Keeping Healthy In 2019
The beginning of a New Year sparks fresh ideologies of living the healthiest of lifestyles. We’re sure that this notion will light up a range of visualisations that if you were being honest with yourself, will never realistically fit so seamlessly and attractively into your lifestyle.
This is perhaps why that by the time the first week of January has passed, only 75% of those with resolutions will still be making good of them. Fast-forward to June, and 54% of us having all but given up on achieving our New Year’s goals.
So why is sticking to what you feel to be a benefit to your health and wellbeing so difficult?
There are a number of reasons, some of which may include:
- Unrealistic expectations
- Vague goal setting
- Goals based on inspiration rather than preparation
- Unclear motivation
As we have mentioned, long-term success is always strived for but less commonly accomplished when it comes to New Year’s resolutions. But there are a number of things you can put in place that will make your good intentions within arms reach…
1. Set Realistic Goals
When it comes to weight loss, people wanted results yesterday, with a feeling of desperation kicking in. However, if you come to not expect overnight success and instead a slow progression, then you will find the notion of weight loss far less daunting. You also need to ensure you’re your weight loss/gain goals are healthy. For instance, don’t set yourself a goal of losing a stone in the first month – consistency is key when it comes to morale, and by aiming to lose 1-2lbs each week you will be setting yourself onto the road of success – sustainable success is achieved by having a realistic action plan.
2. Be Clear On Your Motivation
Having a reason for reaching your goal will enable you to strive that bit harder. Set up a visual cue to remind yourself, this could be a photo of that dress you WILL get into come summer, or a family photograph to remind yourself that eating for energy will enable you to truly savour the time with your children.
3. Get The Most Out Of Your Food Diary
By this we mean, don’t just jot down the foods and drinks you have consumed, but make notes of your energy and your mood. Are your tired or low times beginning to have a pattern? This will give you an opportunity to readdress your choice of foods and drinks, or lack thereof. One study showed that the main reason that people failed to achieve their New Year’s resolution was simply because they were too tired to focus!
4. Eat More, Not Less
This isn’t exactly what it says on the tin. We would love to tell you that by eating more chocolate or cheese that you would be one step closer to achieving your New Year’s resolution, but alas sadly not.
We will never be advocates of fad diets and latest food crazes, we believe in simple, whole, real food – and lots of it. With this approach, tell yourself that you will be having extra vegetables with every main meal, starting off with a tablespoon more than you usually have. This addition to your plate will spark a positive thought process, rather than a negative one of denying yourself something. Continue to do this forced behaviour until it becomes automatic.
5. De-clutter The Kitchen
It seems obvious, but storing temptations in the form of unhealthy food and drink is a sure fire way of slipping off the wagon. Cleanse every environment you have, the cupboard, the fridge, the car and the desk.
6. Plan Ahead
The hours between lunch and dinner is the most common time for cravings to kick in. It is all too easy to grab a quick chocolate bar for a quick buzz of energy. But plan ahead, have a small bag of nuts and a piece of fruit to hand on your way home from the office, therefore making it much easier to stay on the straight and narrow. The same goes for evening meals – if you know you won’t be back until late, cook double the previous night so all you need to do is a quick reheat!
7. Change Your Outlook
This is the most important of all the points; this is what brings everything together. Your health and wellbeing is a continuum, not something that should be see as all-or-nothing. Having set backs is natural and inevitable, and should be looked upon as being so. Every decision you make simply leans you further over one side of the scale than the other. If you find yourself giving into a moment of weakness, dust yourself off and combat it by instigating a positive decision. Your biggest challenge is embarking on your resolution as a new lifestyle, something permanent – the more frequently you make these positive decisions towards your goal, the more likely it is to become a permanent behaviour. Once you reach this point – you will have cracked it!
