How to make smart and healthy resolutions

Smart and Healthy Resolutions-Margaux Drake

Let’s be smart about healthy resolutions so they become habits of your new lifestyle.

COMMIT TO THE PROCESS
First, commit to the process not a specific outcome. The outcome will happen over time if you practice the necessary behaviors you’ll need to get there. For example, instead of your resolution being, “I will lose 10 pounds”, consider a resolution like this, “I commit to waking up and moving by body first thing in the morning 3 times a week to get my metabolism going. I will drink half of my body weight in ounces of purified water every day. I will fuel my body with 3 clean meals a day and two 100 calorie snacks to keep my metabolism burning. I will not eat after 8PM when my body needs to slow down. I will sleep 7-8 hours each night so my body can rest and repair.” If you truly commit to the above and practice them daily, they will become habits. Those last ten pounds will melt off, you’ll be healthier and happier. The best part is, those sticky pounds won’t come back because you’ve created a lifestyle change not a quick fix. Remember, good habits lead to more good habits!

BABY STEPS
Take baby steps forward toward your goals, they don’t have to be giant leaps. For example, if your goal is to drink half of your body weight in ounces of purified water every day but you currently aren’t drinking anything near that, break it down into realistic steps for yourself. First, just try to drink one liter per day and work your way up slowly over the course of a month. Maybe it’s one liter the first week, two liters the second week, three the third and so on until you are at half of your body weight. The idea is consistency and progress not perfection.

NEVER QUIT
Lastly, never quit on yourself. You’re too important for that. If you dive head first into the deep end you just might sink instead of swimming. Commit to the process, move forward at your own pace, and don’t quit.

ACCOUNTABILITY
BONUS Tip: Find an accountability partner, share your resolutions with each other and check in with one another on a regular basis.

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Share your “Smart & Healthy New Year’s Resolutions” with us here, by commenting below.

Cheers to a HAPPY and HEALTHY 2016!