3 Must-have tools for mamas to manage their health during back-to-school and any other stressful seasons in life

Seven years ago, I decided to take back my health. I knew that this decision was going to help me learn how to manage my nutrition and my exercise so I could be healthy again. What I didn’t realize was that learning to manage my health would help give me the tools I needed to handle stressful situations while sticking to my goals.

For instance, it’s back-to-school season at the Moreland house, and while I absolutely love back-to-school season, it’s also insanely stressful!

My kids attend a school 20 minutes away, and I drive them there because we live outside of the boundaries. As of this year, all of my kids are in club sports and we have eight practices a week between the three of them. My husband is a firefighter and is taking on new responsibilities in his job that will keep him away from home during the busiest parts of our day. And on top of all of that, I run my own business! We love our fast-paced life but it can be demanding.

In the past, this would have been so daunting for me, but not now. Now, I have so many tools to help me manage stress, stick to my goals, and show up for my family. I learned about these during my nutritional journey and now, I help my mamas utilize these tools so that they can stick to their goals and keep up with their busy lives!

#1: A morning routine sets you up for success

One of the first tools that I give my clients is a morning routine.

Most of us are expected to be Mom from the moment we open our eyes. Our kids, spouse or jobs demand that we prioritize their needs all day. Being “on” 24/7, 365 days a year is exhausting. You simply can’t do it and be the healthy, happy woman that you long to be.

But what if you could take control of your day. What if you had a plan that guided you through the day rather than having to react whenever a problem came up. What if you could prioritize what you gave your attention to and what could be saved for another day? How would that make you feel?

Did you know, we have 60 thousand thoughts in a single day? Now, let me ask you, can you remember more than five of the thoughts you had yesterday? If you’re like me, probably not!

 Our brains hold onto and believe the repetitive thoughts that we have. It can only hold onto so many things and thoughts that only pop in once get let go of. It clings to those repetitive thoughts and it starts to believe those thoughts to be the truth. If you’re constantly saying, ”I can’t do it,” “I’m a bad mom,” “I have no discipline,” “I suck,” “I’m fat,” then that’s what you’re going to take on as truth!

You have to start each day grounding yourself in who you truly are and who you want to become so that you replace those negative thoughts with positives ones. Then you turn those positive thoughts into truth!

 This is what a morning routine can do for you! It’s like when you’re on an airplane and they say “put your oxygen mask on before assisting others.” A moring routing will give you what you need so you can show up better for the people in your life.

If you’re ready to set up your own morning routine read my post, Start your morning with mindset work to achieve your goals in the new year.

#2 Make yourself a priority

A morning routine is a great first step in making your needs a priority. When you commit to that and get up each morning you are teaching your mind that you can trust yourself. That you matter. Now it’s time to show the rest of the world that you and your needs are just as important as anyone else!

I was talking with a client who said that during the Macros Made Easy program she made one change to her daily planning ritual that changed how she saw herself and how her family saw her. 

Every day she would write out her to-do list and schedule. She’d start with her son: what appointments did he have, what things did she need to help him with. Then, she’d list out her to-dos for her and her husband’s business. Finally, she’d write down anything that she needed to do for herself. 

During the Macros Made Easy Program, she realized that her needs shouldn’t come last. She needed to put them first. So she re-worked her to-do list to go, her needs, her son’s needs and then the business’ needs. 

Simply by putting her name first on her to-do list she changed everything! She felt like she was entitled to her basic needs instead of fitting them in “if there was time.” It helped her progress in her weight loss journey and show up as a better wife, mom and business owner because she wasn’t running on fumes anymore!

No one else is going to prioritize your needs. Your spouse won’t do it. Your kids won’t do it. Your boss won’t do it. Your clients won’t do it. It’s up to YOU to make sure that your needs are met. When you satisfy your need first, you can begin to look beyond yourself and start helping others. But you can’t serve them at full capacity if your needs aren’t taken care of.

#3 Learn how to fuel your body and mind

The last thing you need in order to handle the stressful seasons of life and be able to stick to your health goals is an understanding of how to fuel your body and mind so keep up with the life you’re leading!

I can tell you right now that if I was restricting carbs and eating tiny, kid-sized portions that I would not be able to keep up with my life! My busy, fast-paced schedule demands that I have energy! I can only keep up with it because I’ve invested time and money to learn how to fuel myself for my life.

Before I started macro tracking I wasn’t eating carbs and I was crushing myself in the gym. (I was a paleo-cross fitter to give you a better idea of where I was at.) I thought that those two things should make me feel and look the way I wanted. But I had zero energy. I had major brain fog. And I simply coudln’t sustain this way of life forever. And I really wanted a bagel!! Bahaha

Macro tracking taught me the importance of protein, fat and carbs and why I couldn’t cut one macro out and still feel good. I needed a lot of protein to help repair and build muscle after my workouts. I needed a healthy amount of fat to keep my hormones balanced and to feel full! I even needed carbs to give me a boost of energy and to fuel my brain! Carbs are the brain’s first source of fuel and when we cut them out for too long it makes it more difficult to think clearly!

If you don’t know how much to each or what to eat, then you need to invest in learning about nutrition. You need to understand when to carbo-load and when to fill up on protein. You need to know how much to eat during the day so you don’t raid the fridge and pantry absolutely famished at 11 p.m. You need to learn how consistency in eating each day can help you feel better and look better!

Once you are fueled the right way and you understand how to plan and prepare meals that will make life easier, sticking to your health goals becomes a no-brainer! You won’t want to grab fast food on the way home from soccer practice because you know that it won’t help you make it through your day. You’ll want the healthy food that fuels you instead!

I seriously never thought that paying attention to my nutrition could give me freedom in other areas of my life. I didn’t know that macro tracking would help me learn how to take time for myself, prioritize my needs and help me fuel my body so I could crush my life and health goals! But I do know that it can do all of these things for you! If you want to learn how to implement each of these things in your life, then let’s chat! Schedule a free discovery call with me to see if Macros Made Easy is the right path for you.