January 22, 2025 • 29 mins
Let's embark on season five of "Have a Cup of Johanny," inviting you to explore the chaotic yet rewarding journey of moving to San Antonio. Through personal stories and reflections, we dive into the theme of growth amidst life's unpredictabilities. This episode promises to equip you with practical, backup habits for your high-value or nonnegotiable habits that help maintain balance and consistency when life tries to throw you off course. From staying hydrated to continuously learning, I share how these habits have become my anchor, offering insights on how you can tailor them to align with your personal goals.
Ever found yourself struggling to keep up with your fitness routine or reading habits while on the go? Discover my flexible strategies for adapting to life's chaos without losing momentum. Whether it's innovative ways to stay fit during travel or leveraging audiobooks to nourish your mind, this episode underscores the power of 'good enough' over perfection. You'll also hear from Joa, as she shares her unique backup habits, and find out how you can contribute too. Let's navigate this journey together, finding creative ways to stay consistent and build anticipation for the exciting episodes ahead.
If today’s episode hit you in the chest the way it hit me, don’t just walk away—walk toward something that reflects you.
Subscribe to the podcast, hit that YouTube channel for the behind-the-scenes, and if you’re ready to read a story about what it really means to come home to yourself—
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It’s about a Dominican-American bruja who’s been running from herself her whole life until ancestral magic, generational wounds, and a haunted-ass hill force her to face the truth.
If you’ve ever felt “too much,” “not enough,” or like you don’t fit anywhere, you’re exactly who this story was written for.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Oh, we could, we could fly.
Welcome to this new season ofthe have a Cup of Chahani
podcast.
So I want to title this newseason that I'm embarking on
with I'm Growing, so this isgoing to be the season of growth
and that's what I'm going toshare with you throughout the
(00:20):
season.
So I thank you for coming overhere and sitting with me and I
hope you enjoy.
Hola vasitos, and welcome toanother episode of have a Cup of
Johanny podcast.
I have to say that I am so sorryI missed last Wednesday.
I am in the midst of moving andlast Wednesday I am in the
(00:58):
midst of moving and lastWednesday I was still in a hotel
.
I was very overwhelmed becauseI was trying to find a rental
home in San Antonio and that theplace.
However, I am in between boxes,as I like to say, so right now
they are boxes and suitcasessurrounding what would be my
office slash guest bedroom.
(01:18):
So, yes, I am in flux, but Ineeded to get on the podcast,
because this is one of thethings that make me feel happy,
because I get to share lessonslearned and that always brings
me a lot of joy to be able togive back nuggets of information
and things that I have learnedthrough a storytelling format,
(01:42):
in the hopes that others thathear it may learn something from
it.
So we are talking about habitsthis entire January and I'm
going to give you somethingextra in another recording,
because I did miss lastWednesday.
That has nothing to do withhabits miss last Wednesday.
(02:08):
That has nothing to do withhabits, but nevertheless, we are
talking about a life skill thatwill save your habits when
chaos strikes.
And right now, as I'm in flux,this is very pertinent to me and
I'm actually exercising thisthing that I learned right now.
And you may be asking all right, joa, what is it?
Backup habits, bacitos, backuphabits.
(02:29):
That's what we're talking aboutBecause, let's be honest, life
is going to life, but instead ofthrowing the towel when things
get messy, hectic, chaotic,things get messy, hectic,
chaotic, we can learn how tostay consistent in a way that
works for us.
Are you ready?
Of course you are, because whyelse would you be here?
(02:58):
Let's break it down.
All right, let's start firstwith why backup habits matter
and, like I said, I am goingthrough it right now because
life is very hectic.
I have literally moved from onespace to another and in between
(03:19):
, we went on vacation because itwas the holiday season.
So of course I didn't not wantit to do that because I feel
like I didn't want the move totake away from rejoicing with
family during the holidays.
So for me this period of mylife has been very hectic, very
(03:40):
chaotic.
Unexpected things have happened.
I didn't realize it would bethis hard to find a place in San
Antonio that met me and myfamily's needs.
And I have really worked onexercising my backup habits now
(04:01):
because it's easy to just sayyou know what, I will skip today
and I'll get back to it thenext day.
But from experience when I havedone that, it is so much harder
to come back in becauseskipping too often makes it
easier to quit entirely.
(04:24):
And that's why backup habitsmatter so much.
Because if you do get into thatrhythm, that habit of just
saying, well, I'll skip today,when it gets hectic, chaotic and
unexpected things are happening, then that may become a thing
(04:46):
that you do every single time.
And then if you do do thatevery single time, then you may
just quit that habit that youhave nourished.
And you nourish this habitbecause you know you need it,
you know it's very important foryour life, and we talked about
this on previous episodes.
So if you do that, then it'salmost like you're doing a
(05:10):
disservice to yourself and toyour life.
So backup habits are there sothat way you can stay consistent
.
It's not about you doing thingsperfectly Okay.
