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If you’re listening to this the day it’s released a super Merry Xmas or huge Happy Holidays or heartfelt Big Gratitude to YOU.

Since todays show will go live on the 25th December I felt it needed to be extra special. Gratitude was the first thing that came to mind so I’m going to cover 7 habits I’ve picked up / upgraded this year.

7 habits I’m super grateful for they’ve had a huge impact on my body this year. Because it’s gift giving season let’s call these:

7 Gifts Your Body Will Thank You For.

The context for today’s show is my belief that you & your body are a team. The better you treat your body the better it’ll be able to perform for you. Now that may sound obvious however: Do you live it?

I’ll certainly put my hand up and admit to expecting my body to perform like a machine while fueling it rubbish, depriving it of sleep & any number of other ways to accumulate bad habits.

The good thing is your (& my!) body is forgiving. It’ll respond eagerly to the respect it deserves. I genuinely believe it’ll always give you another chance.

I do know it’s a busy time of year so I’m going to be super realistic. As such each habit (or gift to your body) takes a mere 5 minutes. I’m going to include the time of the actionable as we go. In fact it’s seven days of actionable. Let’s get rolling:

Day One: Gratitude.

Let’s fly straight out of the gates with a heavy hitter. As a Value, a State, a Habit: Gratitude is one of the most powerful and empowering things you can cultivate.

I know that sounds a little far fetched. Let’s take a look at it from reverse.

Have you ever met that person who seems to have everything to be grateful for?

They are wealthy, perhaps beautiful. They have a healthy, loving family. They certainly lead a hugely privileged life. Any yet, they express zero gratitude for any of it.

In fact, they seem to experience a disproportionate amount of anxiety and fear.

They fixate on insignificant dramas – because to be fair – the big dramas just don’t exist for them… and of more impact they

have never learnt to cultivate gratitude for the little things let alone for the big things they take for granted.

In contrast perhaps you’ve also met the person who freely express’s gratitude for even the tiniest things?

They might not be wealthy, or beautiful. Perhaps they’ve experience significant tragedy in their life. They certainly work hard. Any yet, they are grateful for what they do have. They probably wouldn’t even express it like that – they simply live focused on what is good. They experience less fear because gratitude is the antidote to fear. The two cannot exist at the same time.

It’s your choice to focus your energy of all the things that could go wrong: illness, injury, financial disaster or instead to focus your energy on all the things you can be grateful for.

Day Two: Meditation.

If the thought of meditation infuriates you, there’s a good chance it’d be helpful however it’s probably not the right time for you just yet!

If, in contrast you reaction is more along the lines of: “I can see the value but it’s too hard / I don’t have time / I never been able to stick to it” then please consider lowering your meditation expectations and giving it another chance.

I started with 5 minutes a day and I’ve now built up to 10. Anything counts. It’s also not about calming your mind which means if your mind is scattered throughout a meditation session there’s still value.

The important thing is realizing you’ve lost focus and simply bringing your attention back to your breathing.

In just a few minutes a day I feel calmer. I feel like I have more time. I also feel more inclined to pause and consider before getting overly emotional / reactive to certain people and situations.

With just a few minutes a day invested that’s a pretty good return!

Day Three: Reframe Your Self Talk.

Please don’t underrate your self talk. You know, that insistent chatter that can be supportive or hugely critical? The good news is the chatter you choose is your choice! It doesn’t matter if you’re naturally a negative person. If you’re glass half empty.

The thing to consider is: How is naturally negative and glass half empty working for you?

Do you feel Sad? Judged? Fearful?

One unsupportive thought reframed at a time will make a difference. Trust me I’ve lived it.

Your few minutes a day will have a snowball effect where your reframes become more automatic and with time your negative self talk will become less common.

Day Four: Zero Digital Devices In Bed.

This one’s new for me. I used to read off my iPad before going to sleep. I kept it to inspiring blogs or at worst distracting fantasy novels. Because I have a zero-tolerance-for-negative-import before bed policy (like social media, the news and trashy T.V) I thought reading was a harmless little self indulgence. However any digital devices in bed really aren’t harmless.

If you expect your body to give it’s best energy and focus each day then it deserves a decent nights sleep… and that doesn’t just mean 7-8 hours in bed. Sleep is one of those things where both quality and quantity count.

