Rachel Rodriguez • Nutrition
Rachel Rodriguez • Nutrition
7-Layer bean dip?! What. The. Chip?!
Warning this might make you hungry!
How Habits Shape Your Lifestyle
James Clear stated in his book Atomic Habits, that "if you want better results, then forget about setting goals. Focus on your system instead." I recommend this book to everyone interested in self-discovery and making changes in their lives. It's a fantastic read! I listened to the Audio while I walking my dog, you’ll see how later.
However, I still believe in objectives and goal setting; they’ve naturally taken on a different shape as I’ve progressed through my life.
At the same time, I’ll expose you to a new way of conceptualizing habits that James Clear outlined. Then, as though you were dipping into a 7-layer bean dip, we’’ add an extra element.
Afterward, you'll leave with more ingredients to your life that we want to discover within every bite! So, grab a chip and take a dip in this 7-layer bean dip that is!
Old habits are out of here!
“Our routines and habits allow us to access a part of our brain that runs on relatively little gas,” according to Christine Carter (2019, April 16) Habits are Everything from Greater Good Science Center.
To put it another way, we develop habits that become second nature to us. Once this is established, a habit takes on a life of its own. We’re left wondering what to do until we no longer want these “bad habits.”
There’s research that suggests strategies break old habits, but, it’s becoming easier to form new ones. This is an area where increasing research is pointing to better long-term outcomes.
Shaping New habits, What’s the Point?
As a result, adding new habits into your life can create a ripple effect in a few ways:
- Builds character
- Opens possibilities
- New opportunities develop
- Focus forward-thinking
This marks the beginning of a new type of learning, as well as the discovery of new methods of doing things.
During my training as a Certified Health Coach, I was able to expand on this by trying it on myself. The steps that I took to add layers and go beyond weight loss are shown here.
You could use these examples
Here are some examples for anyone that wants to create new habits and doesn’t know where to begin:
- Start losing weight
- Eating Healthier
- Increasing workouts
- Focusing on overall health
- Small, daily habits
Layering Habits using a 7-Layer Bean Dip
We're going to start from the bottom and work our way to the top, bottoms up!
I'm going to walk you through each mouthwatering layer and guide you into a new way of thinking about habits. I certainly hope the visual is helping you.
7-Layer Bean Dip
Shape your habits by layering them one on top of the other. As the picture shows there are 7 layers with a bonus!
If you’ve read my other Blogs titled 85+ Pound Weight Loss Part 1 and Part 2, (links provided if you haven’t checked them yet) where I shared how I lost all that weight, this extends even further into how I went about it.
The Layering Strategy
Layer to Shape Your Habits
After each layer, there will be a question that pertains to the statement. I’d like you to consider what ideas have come to mind? What feelings or emotions have surfaced? Also, what are your plans for them?
The outcome from this is not to remove the old or bad habit it's to layer good habits. To the point where the old habit will be hard to find because it's going to be smeared with bean juice. And no one likes bean juice. Let's dig in!
Beans = My Why #1
I don’t make promises I can’t keep! I have a strong belief in life and the way I am that I don’t make promises that I can’t keep. And I promised myself 1 day I will lose the weight and get back to the size I want. I will always keep promises to myself!
Shape your #1, what is your why?
Guacamole = Goals
With a child, I needed to change my goals. It was impossible to get up at 4:30 am to do CrossFit was out of the question. I needed to shift my goals to match where I was in life today.
By expanding on this, I considered who I needed to become as my child grew older. I needed to keep looking forward. My intention was to keep things as basic as possible.
While working out, if I ended up with 20 minutes than that's all I was able to get. I said "good job to myself, and called it a day!." If I was able to do 5 minutes of abs with my baby next to me I did 5 minutes of abs then. My goal was - to keep it simple.
How can you simplify your goals to make them work for you?
Sour Cream = Having fun
Before pregnancy, I would push myself to strive for more from workouts, strength training, and in life.
For this reason, I asked myself what I liked to do??! Intending to keep it simple, I liked being outdoors and going for a walk with my dog. This was fun for me! So, I kept doing it. Simply to have fun outdoors and my walking became easier every day.
What can you think of that’s fun and you like doing?
Salsa = Go beyond yourself
My dog cooper gained some sympathy weight while I was pregnant and the vet told me he had gained more than the year before. That even he needed to lose weight.
Layering something outside myself helped create a deeper environment because I didn't bring a dog into our family to see him waste away. I care about Cooper, he’s a fun-loving silly dog that if I didn't start a walk or run him again he would have hip problems.
Within 1 year I was able to get him down 20 pounds where even the vet was "impressed" at his yearly checkup. Said, "keep up the good work!"
How are you going to go beyond yourself and spice things up?
Lettuce = Be Creative
Lett -uce be strong. Lett-uce be creative in your thoughts!
As I got stronger I wanted to now do more. Reading books was something I deeply enjoyed doing. Yet, couldn’t find the time anymore as my baby turned toddler turned an enormous amount of energy of constantly asking myself “where does he keep all this energy?!” So I got creative! I combined audiobooks with my walks, with my dogs, having fun outside!!
What can you include to be more creative?
Cheese = My Why #2
In short, I'm gaining strength as my son is growing. He runs around with tons of fun, silly energy.
As a result, I needed to assess where my body was. What did I need most? What did I need right now? Freaking energy!
My why shifted into another layer of what I needed most, combining something outside myself and having fun!
Thus, I wanted to play and be silly with my son while being able to sprint and run with him at a moment's notice…..Those of you who that have a toddler will understand what I'm talking about!
What’s your #2 why? Having more than 1 is good, and completely ok!
Black Olives = Motivation
As each day came, and as I saw my son grow my life shifted but I was able to see it shift. My priorities changed, my body nonetheless changed, and my attitude started changing.
Working out to the point of exhaustion wasn't doable because my son would never understand mommy is tired. Lifting weights and trying to recover from delayed soreness was unthinkable as I remember many days struggling to sit down from endless squats.
I needed my body to move with my growing son. My why#2 became my motivation. I wanted to work out to gain energy.
What can you add to another positive habit to elevate it even more?
Tomatoes = Bonus!
In the long run, I wanted to add more to my life than take away. I wanted to gain more from a 20-minute workout session than be bored for an hour. I wanted to look good about myself than continue to beat myself up!
I layered and will continue to layer more positive ways that help me feel good about myself. With that, I gained so much more from life! I shaped my lifestyle to make it work for me. Simply for me.
Doing something for you isn’t selfish; it’s a necessity! What are you going to do for yourself?
Smash Your Grape
Shaping Your Habits
As this 7-layer bean dip looks scrumptious enough to eat, it's a visual for you to select your layers.
The main point is to create a layer that can represent something small that you want to see reshaped in a different way. Then, start layering one on top of the other. Here are a few key takeaways:
- This layering strategy can be applied and integrated into your life to know that each layer can be changed around, added to, used in sequence, and flipped as many times as needed.
- Mental concentration, on the other hand, will motivate you to dig deep and "dip" into what matters most to you.
- Life can be hard. Parenting is hard. Find ways to integrate fitness into your life.
- Ash yourself how are you going to smash your grape? I hope you were able to see habits differently.
- Recognize how you can simplify your life by layering the habits that work for you.
So simple. So tasty! Grab a chip and take a dip! 7-layers dip, I mean deep. You get the idea!
~Rachel
Have A Grapefull Day!
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