It's not about you doing thingsperfectly Okay, and we're going
to go in depth about that,because, if you heard me talk
about this before, I am veryimperfect and I am actively
(05:33):
working on just like get it done, as opposed to getting it done
perfectly, because that'sanother thing that we need to be
on the lookout for thatprocrastinating tendency to not
let go of any projects untilit's perfect.
But nevertheless, we're nottalking about having our habits
(05:53):
being done by us perfectly.
We are about finding small,doable ways to stay consistent
so that way we can maintain thatmomentum alive and reinforce
that discipline muscle.
And, trust me, showing up foryourself, no matter how small,
(06:14):
can make all the difference.
Okay, so this is why it matters, because you're showing up for
yourself and you're showingyourself that you are important,
and doing so keeps the momentumalive in your habits and
reinforces your disciplinemuscle.
So you may be asking okay, sohow do I know what habits I need
(06:38):
to have a backup plan for.
So the first step is figuringout which habits matter most to
you.
These are the habits that makeyou feel grounded and aligned
with your goals.
For me, my high value habits, mynon-negotiables, are going to
(06:59):
the gym, going and hydratingthat is a must and reading or
learning something new.
I cannot let go of those threethings because when I do, it
makes me unbalanced.
I figured this out throughjournaling.
(07:19):
So really, I mean now thinkingabout it.
I think journaling should be inhere too.
Really, I mean now thinkingabout it.
I think journaling should be inhere too.
That's my high value habit, butit seems like I do it without
even being prompted because Ihave so many things going on in
my mind almost every day.
So I feel like I need tojournal, but nevertheless I
digress.
Okay, let's discuss these threethat I identified.
So the way that I knew thatthese were the three for me was
(07:45):
through journaling.
As I often do, and other peopledo as well, you go through these
highs and lows in your life.
So during one of these lows,where a lot of things were
happening and I was very, verybusy and I found it like I
couldn't get to my five habitsevery morning.
Like I couldn't get to my fivehabits every morning and I
(08:06):
started feeling wonky andunbalanced.
I started journaling andwriting about it and then I also
have my habit tracker and whatI did was it was like a bit of
like quote unquote scientificresearch here, right, but it was
just me going through myjournal and checking it out and
(08:27):
I noticed that those days wheremy mood was really bad, it was
very reactive or mildlydepressive.
Those were the days where I didnot do these habits, when I
didn't go to the gym, when Ididn't hydrate, when I didn't
pace myself down by reading orlistening to something.
(08:51):
Those were the days where mymind was just really chaotic and
I was not having the best oftime.
And that's how I was able tofind out that these are the
three things, that I must have abackup for them, so that way I
can accomplish them either inthe morning or throughout the
(09:12):
day.
It's very important becausethey make me feel good, they
make me feel like myself.
So ask yourself, or do theinquisitive thing and journal
and then see when you arefeeling some sort of way what
was it that you did that morningor didn't do that morning, or
(09:33):
in the evening, and ask yourselfwhat happened today, how did I
feel?
And then look at your habittracker or your journal,
wherever it is that you writethe habits that you accomplish
that day and then see whichhabits are missing from there,
(09:55):
and that will give you insightas to which of those habits are
your core habits, because that'show I was able to find out that
you know what?
It's not good for me to skipthe gym, it's not good for me to
skip my hydration habit andit's not good for me to skip
(10:17):
reading and winding down withthat activity.
That's how I was able to findthat.
So you can do that.
That's a way that you can findout what habits are your
non-negotiables.
And once you do that, then iswhen you can look ahead to
(10:41):
anticipate chaos or moments inyour life where it's going to
get really hectic and planalternatives.
Because, let's face it, life isgoing to throw curveballs at
you and you may not know exactlywhen.
Like I knew that I had to movefrom Kentucky to San Antonio, so
(11:03):
I knew that that timeframe isgoing to be one of upheavals in
my life.
But things happen unexpectedlyand that is okay.
You can still plan alternativesfor when life gets hectic, even
if you don't know exactly howhectic your life may get.
But it's good to have thosealternatives written down in the
(11:27):
back burner, as I say, so thatway you can pull them out.
That can be your break glassprocedure for when life gets
lifey.
So think ahead about how youcan adapt your habit when plan A
is impossible.
When plan A is impossible, Iwill give you my examples of
what I do.
I know that the move here fromKentucky to San Antonio will
(11:52):
start to be hectic.
I know that I'll be spending alot of time living out of
suitcases, as some may say, andthat my regular gym routine may
not be something that I can do,will not be feasible, during
this transition time.
So some of the things that Idid to prepare myself was that,
(12:17):
first, to make sure that I packgym clothes and my gym shoes so
that way I have them ready.
That's not a hindrance to thathabit.
That's one.
Two, when I checked in into thehotels that I was staying, one
of the first things that I didand it was always feasible
because it's on the first floorwas peep at the gym to see what
(12:41):
machines they had in there.
So that way then when I go backto my room, I can envision what
I could do the next morning.
Then, after that, what I didwas backwards planned.
