Time for a New Routine- school starts!

Ah, yes! School Starts in three weeks! This is a perfect time to establish a new routine.

You will be establishing a new routine whether you like it or not- it might as well be a routine you intentionally create based on your foundational goal of fitness, health and/or weight management.

Grab a pad, and a Monday-Friday Daytimer-like calendar, or on a sheet of paper, make your own with 7 columns.

On your pad, list every single piddly or big task that must get done to get out the door to school and work: Wake up, exercise, shower, choose clothes, get dressed, make coffee, make breakfast, eat breakfast, make lunches, write checks for lunch money and field trips, sign teacher notes, load bookbag/ briefcase, take vitamins/ medicines, say kind encouraging words to family so we start off with a good attitude... etc.

How often does the "good attitude" doesn't get spoiled by "We're LATE!- HURRY UP"? Of the above list, what can be done the night before? Here are a few that are easy! If it helps, make a checklist and laminate and leave it on your bathroom sink so you don't get sidetracked.

1. Write checks/ put lunch money in envelopes.
2. Loading briefcases and bookbags- set them by the door or in the car before bed.
3. Make lunches is another big one. On Sunday make a family project of putting the entire week's worth of fruit, carrots, crackers, cookies, bread slices and meat portions etc in ziplocks, buy singles of juice and string cheese. The night before, load all in your bag or box and put in the refridgerator. Then in the morning it is "Grab and GO"
4. Either pack and put your exercise clothes in your bag and in the car, or wear your exercise clothes and pack your work clothes/shoes in the car
5. Breakfast! Set your table and lay out your food, medicines/vitamins. If breakfast in on the go, plan to spend one weekend day making bran muffins, so you can grab and go. I've even made a huge omelet on Sunday and cut it into 3 pieces so all I had to do was knock off the chill in the microwave and slap inside an english muffin or mini-wwheat bagel.

If kids have to be at school at 8, plan backwards. There is stress if you are pushing late every day so let's back that up to being on campus at 7:50. How much time needs to be set aside for travel? Let's say 15 minutes? So you have to be in the car by 7:35 ,Which means you have to be finished with breakfast and preparations by 7:30, you have to start breakfast by ____, you have to be dressed and cheerful by ____, you have to be in the shower by ___, you have to be finished exercising by ____, start exercising by _____, dressed/prepared to exercise by____ Awaken at ____.

My wise-council to you is to begin this week, getting up at that time, get your exercise in, etc. Also begin this week loading your personal effects the night before, etc. I

If you have 3 weeks of routine established before school starts, there will be no stress, and very little disruption to the progress for your goal.

My next post will take success planning to a longer time frame