Episode 51: Starting and Keeping Daily Wellness Habits

doTERRA: Welcome back to Essential Oil Solutions with doTERRA. The podcast where you'll hear exciting, useful, and simple everyday uses for essential oils from experts in the field. If you like what you hear today great review and subscribe wherever you listen. We always enjoy hearing from you. 

Today we're excited to sit down with Nicole Moultrie and discuss some of her daily wellness habits and how she keeps herself on track. Nicole thank you so much for joining us today we really appreciate you taking the time to sit down with us.

One of the things that I really want to get your opinion on is how can I start and keep going with better wellness habits in my life. It's one of those things that is difficult for a lot of people, you know, you start these things and then you stop. How can I keep going?

Nicole: Right. I love that question and I'm so excited to be here. 

This topic is actually one of my favorite things. My kids will joke and roll their eyes at me when I tell them, you know, “Who loves a Monday?” I love of Monday. I love a fresh start. I love habits. I love goals. I love an opportunity to get better all the time, and so it's interesting that this is the topic that we're going to talk about today because I'm super passionate about it, so I'm excited to be here. And I think that's a question that I mean we all ask ourselves.

We know the statistics you know it's early in the year and everybody has big goals and oftentimes those big goals get cut short because we don't have the tools to stick to them or know how or where do we even get started. And so, something that has helped me, and anyone that I talk to, kind of about sticking to goals and specifically when we're talking about wellness habits is first getting really clear on what it is that I want to accomplish.

What do you want to accomplish?

So I love that we get to say better wellness habits because it keeps that kind of broad right. Could be maybe we want better sleep, maybe we want to drink more water, maybe we want to move our body a little bit better, but I really believe that until we're super clear on what it is that we want to accomplish first—very clear like specific—you know it it's easy to kind of give up on because well we just wanted to feel better. So let's break it down.

What do I want to feel more of? What do I want to feel less? What do I want to create and why? Do I want to feel more energy and how much energy? And those specifics will really hold us accountable to what it is that we're trying to create. So first step is getting super clear on what it is that you know we want to create. We want to have better wellness habits. In what regard? You know what I mean. 

doTERRA: Right. 

Use apps to help you keep you on track.

Nicole: And then the second thing that I have found is that really helpful—and this is kind of fun—is if we want to feel more calm or more clarity or more peace or more calm state, there are some really great apps out there that can support us in our wellness habits. 

One that I love is the app called Calm that helps us focus on our breathing get a little bit of attention throughout our day and it will remind you hey take one minute to breathe take one minute to calm down and that's a really great app.

There are two other ones that I really love, also. There's one called Strides and there's one called Streak where you get to put in the specifics of what it is that you're trying to accomplish and then hold yourself accountable get a little notification. “Hey, you're supposed to drink you know you're 44 ounces of water today. Did you do that?” 

And if you're anything like me, you kind of like to keep things going and get this habit set so it keeps track of you—you're on a two-day streak, a four-day streak, a five-day streak, and those have been super helpful for me, myself, my family, and people that I work with. So those are just some of the things that I think are really helpful to help us keep going with better wellness habits.

doTERRA: I love that. I love the action of getting really specific, and you know, getting in tune with yourself and what your needs are and then that accountability definitely is so key. I think that's my number one fault is nothing keeps me accountable, and so I just kind of forget about it. So, I think that's incredible. 

Nicole: You got to have an accountability partner. You got to have an accountability partner or a friend or maybe that's the app or you know declare. We'll say, “declare it,” let somebody know what it is that you want to accomplish. 

Get a routine going.

And then last but not least—as you were talking it triggered something I wanted to say—is you got to have a routine. That will be a game changer in sticking to your better wellness habits. 

Some people's schedules are very different. I love to start off the morning right and move my body first, or I'm drinking my water before, you know, other things come into play throughout the day. And what happens is when we make one right choice it sets the rest of the day for us to continue to make better choices.

So you're right. Find a friend, get some accountability, and get a routine going.

doTERRA: I love all of that. So you mentioned earlier that one of the big things that people like to make goals about is your sleep. And I think that kind of plays into the starting your day off right is starting your night off right so you can have a good day the next day. So what are some of your wellness habits for sleep to make sure that you're getting the best sleep you can?

Sleep Habits

Nicole: Oh my goodness. We have talked so much about sleep because it is so critical. In this day and age, it's hard to get adequate sleep. You know we want to do more. We want to get up early. Early bird gets the worm. We want to get as much out of our day that we can but oftentimes that kind of wreaks havoc on our sleep habits on our wellness. 

And I am laughing a little bit because I was just talking to my husband saying like, “Okay. I have got to go to bed earlier because I like to wake up early, but it's hard if you stay up late. Right? 

doTERRA: Right. Absolutely. 