So usually before the end ofthat day, when we checked in, my
(13:02):
husband and I would discuss thenext day when we will get out
of the hotel, when we will checkout, when we plan on being on
the road and for how long wewill be on the road, and then I
would just backwards plan my gymtime from there, and I allotted
myself one hour of gym time,even though my alternative
workouts were usually below thattimeframe, but still I gave
(13:26):
myself that time.
So that way I can becomfortable getting up, I can go
downstairs and do my routineand I can come up and then grab
my husband, so that way we canget coffee.
You see, so that's how I planmy backup.
My backup plan for the gymhabit was by ensuring that
(13:47):
clothes were readily availablefor me even as I am traveling.
And then, two, by spotting thegym and then, from there,
tailoring my workout plan fromthere.
And in some hotels all that itwas was me walking on the
treadmill for three miles withan incline Sometimes.
(14:10):
That's all that they hadavailable and that's what I did,
but I got my gym habit in.
It didn't look perfect, itdidn't look like what I usually
do, but I got it in.
For my reading habit, somethingthat I do is that if I cannot
(14:31):
sit for 10 minutes to read, Ilisten to an audio book or I
listen to a podcast and I use mylunch breaks if I cannot do it
in the morning and if I cannotdo it in the morning, I cannot
do it during lunch then I settime aside before going to bed
(14:51):
to get that done.
So that's how I get after myreading habit.
If I can't physically read abook, I'm going to listen to
something, and that's usuallyvery doable, no matter where I
am something, and that's usuallyvery doable no matter where I
am.
And if I can't listen because Idon't have my headphones this
is something that has happenedand I don't want people to
(15:13):
listen to what I'm listening.
I have Kindle on my phone, Ihave the e-reader.
I also have NetGalley books inmy phone as well that I just pop
up from the app and then I canread it from there, from the
screen.
Not my preferred way of readingbecause the phone screen is
(15:34):
tiny.
But it is a way.
I did that last night when Icouldn't find my headphones, you
know, and I couldn't find mye-readerer either.
So I was like, well, I'mreading it for my own, and
that's what I did.
The water thing this issomething let me tell you all
about the water thing.
(15:54):
I have a little baby bladder,if you know me, you know, and
when you are in the road, thatis, yeah, disaster, Because I
don't want to be stopping everysingle 30 minutes so that way I
(16:15):
can look for a bathroom.
And there are some roads outthere, from Kentucky to San
Antonio, that were just deserted.
It was nothing there no gasstation, no rest stops, no,
nothing.
We're miles and miles on endpeople.
So what I did and this comesfrom a lot of trial and error,
(16:37):
from a lot of experiencetraveling is that as soon as I
get up because, remember, I'malready backwards planning and
know that if we're getting outat eight in the morning, I'm
going to backwards plan and getup like three hours before and
what do I do in those instancesis that I drink water right away
(16:59):
, like right away.
I don't wait at all, I brush myteeth and drink water so that
way it can start flowing throughmy system, and then as I go to
the gym, you know, rightafterwards I can pee, and then
right afterwards with a littlebit of coffee, then I go to the
bathroom some more.
(17:20):
The one thing that I do tailorwhen I'm on the road like this
is my coffee consumption,because that makes things worse.
So I try to at least get twocups in.
At the most I can get four cupsin if I'm really good when I'm
traveling like this, but atleast two cups, in least two
(17:42):
cups in, because I know for afact that if I wake up enough
right when I plan it, then I'mable to utilize the bathroom and
I should be good until our nextplan.
Rest, stop, and then I justchug my water bottle slowly
throughout the trip.
Because this has been disastrousright.
(18:03):
This trial and error when itcomes to my digression habit has
been, yeah, horrible, because Ihave gone through both ends of
the spectrum where I just wentall in and then had to stop.
That's why I know that that'swhat would happen.
I had to stop like almost every30 minutes and it just took
(18:23):
forever to get where I was goingto the other end of that
spectrum, where I didn't drinkat all and I was in pain.
My heart was banging, my entirebody was just in pain.
I felt like I was with the flu.
With the flu it's a really badfeeling to have because I was
(18:46):
trying not to drink at all.
So that way I wouldn't stop.
So I know from that experiencethat I need to be somewhere in
the middle.
Like I said, that's between twoto four cups.
Four if I know that I haveample time to go to the bathroom
before hitting the road.
If I'm cutting it short, two,you see.
(19:10):
So that's how I figure how totailor my hydration habit.
And then usually when I get tothe hotel, to the other end,
then I'll start, you know,drinking and then catching up so
that way I can get to my eightcups.
And to be honest with you, Idid really well on my hydration
(19:35):
habits.
So I guess my discipline musclewhen it comes to this habit has
really worked itself out verywell, because I did really good.
When I look back at my habittracker during this time frame,
I only missed the hydration.
I want to say like two times Idon't have it with me.
It's somewhere upstairs in mybackpack.
But two times I missed myhydration habit during this
(19:59):
timeframe.
The gym habit that was very easyto find an alternative.
I mean, like I said, it didn'tlook like what I usually do,
which is weightlifting with alittle bit of cardio Sometimes
it was more cardio than anythingelse but I hit my gym habit.
