Commit to Be Fit: To avoid a big mess, fix problems while they’re small

Have you ever noticed a couple of weeds beginning to sprout in your yard, and you think to yourself, “Oh shoot, I gotta pull those weeds, but I’m too busy right now, I’ll just get around to pulling those weeds later, when I have more time.” Well, that’s the thought I had when I saw a couple weeds sprout in our backyard. Life got busy, then a couple weeks went by, and as you could guess, those once little innocuous weeds grew, and grew, and grew until they were no longer little weeds, but a major problem. We had an overgrown mess in our backyard and now it was going to take much more time and energy to get it resolved.

Not only did these weeds in the backyard take over the empty flower beds, but they also traveled up some of the bushes in our side yard. Yikes! I learned that these crazy, superspreader weeds are called “creeping Charlie” and can be hard to get rid of once a homeowner, like myself, lets it go for too long.

I finally grabbed my gardening gloves and got to work, thinking “Geez, if only I would have stayed on top of this, these weeds would not be as big of an issue as they are now.” And because I had a lot of time to think while pulling weeds, I started to think about what else in my life have I turned a blind-eye to? Are there any bad habits in my life that could become a creeping Charlie as time goes on?

Habits guru James Clear, author of “Atomic Habits,” says, “Time will multiply whatever you feed it. Good habits make time your ally. Bad habits make time your enemy.”

In the case of my overgrown weeds, I had made time my enemy. Each day I didn’t tend to my garden, the weeds grew. A bad habit can start as a small, seemingly harmless choice, but if you let a bad habit fester, you may have a real mess later on, similar to the creeping Charlie in my backyard.

Some real life examples could be putting off regular cleaning at the dentist and now you suffer consequences that could have been avoided, or not managing your weight for years and now you’re at risk for diabetes. Other examples: Lack of exercise may lead to heart problems, lack of budget may lead to bankruptcy, lack of goals often lead to an unfulfilled life.

Pulling weeds is one of the mundane, yet necessary tasks a gardener must do to keep a beautiful garden. Just like a garden requires daily attention, the way we take care of ourselves will directly correlate with whether we grow and thrive, or get lost in the weeds.

There’s rarely a perfect time to tackle bad habits. I’m guilty of wanting to start a new goal fresh on a Monday because of a party over the weekend, etc. But just like I learned with the creeping Charlie, leaving responsibilities, habits or goals unattended could lead to avoidable problems in the long run.

The best time to start a goal is now. Can you identify any creeping Charlie you need to weed out of your life? Today’s a great day to start.

Kylie Alger is a certified wellness coach and co-owner of the Well-Woman: Body, Mind & Spirit. Comments: kylie@thewellwoman.org