Nicole: So this is another thing—I'm going to sound like a broken record as we talk about these things today—is just getting into a routine, getting into some habits. And I love that doTERRA provides the support to get a healthy night's rest. I kind of call it a triple threat. This is what I use. Of course I'm trying to set the stage of turning off our screens reading a book maybe we're getting a hot bath with doTERRA Serenity^® or doTERRA Balance^® or Lavender or something really calming. That's going to help all of our bodies kind of slow down to our ourselves. That now is time for sleep. But I call this the triple threat and honestly it's incredible. And at night to support your sleep need. I love combining Copaiba Softgels, one Adaptiv™ Capsule, and doTERRA Serenity Softgel. This is what I love about this. If you're like me, maybe you have a hard time shutting your mind down at night, slowing things down. Copaiba is going to help that. It's going to support a calm mental state. doTERRA Serenity we know helps support a healthy night's rest. So we're not only getting quantity of sleep but we're getting really high quality when we can use those doTERRA Serenity Softgels. They're incredible. You wake up feeling not drowsy but really like high quality sleep. And then the Adaptiv you know as our new line where we are focusing on our emotional and mental state. So put those three together you will sleep like a baby. That is something that I have absolutely incorporated into my wellness habits for sleep. So I love that. And I think part of me emphasizing and reminding myself this is really important is when we get proper night’s sleep we allow our bodies to heal. We allow our bodies to reset, refuel. And so many studies have shown us to get a better night's rest that it improves our focus or clarity. You know they'll throw it around, “make sleep your superpower,” where everything can be improved in your body systems just by getting a good night's rest. So it's very important. It's something that I am always still driving and working on.

doTERRA: Well that is absolutely a combo that I'm gonna have to try. The Copaiba, the doTERRA Serenity and the Adaptiv. I've used them all separately but I can imagine those together make for a perfect night.

Nicole: You gotta try it. You gotta try it. 

Nutrition

doTERRA: So moving forward in our day with you know good choices. The next thing we do we wake up. We want to eat something for breakfast. We want something that's good that's going to really give us the energy for the day. So how do you incorporate essential oils into your nutrition and make sure you're getting the most out of your food that you can?

Nicole: Oh I love that question. It's so fun. So here's I guess a tip or maybe an invitation to shift your mindset in the morning. What we have is we have set up—and you can get these containers at Amazon, you can get them online, you can get them at a dollar store—and we have just found these plastic clear containers you can find glass you find whatever it is that you want. You're going to separate your different supplements doTERRA offers and there are a plethora of amazing supplements to support your nutrition but in one of our little containers we have the empty veggie capsules. And so what this does every day is it invites us to switch up our taking oils internally game. I will mix different oils just because my veggie cap is right there, OK? It's right there by my Lifelong Vitality, by my DigestZen TerraZyme^®, my probiotic—my PB Assist^®+. 

I can get that veggie capsule and some of the things that we love, we've got our new Celery Seed oil which is amazing. I love to take it inside the capsule not mixed with my celery juice, but I'm going to put that in the capsule. And here is another really great oil that we use often that I love to take internally is Cinnamon Bark. Now Cinnamon is amazing. So many health benefits from Cinnamon. It's just an amazing oil but it also can mask the taste of Celery Seed. Just FYI if you're not putting it in a capsule. 

But some other ones that I love to put inside the veggie capsule are Yarrow|Pom. And here’s what doTERRA’s done that's amazing also. A lot of our oils that we were kind of mixing up our own concoctions to take internally we now have readily available on a soft gel form. So Turmeric. I love the Turmeric Dual Chamber Capsules. This is again this is in one of my little compartments that I pull out every morning. We've got our Yarrow|Pom, Pink Pepper, Lemon. Switch it up and it's an amazing way to incorporate essential oils into your nutrition.

For the kids we'll make some smoothies. We'll mix, you know, Wild Orange. They don't love Celery Seed, but we'll put some Wild Orange or some Lemon. Or if we're doing the chocolate Slim & Sassy^® TrimShake we just add a drop of Peppermint. And I think just wrapping your mind around “what can I add this to?” in every situation it's amazing the possibilities that you can use essential oils in your nutrition. It's really amazing.

You've got to get yourself some dividers put them out in front of you. Get your veggie caps out. Be your own little chemist and you'll be really happy with the results.

doTERRA: Absolutely, and I think that hits on one of the key parts on really building a lasting habit is not making it difficult for yourself but making it as convenient as possible to remember to do that every morning and experiment and find what works for you I love that so much.

Nicole: And you know switch it up. Again like what can I do today? But everything's here at my fingertips. OK, I'm going to try this, I'm going to try this. And those are just some of my favorites.

Exercise Habits

doTERRA: I love that. Like I said, absolutely incredible. So the last thing we want to touch on a little bit—another big thing that people try and really alter their lifestyle and make these daily habits is exercise. So what do you recommend for people to looking to make a few changes to their exercise habits?

Nicole: The first thing that excites me about exercise— I love exercise. I studied it in school and it’s just kind of always been a part of my life. And the first thing that I want to commend people on if you're listening to this or you're wanting to make changes—kudos to you, because the first step in changing anything is having a desire to do something different. And so the big thing with exercise again kind of knowing "why are we doing this?” What's the importance of it, like, “yeah I really want to sleep better,” or “why is that important?” Same thing with exercise. Exercise has this ability to improve the lens in which you view life, in my opinion. When we exercise, we produce what we call “happy hormones.” Serotonin and dopamine and endorphins. So many studies have shown the health benefits from it. It doesn't even matter, you don't have to have a rigorous activity. It can be something as simple as a 30-minute walk.

