So we got a dog. And it wasn't a decision we took lightly or came to quickly. We've been considering this for a number of years, even before we had kids. In fact, when Olivia was 3 she was asked if she thought she'd be getting a dog. She's 7 now by the way. Sorry to all other dog owners out therebut Poppy is the cutest puppy in the world. Anyways, she thought about this for a second and then gave a great answer. She said "she'd have to get a new family first". That comment has haunted me ever since. Nobody wants to be the bad dad. But we do enjoy to travel. And we head up to the hill in the winter. And I couldn't see how we could continue our current lifestyle with a dog in the mix. And to be honest I'll still don't. To give you an example of how 'on the fence' I was about getting a dog, we told the girls we were going to babysit the dog for a few nights. And so the dog would have a few nights sleepover with us. This would allow Alexandra and I the chance to evaluate how everyone was adapting to this new member of our family. And how this little puppy was adapting to us. Because let's be honest, a new puppy can be a lot of work. And if we realized we weren't up for the challenge or we'd bitten off more than we could chew than we still had the option to take the dog and the girls would still be over the moon about having a dog stay with us for a few nights. Win-win, right? Plus, since we decided to keep the puppy you should have seen the girls faces and...

There's an expression we'll commonly use at Okanagan Peak Performance Inc that goes 'It's simple but not easy'. What we mean is that healthy living involves a simple plan but following the plan isn't always easy.Get eight hours of sleep per night. Drink water. Eat protein and veggies. Move your body, preferably with resistance.That's not very complicated. Every 5 year old would understand this prescription. Yet most adults struggle with doing these things.And we know they struggle because each year they put on more weight. They become more diseased and injured.So where is the breakdown? We have a simple plan. We understand the plan. Yet we fail to achieve the goal at the end.Why does this happen?Why is that by the first week of January 27% of people abandon their new year's resolutions. Why is thatjust over half of people make it to the one month mark?Well there are a number of things that come to mind.But here are 5 reasons why you might not be satisfied with the results.1.You do it for the wrong reasonsWhen you decide to make a change you need to do this for the right reasons. This means it has to be your choice and not due to outside pressures.Consider a dad that is trying to quit smoking. And the family is hounding him to give up this bad habit. They do things to 'help' like hiding his cigarettes or lighters. They make jokes about smokers and how awful their teeth look and breath smell. They complain constantly about this habit and nag dad about giving it up.Obviously this won't work.Dad will recognize this outside pressure and won't like it. He may get annoyed when his smokes are hidden on him. And he won't feel in control of the process but instead may feel restricted and bound by someone...

We are creatures of habit. There are certain things we do routinely, or ritualistically, in our lives. I'm sure we all do certain things every morning as we start our day. And we do them the same way. For me, it would be waking up in the morning and going to the bathroom. And unfortunately, I'm on my phone for the first part of the day. I say unfortunately because this usually involves checking social media to see what everyone else in my circle of 'friends' ate for their last meal. Or to check in for any potential spoilers in the shows we watch. Obviously I don't need to be doing these things every morning when I wake. And I should add a new ritual to break this habit. Another example of a daily routine can involve the commute in to work. Have you ever been deep in thought about something and driven right past where you need to turn? And when you finally snap out of your day dream you realize you've driven well past your exit. But habits can be positive and helpful. They can help us conserve energy. We don't have to work too hard for something to comes to us automatically. They can help us reduce brain fatigue. It does't take a lot of focus or attention to brush our teeth in the morning. [caption id="attachment_5304" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Steve Jobs over the years. Could this fashion ensemble be the reason for the iphone? They can help reduce stress. When  things are straightforward and easy for us to do we can relax a bit. Think back to the last time you had to try something new. It was a little more stressful, wasn't it? They help us quickly complete a task. If we don't something many times before...