Tips to keep your health resolutions into February

Traditionally, many people use the transition into the New Year to set goals for themselves to improve either financially, physically or mentally.

Common New Year’s resolutions are: to quit smoking, drink less alcohol, eat a healthy, balanced diet and exercise more.

The first few days are met with renewed vigour to improve yourself, but as the weeks pass, it seems most people lose steam by the end of February.

There are several clever tips to keep you on the straight and narrow.

Make realistic goals

Instead of making impossibly difficult resolutions, make smaller goals as stepping stones to larger achievements. Perhaps instead of quitting smoking ‘cold turkey’, consciously smoke fewer cigarettes per day and gradually decrease the amount until you no longer need to smoke as often, or as much.

Sometimes we become demotivated if the resolution is too challenging.

Do it as a team

Instead of making individual goals, use the opportunity to turn whatever good habit you want to adapt into a group effort.

If your goal is to exercise more, join or even start a walking group with friends, join a local aerobics class or have your family add walks and exercise into their schedules.

Having comrades helps keep activities fun and fresh, and a little friendly competition to see who can lose the most weight, or walk the longest distance in the shortest time can really make exercise exciting.

Have a plan

Rocky Mountain Health says that if you don’t have an action plan, it’s going to be much more difficult to turn your resolution into a lifestyle.

If your goal is to eat healthier, create a meal plan and try prepping your meals each week.

Start out by planning each of your meals for the day and then make a grocery store trip to pick up the ingredients you’ll need. Cook the week’s meals in bulk. Pack each meal into marked containers, so that you can just ‘grab and go!’

Maybe even start prepping two or three meals in advance, find a system that works for you and then ramp up your efforts if the process is helpful.