Happy New Year! It’s once again that time of year when we make New Year’s resolutions and promises to lose weight and get in shape. This usually includes joining the gym or starting a new diet. By the time April rolls around, most have long given up on their goals. Why is that? Why is it that something you say you want so badly is not attainable? Every year, new memberships to a gym are canceled within the first year or go unused. Diet and meal plans are detested, and many are left feeling discouraged. The answer is simple. First and most important, your mindset wasn’t part of the journey. Second, you set yourself up for failure by setting an aggressive goal. Let’s delve into both of these factors.
Mindset, the Key to Success
What is mindset? The definition of mindset is a set of beliefs or attitudes that shape how you perceive and respond to situations. It’s how you interpret and react to the world around you. You have to believe in the goals you want to commit to. That is more than just wanting something. Deep down inside you, it’s genuinely believing that you can achieve your goals and that nothing will deter you from it. If you believe you can, you will, but if you believe you can’t, then it’s certain that you won’t. You have to set your mind right. What you believe about yourself impacts your success or failure.
Now that we have addressed the mindset, we must set a goal. Let’s start by defining a goal and how to set realistic goals. A goal is the desired result you want to achieve within a specific time frame. The first step is to make SMART goals. SMART goals must be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.
Specific
For a goal to be effective, it needs to be specific and answer questions such as, ‘Exactly what do you want to accomplish?’ and ‘What steps do you need to take to achieve it?
Measurable
To determine whether we are making progress toward achieving our goal, we must have a way to measure our success. This benchmark is a starting point for quantifying our progress. In the “to lose weight” scenario, a smart goal would be to lose x amount of weight.
Achievable
We don’t want to set easy-to-achieve goals, but we should not set unrealistic ones. If we commit to our goals, we should be able to achieve them; otherwise, they are unrealistic.
Realistic
This part of goal setting goes hand in hand with making it achievable. As we stated above, your goal can be achievable while being unrealistic. For example, setting a goal to lose 25 lbs in one week would make that goal unrealistic.
Time-Bound
That being said, your goal should have an end date. Without a time limit, your goal could drag on longer than anticipated, quenching motivation along the way.
Preparing Your Own Goal
Now that we have defined all the components of a SMART goal, you can prepare your own goal to lose weight. The critical thing to remember is to take baby steps and reward yourself for your accomplishments, no matter how small. This will help you to stay motivated and move forward.
Instead of going for a jog or hopping onto the treadmill, try going outdoors for long walks. While walking, think about showing gratitude for the people and things in your life. Take in the beauty of nature all around you. This will help fill you with positive energy and reduce stress. Exercising doesn’t always have to be strenuous or overly exerting to produce positive results. Start slow and work your way towards more significant challenges.
Maintaining a healthy weight can seem daunting. If you want to lose weight, start by simply changing your current diet. Many people think that to lose weight, we must stop eating everything we currently eat and start with a completely new diet. Hundreds of diets are on social media or are being tried by our friends, including Mediterranean, Paleo, Keto, Atkins, intermittent fasting, and more.
I am not suggesting there is something wrong with any of these diets. What I am suggesting is before deciding to follow any diet, start by making small changes to what you are eating today. Why? Two reasons. You enjoy what you eat today, so the food isn’t necessarily the problem. The problem could be your portion size and food classification, such as too many carbohydrates and insufficient protein. So, let’s work on that aspect of your diet.
When you overhaul everything you eat and introduce foods you don’t typically eat, you will likely not enjoy your meals. After a couple of weeks, you may be ready to give up and drop the diet. However, you can lose weight by eating the foods you already love and enjoy and replacing only a small amount with healthier options.
While setting a goal to lose weight is great, this can be a temporary solution to your overall objective and could result in the weight you lose returning. Therefore, I would challenge you to set a broader goal of living a healthy lifestyle.
Living a Healthy Lifestyle
People who live a healthy lifestyle incorporate habits and practices into their daily routines. This includes maintaining a healthy weight, regular physical activity, managing stress, and getting enough sleep. Living a healthy lifestyle differs from setting a specific goal by changing one’s behavior permanently rather than temporarily to reach a desired goal. It incorporates all aspects of one’s life.
Eating for a Healthier You
When you practice living a healthy lifestyle, you create meal plans that fit your lifestyle and help you maintain your desired weight goal. I encourage you to start by making the following changes to your diet.
First, make sure you are eating enough. The biggest mistake many people make when trying to lose weight is cutting back too many calories, which basically puts their bodies into starvation mode. This is not only self-defeating but also slows down their metabolism. Having coffee as their breakfast meal, skipping lunch, and then having a salad for dinner is not a diet. You have heard this a million times, but it’s worth repeating: Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.
