Motivation Monday: What will your New Year's resolution be?

Today we packed all of our Christmas up and put it away.  I love having it out, but I LOVE putting it away and claiming my home back. 

Next up is New Years!  And we all know that the new year tends to bring a feeling of a fresh start.  Most people make resolutions to change something or do something better in the new year.  What will yours be?  May I suggest that you make it a healthy one?  Include some health changes in your resolutions and I guarantee you won't regret it.  Here are a few ideas to get you started:

If your goal is to lose weight, try these:

Set a realistic goal: Many people tend to make a goal of losing 30 pounds in 12 weeks.  While that is entirely possibly and congratulations to you if you can do it, most people won't make it that far.  My goal was just simply to get healthy.  I didn't care about the weight coming off.  (Who am I kidding?  What woman doesn't hope that the weight will come off?)  I just wanted to get to a healthy place.  My goal was simply to not hurt, not be so tired, and be able to keep up with my kids.  Keep your goals simple and realistic and you will be more likely to reach them.

 

Slow and steady wins the race: The faster you try and drop the weight the more frustrated you will become.  Remember that this is something that you are in for the long term.  This is something you want to last a lifetime.  So take it one day at a time.  If you mess up and have a huge unhealthy lunch, NO BIG DEAL!  You can redeem yourself at dinner.  If you miss your workout for the day, NO BIG DEAL!  You can push harder tomorrow.  Just keep going until you see the results.  It may seem long and horrible along the way, but sure enough you'll get there.

 

Move more: Just move more.  Seems like that should be enough said right?  Even on the days you don't feel like doing anything, just go out and go for a walk, I promise it will make you feel better.  Want to have fun with your kids?  Take up "stroller" blading.  My kids love going super fast in the stroller when I've got my wheels on.

If you're goal is to eat healthier, try these:  (these will obviously also help with the weight as well.)

Keep track:  I have never been successful at this, but a lot of dieticians and trainers recommend it.  It is a bit of an eye opener when you do keep track of what you're eating.  Even the small little munchies that you think won't count add up.  This alone can be enough to motivate people to eat healthier. 

Tame your blood sugar: Eating a lot of sugar can cause your blood sugar and insulin levels to spike and then crash hard.  This is hard on your system.  It's better to go without the sweets and have a minor splurge here and there then to have a little "something" everyday.  Having something everyday causes the levels to spike more often, whereas if you do it less often you have a more steady balance in your body. 

Don't be afraid of the good fats:  Still a lesson that I am learning.  If you'd like to read more about my view on this, you can read my post here.

 

Reach for slow foods:  Fast food is cheap, easy, and filling.  But it also delivers a lot more calories and harmful fats that your body doesn't need.  Choose instead to bring your lunch/meal with you, or wait until you get home.

Drink more water:  Water, water, water!!  Just drink as much as you can!  Skip the soda's and the juices as these add extra calories and sugar and just drink water.  I stopped drinking soda back in high school and very rarely drink bottled juice these days.  If I drink juice now, it's the fresh stuff I've made myself. 

So there are a few suggestions to get you started.  Even if you just took one of those ideas and applied it throughout 2012 you'll be better off.  Good luck!  I can't wait to hear how great your healthy new life will be!