The holidays are over. They might have been great with all the family gathered and all the festivities and great food and company. Now we are back to real life. We start the year with a clean slate and many, many people decide that they are going to turn over a new leaf. More often than not those new year resolutions have to do with our health. And, a great deal of those new year’s health resolutions have to do with weight, dieting and exercise. Those all include noble goals, but they are overwhelming and so hard to implement.
Given that January is also Healthy Weight Awareness Month, I thought it would be a great time to go over some of these things.
First Steps
The best way to think about even making a dent in all these things is to have a plan. You say, “Great… But making the plan IS ALSO OVERWHELMING!” We all know that feeling all too well.
Here are some tips to help you get started:
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SIT DOWN & THINK. Make yourself a nice cup of tea or coffee. Sit down and get comfortable. Just think for a moment. Think about what you really want to accomplish. Is it instituting a daily workout? Is it losing weight?
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PICTURE IT. Visualize your life if you actually achieved those goals. Let it percolate in your mind and settle into your bones. Feels good, no?
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WRITE IT DOWN. Go grab a piece of paper and write down 2 or 3 of your goals – NOT MORE. We want to keep it realistic.
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BE KIND TO YOURSELF. Think practically about assigning a number to your goals. For example, if you want to work out, start in bite sized fashion. How about 10 minutes a day? Believe it or not, that is even hard for some people and they might want to break it up into 5 minutes twice a day. Or, what about losing weight? Set a realistic goal of 1 pound a week. That should keep you from losing hope and giving up completely.
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PUT IT ON YOUR DAILY CALENDAR. Make time for you. Put the exercise time on your calendar, i.e. 10 am and 5 pm. Put meal planning and preparation on your calendar too, so you are never caught starving and grabbing for the quickest sugar or carb fix.
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FIND A BUDDY. Try and find someone who will help and support you in your plan – someone to who you can be accountable so that you don’t feel you are in this alone.
Our agency has dealt with all these issues (and frustrations) and we have compiled a lot of tips and information to deal with them. Along with our excellent blog posts addressing many of these issues, we also have an Exercise Worksheets Booklet available on our website through our Free Downloads page under the Resources tab. It is a great way to organize your New Year Resolutions with a professional. Also, given that we are now in the real winter months, we have suggestions for incorporating an indoor exercise routine for our senior and more fragile clients in the New York area.
We Support Caregivers & Families
Always here to help! We would love to help you make those new year’s health resolutions a reality. We remain committed to providing personalized care for your loved one. If you have questions about our services, please contact us. We can help you through the difficult times and give you the peace of mind you deserve!
Wishing you the best in health during the New Year,
Anita Kamiel
Owner & Director of Patient Services
