Top 10 Health Mistakes Busy Women & Moms Make

If you’re struggling with poor energy, low motivation and staying consistent, you might be making some of these mistakes…!

Here are some of the top 10 health mistakes busy women & moms make:

1. Having an all or nothing mentality: Aiming for perfection is a recipe for disaster. Trust me, I know Mama, that it is tough to change our expectations. But this just leads to stress and frustration.
2. Trying to maintain the same routine you did pre-kids: I laugh when I look back at when I was newly postpartum with our first child. I had no idea that my whole schedule would revolve around her LOL. It is super important to have your basic needs met OF course, but learning to pivot and create a new normal is so key to everyone’s sanity and happiness.
3. Not drinking enough water: Hydration is the most crucial nutrient our bodies need. Skipping out on water (or relying on coffee or energy drinks) just leads to poor energy, focus, digestion and more. Aim to drink at least half your body weight in ounces of water per day (more if you exercise).
4. Dieting too much: Chronic dieting is another added stress to your body and hormones. We need food as fuel & energy, especially if you are nursing! If we are under-eating long term this will eventually lower your metabolic rate (no thanks!)
5. Imbalanced blood sugar: This shows up as being hangry, cravings, fatigue, headaches etc. This can happen when we skip meals and eat high carb/sugar foods. Eating consistently (with the right balance of macros as well) is going to be the key to success.

6. Not prioritizing mental & emotional health: Health is not just how you look, but also how you FEEL from the inside out. Taking time for yourself, with small but powerful things like journaling, meditation, prayer, can help you feel calmer, patient & balanced.

7. Skimping out on supplements: Many women are deficient in many nutrients; this can stem from postpartum and/or nursing, and then never addressed! Aim to eat lots of whole foods, but also prioritize nutrients like magnesium, B vitamins and Vit D.

8. Having Mom Guilt: In order to be a happy, healthy mom, you gotta take care of yourself too. That means time away from your kids (even for a bit at a time!) will help you AND gives them something a little different too 🙂

9. Neglecting Strength Training (including core & pelvic floor): Muscle is our BEST FRIEND ladies, and that means we need to do strength training. That can come in different forms (like weights, Barre) but you NEED to do something besides walking or cardio. Muscle is the driver to our metabolism, but also to have strength to keep up with our kids!

10. You might actually KNOW you’re doing this one, but you continue anyways! Staying up late with (bad) night time habits to “treat yourself”…

How the evening goes:

You are exhausted from working and being Mom all day.

You’ve finished dinner, cleaning up, bath, and finally the kids are going to bed. YAY it is alone time – peace and quiet.

You’re so excited to grab your favorite snacky-snack, maybe a glass of wine?? And finally sit down to watch your current TV series.

After one too many episodes of that, you say, “Ok I should probably go to bed now”.

So you get yourself in bed, but only to grab your phone.

“Let’s just check my email and Facebook one more time…”

Another 30 minutes go by and you are doom scrolling like no other.

You know this is the only time for yourself you’ve had all day, and you deserve this!

Finally as your phone is dropping on your face, do you put it down and go to bed…

This is a slippery slope!

1. The snacks and technology are terrible for our hormones and sleep so then

2. You sleep like CRAP and…

3. You wake up tired and hit snooze, you so you skip your workout, and start your day frazzled – the exact opposite of what we want!

4. You don’t actually get the relaxation that your body and mind needs!

Yes, you want to have downtime – but in the right way and with boundaries, so you can also get actual REST, and start the next day off strong.

How to break the cycle:

Determine what your triggers and “bad habits” are in the evening
Decide if you want to abstain from them in your current routine (it is just not healthy) or reduce/moderate how much
Find healthy alternatives to your current habits
Get excited for the next morning; plan it out so you stay accountable
Set specific boundaries with time & a hard limit on technology and when you get into bed

Changing your habits isn’t hard, but it takes a specific strategy and accountability.

This is one way I help my clients – we determine what is holding them back, brainstorm together options, and then determine very specific action steps to get them out of the current cycle.

If you’re looking for support, I’m here for you.