How to Make a Long-term Lifestyle Change?

Hint: It starts with a little bit of patience.

I was married at 24, moved clear across the country from family and friends right after that, and then had our first daughter at the age of 25. Then right after she was born, my husband went on his first deployment for 7 months.

I can remember trying to survive. I remember being exhausted. I remember I was clueless just about everything. Talk about overwhelm… I was in it!

Fast forward a couple of years and another newborn was in the house. I am still trying to survive, am exhausted, and maybe just about as clueless on what is the best thing to do.

A mom with two young kids laying on a bed — The younger Leah lived off quick processed meals, hamburger helper, and hardly any veggies. We survived but my outlook on food eventually started to change. I didn’t know how my life would change at this point!

I survived and so did the kids. Yay!

I tell you all of this because in that survival mode I was most likely cooking the fastest packaged meals possible. We ate a lot of hamburger helper, stroganoff (which was just cream of mushroom soup and sour cream over noodles), and I don’t really remember if I cared about vegetables. I rarely made a shopping list when I went to the store – and a plan… what on earth was that?!

I have been where you are…

Over time, I slowly changed one habit at a time

We started to shop here and there at farmer’s markets.
I started to drink less milk and more water when I realized it would help my acne disappear.
I started getting away to a Jazzercise class for an hour a day 3x a week – just to do something for myself.
I slowly introduced some veggies into our dinners – the kids hated those veggies by the way… but I kept trying.

Here is what happened over the span of about 10 years (yes, 10 years!)

Vegetables became a priority in our food.
I found a love for real food and less packaged foods and our meals were done in the same amount of time -sometimes even faster – compared to those ‘quick pre-packaged meals’.
I felt less overwhelmed and stressed when it came time to prepare dinner because I developed a system that worked for me and my family.

A family portrait in a farm — The result of patience has changed our families’ health for the positive. Dinner time is no longer leaving me feeling stressed and overwhelmed. We spend sometimes less time now cooking than we did 10 years ago!

Sometimes the biggest changes in our lives take time and patience

Wherever you are in your journey, just keep going. Slow habits build up to big changes over time. Those slow-moving habits are what help strengthen your long-term lifestyle change. Sometimes it takes several years. Just keep your eye on your long-term goal.

If you love the free info here and the things you can find in our free Facebook group, I am SO glad you do. That is why these spaces were created – to support and encourage those habits you are building in your time. If you feel like you need some extra guidance and encouragement, please reach out to me and we can discuss it in more detail. Let’s take that overwhelm away and work on a plan that is tailored for you.