If anything.
It is now that I'm in this newhouse and I need to go look for
(20:19):
a gym that I have not done thealternative gym habit and
instead I've been just liftingboxes up and down and stuff like
that, which really, if you lookat it, can be an alternative,
because I have been working outwhen it comes to moving, lifting
cleaning counts as well, youknow, and things of that nature.
(20:42):
But I still have to go look fora gym and my time is ticking
because if I go past three daysI just know it's going to take
more of an effort to start itback up.
So for sure tomorrow will bethe day that I go and execute my
gym habit, so that way I won'thave to put too much of an
(21:04):
effort to kickstart it up again.
When it comes to the readinghabit, that for sure, was easily
achievable, one of my easiestthings to achieve, just because
of the blessing that audiobooksare.
I can easily tap into anaudiobook and, for sure, if
anything, while driving, I gotso much reading done.
(21:27):
I just play audiobooks back toback to back.
I think I played twonon-fictions and one fiction.
I enjoyed it.
I need to give you all a reviewafterwards.
All right, so that's how Ibecame flexible like Gumby when
it comes to my high value, ornon-negotiable habits.
(21:51):
Now, another thing that I wouldsay I learned, and something
you've heard me already saying,is to embrace good enough over
perfection.
You heard me.
Even when it comes to the gym,I'm like does lifting boxes
really count?
Up and down the stairs, youknow?
And that is kind of like theperfectionist in me going back
(22:18):
and forth and trying to find away to how do you say, not make
it okay to have an alternativewhen it comes to the gym, unless
it's the gym, you see.
So even when it comes to thatgym, unless it's the gym, you
see.
So even when it comes to that,I am still learning.
So learn with me here, vasitos,because this one is big Backup
(22:44):
habits.
Teach us that good enough isstill progress.
It's not about doing the habitperfectly every day.
It's not about doing the habitperfectly every day or how you
envision it as perfect every day, but it's about showing up
consistently in whatever way youcan.
And for me, now that I amacknowledging this with you, all
(23:08):
it can be, is my habit the gymhabit, or is my habit moving my
body habit, moving my body in away that helps my blood flow and
helps me gain muscle habit, andI think it's that.
(23:30):
I think my habit is more aboutmoving physically so that way my
blood can start pumping, mycardio and muscular strength can
get better or at least stayconsistent, as opposed to going
down.
That is the habit.
(23:51):
But I think, because I havedone that habit, executed that
habit in the gym, that I nowenvision that habit as always
being done in the gym, when itcan be done in many different
environments, as long as itachieves that goal, which is
(24:13):
getting some cardio in ormuscular strength in there.
You see, I'm telling you that'swhy I love this podcast.
I'm here learning with you allas well.
Okay, so it is still a win.
You know, it is still a win andthat's what we gotta embrace.
(24:35):
I'm going to write that in myjournal.
I'm going to write it in myjournal.
It's still a win.
So if you can only hydrate withone bottle instead of the usual
three, that's progress.
You did something, you see, so,don't.
You did something, you see, sodon't like demean yourself into.
Well, I didn't do three, it hadto be three.
(24:57):
No, if you can only get to onethat day, that is amazing.
You showed up.
You showed up in a way that youcould show up for yourself that
day and you didn't, because thealternative would have been to
(25:20):
not showing up for yourself.
So that's progress.
Every small action adds up andit keeps your brain in the habit
of showing up, which I think islike the ultimate, ultimate
focus.
And finally I already said it,I'm going to write this in my
journal Take the time to reflect.
(25:41):
If a backup habit isn't working,tweak it Maybe.
Parking far away isn't doablein bad weather.
We actually have snow on theground here in San Antonio, so
try a five-minute walk aroundthe office instead.
Backup habits as well, justlike your non-negotiable habits.
(26:02):
Backup habits aren't set instone.
They are tools you can refineover time.
Backup habits are flexiblehabits.
They are mendable and I willsay as long as you know what is
the goal of that habit, you canadjust it to whatever
(26:25):
environment you may be in,whatever ailment you're going
through at the moment, or anyhindrances that you may be going
through at the moment, or anyabilities that you have.
As long as you know the habitthat you're trying to achieve
(26:46):
just like you saw me do it withthe gym habit that is actually
just a moving habit.
You can flex it to whatever itis that you can do in that
moment.
That is the tool that you haveat your disposal to refine that
habit for that instance, forthat moment, or over time.
(27:10):
So it can benefit you Because,at the end of the day, it's
about you.
It's about you showing up foryourself.
So the lesson here for all of usis backup habits.
They remind you that you'recapable of staying consistent
(27:30):
even when life gets chaotic.
Each time you follow through,you prove to yourself that you
didn't quit, that you insteadchose to adapt, and that's how
discipline grows.
So remember I'm going to writethis in my journal too.
It doesn't have to be perfect,it just has to get done, and it
(27:55):
looked really ugly, like I wastelling my husband that too long
ago.
It got done.
It got done.
