January 10, 2017
Where did 2016 go?
Have the last 12 months come and gone and you are not where you want to be?
Did you want to be skinnier? More organized? Just healthier overall?
Here are my top 5 simple steps to get you started right on your New You in the New Year:
- Eat Breakfast – It is the MOST important meal of the day. Do NOT skip it. Give yourself extra time in the morning to get your body energized. Your metabolism will get a kick start for the day, you will have more focus, more energy and a better attitude to get you through the long day ahead. Tip: Simple breakfast ideas are eggs (any style) and whole wheat toast, steel cut oats with berries and nuts, or a smoothie. Adding a protein source will keep you satisfied for a longer period of time
- Get Moving – Plan to spend 30 minutes of your day moving your body. It doesn’t matter how you are moving; living weights, cardio machine, walk/run outdoors, yoga, sports, dance, just get moving. Exercise is not only great for our cardiovascular health, but also great for your mental health as well. With your heart pumping strong and a clear mind you are capable of almost anything. Tips: schedule the time at the beginning of the week, find a partner, get out on your lunch hour
- Drink Water – Improving your health is as simple as replacing an unhealthy beverage; soda pop, juice, frappacinos or any fancy drink from your local coffee shop, with a glass of water. Seems to simple to be true, but imagine consuming up to 400 less calories in a day? That is 2800 calories a week and 11,200 a month and 145,600 a year. Tips: add lemon, set a water drinking timer, reward yourself with the money saved
- Take Time For You – Life is busy. Period. End of story. We all have responsibilities that leave us stressed, fatigued and with no hours in the day for ourselves. Whether you are a parent, have a career, family responsibilities or any combination, life can leave you feeling burnt out. Schedule time for yourself. Write it in your day timer; in pen, and commit to you. The beauty is it does not have to be expensive or time consuming. Tips: have a relaxing bath, read a book, go for a walk, have lunch with a friend, plant a garden
- Balance Stress – Stress in life is inevitable, but lessening the effects of stress is a choice. Stress can wreck havoc on your health; pre-mature aging, sleep deprivation, depression, fatigue, headaches, cardiovascular damage, just to name a few. Although we can not always eliminate the stress we can implement simple things into our daily routine to minimize the effects. Tips: Eat more antioxidant rich foods (berries for example), increase your consumption of green leafy vegetables, complete positive affirmations, go to bed at the same time every night, spend less time on electronics, and complete any or all of steps 1-4 above!
The New Year and New You does not have to be complicating. Life changes occur with small habit changes over a period of time.
Achieving smaller goals leads to huge results over time. Start off by implementing these 5 steps into your daily life and see your New You arise.