Getting the benefits just by making a choice you know. But I would say how you're going to stick with it longer and more consistently is to not make a huge outlandish goal. It’s just small simple steps every day. Find an accountability partner. and maybe that's your app if nobody wants to get up with you at 6:00 a.m. Find the time of the day that works for you. Again I always choose the morning if I can. Again these are these are probable things. You know if something happens and you can't do it that day don't beat yourself up. Every day is a fresh start. Starting in the morning, when you workout in the morning it starts your day out on the right foot. You feel lighter, you feel clarity, you have more energy. 

It's funny to be a personal trainer and people say, “I just want to feel more energy.” And it was interesting to me that often they said, “well how is exercise going to give me more energy?” And it really does. If we spend 30 minutes moving our body our whole body system, every one of our systems is stimulated, is changed is awoken.

We wake up and it's exciting and the benefit propel throughout the entire day. So when you work out in the morning you think maybe, “do I want to eat this doughnut or maybe should I go with the oatmeal?” — “Okay I'm going to eat this oatmeal.” And then, “should I have this water or do I want maybe this sugary beverage?” Don't beat yourself up, but set these little goals every single day. And if you need to take the weekend off that's fine. I always recommend at least five days a week 30 minutes. And if you find yourself dreading the activity that you want to do, switch it up! I don’t care if you jog, I don't care if you swim, I don't care if you play with your kids, if you go to the gym, if you start a new spin class. It really does not matter what the movement is, just that you move. 

doTERRA: I love that. And that really it is that simple it's just making the small change finding something you really enjoy doing and making sure that it becomes a habit that it's not something you dread. I love that so much. 

Nicole: Nobody wants to do something they don't want to do. 

You know maybe it's a new I'm in Utah so I'm looking at the mountains. Maybe it's hiking. Find something that calls to you and that you’ll keep yourself committed because you do enjoy it. Find a new group, find a support group, build your confidence. It's amazing the link between exercise and confidence. You can tell I'm super passionate about it. I always say, you know, “Lifelong Vitality and exercise keeps me keeps me sane.” Those are the must have in my life.

doTERRA: Well Nicole I have so appreciated all of your insight to all of this. I have one more question for you that I am really interested to know. What are the three wellness habits that you would say have impacted your life the most?

Nicole’s Top Three Wellness Habits

Nicole: Oh good question! As we get older, and when I teach classes people will joke you know, I'm thirty six years old, but they're were like, “Oh you're not old.” But I start to think about that. Basically, what has impacted me up until now this point in my life, and what will have the most impact moving forward as I get older my kids get older as my grandkids get older? 

Number one, I have to say, is movement, is being active. It does have such an impact on my mental and emotional state and it has brought so many blessings and goodness into my life whether it's friends or communities or camaraderie. You know, you meet people out on the trail, and you feel good you feel like you've accomplished something when you can get in those 30 minutes. It increases your confidence and it's something that, you know, if you say, “if you could have your best day ever what would you do?” There would always be some aspect of exercise in there for me. So that's number one 

I would say this is something that has been a little bit later in my life, but I feel like it’s made a big impact is my water intake. You know I used to feel like, “oh yeah that's great, you know, sure.” But it really has impacted my energy and my lifestyle. I think most of us when we say, “what are the top five health concerns?” “what do you want to feel more of?” Most people say energy. And drinking a lot of water throughout the day has increased my energy. There's of course a lot of other health benefits from consistent daily water intake but that has really had an impact on my life. So that’s one that’s kind of newer to me and I'm excited about it. 

And then I think number three, I'm going to absolutely say the power of essential oils and quality supplements. They have had an impact on my life immediately. Like an acute impact. And then over a long period of time. And what is going on when I am taking them that I'm not even aware of? And that's why it's exciting to share that with people because when we have an experience we want to share the goodness with others, and I feel like I'm still just scratching the surface of really understanding the health impact that these have had on my life and continue to have on my life.

So exercise, water, essential oils, and quality doTERRA supplements have had a very significant health impact on my life.

doTERRA: Well those are three incredible things and they're ones that I'm going to try and be better about in my life. So I appreciate that.

Nicole: But that's all we can do we just try and trying is enough for now.

doTERRA: Absolutely. Well Nicole thank you so much for taking the time to sit down and talk with me. I have learned so much and I appreciate all of your insights. Thank you.

Nicole: Thanks for the opportunity. I'm excited for everybody that listens to this. Hopefully it was helpful and you can take one or two or three things and get started with better lifestyle habits.

doTERRA: Thanks for joining us and congratulations on living a healthier lifestyle with essential oils. If you liked what you heard today, rate, review, and subscribe wherever you listen. Also if you want to try any of the products you learned about go