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Get truly healthy in 2014

Posted on January 17, 2014 by Sonoma Valley Sun

Greetings of the season, Sonoma. Have you made your resolutions for 2014?

I’ll bet if you look back at your New Year’s resolutions over the past several years, and perhaps even longer, they’ve all been pretty similar. If not, great, that means you either accomplished your goal or moved on to other goals. If you find that you are setting the same health and fitness goals year after year, you are probably not having much success in achieving them.

Why is that? You know the old saying, “the definition of insanity is doing the same things over and over?” Well, sometimes it does feel like insanity when it comes to reaching our health and fitness goals. I believe these are the most challenging goals for a person to reach because our health and wellness is the direct result of our lifestyle habits, and, as we all know, habits are hard to break. Especially when it comes to what we eat and how we exercise, because both require a lot of discipline.

So how then do we successfully create new habits? Well, you must decide to be a healthy person. Period.

Healthy people eat healthy because they want to. They eat healthy because it makes them feel great, have good energy, have clear minds, and look good. They exercise because it gives them energy and keeps them at a physical health standard that is top priority. Healthy people build their lives around making the choices that will support their personal standard of being happy and whole. They are emotionally attached to those standards, and deviating too much from them makes them feel out of balance from their norm, which motivates them to quickly get back on track. Because they are emotionally invested in being healthy, they also spend a lot of time getting educated and associating with others who are healthy. They wouldn’t have it any other way, because its what they love. They don’t just set a goal or two and reluctantly focus on them, they navigate their world based on healthy choices and embrace the process.

So if you find it difficult making healthy choices or embracing a healthy way of living, and if you approach your health plan by setting a goal or two such as counting calories or hitting the treadmill a few times a week, chances are you will end up back at the same place you started at the beginning of the year.

You want to become a healthy person. Period.  If you find you have to dig deep for the right discipline to stay healthy, you are probably still needing to find that emotional motivation and reward for living a healthy lifestyle. It does come, it really does, but it is a process. A process that requires first starting with a statement and a decision about wanting to be a healthy person. A realization of what that looks like, and letting go of a negative mindset when it comes to making healthy choices. It’s not about “giving things up,” its about loving yourself enough to embrace some new ideas and choices for living your life to it’s fullest.

Here are my top 10 suggestions for how to be a healthy person in 2014:

  1. Associate with other healthy people. Seek out people who will be healthy influences.
  2. Read one book on healthy living each month. You can join my healthy living book club at Facebook.com/muffintopmakeover (message me for more details)
  3. Follow health pages online for daily information and inspiration. Read health tips daily.
  4. Keep a health journal: record your diet, exercise, sleep, stress, and write down questions and answers.
  5. Get a partner of health buddy to go the process with you.
  6. Become party of a healthy community via fitness classes, online, or otherwise– community will keep you strong.
  7. Become and stay curious about your health.
  8. Join clubs that involve fitness and healthy living.
  9. Pay it forward by writing a blog, teaching or inspiring others, or giving back to those who could use some healthy inspiration, or even tracking your progress publicly, for others to learn from your process.
  10. Embrace the journey

You will notice I did not tell you to count calories, nor did I tell youth go vegan, paleo, Adkins, or any other extreme program. You will find and embrace an approach that feels right for you as you embrace a healthy mindset, community and lifestyle. Once you learn to love being healthy you will be led down the path that interests you the most. As you discover the world of healthy living you will meet people who are positive, inspiring, and motivating.

People who are healthy and happy. If nothing else, do it to be part of a community of happy people, and soon you will see the infectious positive results in all areas of your life. Do this, and by 2015 you will be a healthy person, too.




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