The New Year is a popular time for making health resolutions, but many of these promises don’t last beyond January. This doesn’t mean you should give up on resolutions entirely as it’s still a great opportunity to consider lifestyle changes that can improve our health.
In Western society, numerous health conditions are linked to our lifestyle choices. These ‘lifestyle’ diseases include heart attacks, strokes, many cancers, type 2 diabetes, arthritis, digestive disorders, some mental illnesses and road accidents. The good news is that many of these problems can be prevented, or at least delayed, by some simple adjustments to our daily habits.
Important areas of our lives, which are entirely in our own control, and which affect our health include:
- smoking;
- diet;
- exercise; and
- alcohol.
Make your resolutions work by making them ‘SMART’
Rather than struggle through your new year health resolutions alone, this year, we’ve gathered some expert tips to help you successfully achieve your goals.
A good resolution like any good goal is ‘SMART’. That stands for:
- Specific: Instead of setting a vague goal such as losing weight, set a specific goal, such as ‘I want to lose weight and I plan to do it through swimming 3 times a week and cutting 1000 kilojoules a day from my intake’. People who set specific goals are more successful than those who don’t. Make sure you write your goals down, and any smaller interim steps within your goal, as this will help you to define them.
- Measurable: Instead of ‘I want to get fitter’, set a goal like ‘I want to run for 20 minutes without needing to walk’.
- Achievable: Do you have the skills and resources needed to complete the goal? If you want to enter a cycling event in the future — do you have a bike to train for the ride? Can you ride during daylight hours? Is your goal practical? Does it fit in with your lifestyle and your family?
- Relevant: Is your goal relevant to your bigger-picture goals? Does it fit with your long-term vision?
- Timely: Make sure your goal has a deadline — and that you have set dates for individual steps within your main goal. For example, ‘I’ll be able to walk to the local shops and back by February’.
Know yourself
If your resolution is to get fit and you hate going to the gym with a passion, skip the expensive memberships. Instead, focus on other ways to stay active, like walking to the shops and carrying your groceries home, gardening, bushwalking, or doing manual jobs around the house.
Take baby steps
You may have come across inspirational stories on your social media feed of people who’ve just completed their first 10 km run, half-marathon or even marathon — people who months earlier couldn’t run around the block. These people all share something in common — they didn’t start by lacing up their shoes and launching themselves into a 10 km run, only to injure themselves and never try again. Most of them started by simply walking. There are loads of apps that offer expertly designed training programs for people who have never run. Download an app like Couch to 5K to start right where you are.
By walking regularly they prepared their muscles and tendons for running, and started an exercise habit. Then by adding 15 seconds of light jogging into their walks here and there, they worked up to a point where they could walk and jog for a few minutes alternately. Eventually, they could go out and jog for 15 or 20 minutes. Next thing, they were lining up for their first fun run. Often it took months, but by setting small achievable targets, these people were always focused on a goal and were rewarded when they reached it.
Don’t like running? Then don’t force yourself to do it. Try a range of activities to find something you truly enjoy and can stick with. An app like Apple Fitness+ is a great way to add variety to your week, with activities to suit every taste from dance classes to strength workouts, Pilates, yoga, HIIT, cycling and even meditation for a mental boost. Music fans will find extra motivation from the Artist Spotlight Series with new year workout playlists dedicated to artists like Janet Jackson (starting 13 January), Coldplay (starting 20 January) and Bruno Mars (starting 27 January).
Another thing to keep in mind? You don’t need to commit to 45-minute sessions. You can start with as little as 5 minutes of movement. Taking baby steps like this and setting smaller goals is a good way to move towards a big goal.
| Small steps to . . . | |
|---|---|
| Healthy eating | Switch from soft drinks to soda water. After a couple of weeks, you probably won’t miss the taste and you’ll have made a sustainable change to your diet. Now you can move on to making other healthy changes. |
| Getting fit | Commit to one exercise session per week. Once you discover an activity you enjoy and notice how well you sleep afterwards, you’ll soon find yourself disappointed if you miss a session. |
Don’t overtax your willpower
Some experts suggest that we shouldn’t overload our willpower and self-discipline by trying to make too many lifestyle changes simultaneously. We’ve all seen friends attempt to quit smoking, lose weight, and get fit all at once, only to struggle. It’s much better to build your willpower like you would your muscles — gradually and with small challenges — so you can develop inner strength over time.
Record your progress
Track your progress with a diary or an app — it will remind you of how far you’ve come and provide encouragement when you’re feeling down. Research shows that keeping a record can help you stay on track with tasks like weight loss or fitness goals. Regularly review and adjust your goals as needed. Don’t forget to reward yourself with something when you achieve your mini goals.
Build your tribe
Enlist the support of those around you. If your family, friends and work colleagues are aware of your goals, they’re much more likely to be supportive and encourage you to stay on track when you’re struggling.
Find a workout buddy or a partner to quit smoking with. You’re more likely to stick to your plans if you’re doing the activity with a friend or if you’re part of a community.
Health and fitness apps and social media can also connect you with others who share your goals. Many quit-smoking websites offer programs with regular newsletters or inspirational messages to keep you motivated. For weight loss, there are many online programs, and also clubs that meet in person, that provide support and inspiration to help ease your journey towards your goal.
