6 Ways to Improve Your Life.  With these six changes to your life you’ll find better body intuition, mindful eating, better health, get your body moving, and learn to set goals for your life.

THE LAST 6 MONTHS

The last 6 months for me have been all about finding wellness.  Making changes to improve my life. I was suffering from poor health, bad habits, and just feeling stuck in life.  I decided to take back my life and make improvements with a few changes at a time until I felt like me again. And I did it!

This right here.  This picture means a lot to me.  It’s just a quick selfie one evening, but it holds more meaning than showing what’s in my smoothie bowl.  For me, this picture shows everything that I’ve been working toward for the last 6 months. I’ve been on a journey to better health, more strength and muscle definition, being happy, and finding food freedom.  I’m there you guys! I have hit a spot after 6 hard months, that I feel comfortable with!

Since January I’ve been on a journey to find better health.  It started out with an AIP diet to try and get a handle on my autoimmune disease.  At the same time I looked into more areas of my life and made changes…big and small.  It’s been 6 months now since making those changes and I’ve seen so much change in myself.  Physical changes, digestive changes, skin changes, and energy changes to name a few.

A few things I’ve changed in the last 6 months and how they’ve helped me:

1) Diet change

I started the AIP (Autoimmune Protocol) in January and even though it was incredibly hard, I am so glad I did it!  My autoimmune disease of psoriasis cleared up!! You guys, I’ve had this skin rash since I was 18!! Let’s just say…it’s been several years I’ve been dealing with it!  The AIP is the ONLY thing that cleared it up. And I’ve tried multiple things! It took a few months of strict AIP before I saw improvements in my skin rashes. And I had my fair share of setbacks.  It was not a walk in the park by any means! I’ve found a couple of foods that will give me flare ups and also certain types of weather will give me flare ups. When the barometric pressure drops (aka Minnesota winters!!) I will have a flare. I also have psoriatic arthritis and since changing my diet, I’ve seen a dramatic drop in days where I wake up sore. As I always say, “food is medicine!” Choosing whole foods, being mindful when eating, and having body intuition are the three biggest changes you can make that will have the most impact on how you feel, look, and think. I’ve shared many of my AIP approve recipes on the blog for you guys to try. Even if you’re not doing an autoimmune protocol, they’re delicious meals made with simple whole foods.

2) Digestive changes

With doing the AIP and the reintroduction stage I’ve found foods that do not agree with me.  I’ve always known dairy causes extreme digestive issues (I believe it’s a TRUE allergy, not a sensitivity I can overcome with time), so I still stay away from all dairy products. But with slowly bringing one food item back into my diet at a time I’ve learned several foods that I just do not digest properly.  They cause a lot of uncomfortable bloating and gas. Taking the time to try each food item one at a time with a day or two in between to watch for bloating, flare ups, or anything else, was a pain in the ass, but it was worth it! Knowing which foods to stay away from or to have a limited amount of has been very helpful in finding better digestive health. It’s one more step in the right direction!

3) Better sleep

Everyone says focus on better sleep and they’re so right!  I had fallen into bad habits of staying awake until midnight or later to get things accomplished kid-free or to have alone time. But after analyzing different areas of my life, I knew this bad habit had to change. I started going to bed with the sun and waking with the sun. I now religiously go to bed between 9:30-10:00pm and wake at 5:30am. Finding a reason to wake early was the game changer. With waking up at 5:30am, I am able to hit the gym for an hour every morning. It’s my alone time, podcast cast, music time, and a way to grow closer to my goals. I thrive best on 7 hours of sleep.  Much more sleep and I’m groggy all day and on the flip side, much less sleep and I’m a bitch. I’m glad I’ve figured that one out. 😉 Better sleep aids in better digestion, better moods, better energy levels, and better circadian rhythms.

4) Exercise

If you’ve been watching my Stories you’ve seen a lot of gym oriented things!  Getting strength training with a little cardio mixed in on the daily (okay, I usually take one day off a week because I was told I had to) has changed me so much!  Yes, physically…can you believe after having 4 kids I have abs that show?! Also mentally. I am a much happier girl after having thrown kettlebells and pushed my body with deadlifts. I feel focused and clear minded when I come home and start the role of ‘mom’ for the day. Waking early, spending an hour at the gym and moving my body first thing in the morning has improved my energy and mood by 1000%.  Cardio is okay in my book, but weight lifting is where it’s at for me! Everyone will have their favorite thing to do at the gym, and that is okay. Do what you love!

5) Setting goals & dreams

I am 100% a goal oriented person.  I had fallen into a rut of not having goals that pushed the limits.  I boxed myself in as a stay at home mom that homeschools. Which is great and I’m glad that is a part of me…but that’s just it, it’s only a PART of me.  I had become stuck. I stopped pushing myself. In setting goals and starting to dream again, I have a huge list of things I’m working toward. Some of those dreams I’ve already accomplished!!  Remember that 5k I did? That was one of my goals. I had always wanted to be a runner, but told myself I couldn’t do it. Not anymore you guys! I am setting goals and running toward them. I may not be able to run another 5k for a long time due to an injury now, but I’m okay with that.  I set daily goals and long term goals. Daily goals like 100 push-ups a day and long term goals like run a Spartan, learn boxing, and take surfing lessons. Making the #1 change of diet change, has had a big impact on how I think about life. Switching to whole foods has upped my energy levels and given me a clear mind to be able to create goals and push toward them. It’s all connected!

6) Find your tribe

I know this one seems like a popular thing to say because that word “tribe” is such a trendy word right now, but let’s be honest it’s SO TRUE!!  I have the best tribe. Period. End of discussion. THE best. A few close friends that mean the world to me and we can talk about ANYTHING and EVERYTHING! The best tribe of girls over on IG where we encourage and lift each other up.  And I’ve found the best Tribe in my husband. Sure we’ve been married for 12 years, but just recently we’ve made changes and truly became better for each other. Learning what the other needs has been the best thing.  He pushes me to be better and train harder. Just what I thrive on. It may take time to find your tribe, but don’t give up. Once you’ve removed yourself from those that may have a negative impact on your life or don’t build you up, you’re one step closer to opening the doors to those that will be a positive influence in your life. Just remember, it doesn’t happen over night. All good things take time.

Over the last 6 months I’ve changed and learned so much, but I’m not stopping there.  I have more goals to reach, more weights to lift, more recipes to share, and more knowledge about health and wellness to share.

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