The blue light emitted from your device (or your T.V, computer or even your alarm clock) affects levels of the sleep-inducing hormone melatonin more than any other wavelength.

Your device is basically setting your body up for a sub-optimal nights sleep. The solution?

No devices an hour before bed or in the bedroom!

Day Five: Interval Training.

It might not be interval training for you. I do believe there’s massive value in facing a fear or something you find pretty damn uncomfortable each and every week.

Every day is likely even better. Now because I want exercise to be enjoyable I’m not going to inflict any more than 5 minutes of intervals on myself however it’s enough: It’s something I feel proud of every single week when I step up and make it happen.

What’s your interval training?

Maybe it’s 5 minutes of incline sprints on the treadmill like me? Or perhaps, it’s 5 minutes of video a week? Even 5 minutes of difficult phone calls?

Day Six: Daily Plan with Time Allotted.

If meditation is the habit I’m most proud of implementing this has got to be the highest return habit.

I know I’ve spoken about it before so I’ll be brief & for more info please check out show #013 on why Overwhelm Is Lazy Thinking.

The key thing about this habit is to set a realistic target.

Too daunting and you’ll be tempted to not even start. You’ll have to experiment and find what works for you. I started with such a crazy over scheduled day that each day I felt like I let myself down. So I scaled it back to a level that is motivating & achievable. Although I’m referring to work with this habit it’s just as effective for time spent on exercise and/or meal planning.

Whatever you want to be non-negotiablely efficient and effective with, put into your daily plan – that you plan the night before – with a set period of time allotted. And to be super specific: Personally a set time to start each task doesn’t work for me (because that falls apart the second life happens)… a rescheduling client, lost internet, those infuriating leaf blowers when you’re trying to film or podcast can throw your whole schedule into chaos.

It’s more a matter of knowing that you start task #1 first and you do it for 90 minutes etc.

Day Seven: Monthly Reference Points For Success.

However you choose to do it there’s huge value in tracking your monthly reference points for success.

In part we’re making use of the whole “What you focus on expands” principle and also it means you’ve got that instant motivation close to hand to turn to if (make that when!) you hit a patch of UN-motivation.

if you have to find a reference point for success in the moment – when you’re already despairing – so perhaps in desperation you jump on the scales (and the scales are never great feedback anyway as I share in show 028) or turn to some other measure of tracking that may not seem as positive as you would love at that exact moment… well if that’s the case you’re going to feel even worse.

The monthly reference points for success habit is one to create before you need it. 

Again it’ll be a matter of what works best for you. I’ve experimented with documenting them daily however that feels a little forced. My current preference is as simple as an A4 sheet pinned close to my computer that has the month in the middle and fanning out written as they occur are everything awesome that happens that month.

So there you have it, the 7 habits that have been most helpful to me this year. Seven days of actionable.

To recap we started with:

Day One: Gratitude.

Day Two: Meditation.

Day Three: Reframe Your Self Talk.

Day Four: Zero Digital Devices In Bed.

Day Five: Interval Training.

Day Six: Daily Plan with Time Allotted.

Day Seven: Monthly Reference Points For Success.

Beyond taking any and every of these habits for a spin, I’d really love to know what habits have been most helpful to YOU this year? More-so what habits are you most grateful for this year?

In closing this week HUGE heartfelt thanks to YOU for making time to hand with me today. I appreciate it big time.

I will be back next week – however – I’ll be back with some encore episodes. 3 of my most super fav shows next week and then 3 more super favs the week after. I will record fresh lil intros for each show though.

So here’s the line up for next week:

On Monday: What To Eat While Traveling.

On Wednesday: Emotional Fitness – 5 Things To Believe About You.

On Friday: Bullet-proof Your Motivation To Exercise.

It means I get to chillax with fam, friends and Sir Thomas (the-golden-child-my-lil-bro-The-CAT!) in stunning Noosa for a week which I’m crazy excited about! I hope you’re get some indulgent, fun, love filled, chllaxation time this holiday season too.

If you liked this you’ll also like: Fat Elimination Standards:

If you’re yet to share the Healthification love – just click here to zip over to iTunes and leave an honest rating and review. It’d help me out big time. With gratitude, Kate.