Have you decided that you’re going to make your health a priority, just as soon as you’re ready?
You know you want to eat better, be more active, have more energy, lose weight or resolve digestive issues. You want to feel better. But you’re thinking, “I need to get ready” before reaching out for support.
I understand.
It’s a little like cleaning your house before the housekeepers arrive.
You know what I mean. Your house hasn’t been cleaned in weeks, and you’re a little embarrassed about the state of it. So, you think about tidying up each room and maybe even wiping things down before they arrive. But that’s exactly why you hired professionals in the first place: to help with something you don’t have the time, energy or desire to tackle on your own.
Getting healthy can look surprisingly similar. You may think you need to start eating better, exercise more, cut back on sugar or alcohol, or get yourself “back on track” before reaching out for help. But you don’t need to improve your health before getting support to improve your health. Where you are today is the starting point.
Things We Say When We’re “Getting Ready”
“I’ll start as soon as I’m back on track.”
I hear this one a lot. We tell ourselves we’ll work with someone, whether it’s a nutrition therapist, trainer or specialist, just as soon as we’re back in the routine we had years ago when we felt our best.
But this is exactly when support can be most valuable. You don’t have to recreate your previous success before asking for help. We can look at what worked before, what has changed and what would make it easier to begin again.
You don’t need to give up sugar, alcohol or other habits on your own first. Getting support right where you are today is exactly where our work begins.
“I’m waiting for life to settle down.”
After our vacation. After my houseguests leave. After the holidays. After the projects are finished.
There always seems to be something because this is life, and life is full of expected and unexpected events.
I know because this was me. I was working for two businesses while being involved in my kids’ activities. Life was super busy, and there was always something on the horizon: a trip, the holidays or a house project. I knew I would address my health issues someday. Eventually, my health made “someday” come sooner than I had planned.
Looking back, I wish I hadn’t waited for life to slow down. If I had built some healthy foundations into my life sooner, I might have been better prepared to handle those busy years and perhaps avoided some of the health challenges I eventually faced.
Let me ask: Have you ever known a time when life completely slowed down and you felt ready at the same time?
Instead of waiting for perfect timing, perhaps it makes sense to figure out how taking care of yourself can fit into your real life today.
“I’ll start when I have more time.”
Getting healthier can sound like a part-time job: planning meals, shopping, cooking, exercising, tracking everything and remembering a long list of things you’re supposed to do every day.
It doesn’t have to look like that. With nutrition therapy, we can start with a few foundational areas that fit into your lifestyle. Once those begin to feel routine, we build from there, one step at a time.
You may not need more time. You may need help identifying which changes are most important for you and a manageable plan for putting them into practice.
“I need to do more research first.”
There is no shortage of health information available to us. Another podcast, book or internet search might teach you more about protein, fasting, hormones, gut health, supplements or the latest diet. But more information doesn’t necessarily make it easier to know what to do.
And sometimes the issue isn’t that you need more information at all. You may already know what to do.
I talk with people who know a great deal about nutrition. They know which foods make them feel better, they understand the importance of exercise and sleep, and they may have a pretty good idea of the changes they want to make. Because they know what to do, they feel like they should be able to do it on their own.
Knowing and doing, however, are two different things. Sometimes what’s missing isn’t another piece of information. It’s having someone help you turn what you know into a realistic plan, provide accountability, track what’s working and help you adjust when something isn’t.
Part of my role as a nutrition therapist is helping you determine what applies to you and, just as importantly, helping you put it into practice.
“I’ll start when I have more energy.”
This may be the hardest one of all. When you’re already tired, the thought of making changes can feel overwhelming.
But if low energy is one of the reasons you don’t feel like yourself, waiting until you feel better before addressing it can become a frustrating cycle.
Starting doesn’t mean changing everything at once. It usually means choosing one or two places to begin, seeing how you respond and building from there.
You Don’t Have to Get Ready
Just as you don’t need to clean your house before the housekeepers arrive, you don’t need to get yourself “ready” before asking for help with your health. In fact, waiting until you’re back on track, life slows down, you have more time, you know more or you have more energy can keep you waiting much longer than you intended.
There may never be a time when life is calm, you’ve finished researching, you’re back to your old habits and you wake up with energy to spare.
And maybe that isn’t what being ready looks like.
I’m so glad I took the step toward nutrition therapy when I did, but sometimes I wish I had taken it years earlier. If you’re waiting to get ready, you don’t have to figure everything out first. I can help you identify the steps that make sense for you and build on them over time.
Let’s have a conversation about what it could look like to have someone guide you, encourage you, help you stay accountable and track your progress, so you can spend less time getting ready and more time actually feeling better.