Who cares how ugly it was, youknow as we was doing it.
It got done.
So here's your challenge Getyour notebook or your phone and
(28:15):
I want you to pick one highvalue or non-negotiable habit
and brainstorm a backup plan forwhen life gets hectic.
Share it with me.
I'd love to hear what you comeup with.
And, hey, if you've got yourown creative backup habits, let
me know as well.
Dm me, put it in the commentsand I may feature that in a
(28:38):
future episode.
Until next time, vacitos, stayconsistent, stay adaptable.
See you next Wednesday.
Bye.
Thank you so much for listening.
I want to hear from you.
Leave me a comment, do a rating, if you can, on the podcast,
(28:59):
share it with somebody you love,but, most importantly, come
back.
See you next time.
Bye.
Oh, we could, we could fly.
Welcome to this new season ofthe have a Cup of Chahani
podcast.
So I want to title this newseason that I'm embarking on
with I'm Growing, so this isgoing to be the season of growth
and that's what I'm going toshare with you throughout the
(00:20):
season.
So I thank you for coming overhere and sitting with me and I
hope you enjoy.
Hola vasitos, and welcome toanother episode of have a Cup of
Johanny podcast.
I have to say that I am so sorryI missed last Wednesday.
I am in the midst of moving andlast Wednesday I am in the
(00:58):
midst of moving and lastWednesday I was still in a hotel
.
I was very overwhelmed becauseI was trying to find a rental
home in San Antonio and that theplace.
However, I am in between boxes,as I like to say, so right now
they are boxes and suitcasessurrounding what would be my
office slash guest bedroom.
(01:18):
So, yes, I am in flux, but Ineeded to get on the podcast,
because this is one of thethings that make me feel happy,
because I get to share lessonslearned and that always brings
me a lot of joy to be able togive back nuggets of information
and things that I have learnedthrough a storytelling format,
(01:42):
in the hopes that others thathear it may learn something from
it.
So we are talking about habitsthis entire January and I'm
going to give you somethingextra in another recording,
because I did miss lastWednesday.
That has nothing to do withhabits miss last Wednesday.
(02:08):
That has nothing to do withhabits, but nevertheless, we are
talking about a life skill thatwill save your habits when
chaos strikes.
And right now, as I'm in flux,this is very pertinent to me and
I'm actually exercising thisthing that I learned right now.
And you may be asking all right, joa, what is it?
Backup habits, bacitos, backuphabits.
(02:29):
That's what we're talking aboutBecause, let's be honest, life
is going to life, but instead ofthrowing the towel when things
get messy, hectic, chaotic,things get messy, hectic,
chaotic, we can learn how tostay consistent in a way that
works for us.
Are you ready?
Of course you are, because whyelse would you be here?
(02:58):
Let's break it down.
All right, let's start firstwith why backup habits matter
and, like I said, I am goingthrough it right now because
life is very hectic.
I have literally moved from onespace to another and in between
(03:19):
, we went on vacation because itwas the holiday season.
So of course I didn't not wantit to do that because I feel
like I didn't want the move totake away from rejoicing with
family during the holidays.
So for me this period of mylife has been very hectic, very
(03:40):
chaotic.
Unexpected things have happened.
I didn't realize it would bethis hard to find a place in San
Antonio that met me and myfamily's needs.
And I have really worked onexercising my backup habits now
(04:01):
because it's easy to just sayyou know what, I will skip today
and I'll get back to it thenext day.
But from experience when I havedone that, it is so much harder
to come back in becauseskipping too often makes it
easier to quit entirely.
(04:24):
And that's why backup habitsmatter so much.
Because if you do get into thatrhythm, that habit of just
saying, well, I'll skip today,when it gets hectic, chaotic and
unexpected things are happening, then that may become a thing
(04:46):
that you do every single time.
And then if you do do thatevery single time, then you may
just quit that habit that youhave nourished.
And you nourish this habitbecause you know you need it,
you know it's very important foryour life, and we talked about
this on previous episodes.
So if you do that, then it'salmost like you're doing a
(05:10):
disservice to yourself and toyour life.
So backup habits are there sothat way you can stay consistent
.
It's not about you doing thingsperfectly Okay.
It's not about you doing thingsperfectly Okay, and we're going
to go in depth about that,because, if you heard me talk
about this before, I am veryimperfect and I am actively
(05:33):
working on just like get it done, as opposed to getting it done
perfectly, because that'sanother thing that we need to be
on the lookout for thatprocrastinating tendency to not
let go of any projects untilit's perfect.
But nevertheless, we're nottalking about having our habits
(05:53):
being done by us perfectly.
We are about finding small,doable ways to stay consistent
so that way we can maintain thatmomentum alive and reinforce
that discipline muscle.
And, trust me, showing up foryourself, no matter how small,
(06:14):
can make all the difference.
Okay, so this is why it matters, because you're showing up for
yourself and you're showingyourself that you are important,
and doing so keeps the momentumalive in your habits and
reinforces your disciplinemuscle.
