Look On The Bright Side This Spring

By audrey zona

One of the best things about spring is watching the world outside your window change right before your eyes. Vibrant colors come back, trees, bushes and flowers start to bloom, and daylight lingers. What better time than now for all of us to commit ourselves to our own season of renewal and regeneration?

Of course, we started the year with the best of intentions. Remember back on Jan. 1 when we were going to eat cleanly, work out and care for our bodies and our minds? But maybe January, when it’s cold and all we want to do is snuggle under a blanket in front of the fire, isn’t the best time to start something new. Maybe instead, we can use springtime, when the earth is reawakening, to inspire us to reconnect with ourselves and commit to a whole different way of thinking and being.

First up, ditch those toxic thoughts. This is going to sound obvious, but what you say to yourself is what you hear. And what you hear gets internalized and affects your gut flora and your stress response. So, if your inner dialogue is a toxic talk loop, you aren’t doing your physical or your mental health any good. Start practicing positive self-talk today. When you hear yourself starting to be negative, just stop and reframe whatever you were saying into something helpful. I personally love to use sticky notes to leave myself affirmations all over the place. Believe it or not, I forget where they are and when I see one on my mirror or posted in my pantry, it always makes me smile.

You can also leave positive notes for yourself in your digital calendar and make sure to turn on your alerts. That way, at random times, a sweet note from you to yourself will pop up and remind you of how special you are. Either way, positive thinking requires practice. So, stick with it the way you stick with any new skill you are learning.

Once your positive self-talk has you thinking more gently about yourself, it is going to seem silly that you keep depriving your awesome self of the things you love. It is time stop dieting and start eating with intention and focus. Small changes to the foods you put in your mouth will make a big difference in how you feel from the inside out. Offering those foods to yourself with grace and goodwill will make it easier to be grateful rather than resentful. Take pleasure in the act of eating and food will start to feel like a gift rather than a drab chore.

Specifically, instead of adhering to a strict low, or no carb diet, try a simple swap like using a lettuce wrap for your favorite sandwich. Find your flavored seltzer of choice and drink that instead of a soda. Swap the low calorie, high sugar yogurt for full or partial fat plain yogurt and then add fruit to dress it up. If you must add sweetener, consider using less than you usually would or swapping in a lower glycemic, zero carb option like Stevia or a monk fruit sweetener. You’ll get all the flavor with none of the sugar crash.

More energy from the foods we consume means we have more energy to move our bodies. But just as with food, small swaps make a big difference. So, instead of working out hard a couple times a week but dreading it beforehand and needing days to recover afterward, give exercise bursts a try. Don’t run a mile, just run to the mailbox. Use the stairs instead of the elevator. Park a little further away from the mall to get a few more steps in. Do some sort of cardio or stretching exercise while you’re waiting for your tea to steep or your lunch to cook. Give yourself the 59th minute of every hour for a micro-workout. Then, and this is the most important part, pat yourself on the back for a job well done.

Another way to find more energy and time in your day is to do a detox…from social media. It’s so easy to fall down the scroll hole and lose hours out of your day. Why not brighten your mood and your outlook by listening to an affirming, inspiring, or educational podcast and to start your day? Bombard yourself with positive thoughts from the outside just as you are caring for yourself with positive thoughts from the inside.

Finally, please remember that you are not alone in this world. Just as the natural world is interconnected, so are we. Consider joining a with other people who have goals that are like yours. Visit a meditation class and experience the power and energy that comes from committed mindfulness in a communal space. Sign up for a workout, cooking, crafting or skills class. And, if health and wellness is your goal, consider joining a group like my Zo Program. You will find a beautiful group of likeminded individuals who will support and encourage you and you will do the same for them.

Those tiny buds we’re starting to see on trees, bushes and flowers have the power to change the world. They do it every year. Likewise, even the smallest changes you make in your life have the power to transform you forever. So go ahead. Make the change and see what grows.

Audrey Zona is a certified Eating Psychology Coach, wellness promoter and the founder of Zo Healthy. Connect with her at livezohealthy.com or on Instagram, @zo_healthy.