It is January and we all know what that means… Time to come up with New Years Resolutions. When we sit back and reminisce about the year that is about to pass, what we did and what we wished we did, or we can’t leave out what we regret we did. It is the time of year to look ahead and picture what the new year will look like.
I realized that we don’t need to wait for New Years to make resolutions, we can make them at any time of the year. Also, what if we thought of resolutions as mini goals? I realized that if I broke down the large resolutions into smaller tasks or goals, they would not be so scary. One year I told myself I wanted to go to the gym 6 days of week, and I wanted to give up sweets. Yeah right, I had 3 small children and a job I was lucky to get to the gym once a week, and was I really going to give up sweets, I think not. Instead, I cut myself some slack and made a plan to get to the gym 2 to 3 times a week and I allowed myself a couple sweet treats on the weekends, or a piece of dove chocolate after dinner. This was just enough to satisfy my sweet cravings when I had them.
My motto became:
Take one day at a time, one meal at time.
Here are a few additional tips to make your goals or resolutions more attainable.
Healthy choices
Look at every meal or snack as an opportunity to make healthy choices, make that choice the goal — not what you think that choice will ultimately do for you.
Get enouth sleep and activity
Make sure to get enough sleep, and activity. Sleep, activity and nutrition are connected. Not enough sleep adds to stress, which can lead to unhealthy eating habits. Don’t forget to move daily. Go for a brisk walk for 30 minutes or take a 20–30-minute class at the gym. Or set yourself up at home to do sets of squats, sit-ups, planks, and push-ups during commercial breaks of your favorite TV show.
Add your veggies
Increase your vegetable intake. Take baby steps, if you usually have 2 servings a day strive for 3 at first and build from there. Ultimately 5 servings of vegetables are optimal.
choose whole grains
Switch from refined, white grains to whole grain. Choosing whole grain pasta, bread or crackers can increase fiber, which is important for digestive health.
home cooking
Cook at home 1 more night a week. Try to cook just one more night a week with fresh ingredients. It’s a great way to cut down on hidden sodium and extra calories.
say no to sugary drinks
Cutting down on sugary drinks is an easy way to remove empty calories, and the same is true of juice, which many people forget about. Start by trying to cut out 3 sugary drinks per week, or drink one extra glass of water per day. Most of us don’t drink enough water, and hydration is key for metabolism to function properly.
meatless monday
Go meatless 1 day a week. Swap the meat in one or two meals for beans, lentils or tofu, for example, which are great, affordable sources of protein.
Small changes add up to big rewards. Remember take baby steps daily, and you will eventually build up to speed walking.