Do you make health goals each new year? Some people don’t like the idea of new years resolutions because “why wait for the new year to make changes? You can change at any time.” While I do agree with this, I also think the new year is a great time to make changes.
The start of a new year brings a sense of renewal and a fresh start. We get to put the past behind us and choose to make the new year reflect our dreams and goals. We are in control of our lives and the new year is a great time to reassess our lives and evaluate if we are living the life of our dreams. Of course, you can (and I encourage you to) do this all year long.
The problem is many of us make resolutions/health goals that we give up on in a matter of weeks or even days.
So how do you actually achieve your health goals?
- Choose a resolution that you actually want/desire: This is the most important tip I have. If you don’t truly want to do something, you’re not going to do it. Bottom line. My resolution was to quit smoking cigarettes for about 4 years and I failed over and over because I really wasn’t ready to quit. I enjoyed smoking and didn’t want to stop yet. The year I finally did quit was because I was finally ready to stop denying that smoking cigarettes was killing me. I didn’t want to end up with a horrible disease that I could have prevented and I was determined to quit. For example, don’t make your resolution to quit drinking coffee if you know damn well you have no intention of doing that! Pick something that YOU want to change.
- Research ways to accomplish it: We humans are all different and work better under different conditions, so naturally, there are different methods for accomplishing the same task. Back to my quitting smoking example, you could do the patch, the pill, cold turkey, electronic cigarettes, or what I did: a 6-week program called Smoke Enders. So whatever your resolution is, find a method that works for you to accomplish it. For example, if you did want to give up coffee you could try cutting back, splitting decaf and regular, using a coffee substitute like Dandy Blend, cold turkey, or switching to tea.
- Consider your personality: If you follow Gretchen Rubin, you’ll know she talks about being either a moderator or an abstainer. A moderator is like it sounds – eating foods in moderation. A moderator doesn’t like to be restricted and likely will end up bingeing because it drives them crazy being told they can’t have something. On the other hand, an abstainer does better by avoiding certain foods altogether because they aren’t able to eat just a couple bites. For them, trying to eat in moderation will turn into an all-out binge. I’m a little of both. I’m an abstainer of certain foods like gluten-containing foods all the time (except for holidays & vacations) and a moderator of others, like grass-fed dairy. For the most part, I like to follow a plan during the week, but eat freely on the weekends.
- Make your resolution specific: Don’t make a vague resolution such as: get healthy, spend more time with friends, or drink less. Make it something specific. For example: lift weights 3x per week, get coffee with my girlfriends Saturday afternoons, or only drink on Saturdays 2 drinks max. Do you see the difference? It needs to be measurable.
- Accountability: Tell people what your resolution is! When you share with others it makes you more determined to reach your goal. We don’t want to disappoint the people who believe in us and it makes it feel real when we’ve put it out there. Once we’ve told people we’re going to do something, they’re expecting us to follow through and we have to deliver.
- Think short-term: Your resolution doesn’t have to be something that lasts the whole year. It can be overwhelming to think of making a drastic change that lasts. Think of it in the short-term. Make a resolution that lasts for one month, two months, or three months to ease yourself in. You’ll realize that either you love the change and want to continue doing it, or maybe you’ll realize it’s not for you and you’ll make a new goal.If you realize it’s not for you, that doesn’t make you a failure – it makes you human. Changing and growing is part of life and in the next few months you may want different things out of life and that is perfectly okay!
- Get motivated: Wake up every morning with determination to reach your goals. Spend some time in the morning either watching/listening to motivational speakers, repeating mantras, writing in a task journal/day planner, reflecting on why this goal is important to you or do all of these things!
- Don’t spend time with negative people: There are some people who hate to see others doing well and will do anything in their power to bring them down. If you have someone in your life who makes negative comments & tries to make you feel bad or guilty for making changes in your life, let them know you are not going to tolerate that and if they continue to do it – stop spending time with them! Misery loves company and you don’t need any Negative Nancy’s bringing you down!
And there you have it! Go kick this year’s ass and accomplish your goals! I believe in you.
What are your goals? Share with me in the comments!
See Also:
Tips to Stay Healthy During the Holidays
But That’s Not Paleo…
Dining Out Guide
