Swap Bad Habits for New Healthier Routines

The beginning of new year is the perfect time to turn a new page in your life. If your resolution is to lose 2 to 5 pounds a month, your plan should include immediate goals like eating 4 helpings of veggies a day, drinking water with your meals, and walking 40 minutes a day. However, permanent change requires following a well-laid plan, such as swapping bad habits for newly established routines. Remember, it is easy to set lofty resolutions during the holidays. If you bit off more than you can chew, establish some realistic short-term goals that can help you overcome any struggles you have with a lack of willpower. After all, you can still achieve your resolution in 2021. If you have made the resolution to lose weight this year, understand that you will likely gain the weight back unless you make a personal commitment to eating healthier and managing negative lifestyle issues.

• Start with Simple Activities - If you already walk your dog, you can easily add physical activity to your program by taking a couple extra laps or surprise your furry friend by engaging in walks twice a day.
• Add Low Impact Exercise - Walking every day is easy on the joints, burns calories, and is a great way to spend time outside on your own and with others. Now, recruit an exercise buddy and enjoy your walk.
• Break Up Physical Activities - Tending a new garden, volunteering for clean-up at your local park, or walking for a good cause is an engaging way to get the exercise you need.
• Add Strength Training - Adding lean muscle mass increases physical strength, reduces your risk of injury, and offers numerous health benefits including fat loss and reduced risks of developing chronic diseases.
• Work Your Way Up - It is important to understand that using exercise to lose weight has potential pitfalls. For example, too much exercise can quickly lead to overeating.
• Recruit an Exercise Buddy - If you recruit an exercise buddy or two, you can make plans for engaging in fun group activities after your workout is done. Weight loss buddies more than double each other’s chance for losing weight.

Whether your New Year’s resolution is going great or has already stalled, it is important to focus on the processes that guide the healthy behaviors you’ve added to your day. Many weight loss specialists today feel that it is easier for his or her client to focus on eating healthy meals, rather than chasing numbers on their scale. Goals are great for measuring short-term success, but it’s the long-term growth that counts the most. If you focus on the processes that you are putting in place, you will have better control over your weight loss plan. That way, you can place your weight loss goals and targets on your timeline for easy weekly or monthly monitoring. Once you find the right weight loss program that works for your body, you will care less about what you weigh each day and more about the healthy choices you are making. Actually, it is your commitment to your plan that produces the most satisfying reward.