So you may be asking okay, sohow do I know what habits I need
(06:38):
to have a backup plan for.
So the first step is figuringout which habits matter most to
you.
These are the habits that makeyou feel grounded and aligned
with your goals.
For me, my high value habits, mynon-negotiables, are going to
(06:59):
the gym, going and hydratingthat is a must and reading or
learning something new.
I cannot let go of those threethings because when I do, it
makes me unbalanced.
I figured this out throughjournaling.
(07:19):
So really, I mean now thinkingabout it.
I think journaling should be inhere too.
Really, I mean now thinkingabout it.
I think journaling should be inhere too.
That's my high value habit, butit seems like I do it without
even being prompted because Ihave so many things going on in
my mind almost every day.
So I feel like I need tojournal, but nevertheless I
digress.
Okay, let's discuss these threethat I identified.
So the way that I knew thatthese were the three for me was
(07:45):
through journaling.
As I often do, and other peopledo as well, you go through these
highs and lows in your life.
So during one of these lows,where a lot of things were
happening and I was very, verybusy and I found it like I
couldn't get to my five habitsevery morning.
Like I couldn't get to my fivehabits every morning and I
(08:06):
started feeling wonky andunbalanced.
I started journaling andwriting about it and then I also
have my habit tracker and whatI did was it was like a bit of
like quote unquote scientificresearch here, right, but it was
just me going through myjournal and checking it out and
(08:27):
I noticed that those days wheremy mood was really bad, it was
very reactive or mildlydepressive.
Those were the days where I didnot do these habits, when I
didn't go to the gym, when Ididn't hydrate, when I didn't
pace myself down by reading orlistening to something.
(08:51):
Those were the days where mymind was just really chaotic and
I was not having the best oftime.
And that's how I was able tofind out that these are the
three things, that I must have abackup for them, so that way I
can accomplish them either inthe morning or throughout the
(09:12):
day.
It's very important becausethey make me feel good, they
make me feel like myself.
So ask yourself, or do theinquisitive thing and journal
and then see when you arefeeling some sort of way what
was it that you did that morningor didn't do that morning, or
(09:33):
in the evening, and ask yourselfwhat happened today, how did I
feel?
And then look at your habittracker or your journal,
wherever it is that you writethe habits that you accomplish
that day and then see whichhabits are missing from there,
(09:55):
and that will give you insightas to which of those habits are
your core habits, because that'show I was able to find out that
you know what?
It's not good for me to skipthe gym, it's not good for me to
skip my hydration habit andit's not good for me to skip
(10:17):
reading and winding down withthat activity.
That's how I was able to findthat.
So you can do that.
That's a way that you can findout what habits are your
non-negotiables.
And once you do that, then iswhen you can look ahead to
(10:41):
anticipate chaos or moments inyour life where it's going to
get really hectic and planalternatives.
Because, let's face it, life isgoing to throw curveballs at
you and you may not know exactlywhen.
Like I knew that I had to movefrom Kentucky to San Antonio, so
(11:03):
I knew that that timeframe isgoing to be one of upheavals in
my life.
But things happen unexpectedlyand that is okay.
You can still plan alternativesfor when life gets hectic, even
if you don't know exactly howhectic your life may get.
But it's good to have thosealternatives written down in the
(11:27):
back burner, as I say, so thatway you can pull them out.
That can be your break glassprocedure for when life gets
lifey.
So think ahead about how youcan adapt your habit when plan A
is impossible.
When plan A is impossible, Iwill give you my examples of
what I do.
I know that the move here fromKentucky to San Antonio will
(11:52):
start to be hectic.
I know that I'll be spending alot of time living out of
suitcases, as some may say, andthat my regular gym routine may
not be something that I can do,will not be feasible, during
this transition time.
So some of the things that Idid to prepare myself was that,
(12:17):
first, to make sure that I packgym clothes and my gym shoes so
that way I have them ready.
That's not a hindrance to thathabit.
That's one.
Two, when I checked in into thehotels that I was staying, one
of the first things that I didand it was always feasible
because it's on the first floorwas peep at the gym to see what
(12:41):
machines they had in there.
So that way then when I go backto my room, I can envision what
I could do the next morning.
Then, after that, what I didwas backwards planned.
So usually before the end ofthat day, when we checked in, my
(13:02):
husband and I would discuss thenext day when we will get out
of the hotel, when we will checkout, when we plan on being on
the road and for how long wewill be on the road, and then I
would just backwards plan my gymtime from there, and I allotted
myself one hour of gym time,even though my alternative
workouts were usually below thattimeframe, but still I gave
(13:26):
myself that time.
So that way I can becomfortable getting up, I can go
downstairs and do my routineand I can come up and then grab
my husband, so that way we canget coffee.
You see, so that's how I planmy backup.
My backup plan for the gymhabit was by ensuring that
(13:47):
clothes were readily availablefor me even as I am traveling.
And then, two, by spotting thegym and then, from there,
tailoring my workout plan fromthere.
And in some hotels all that itwas was me walking on the
treadmill for three miles withan incline Sometimes.
