Prioritize Your Health In A Recession

It is no surprise how the market ebbs and flows.  It should also be no surprise how we are on the precipice of a market downturn, though some might say it’s already here.

While it’s always important to ensure you are thinking of the future, the focus can [unfortunately] turn away from your health.  But what good is retirement if you’re not healthy enough to enjoy it?!

That is your future after all.  You only have this one body!

Here are 5 ways to prioritize your health and fitness in a market recession

1. Drinking & Eating Out

Many people eat at restaurants…like, a lot.  Social drinking [maybe as a stress management tool] or hitting up Starbucks 4 to 5 times per week is also a thing.  These things might not be a big deal in and of themselves, but if you’re concerned about your finances with the potential of an upcoming market recession, none of these things are serving you well for a lifetime.

They are fun.

They are easy.

But they are not cheap.

While I can’t speak for anyone else, one of the things I have done to help myself take action on this is to track how much I spend on eating out, Starbucks [or the like], and food delivery.  That’s it!  You might find the sticker shock of how much you actually spend on something like this is enough to make a change.

A simple change you can make?

Give yourself a budget for this expense and [here’s the important part] take action on it!  This has the added benefit of improving your nutritional intake because you can buy your own groceries, prepare your own meals, and control what ingredients you put into them!

Now, before I scare you away with this concept, consider this:  If you eat out 10 times in a given week and you drop that by half by preparing your own food, how much savings is that in a month?

Beware the ‘all or nothing’ thinking!

2. Gas Prices

How much did you spend the last time you filled up your car?!

I know, right.  Me too!

If you’re within a reasonable distance to where you’re traveling, what is stopping you from biking or walking?  This does not just help your pocketbook, you also has the added benefit of improving your health and fitness!  One of the more important parts when making a change to your health and fitness is to make it a habit.

Habits take consistency.  What’s more consistent than walking or biking to work each day?

It’s like a double whammy of improving you and saving you money!

3. Netflix & No Chill

What is a digital subscription you don’t really use anymore?  Do you have Hulu, Netflix, Disney+, streaming with Amazon Prime, Apple Music, Spotify, HBO, and…

What about cable?  Are you paying for cable and not really using it?

Could you get a majority of your shows and movies from a single service?

Could you spend more time away from the screen as a byproduct of cutting some these things out?

Could I ask any additional questions?!

The health benefits of relegating yourself to less streaming is less time in front of the screen and you just might find that:

  • You go to bed at a consistent time
  • You get better quality sleep
  • You have more energy in the mornings and early afternoons
  • By sleeping more, you begin to lose weight!  This one is not an exaggeration… just try it

4. What Do You Enjoy?

Something I’ve found when spending a little time focusing on money is how there are things my family and I enjoy which are cheap or free.  A simple Google search [in your city] could yield many things you might not have even thought of!

A search for “free things to do in Omaha” gave me things like:

  • First National’s Spirit of Nebraska’s Wilderness & Pioneer Courage Park
  • Kenefick Park
  • Walking along Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge
  • Lots of events at Midtown Crossing’s Turner Park
  • Various parades
  • Festivals including the Summer Arts Festival, Celebrates America Concert & Fireworks, and the Taste of Omaha

Most of these have something in common.  Most of them are outdoors which means some sunlight and vitamin D!  That’s good for you too, right?!

5. All Or Nothing Thinking

Let’s talk the elephant in the room… your gym membership.

It doesn’t really matter where you work out because your working out is probably a stress management tool, an escape, a way to get healthier, a means to not lose your mind, and so much more.

Maybe this makes you a better mother, father, wife, husband, daughter, son, employee, or boss.  Why would this be the first thing you cut?  Why wouldn’t you try to preserve that piece of your mental and physical health?

Now, if you need to make these tough decisions, does it have to be the entire disbanding of your working out and nutrition?  For example:  what if you went 3 times per week instead of every day?  What if you went from in person training to remote training with your coach/trainer?  What if the bigger piece of your puzzle was nutrition and you focused on nutrition coaching?

This way you can still focus on you with a little dollar savings.

The point is, just like movement toward your goals, this is not an all or nothing thing — you’re working out vs not working out; you’re eating well vs not eating well; you’re keeping good habits vs jumping off the wagon entirely.

We live by the 80/20 rule, at Iron Hero.  This rule allows us to live our life and do the things we want to do and still make progress toward our goals!

Conclusion

Most people operate with an all or nothing approach.  This all or nothing approach will get you into trouble in many facets of your life, not the least of which is your health, your fitness, and your ability to do what you want to do.

I encourage you to take a look at drinking and eating out, walking or biking places, your streaming subscriptions or cable, activities which involve less [or no] costs, and evaluating how to continue to move toward your goals no matter what the economy throws at you!

Need help in figuring things out?  Set yourself up for your free No Sweat Intro and we can build out a plan that’s best [and value laden] for what you want to achieve!

Schedule that HERE.

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