I’ve recently decided to try to cut bacon out of my diet.

I know, a little bizarre and, to be perfectly honest, not that much of a big change. I don’t exactly eat bacon every day, and this dietary change doesn’t make much difference to my long term health in and of itself.

But it’s a start.

I’ve long felt that I would want to progress to being a vegetarian ‘one day’, but that’s always been my line on the matter. ‘One day’. It’s an easy commitment to make, because it has an indefinite due date. I never have to actually get there, but I can pat myself on the back for the intention.

You don’t have to be a doctor to know that bacon’s pretty bad for you. Sure, there are different cuts, different ways you can cook it, but it’s not something you’d associate with a lot of health benefits (though it does taste amazing).

It’s something small. It’s something incremental. It’s a start. There are few things harder than making big, sweeping changes to your lifestyle all at once and hoping for it to stick. I can’t go from a sedentary lifestyle and suddenly say “I’m going to run 5km a day” with any realistic expectations of success. I’m not entirely unfit myself and that’s still a daunting prospect.

In my experience, little changes have been far more successful. It’s easier to make a small adjustment and get it to stick, then eventually make another one, once the previous change has become part of my new normal.

All good habits require a bit of personal vigilance, and self-motivation. I have to remember to do a few duolingo lessons a day, do some yoga, and check my e-mails. This is just part of the background. Part of the positive change. This doesn’t mean I’m going to give up everything remotely unhealthy. It’s still important to enjoy life, and for me food is a big part of that. I just know there’s something little I can do to make my life better, and to make me feel better overall. It won’t cost me much.

And so, I’ve said farewell to bacon.

Image by Bela Geletneky from Pixabay