(14:10):
That's all that they hadavailable and that's what I did,
but I got my gym habit in.
It didn't look perfect, itdidn't look like what I usually
do, but I got it in.
For my reading habit, somethingthat I do is that if I cannot
(14:31):
sit for 10 minutes to read, Ilisten to an audio book or I
listen to a podcast and I use mylunch breaks if I cannot do it
in the morning and if I cannotdo it in the morning, I cannot
do it during lunch then I settime aside before going to bed
(14:51):
to get that done.
So that's how I get after myreading habit.
If I can't physically read abook, I'm going to listen to
something, and that's usuallyvery doable, no matter where I
am something, and that's usuallyvery doable no matter where I
am.
And if I can't listen because Idon't have my headphones this
is something that has happenedand I don't want people to
(15:13):
listen to what I'm listening.
I have Kindle on my phone, Ihave the e-reader.
I also have NetGalley books inmy phone as well that I just pop
up from the app and then I canread it from there, from the
screen.
Not my preferred way of readingbecause the phone screen is
(15:34):
tiny.
But it is a way.
I did that last night when Icouldn't find my headphones, you
know, and I couldn't find mye-readerer either.
So I was like, well, I'mreading it for my own, and
that's what I did.
The water thing this issomething let me tell you all
about the water thing.
(15:54):
I have a little baby bladder,if you know me, you know, and
when you are in the road, thatis, yeah, disaster, Because I
don't want to be stopping everysingle 30 minutes so that way I
(16:15):
can look for a bathroom.
And there are some roads outthere, from Kentucky to San
Antonio, that were just deserted.
It was nothing there no gasstation, no rest stops, no,
nothing.
We're miles and miles on endpeople.
So what I did and this comesfrom a lot of trial and error,
(16:37):
from a lot of experiencetraveling is that as soon as I
get up because, remember, I'malready backwards planning and
know that if we're getting outat eight in the morning, I'm
going to backwards plan and getup like three hours before and
what do I do in those instancesis that I drink water right away
(16:59):
, like right away.
I don't wait at all, I brush myteeth and drink water so that
way it can start flowing throughmy system, and then as I go to
the gym, you know, rightafterwards I can pee, and then
right afterwards with a littlebit of coffee, then I go to the
bathroom some more.
(17:20):
The one thing that I do tailorwhen I'm on the road like this
is my coffee consumption,because that makes things worse.
So I try to at least get twocups in.
At the most I can get four cupsin if I'm really good when I'm
traveling like this, but atleast two cups, in least two
(17:42):
cups in, because I know for afact that if I wake up enough
right when I plan it, then I'mable to utilize the bathroom and
I should be good until our nextplan.
Rest, stop, and then I justchug my water bottle slowly
throughout the trip.
Because this has been disastrousright.
(18:03):
This trial and error when itcomes to my digression habit has
been, yeah, horrible, because Ihave gone through both ends of
the spectrum where I just wentall in and then had to stop.
That's why I know that that'swhat would happen.
I had to stop like almost every30 minutes and it just took
(18:23):
forever to get where I was goingto the other end of that
spectrum, where I didn't drinkat all and I was in pain.
My heart was banging, my entirebody was just in pain.
I felt like I was with the flu.
With the flu it's a really badfeeling to have because I was
(18:46):
trying not to drink at all.
So that way I wouldn't stop.
So I know from that experiencethat I need to be somewhere in
the middle.
Like I said, that's between twoto four cups.
Four if I know that I haveample time to go to the bathroom
before hitting the road.
If I'm cutting it short, two,you see.
(19:10):
So that's how I figure how totailor my hydration habit.
And then usually when I get tothe hotel, to the other end,
then I'll start, you know,drinking and then catching up so
that way I can get to my eightcups.
And to be honest with you, Idid really well on my hydration
(19:35):
habits.
So I guess my discipline musclewhen it comes to this habit has
really worked itself out verywell, because I did really good.
When I look back at my habittracker during this time frame,
I only missed the hydration.
I want to say like two times Idon't have it with me.
It's somewhere upstairs in mybackpack.
But two times I missed myhydration habit during this
(19:59):
timeframe.
The gym habit that was very easyto find an alternative.
I mean, like I said, it didn'tlook like what I usually do,
which is weightlifting with alittle bit of cardio Sometimes
it was more cardio than anythingelse but I hit my gym habit.
If anything.
It is now that I'm in this newhouse and I need to go look for
(20:19):
a gym that I have not done thealternative gym habit and
instead I've been just liftingboxes up and down and stuff like
that, which really, if you lookat it, can be an alternative,
because I have been working outwhen it comes to moving, lifting
cleaning counts as well, youknow, and things of that nature.
(20:42):
But I still have to go look fora gym and my time is ticking
because if I go past three daysI just know it's going to take
more of an effort to start itback up.
So for sure tomorrow will bethe day that I go and execute my
gym habit, so that way I won'thave to put too much of an
(21:04):
effort to kickstart it up again.
