1. Put Yourself First

Selfish? Not in the slightest. As women it is in our nature to put others first; kids, husband, neighbor, boss, etc. but here’s a question… If you weren’t around, who would take care of all these tasks? Exactly. You have to put yourself in a position to take care of YOU so you have the best opportunity to take care of others. You deserve more than the scraps at dinner and chores after the kids go to bed. Set aside time at some point each day to do something for yourself, at your pace.

2. Eat Your Fats

Simple Rule – You have to eat fat to lose fat. That doesn’t necessarily mean start eating nothing but fat. Actually there has been no proof that you lose more with a low-fat vs high-fat diet. Just eat the right fats. Stay away from Trans. Saturated fats should come from meat and eggs. Eat a healthy portion of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats which comes from nuts, fish and avocado.

3. Don’t Drink Your Calories

Lots of water. Coffee and tea in moderation. Alcohol – no more than one a day. Juice kept to a minimum. This includes your own homemade juiced fruit and veggies because it leaves you with all the sugar but not the much needed healthy fiber.

4. Move

Regular exercise is a given for a healthy everything. Ask me for details later. Its more than just a tool for showing off pretty muscles although that is also encouraged! You may not always have time for a full 30 minutes to an hour workout but make the effort to do something small each day. Waking up and doing some yoga poses before your morning grooming schedule could be a great way to start.

5. Let Go of Stress

Rather than fighting stress which just adds to stress, let it go. Give your best each day and know that everything happens for a reason.

6. Make the Best of Your Down Time

I’m really talking about rush hour traffic. When letting go of stress in this case, know that you can’t go any faster than the person in front of you, then, make the most of it. This is where you can do something for yourself. Listen to music to boost a specific mood, uplifting or chillaxing. Catch up on a leisure book you are reading, get lost in the story, just keep your eyes on the road please! OR listen to an audio book for self-help, spiritual, or business needs.

7. Park and Take Care of Business

Did you know that on average someone will WASTE 7 minutes driving around the parking lot, waiting for someone else to pack their belongings just for the sake of walking 25 feet less. Sounds pretty ridiculous right? Those 7 minutes are a sprint workout or a shower or anything else you want it to be. Just park and do your thing. The extra walking is a good thing anyway.

8. Cook an Additional Meal

Most families are lucky if they have one home cooked meal a day. So if your current average is 0, start with one. Current average is 1, go for 2. Easily have 3 by using leftovers! It doesn’t matter where you start or finish, it matters what you do in between to get there. Moms usually have dinner covered so breakfast can be as easy as oatmeal, hardboiled eggs, or yogurt and fruit.

9. Keep TV to a Minimum

What do you get out of it? Know this to determine how you would like to spend your time. Shows can be a lot of drama, same for movies. If you find the news to be full of negativity, stick to the important stuff and dump the rest.

10. Go to Bed On Time

Our kids have a specific bedtime. Why? Because if we alter those sleep patterns in any way they become restless, cranky, impatient, and simply a pain in the butt to deal with. As an adult the recommended beauty rest is 8 hours. Be considerate of others and go to bed on time, no one likes the cranky adult in the Starbucks line(you’ve seen it! LOL) In addition to REM sleep studies have shown that the best sleep occurs between the hours of 10-12.