Guest Post: Finding a Healthy Balance with an Inspiration Board

Today I have a really cool guest post from a reader.  Michelle has a passion for health and wellness, and she has written a piece that will hopefully help you find what inspires you to live better as well.  Although I’ve never created my own inspiration board, I tend to use fitspiration posts and Pinterest to do the same type of thing, so Michelle’s words really resonate with me.  I hope they will for you, too! ____________________________________________________________________________________

It takes trials and errors to find a healthy balance in life’s various facets.  This holds especially true when searching for a healthy balance in achieving and maintaining our fitness goals.  However, you can create an inspiration board to detail and strategize your health and fitness goals.  Envision the healthy balance required to meet your goal, and place pictures representing proportioned balance on your board.  If you strategize your goal this way, organization and motivation unite to prevent you from feeling overwhelmed and losing sight of balance.

How do you strategize and organize a healthy balance?  Begin by scouring resources for images that represent your goal and all that you need to achieve that goal.  Include pictures that symbolize inspiration and motivation.  Pictures of healthy foods, action shots of an inspirational person, and a list of daily exercises work well on healthy, balanced inspiration boards.

After you collect the pieces of your collage, choose one image that best signifies your goal and place it as the focal point of your inspiration board.  It does not matter if you have a short-term goal, such as dropping one dress size, or a long-term goal, such as an overall healthier lifestyle to live longer; the central image signifies your goal and visualizing it on a daily basis reminds you of your purpose when the daily steps to achieve the result overwhelm you.

It is now time to surround your focal point with the other pictures that inspire you to meet your goal.  Health and fitness goals require an equal balance of diet, exercise, motivation and emotional health.  Organize the pictures in a manner that makes sense to you: four quadrants, a tier system, a Venn diagram or broken into daily or weekly achievements.        

The foods you eat comprise one-fourth of a healthy balance, so create a collage of healthy foods you enjoy, foods that you want to try, and healthy, tempting recipes.  If it inspires you, include methods of disguising food you should eat but dislike.  You can find inspiration by discovering what makes food fun and what dietary changes you can sustain for an extended time.  

What images motivate you to exercise?  Pictures of exercise equipment, a painting of a path for jogging in a field of flowers, or images of a crowded gym work for some people.  Write a list of exercises you want to perform on a daily basis.  Depending on what gets you up and moving, you might want to include a playlist of upbeat music.  This is your inspiration board: What works for you?

Why should you include a motivation section on an inspiration board?  Despite apparent redundancy, personalizing and visualizing your motivation keeps you on a balanced track.  Use this section for pictures personifying the reasons behind your goal.  A person crossing a finish line, a special outfit for a special day, or a grandparent surrounded by children might remind you why you have a goal, or perhaps you have other reasons.  Search for images of a special person or event that inspires you, and place the picture on your inspiration board.

Emotional health is vital for a healthy balance but is often neglected.  If you include pictures of relaxing activities, such as a bubble bath, a garden or favorite books, you have a visual reminder of the importance of emotional rest and relaxation.  Placing prompts for leisure gives you a respite from focusing all your attention on diet and exercise and rejuvenates your spirit so you can carry on.

Get as specific and detailed as you must: This is your board to seek daily inspiration, so you want images that light a fire within you and not someone else.  Use pictures that enable you to visualize your goal and see the healthy balance required for success in reaching for your particular stars.

Check out this example fitspirational board:

I’m really inspired by yoga for a number of reasons and it is the focus of my inspiration board. Yoga focuses the mind and body, teaching ourselves to find a spiritual balance. I also love that yoga can be done anywhere, even the beach! Simple yoga poses are simple stretches that can be done in the comfort of your own home or when traveling. Yoga is great for beginners and the more advanced athlete.

I’m new to golf, but I find it very relaxing. I’ve been learning at Kaluhyat, which is a New York golf resort. They’ve got great instructors, and several courses to practice on.

As part of my personal mission to live a healthier balanced life, I need to get better at taking care of my body. I’m taking more precaution to protect myself from harmful UV rays. Problem is, I love the sun; to compromise, I bought a floppy beach hat (similar to the one pictured from Wet Seal) to help shield my face and eyes. Wearing sunglasses can help prevent sun damage to your eyes that could cause cataracts.

Improvement in your daily diet is where you notice the most change. The best way to start is by adding more fruits and veggies to your regular routine. Try a tasty green smoothie as your mid-morning snack. They may look funky, but they taste great and can be adjusted to your liking!

Photo Credits: Syracuse golf club | Yoga Class | Green Smoothie | Floppy Hat | Yoga Mat

Questions:

What inspires you?

Have you ever made any type of inspiration board?

What are some tips you’d give to others on finding their inspiration?