Three Habits

Do equestrians tend to be health-conscious than some other people in the world? Or are they worse about it?  I don't know - just a random thought. We all put so much effort into keeping our four-legged steeds healthy, having a team of professionals practically standing by in the case of a bobble or a funny head toss.

Okay, so that is a bit exaggerated. But it is the truth that Lady's vet knows me way too well, my barefoot trimmer is one of less than five people that I trust to handle my horse without me being present (I have her on speed dial...), and I analyze my horses' diets with as much precision as possible.

And in some ways, I take really good care of myself too, but I would definitely say it is sub-par to the level of care that my horses get. Yes I workout and try to get more fit, but it would be a  lie to say that I do it for my own health. The reasoning behind my daily workouts is to become stronger so that I can ride my horse better (although... what better reason!?). I am quite health conscious, especially since I do have my own set of problems, but I would probably  be much less so if I were not an equestrian.

Today, I tried to come up with THREE healthy habits that I have. And no, working out is not one of them because its not a habit. Its a forced thing that I forget quite often actually.

1) Not Eating Out.
- So many people that I talk to pick up food from a restaurant DAILY. I'll admit to doing it maybe once a week, but not only can my budget not afford it, I just love the taste of homemade food so much more. Yes I have my weaknesses (lately its been donuts, usually ice cream and chocolate though) but nine times out of ten, I simply drive past all the fast food places and the restaurants, put some food on the stove or chop up a salad, and enjoy a nice meal at home. Good habit of mine, I guess most would say.

2) Stress Less, Smile More.
- I don't know where this habit came from, but at some point in the last year or so, I trained myself to focus on the good things, smile for no reason at all, and not allow myself to stress about random things. I have my moments when I don't know how I'll be paying the month's bills, or conflict at work gets the better of me, and sometimes I think that I should be miserable about these things more often than I am, but I prefer to smile if I have the choice. And more often than not, I do have a choice.

3) Take Time Out
- This kind of goes hand in hand with the last one, but I'm not afraid to take time out for myself. It doesn't make me feel guilty (and maybe that's selfish?) to say no to an invitation to go out when I need to be going home and doing housework. We need to take the time to relax in our day and enjoy something for ourselves.

What habits do you have that you would consider healthy? Maybe it would be better to improve those habits that we already have instead of focusing solely on the negative habits that we "need to change".

And by the way, WE HAVE A LEASE!!!  More on that Monday.