It’s Time Health and Wellness is an organization who recognizes the unpredictability of today’s environment. We are always seeking to develop the most effective and favorable context in which new approaches to emerging problems can continually benefit our clients.

When our clients adapt to change, it means they are incorporating new identities which requires them to let go of old habits while creating new ones. The idea is to be ready, responsive, and resilient to their new healthier environment. Facing adversity when starting something new can help you identify your adaptive capacity. You will quickly learn how you respond to stress triggers. Being ready to handle new situations can lower your negative responses and increase your positive and helpful responsiveness. In time, you will have a greater adaptive response and achieved your health goals. When things are not going your way, you will be more prepared to handle them when you have the resiliency to continue look for solutions and the ability to reach out to your support system and leverage your networking capabilities.

We will help you along the way to gain these skills. Knowledge and information is the key to your success. Our online education can help you modify characteristics to learn how to improve coping skills or maybe anticipate stresses that can sabotage your hard-earned weight loss or other changes. We know that having a community to strengthen your network of like minded people is very important.

A healthier environment is conducive to our well-being from the availability of more local and organic nutrition to eating a less chemically processed diet. These foods contain ingredients with little nutritional value. They are more likely to have added chemical flavoring agents, colors, and sweeteners. Highly processed foods will contain preservatives as well to keep them from spoiling quickly.

There are other ways to a healthier environment such as:

1. Using less plastic is ideal.  Preventing people from being exposed to toxic chemicals like phthalates, which are linked to brain development problems, and Bisphenol A (BPA) which is linked to heart attacks and neurological issues is very important to our health. Slowly replace your plastic containers with glass when used as food containers. Refrain from using plastic dishes for microwaving foods. Buy reusable drink containers and try to use less polycarbonate plastic containers as those have BPA. Examples include commonly used plastic water bottles from the store.
2. Get educated when it comes to your food additives. When using artificial sweeteners, be aware of the FDA’s recommendation on how much sugar substitute is safe for consumption daily. This is called the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI). The proper amount depends on your weight and the type of sugar substitute being used. For adults who are dealing with obesity, sugar substitutes might help manage your weight in the short term. However, there are no clear guidelines yet on how sugar substitute can help people manage weight loss in the long term. It is important to incorporate a nutritionally sound diet with exercise. The good news is that a recommendation of at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise weekly, spread throughout the week, is a great starting point. Another way of looking at things are 30 minutes of movement daily for 5 days per week can start boosting your metabolism.
3.  Get ready to be healthy. This portion is a process that involves time, commitment, and the willingness to change. There’s no need to try to go from a sedentary lifestyle to working out five times per week. It is more important to plan your week and ease into this new habit. This includes slowly increasing your daily water intake from none or a few glasses to the recommended daily fluid intake of 91 ounces for females and 125 ounces for males.  Make sure you have rest days in between workouts. Evaluate your diet then create a healthier one. Changing your lifestyle can include not smoking, not engaging in risky sexual behaviors, and stopping binge drinking and striving to drink in moderation only. In addition, you can learn strategies for your mental well-being, focus on the positive in a given situation and try not to ruminate on possible bad scenarios. Listen to your body when it needs rest and relaxation.  
4. Become responsive to positive changes in your life. Identify what is needed to change and why. This is a fantastic way to start. Write a list and share with a family, friend, or your health coach for accountability. Accountability is the key! Set realistic goals both short term and long term with a start date and an end date. Your goals must include action plans. Focus on smaller steps at first to gain confidence and make sure you practice self-compassion. New habits take time to create, implement and become part of the new you! It usually takes 18 to 254 days to develop new habits. Incorporating 3 new activities like eating fruits with meals, drinking a glass of water with meals, and walking for 15 minutes before dinner might take someone about 66 days to turn into a habit. Obviously, it might take others less time or more time. It all depends on motivation, determination, and maybe a buddy system to make this habit stick!
5. As mentioned earlier, resilience is one of the keys for better health. Promoting positive factors or lifestyle such as proper nutrition, a sufficient amount of sleep, hydration, regular exercise will assist your body to adapt to stressors of life such as anxiety or depression. Learning skills to deal with stressors such as mindfulness can help when dealing with adversities. Each person can develop skills to deal with strong emotions, serious illness, or the death of a loved one. Personal growth will help you adapt well over time to these changing and stressful situations due to resiliency. It is important to build connections with others and create your support group. Prioritize creating a genuine connection with others who care about you. This will help you find a sense of purpose and joy when you need it. Lastly avoid negative outlets such as excess alcohol consumption, drugs, or other substances. Remember that nicotine is an incredibly powerful drug. It is important to provide your body with resources to manage stress, instead of eliminating the feeling of stress altogether.

Embrace healthy thoughts to keep things in perspective. You may not be able to change a highly stressful moment, but you can change how you interpret and respond to it. If you get stuck and experience difficulties making progress on the road to resilience, ask for help. Seek a friend, family and or a professional. Remember you are not alone.

Embrace healthy foods and create that new habit. Learn and practice these new habits until you succeed. Here are some tips. Snacks labeled low sugar, or no sugar may not be the most nutritious choice. It is important to read nutritional labels before choosing what to buy. Ultra processed foods usually taste really good and often cost less. Most will have increased salt, added sugar, excess saturated fats, have less dietary fiber, and fewer vitamins.

Here are a few examples of ultra processed foods:

1. Breakfast cereals
2. Crackers and chips
3. Candy and ice cream
4. Instant noodles and soups
5. Reconstituted meats such as sausages, nuggets, fish fingers and processed ham
6. Packaged breads, cakes, pastries, and pizza
7. Processed cheese products
8. Sodas and other sweetened drinks

Whole foods, such as fruits and vegetables usually have the best mix of nutrients for the body.

Remember, physical activity is one of the easiest ways to keep your body and brain healthy. The immediate reward is feeling great after your work out! We are here to simplify and guide you to the steps needed to get healthier.