Whatever your health goals may be for 2009, leaving behind poor habits and adopting new, healthier ones will be a key ingredient to your success. Lifestyle changes are rarely realized in a matter of days or weeks, so being patient with yourself is especially helpful (no berating, please).
Try viewing the changes you are making less as dreaded tasks and more as journeys of discovery, where the pace is gradual and the path is winding, as you learn more about health, exercise and nutrition and how to apply their principles to your own life.
To support you in staying your course of better health, here are 10 strategies you may find useful. Choose one that resonates most with you to start with and add others when you are ready.
Dump the diet mentality. Deciding to go on a diet to improve health or lose weight usually only serves to bring up feelings of failure and inadequacy. Don’t think of getting healthier as a short-term goal (i.e., a diet), but rather a long-term lifestyle shift that will continue to reward you all the years of your life.
Home is where your health is. If you are striving to avoid certain foods and beverages, do not shop for them or keep them in your home; they will be too tempting. Even if foods are kept on the highest shelf, way in the back, you will inevitably find yourself reaching for the step stool. There is plenty of opportunity away from home for the occasional indulgence, so try to maintain a healthy home base.
The rule of one. Trying to change too much all at once is a sure set-up for failure. Adopt change using the rule of one, which asks that you focus on only one new change at a time. If you’re trying to lose weight, for example, start by eliminating just soda from your grocery list. You can eliminate other things gradually once this new habit has taken hold.
Create a weekly menu. By deciding what you’ll be eating for the upcoming week, you create a concrete plan for success that does not leave room for foods and beverages you are trying to avoid. List all of your meals, snacks and beverages for each day, and then do your shopping for the week so you’ll have everything on hand.
Take it with you. In addition to being prepared at home, keep some healthy snacks (i.e., fruit, nuts, sliced carrots) with you wherever you go (in the car, in your purse, or at work in a desk drawer). Not having access to healthy foods when we are hungry often leads us to reach for whatever is quickest and easiest, like a fast food meal or “fake food” from the vending machine.
Less time in the kitchen. If you do a fair amount of meal preparation at home, get in the habit of making enough food for two or three meals. This works well with salads and soups that require more time for washing and chopping vegetables. This not only saves you time later, but it assures that when you get hungry, you will have something healthy to eat that is ready and waiting.
Recruit a sidekick. Finding an ally in your efforts toward a healthier lifestyle serves many purposes, including helping one another stay motivated and accountable. It’s harder to give up when you know your efforts are being observed and that you are also helping someone else. Becoming part of an online health forum is also a great way to stay motivated.
Find a teacher. Depending on what aspect of health you are seeking to change, find someone who is already experienced at it and ask for their advice or services (personal trainer, in-home chef, nutrition consultant). Someone has already figured out the most efficient paths to success, so don’t reinvent the wheel and go it alone if lasting health is your priority.
Counter negative thoughts. Especially where health changes come into play, we can be so hard on ourselves. Don’t let negative messages derail your progress. Practice replacing each negative thought that comes up with a new, positive one. It may sound silly, but stick with it. You know what your usual negative thoughts are, so sit down and write a counter positive thought to each one so that you are prepared.
Keep a record of success. You know how when one person doesn’t like you, but 100 other people do, you tend to focus on the one person? This same kind of thinking can sabotage us in making healthful changes. When we get off track, it can be easy to forget all the good things we have accomplished thus far. So, keep a simple record (or journal) noting your successes (no matter how small), and when you’re feeling down, refer to your list of successes.
Some of these strategies will go against your instincts, since doing what is easiest is usually the most desirable approach for us humans. But they will become easier following some practice. Soon you will find that they have become second nature and that you are enjoying your journey in discovering better health.
A healthy and happy 2009 to you!
Cathy Fisher is a Certified Nutrition Educator and coach with StraightUpFood.com and resides in Glen Ellen. The Sun welcomes feedback from our readers. Please address comments and questions to feedback@sonomasun.com.
