JOURNAL PROMPTS FOR BEHAVIOR CHANGE (THAT ARE ABOUT MORE THAN NUTRITION)
A peek behind the curtain for a recent coach/client conversation when the topic of journaling emerged:
As a nutrition coach, it might seem like the obvious recommendation for some journal prompts would be questions like: how did my nutrition go today? Or how did I find balance and mindfulness in my nutrition choices?
Not because reflecting on your nutrition isn't useful (obviously I’m biased; I spend a lot of time helping people do exactly that), but because I don't necessarily think we need to turn every self-care practice into another opportunity to assess our food and food choices.
If you're already working toward nutrition, movement, or other health-related goals, there are plenty of things happening around those behaviors that are worth getting curious about, too. So if you're interested in journaling but find yourself staring at a blank page wondering what the heck am I supposed to write about?!, here are a few places to start.
WHAT AM I GRATEFUL FOR TODAY?
Okay okay I know: gratitude journaling isn't exactly revolutionary, and can be beneficial. But instead of only looking for the obviously good things, I also like the idea of gritty gratitude: acknowledging something difficult and noticing what you learned, gained, or experienced alongside it.
Maybe you were stuck waiting at the car dealership for two hours, which objectively sucked…but you cleared out the inbox you've been ignoring for three weeks. Perhaps a challenging conversation helped you realize you need to set a boundary. Could be that a crappy workout showed you that you probably need a little more recovery.
The goal isn't to slap a positive spin on every negative experience. Sometimes days are hard. Sometimes things suck – and you are allowed to have a bad day without finding the silver lining. But when it feels genuine, asking what else was here? can help us practice seeing an experience from more than one angle.
HOW DID I CHALLENGE MYSELF TODAY?
“Challenge” doesn’t have to have a size limit (or expectation) attached to it.
Maybe you spoke up in a meeting when you'd normally stay quiet, tried an exercise you've been intimidated by, asked someone for help, said no, said yes. We're often much better at noticing what we haven't done than recognizing the small moments when we're actively building capability, and this prompt gives those moments somewhere to land.
WHAT DID I DO FOR ME TODAY?
Self-care has somehow become synonymous with bubble baths, massages, nail appointments, etc. (And yes, those count.) AND so does going to bed instead of finishing another chore/watching another episode/replying to another email. So does going for a walk to make some space between work and family, or asking your partner to handle bedtime even though it’s “your night.” So does eating lunch instead of skipping it or making the dentist appointment you’ve been putting off.
Sometimes self-care is enjoyable (read: fun) and sometimes it’s practical (read: not not fun, but checks more of a get-shit-done box). It can be one, the other, both, or somewhere in between – there is no “right” or “wrong” way to self-care, the point is that you are doing something that prioritizes you, your well-being, and your capacity.
WHAT MENTAL BLOCKS AM I FACING?
This one can go in a couple of different directions. You can simply identify what’s taking up mental space and have that be the reflection. You don’t necessarily have to do anything with that information outside if identify it. Or if you’re feeling a little more solutions-oriented, you can follow up with some action items. Again, no right or wrong way to reflect!
WHERE AM I GETTING STUCK?
From a behavior-change perspective, this one is powerful, and it becomes progressively more meaningful with every degree of specificity you can provide.
For example, instead of I’m struggling with meal prep, can you dig deeper? Is it that you mean to prep on Sundays but by the time the afternoon arrives you feel tired and don’t want to spend an hour or two on your feet in the kitchen? Or that you sit down to write a grocery list, but you were already feeling overwhelmed with deciding on foods/meals, so a list feels impossible? Or that you don’t love the idea of eating the same lunch five times, which is the picture of meal prep that you’ve created?
If you regularly ask yourself where you're getting stuck, patterns start to emerge. And when we can identify the actual point of friction, we can stop throwing generic solutions at a specific problem.
YOU DON’T HAVE TO ANSWER ALL OF THESE
In fact, please do not answer all of these in one sitting. Pick one to answer for a while, rotate through them, journal on the one that feels the most relevant to the day/week/season. You don’t have to journal, and the value isn’t necessarily in producing some profound realization every time you pick up a pen or open your Notes app. It can be long, it can be short; it can feel profound or fluffy; it only has to be meaningful to you.
YOUR NEXT STEP
Comment below on the prompt that speaks to you the most, or add to the discussion with your go-to journaling prompt. At Front Porch Nutrition, I coach real people through real-life nutrition — thinking through what your wants, needs, and goals are, and working together to make changes that last not just in the moment, but for the long haul. Get started with 1:1 nutrition coaching today!