When it comes to the readinghabit, that for sure, was easily
achievable, one of my easiestthings to achieve, just because
of the blessing that audiobooksare.
I can easily tap into anaudiobook and, for sure, if
anything, while driving, I gotso much reading done.
(21:27):
I just play audiobooks back toback to back.
I think I played twonon-fictions and one fiction.
I enjoyed it.
I need to give you all a reviewafterwards.
All right, so that's how Ibecame flexible like Gumby when
it comes to my high value, ornon-negotiable habits.
(21:51):
Now, another thing that I wouldsay I learned, and something
you've heard me already saying,is to embrace good enough over
perfection.
You heard me.
Even when it comes to the gym,I'm like does lifting boxes
really count?
Up and down the stairs, youknow?
And that is kind of like theperfectionist in me going back
(22:18):
and forth and trying to find away to how do you say, not make
it okay to have an alternativewhen it comes to the gym, unless
it's the gym, you see.
So even when it comes to thatgym, unless it's the gym, you
see.
So even when it comes to that,I am still learning.
So learn with me here, vasitos,because this one is big Backup
(22:44):
habits.
Teach us that good enough isstill progress.
It's not about doing the habitperfectly every day.
It's not about doing the habitperfectly every day or how you
envision it as perfect every day, but it's about showing up
consistently in whatever way youcan.
And for me, now that I amacknowledging this with you, all
(23:08):
it can be, is my habit the gymhabit, or is my habit moving my
body habit, moving my body in away that helps my blood flow and
helps me gain muscle habit, andI think it's that.
(23:30):
I think my habit is more aboutmoving physically so that way my
blood can start pumping, mycardio and muscular strength can
get better or at least stayconsistent, as opposed to going
down.
That is the habit.
(23:51):
But I think, because I havedone that habit, executed that
habit in the gym, that I nowenvision that habit as always
being done in the gym, when itcan be done in many different
environments, as long as itachieves that goal, which is
(24:13):
getting some cardio in ormuscular strength in there.
You see, I'm telling you that'swhy I love this podcast.
I'm here learning with you allas well.
Okay, so it is still a win.
You know, it is still a win andthat's what we gotta embrace.
(24:35):
I'm going to write that in myjournal.
I'm going to write it in myjournal.
It's still a win.
So if you can only hydrate withone bottle instead of the usual
three, that's progress.
You did something, you see, so,don't.
You did something, you see, sodon't like demean yourself into.
Well, I didn't do three, it hadto be three.
(24:57):
No, if you can only get to onethat day, that is amazing.
You showed up.
You showed up in a way that youcould show up for yourself that
day and you didn't, because thealternative would have been to
(25:20):
not showing up for yourself.
So that's progress.
Every small action adds up andit keeps your brain in the habit
of showing up, which I think islike the ultimate, ultimate
focus.
And finally I already said it,I'm going to write this in my
journal Take the time to reflect.
(25:41):
If a backup habit isn't working,tweak it Maybe.
Parking far away isn't doablein bad weather.
We actually have snow on theground here in San Antonio, so
try a five-minute walk aroundthe office instead.
Backup habits as well, justlike your non-negotiable habits.
(26:02):
Backup habits aren't set instone.
They are tools you can refineover time.
Backup habits are flexiblehabits.
They are mendable and I willsay as long as you know what is
the goal of that habit, you canadjust it to whatever
(26:25):
environment you may be in,whatever ailment you're going
through at the moment, or anyhindrances that you may be going
through at the moment, or anyabilities that you have.
As long as you know the habitthat you're trying to achieve
(26:46):
just like you saw me do it withthe gym habit that is actually
just a moving habit.
You can flex it to whatever itis that you can do in that
moment.
That is the tool that you haveat your disposal to refine that
habit for that instance, forthat moment, or over time.
(27:10):
So it can benefit you Because,at the end of the day, it's
about you.
It's about you showing up foryourself.
So the lesson here for all of usis backup habits.
They remind you that you'recapable of staying consistent
(27:30):
even when life gets chaotic.
Each time you follow through,you prove to yourself that you
didn't quit, that you insteadchose to adapt, and that's how
discipline grows.
So remember I'm going to writethis in my journal too.
It doesn't have to be perfect,it just has to get done, and it
(27:55):
looked really ugly, like I wastelling my husband that too long
ago.
It got done.
It got done.
Who cares how ugly it was, youknow as we was doing it.
It got done.
So here's your challenge Getyour notebook or your phone and
(28:15):
I want you to pick one highvalue or non-negotiable habit
and brainstorm a backup plan forwhen life gets hectic.
Share it with me.
I'd love to hear what you comeup with.
And, hey, if you've got yourown creative backup habits, let
me know as well.
Dm me, put it in the commentsand I may feature that in a
(28:38):
future episode.
Until next time, vacitos, stayconsistent, stay adaptable.
See you next Wednesday.
Bye.
Thank you so much for listening.
I want to hear from you.
Leave me a comment, do a rating, if you can, on the podcast,
(28:59):
share it with somebody you love,but, most importantly, come
back.
See you next time.
Bye.
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