Building on Small Wins

Hi Friends!

How did last week go for you? Did you make your water goal? If not, that’s okay! Progress isn’t always perfect, but it’s the effort that matters. Did you at least cut back on your soda, juice, or alcohol intake? If the answer is still no, don’t worry! We’re not giving up. If you went from drinking four sodas a day to two, that’s a win. Celebrate that success and keep going.

The goal is to create habits that stick. Let’s try this again this week, but this time, track what you’re drinking. Write down each drink and how much you’re consuming daily, so you can see your progress. Often, we don’t realize how much we’ve improved until it’s laid out in front of us. That’s the magic of small changes. They may seem tiny, but just like an extra slice of pizza or scoop of ice cream adds up over time, so does that extra cup of water or cutting out one soda a day.

For me, last week went pretty well! I did have one soda—a ginger ale. I wasn’t feeling great for a few days, and ginger ale is my go-to when I’m queasy. But even with that, I increased my water intake and came close to hitting my goal. Not perfect, but I’m proud of my effort. Using my phone for an alarm became annoying very quickly but I did utilize my motivational water bottle to keep me on track during the day.

One unexpected change for me last week was switching from coffee to tea. I usually have coffee with creamer—it’s “all-natural,” but it still has sugar and calories. At this stage, I need my caffeine fix to survive the workday. Since I wasn’t feeling well, I decided to give green tea a try. I used two bags of green tea in my to-go coffee mug, and to my surprise, it worked out great. I didn’t get those caffeine jitters, but I had enough energy to make it through the day. I even had another cup after lunch, and that carried me through the rest of the afternoon.

This was such a pleasant surprise that I think I’ll keep it going. My new plan? Green tea during the week, and on one day, I’ll treat myself to my beloved coffee and flavored creamer. I’m actually excited about this! Just by making this switch, I’m saving around 105 calories per cup of coffee. That’s a total of 735 calories per week and 2,940 calories per month! Wow!

Think about it—just from this one small tweak, I could lose one pound in about a month and a half without changing anything else. And that’s just from drinks alone! Combine that with drinking more water, which boosts metabolism, and I could hit that goal even sooner.

So, here we go, Week 2. I’m sticking with my green tea, my once-a-week coffee treat (especially with my favorite holiday creamer), and continuing to increase my water intake. I’m looking forward to seeing how this habit continues to grow.

If Week 1 wasn’t great for you, let’s try again in Week 2. The goal is progress, not perfection. One small step at a time. We’re in this together!

Let’s make this week even better!