It’s almost the end of January which means it’s a good time to check and make sure you’re staying on track with the health and fitness resolutions that you had in mind on December 31st. How is your progress going? If you have not yet been successful, you are not alone!
According to www.statisticbrain.com, 42% of those who make resolutions do not keep their resolutions. But, there is some good news…if you are a regular resolutions maker, you are 10 times more likely to reach your goals that those who never make resolutions. And, the most common resolutions are health and fitness-related: to lose weight, exercise more and eat healthy. So, what are four ways that you can be successful at keeping your health and fitness related resolutions? Read on:
- Resolve to make a plan! No matter how well intentioned we are, if we don’t develop an outline or guideline, our goals may seem too elusive. So, write down what you want to accomplish!
- Resolve to patient. Many resolutions involve a long term commitment. However, we get eager for the results before we put in the work to gain those results. Give yourself time, but be accountable to your plan. A great way to do this is to break down your goals into smaller, more manageable steps. For example, if you want to exercise more, How are you going to exercise? Where are you going to exercise? How often or what days? Are you ready to exercise? Have clothes, shoes, facility available? Are you comfortable exercising in group sessions or by yourself? Asking and answering those questions can help you get more specific with your plan.
- Resolve to celebrate all successes, no matter how small or how big they may seem! Recognizing successful change can sometimes be difficult. That’s another reason why being specific with your goals and plan of action is so important. If you wanted to change the way you eat by adding one piece of fruit to one meal a day, celebrate the week of eating 7 pieces of fruit! Change starts in small increments and carries on as you become more aware of that change. So celebrate all success! If you want to celebrate more, share your goals with a friend or work with a coach. They can help hold you accountable to the process and help you truly recognize successes.
- Resolve to seek out high quality advice! Don’t rely on methods that promise huge results without putting in work. Fad diets, supplements, and other “health” products are usually not the best way to progress. Use the trained and licensed professionals you have access to: Registered Dietitians, Certified Integrative Health Coaches, and Exercise Physiologists. Always remember the saying, “If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is!”
- Bonus Resolution: Resolve to be forgiving! While we may always need to be forgiving of others, we must also be able to forgive ourselves. Hold yourself accountable to making changes but don’t allow yourself to be held hostage by them. You’re going to have difficult times and setbacks as you work toward change. It’s ok to hit a barrier but don’t let that stop you. Forgive yourself for not sticking to your plan but get right back to it. Barriers are meant to strengthen you. Find a way over, under or around that barrier. Then, celebrate your new found path for accomplishing your goals!
Remember: It’s Your Health. It’s Your Life. Make That Change!
Here is an easy egg & potato recipe to start your day. Eggs are an excellent & inexpensive source of high quality protein. Each has about 80 calories & 7 grams of protein. They are a great source of vitamins A & D, iron, the carotenoids, lutein & zeaxanthin (help to reduce risk age-related macular degeneration) & choline (helps improve brain function). The most common question that we get about eggs is, “But, don’t they raise cholesterol?”. To answer that, the most recent research has found that egg consumption is not associated with an increase in cholesterol levels. Actually, a diet lower in saturated fats is a more effective recommendation for the prevention & treatment of high cholesterol. Thus, it is more important to limit the high saturated fats foods that are commonly served with the egg (bacon, sausage) or cooked with the egg (butter) than the actual egg. Prepare your eggs without fat (boiled) or use non-stick spray or olive oil when cooking to help keep saturated fat intake low.
We all want our children to be the best they can be. We want our children to be healthy, happy and safe. One way to make sure your child is prepared is with nutrition. It starts an early age, a very early age! August is National Breastfeeding Month and Kids Eat Right Month. Both programs are geared towards helping to educate parents about the importance of nutrition throughout life. I like that we celebrate both events together. There is no question that breastfeeding your newborn for as long as possible will help to set a solid foundation for health. Continuing healthy habits as your child ages will help to reduce their risk of chronic disease and illnesses.
icals, it is surprising that we have not seen a jump in the length of time breastfeeding is provided. Check out this 
m added Caffeine! Not what I was expecting from an Orange Juice. OJ by itself provides you with enough calories in the form of carbohydrate to give you a tremendous amount of energy. Why add caffeine?
“100% Orange Juice”. While it is 100% juice, caffeine has still been added and I’ve never seen caffeine in OJ before. And, the last time I checked, caffeine was not a NATURAL ingredient in oranges. We normally buy the HomeMaker brand of orange juice because of the taste, the quality and the cost. However, when seeing their new offering, I was disappointed.
a child that drinks 12 ounces of OJ at time. What happens there? I was impressed to see that the company did add a warning box, highlighted in red, on the Nutrition Facts side of the box stating that children, pregnant or nursing women, and persons sensitive to caffeine should not drink it.
But my feelings are that they don’t need to confuse the public by mixing the caffeine added OJ in with the regular versions. One of suggestion was to add a statement indicating that caffeine has been added to the OJ. Maybe a bit more prominent by adding it to the sign on the front of the container, like I did in the photo.
you’ve been able to keep those resolutions! Many times we start to falter as we move deeper into January and February. We often have a tough time making and maintaining change. Why? It doesn’t have to be that way! Things change every day. We are just not always aware of the changes going on around us. The sun rises in the East and sets in the West day after day. What’s different about the rising and setting of the sun? The time is different. It never rises and sets at exactly the same each day! We just don’t perceive the difference until it hits us how dark it is at 4:30 pm on the Winter Solstice. The gradual change makes it more difficult to distinguish the changes. (Take heart, the sun shines a little longer each day now!)
ercise more. Specify what that means to you. How do you define eating healthier or exercising more?
