Day Fourteen: Next Steps
This is it! You’ve done it! Now – let’s review your goals and what you’ve achieved over these 2 weeks.
First -a quick review of what you’ve learned:
Day 1: Goal setting – did you set a goal and write it down? Did you start a journal?
Day 2: Beginning to eliminate sugar as one of the inflammatory foods. Did you try the tiramisu? How many days were you able to eliminate the sugar? Did you feel any “withdrawal” symptoms?
Day 3: Exercise – Have you been able to get in at least 15 minutes per day? Hopefully by now you will be able to do 30 minutes per day at least 5 days a week.
Day 4: Gluten and grains – What is the hardest thing about this for you? Did you have success keeping it off your plate for the last 10 days or so?
Day 5: An attitude of gratitude is a powerful healer. Mindset is so important for a healthy brain!
Day 6: Digestion is not just about eating. It’s about the brain. Do you feel you understand what’s going on in there now, so that you can take better care of your gut? Were you tracking how you were feeling to be able to see what foods triggered pain or diarrhea or cramping or gas or bloating?
Day 7: The care and feeding of the all-important microbiome is in your hands with probiotics and prebiotics. Learning to make fermented foods is a great way to really nurture it, and even if you just start with simple kefir water, it’s a start!
Day 8: Was a review of the first week, and a chance to integrate things more fully. Did you do anything special that day?
Day 9: Nutrients – we learned some of the most valuable tools for a healthy sleep, and the nutrients that are so important to support it: Calcium, magnesium, potassium, Vitamin D3, and Omega-3 fatty acids. All of those are also, of course, essential for a healthy brain.
Day 10: Stress. It really is a killer, and I hope you enjoyed the exercises I gave you to use whenever you are feeling stressed. How did that ANT killer work for you?
Day 11: They’re everywhere, they’re everywhere! Toxins are so hard to eliminate, but if we do “the best that we can do”, we will be doing more than most people to protect our bodies and brains from the effects of living in a modern world.
Day 12: Food sensitivities and allergies are sometimes hard to track, so keeping a food diary and paying attention to how every meal makes us feel is a great way to analyze what should be in our diets and what should be avoided. Things like dairy… hint, hint!
Day 13: Your gut on drugs – whether it’s prescription, over the counter, alcohol or nicotine, all of them have an effect on your gut.
Day 14: Here we are! Now – look at the goals you set for yourself on Day 1. Did you meet them?
Remember – this isn’t about 14 days. This is about your lifestyle. You have the tools now, so it’s up to you.
What are your next steps?
If you are dedicated and serious about improving not just your gut, but your mental and physical health and your memory, I invite you to join me for personal, one-on-one coaching in Eight Weeks to a Better Brain. In these eight weeks, I hold your hand and coach you through the steps of the program I developed for dementia prevention and better cognition and brain health.
I only accept 12 people a year into this program, because it is one that requires both of us to be dedicated to YOUR GOAL. That means you are held accountable and frankly, I can be a bit of a taskmaster. But if you’re determined to achieve better health and a happier brain, we can do this together. A link to my Calendly appointment calender is HERE. Please feel free to schedule an appointment for a free 30 minute consultation and we can talk about whether or not we have a fit.
I’d love to hear how you’ve made out achieving your goal. Please drop me a line.
“Action is the foundational key to all success.” —Pablo Picasso