So, this is an article I wrote for a local newspaper encouraging individuals to be the healthiest they can be. I would think if you are on this site reading this, you have already decided to make these healthy changes. I decided to post this in here anyway to potentially help anyone that might be struggling or needing a little push in the right direction. I hope you enjoy and if you have any questions, please let me know. I am a Kinesiologist graduate in Canada and I love helping people reach their full potential. Happy New Year!
At the end of each year, many people start thinking about things they wish to change or do differently during the next year of their life. Some people wish to save more money, some wish to travel more. But it is in my experience that the majority of people look to make positive changes in regards to their health and well-being. It is also in my experience that these goals are short-lived and are only pursued for a short period of time until either the novelty of the idea wears off or immediate success is not achieved. The choice to be a healthier, more active ‘you’ is an excellent goal to have, but many people do not know how to set themselves up for success when making this goal. Trying to take a New Year’s Resolution and make it a permanent lifestyle change is not always the easiest thing to do. The intent here it to shed some light on how to set yourself up for success and be the best ‘you’ that you can be in 2015 and beyond.
First, you need to start with the overall goal itself. When it comes to health and fitness, the first thing people always say is, “I want to lose X number of pounds”. One of the biggest things that I can’t stress enough is setting a weight loss goal is the single worst thing one can start with, and here’s why.
First of all, a person’s weight is rarely the primary problem. Second, once you reach your goal weight, then what? Poor lifestyle choices are usually the primary problem and weight gain is often the consequence. Therefore, one needs to really think about the lifestyle choices they make (or do not make) that attribute to the weight they gain and they should start working on those instead.
For example, many people struggle with healthy food choices. Whether it is portion sizes, types of food, too many sweets, too much salt…the list really goes on and on. Whatever the issue is, monitoring one’s diet is one of the single healthiest changes one can make when pursuing healthier lifestyle choices. You wouldn’t put diesel fuel in a car that uses gas, would you? So, don’t fuel your body with things it doesn’t need or shouldn’t have. Increase your fruit and vegetable intake, increase your water consumption and dump the pop, juice and coffee and start thinking about lean proteins like chicken and turkey in place of fatty, red meats and you are already off to an amazing start. Use the internet or health books from the book store to find healthy alternatives to the things you love and you’ll be surprised how quickly you begin to feel more energized. Not to mention you may lose a couple pounds in the process! There are a lot of apps for smartphones these days that have extensive libraries of food nutritional facts. It will keep track of daily calorie intake and let you know if you are going overboard on sodium, saturated fats etc. Sometimes the foods we think are very healthy are in fact not healthy at all. So if you are interested in that kind of thing, download one or two and try them to see how healthy your food choices are.
Another example of where some people may get off to the wrong start is diving in and buying that illustrious gym membership in the first week of January. Whatever gym has done the best advertising to capture your attention gets your money and boom, you are a ‘member’ at a gym. Now my issue with this isn’t the gym membership itself. It’s the thoughtlessness that some put into the membership. You need to do some research and make sure the gym you are choosing is right for you. It is not a “one size fits all” type of thing, unfortunately. My recommendation is look at a few gyms that are close in proximity to either work or home or both. If it is too far from either, you won’t go. I can promise you that. From that short-list, personally visit each one and scope the place out. Does it have the equipment you will need? Is it the type of crowd you were expecting? Is it clean? Try to find the things you dislike and identify if they are things you can live with or not. Chose the one that best suits what you are looking for, or again, you will find every reason not to go. Most fitness places will offer you a free week upon request. So request it! Remember, you are business for them so they should treat you well. And do not be held to the thought that the gym is a must. There are a ton of home exercise programs that require little to no equipment that may cost a dividend of a gym membership that for some will prove to be more effective. A simple internet search will provide you with a list as long as your arm. Again, if you have a smartphone, there are hundreds of apps with at-home exercise programs that might be the perfect fit for you. The main point to be made here is movement is integral to energy expenditure. Energy expenditure mean calories are burned versus stored as fat. The old saying goes, “what goes up, must come down.” Well what goes in (calories), must get used (you guessed it, calories!). You need to make sure that you are balancing calories in and out for a day and this is done by thinking about the calories you put in and the exercise you do each day to use those calories up. Or they will be stored as fat, and this is one account you don’t want to see ending each day with a positive balance.
Now just as important as nutrition and exercise are to achieving success, is the way that people think about the goals that they make. The thinking here is usually very black and white; either you succeed or you fail. This is very much the wrong way to go about it. Rome wasn’t built in a day. Behaviors are one of the hardest things to change and often it is a series of trial and error before any noticeable differences are seen. For that reason, I always stress setting one large goal and breaking it down into smaller goals that are easier and require less time to accomplish so that they motivate you along your path to achieving your larger goal. So, if I plan to participate in a 5km jog in 3 months time, I will start at 500m and work my way up to 1km and so on. I will set a timeline to achieve each interval so that by 3 months, I will be at 5km and will be ready. By setting those smaller goals along the way, I make that 5km not sound like such a leap and I can appreciate my successes along the way. Giving myself a realistic timeline to achieve my goals sets me up for success right off the bat too. Failure is not being able to achieve your goal. Failure is when you stop trying! Adjust your goals if necessary, be realistic with yourself, give yourself enough time to achieve it, make your goal measurable so you know that you are getting closer to success and make your goal specific enough that you know what you want and can go out and get it!
Contrary to popular belief, setting goals related to health, wellness and fitness are easy things to get started. Where things get difficult is sticking to them, making them behavioral and habitual and setting realistic and timely goals that will aid you in becoming successful. Don’t choose to do it because of the ‘trip’ you have coming up, don’t choose to do it because of that event you will be attending. Because after that trip or event is over, so is your motivation to continue. Do it for YOU! Do it because you want to be the healthiest you that you can be. Do it to feel better, to have more energy and to eliminate the barriers in your life so that you are able to do whatever you please because you are healthy and ready for whatever challenges you face. Visit your health care provider regularly and be involved in your own health care so that you can take pride in your healthy choices. So instead of making a New Year’s Resolution this year, make it a New Year’s REVELATION and set goals that will change your life forever…not just for the first few weeks in January! I wish you the happiest and healthiest in 2015. Now get up, get out and make some long-lasting healthy chances!
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