09/11/26

Hip Replacement Recovery at Week 5: 3 Ways to Reset Your Health This Spring|#245

How to Kick-Start Your Spring Health Routine After 50

Prefer to listen? In this episode, available on the Outlook for Life podcast, I share my honest five-week hip replacement recovery update, my attempt to eat 30 different plants a week, and three simple ways to kick-start your health this spring.

Spring is a season of new beginnings. The days are becoming longer, the mornings are lighter and fresh seasonal produce is beginning to appear.

But if you are still feeling tired, flat or stuck in winter mode, you are not alone. The effects of the winter blues can linger, and it can take a conscious effort to restore your energy and re-establish healthy routines.

The good news is that you don’t need to overhaul your entire life. You simply need to take one positive step—and there is no need to wait until next Monday.

My hip replacement recovery at five weeks

I am now five weeks past my first hip replacement, and recovery has been a roller coaster.

Some days I feel bitterly disappointed with my progress. Some days I wonder whether I really want to go through it all again when my second hip replacement is scheduled. Then I have moments when I realise just how far I have come.

Recently, I was walking down the alleyway to my office carrying my laptop, bag and water bottle when I suddenly realised I wasn’t limping. It was possibly the first time I had walked that way in three years—and it felt like a huge win.

My new hip is doing well, my mobility is very good and I have returned to upper-body strength training. I’m completing my daily physiotherapy, walking around 6,000 steps a day and gradually building up my time on the spin bike.

However, my back and my other hip are still very grumpy. Some days I can walk well, while on other days I have to stop and sit down because my back is so sore.

The biggest lesson has been that healing isn’t linear—and neither is weight loss.

It is easy to do too much on a good day and then pay for it over the following few days. Progress involves learning what your body can manage, being patient and continuing to do what you can today.

My lifetime of activity, strength training and good nutrition prepared me for surgery and continues to support my recovery. It is a reminder that the healthy habits we establish now can help prepare us for whatever life throws at us later.

Can you eat 30 different plants a week?

One of our Outlook for Life members recently restarted my interest in the “30 Plants a Week” challenge.

By Wednesday of the first week, I had already eaten 43 different plants!

The aim isn’t to eat 30 enormous portions. It is to include as much plant variety as possible throughout the week.

Plants can include:

Vegetables and fruit
Beans, chickpeas and lentils
Whole grains
Nuts and seeds
Herbs and spices
Tea, coffee and cocoa

Each different plant is counted once during the week. If you eat oats three times, for example, they still count as one plant—but adding berries, chia seeds, flaxseed and cinnamon creates much more variety.

Different plant foods supply different types of fibre, vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients and polyphenols. Eating a wide variety also gives the many different microbes living in your gut more types of plant fibre to feed on.

I particularly like this challenge because it shifts the focus away from restriction.

Instead of asking, “What do I need to cut out?” you begin asking:

Could I add another vegetable?
Could I use two colours of cabbage?
Could I add chickpeas, lentils or edamame?
Could I include fresh herbs, nuts or seeds?

Try counting your plants for seven days. If you don’t reach 30, don’t worry. Treat your first week as a baseline and see what you can add the following week.

Why should you start your spring routine now?

1. Waiting rarely makes starting easier

We often promise ourselves we will begin on Monday, when daylight saving starts or when life becomes less busy.

But there is rarely a perfect time.

Taking one small action today begins to create momentum. You don’t need to have your entire plan worked out before you start.

Small changes can feel hard at first. You may then reach what I call the “messy middle”—when the initial enthusiasm wears off and the excuses begin. But if you keep going, those small actions gradually become habits and start producing meaningful results.

2. Spring gives us new opportunities

Longer days and lighter mornings give us more opportunities to get outside, move our bodies and reconnect with nature.

Morning light helps set the body’s circadian rhythm, while fresh air and movement can support mood, energy and sleep. You don’t necessarily need to exercise first thing. You could simply sit outside with your morning coffee, breathe deeply and listen to the birds.

If morning exercise doesn’t suit you, schedule your movement for lunchtime or after work. The important thing is to decide when it will happen.

Spring also brings more fresh produce. Asparagus is appearing, strawberries won’t be far away and home gardens are beginning to come alive. It becomes easier to prepare colourful, lighter meals and increase the variety of plants on your plate.

3. Starting now allows you to build habits gradually

You do not need a punishing diet or an extreme exercise plan to get ready for summer.

Starting now gives you time to establish realistic routines and build on them gradually. The aim is not a frantic seasonal health kick. It is to create habits you can carry into summer and continue throughout the year.

Three simple ways to kick-start your spring routine

1. Reset one anchor meal

Choose the meal that has the greatest influence on the rest of your day.

If skipping breakfast leads to poor food choices later, breakfast could become your anchor meal. If you miss lunch and find yourself reaching for cheese and crackers during the afternoon, focus on preparing lunch. If tiredness leads to takeaway meals in the evening, organise a simple dinner plan.

Build your anchor meal around:

A good source of protein
Plenty of plants
A high-fibre carbohydrate at your first two meals
A small amount of healthy fat

Make life easier by cooking enough for several meals. When I cook dinner, I usually aim to make enough for at least two dinners and two lunches. You can serve the same base differently—with salad, in a wrap or pita pocket, or over a baked kūmara.

One dependable meal can anchor your whole day.

2. Get outside each morning

Aim to spend at least 10 minutes outside in the morning light.

You might walk, sit on your deck with a cup of coffee or simply stand outside and take a few slow breaths. If your fitness and mobility allow, gradually increase your morning walk to 20 minutes.

If morning walking isn’t possible, get your morning light and then put your planned movement time in your diary for later in the day.

3. Choose one measurable seven-day goal

Avoid vague promises such as “I’ll eat better” or “I’ll exercise more.”

Choose something specific, achievable and trackable, such as:

Eat 30 different plants this week
Walk for 20 minutes on five days
Drink at least two litres of water each day
Prepare tomorrow’s lunch the night before
Complete two strength-training, Pilates or yoga sessions

Track your goal for seven days and congratulate yourself when you complete it. Then you can choose the next habit to build upon it.

One meal, one habit and one goal

You do not need to change everything at once.

Choose one anchor meal, one daily habit and one measurable seven-day goal. Small actions performed consistently are what create meaningful change.

Ask yourself:

What can I do today that will make tomorrow better?

And perhaps more importantly:

What can I do today that I will feel proud of tomorrow?

Download your free Spring Kick-Start Handout

I have created a free Spring Kick-Start Handout to help you put these ideas into action without making things complicated.

It includes:

A simple three-day food plan
Easy recipes and nutritious snack ideas
Practical movement and lifestyle habits
A habit tracker to help you stay consistent

DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE SPRING KICK-START HANDOUT HERE

Download it, choose your starting actions and begin today. Don’t wait until next Monday.

Key takeaways

Healing, weight loss and lifestyle change are rarely linear.
Eating a greater variety of plants can add more fibre, nutrients and colour to your diet.
Morning light, fresh air and movement can help you transition out of winter mode.
One reliable anchor meal can improve your choices throughout the day.
A small, measurable seven-day goal is more useful than a vague promise to “be healthier.”
Progress begins with what you can do today.