) in my own life and I pray that they will help you change your day and ultimately life:

• Wake up before my kids

Waking up early is rarely easy but the outcome is always worth it. Having time each morning to spend time in the Word, move my body and fit in the things of running a business has allowed me to better prioritize my family. It keeps me focused and grounded because I have space and time alone to read my Bible, study, and pray. It helps me get organized because I have a second to review my to-do list for the day and truly prioritize the time I have. It helps me stay healthy and energized for the task ahead because I am able to get my workout in and give my best because I don’t have little ones distracting me. This may all seem small to some, but taking the time to fill my cup and be in a mindset of thriving before my kids wake up helps me show up with joy as a mother. I go from just surviving to truly thriving in my role.

Create a schedule and routine for yourself in the mornings. For me- this really helps me stay focused and do what I need to do before the kids wake up.

• Fill up on the Word first

Let me first start off by getting in the Word first thing in the morning isn’t a Biblical “have to.” If you don’t start your day in the Word you’re not being disobedient or sinful. However you spend time with the Lord, whether it’s in your living room with a cup of coffee or during your morning commute, listening to the audio bible, or if it’s with kids crawling all over you. The Lord sees you and he sees your obedience and you are doing a good thing and you’re doing something that has eternal impact and you’re learning more about who God is.  BUT I do think there are MANY benefits to getting in the Word first. I have found FOR ME that getting in the Word first helps me align my heart, mind and motives with God’s. I tend to head into my work time, workout and social media with a focused God’s lens > just my flesh rolling out of bed.

• Schedule workouts 5 days a week

I like to schedule morning workouts for 5 days a week. Think about how committed you are to your job. You show up. You do what’s expected. Maybe you even put in a little more effort because you want to work with excellence? Scheduling your workouts and getting them on the calendar will help you do the same in your fitness. I love having a quick and efficient workout that I can simply show up for and push play on. One that I can do from home (or anywhere!) That’s what this workout is that I’m doing right now. It’s just 20 minutes a day, 5 days a week! I printed off the program calendar, hung it in my workout space and simply log in to my app, click on my program & my trainer tells me everything I need to do to get in and out!

If you need a solid plan, encouragement and accountability to work out, I’d love to help! CLICK HERE to learn more about my Fit for His Glory Fit Community.

• Do a weekly “brain dump” and make daily to-do list + plans

Each Sunday night after the kids go to bed, I take time to do a brain dump and plan for the week ahead. A brain dump is simply purging everything from your brain and getting it on paper. After that I organize my brain dump into 3 categories- home, work and projects. From there I am able to plan out my week and give myself 3 task for each day. Some days I have more work time than others (Tuesdays and Thursdays my kids go to our church preschool) so I tend to schedule a little more on those days compared to others. On Mondays we usually stay home and I do laundry + meal prep and on W,F I try to plan something fun in the mornings with the kids. This helps me ensure that I am doing fun things with them, while also giving my best in my work. I have personally found that when I fail to plan, I plan to fail. When I take just 20-30 minutes to plan for the week and talk over the schedule with Brian we are much more aligned as a family and I can help him with any task that needs to be done.

• Plan meals and meal prep

I haven’t always planned and prepared meals ahead of time, but since I have made it more of a habit it has made our days and weeks much more restful. This will likely look a little different for everyone, depending on your season of life and schedule, but this is what has worked for me and my family in this season:

First, I took time to calculate my calories needed for pregnancy and created an easy spreadsheet to help me plan my meals and color containers. You can check it out HERE.

 

As you will see I eat a lot of the same things day in and day out. This helps me remain consistent and keeps our grocery budget down. Most days breakfast, lunch and snacks look similar. From there I plan out our dinners for the week. We have a list of meals that we are constantly adding to and that Brian likes that are easy to prepare ahead of time. Each week I go to that list and pick 2 to make ahead of time for the week. My friend also picks 2 from that list and we each made double. Then we swap! I give her my two pre made dinners and she gives me hers. Since we have built this list I can easily go to the recipe and see where it fits in my meal plan for the week.

I usually prepare my meals on Monday mornings while doing laundry and preparing my home and family for the week.

Planning and preparing meals ahead of time has been a GAME CHANGER for me and my family. It helps us eat healthy, stay on track and not be stressed every evening making dinner and cleaning the kitchen. It’s given us BACK TIME during the week to play and make bedtime fun.

If you need a solid plan, tons of helpful tips and ideas in your nutrition  I’d love to help! CLICK HERE to learn more about my upcoming Nutrition for Busy Mama’s Bootcamp!

I hope these habits help you as much as they have helped me! They sound simple but making these a part of your daily routine will make a huge impact on your life.

WITH JOY,

Caroline