Eating several small meals throughout the day is key to achieving and maintaining your desired weight goal. Start by including more protein in every meal. Protein sources include eggs (preferably egg whites), low-fat Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, protein shakes, nuts, beans & legumes, chicken, turkey, shrimp, and salmon. Practice portion control. Paying attention to the portion size is key. Strive to consume about 4-6 oz of protein and ½ to 1 cup of carbs. Make each meal you eat in the day the same proportion. This will keep you satiated and help keep your blood sugar from spiking.
Be mindful of your carb intake. You need to consume carbs to give your body energy, but you need to eat the right carbs, as not all carbs are created equal. Avoid refined grains. Refined grains are simple carbs that have been processed to remove the fiber. Examples include white bread, rice, pasta, and cereals. Complex carbs increase your blood sugar more slowly because they contain fiber. Whole grains like whole wheat bread, brown rice, and oatmeal offer many nutrients your body needs. Other carbs that are good for you include green leafy vegetables and red or sweet potatoes. Don’t forget healthy fats like peanut butter, olive oil, and avocados. Healthy fats contain unsaturated fats, which digest more slowly than other fats. This will help keep you feeling full for a more extended period.
Change your food occasionally to avoid feeling in a rut, swapping out the chicken for turkey or salmon. Enjoy a bowl of oatmeal with fruit & nuts instead of eggs. These minor tweaks will keep you from getting bored with your meal plan. Permit yourself to eat something you enjoy. You are not training to run a marathon or compete in a bodybuilding competition. You are training yourself to live a healthy lifestyle. It just so happens that I enjoy a cheeseburger or slice of pizza once a week and don’t feel guilty. Try the 80/20 rule. If you eat healthy 80% of the time, the “cheat meal” will not derail you from your goal. The reverse will happen; you will be happy with your “cheat meal” and not feel deprived, allowing you to continue your meal plan. You have to be kind and patient with yourself. The weight did not come on overnight, so why should you expect it to come off that quickly? Remember, your goal is to live this life, not instantly drop weight, only to put it back on.
Are you Getting the Right Amount of Sleep?
We spend about one-third of our lives sleeping, but it’s still something many people struggle with. Many of us are sleep-deprived, surviving on maybe four to five hours of sleep. Others suffer from chronic insomnia. When you’re asleep, your body typically goes through several sleep cycles. Understanding these cycles and paying attention to your own sleep cycle patterns are essential to your overall well-being. What are these sleep cycles we experience, and why are they important?
Deep Sleep
This stage of your sleep typically occurs in the first few hours of sleep. Deep sleep promotes physical recovery. Think of everything you do during the day, such as physical exercise. This is the time your body recovers and prepares your body for the next day’s activities. When you don’t get enough deep sleep, you wake up feeling tired and sometimes even exhausted. Your muscles may be sore from the previous day’s training. Giving your body time to heal and recover will enable you to feel refreshed and better able to perform physical activities the following day.
REM Sleep
This stage typically occurs after your deep sleep. You all have heard of rapid eye movement. This happens during this stage of your sleep. Your brain becomes more active, and you may have vivid dreams. REM has been shown to play a role in our mood, learning, and memory. While deep sleep is associated with your body’s recovery, REM is associated with your brain. Have you noticed that when you don’t get a good night’s sleep, you have problems concentrating or focusing on the task? Getting a good amount of REM sleep will aid in your overall alertness the next day.
Awake
Nothing is more annoying than going to bed and tossing and turning. The more time you spend in this stage, the less beneficial the night’s rest will be. It’s common to be awake for an hour while trying to sleep. As we age, we may find we are awake more often. It may be challenging to clear your mind from the day’s activities or issues surrounding your life.
Light Sleep
During this stage, your heart rate and breathing slow down. You are relaxed and transition from awake to sleep mode. Your sleep will transition back and forth between light sleep and all the other sleep cycles.
How much sleep we need varies from person to person and depends on various conditions, including age, health, and lifestyle. Understanding your sleep pattern will help you determine what adjustments, if any, you need to make to maximize your sleep and provide your body with the amount of sleep it needs to function.
Personal Best Practices
Many tools and applications are available to assist you on your journey to a healthy you. Below are two of the tools I use on a daily basis to keep me focused on my goals.
MyFitnessPal is an app on my iPhone that allows me to record food consumed by category (protein, carbs, fat, fiber, sugar, sodium, etc.). The extensive food database makes it easy to find everything I consume and build my daily intake of calories. Best of all, the app is free. Download it onto your phone and set up an account, and you’re all set to start tracking your calories. Counting calories is not part of living a healthy lifestyle. Trust me, nobody wants to live their life counting everything they consume. However, for those beginning a fitness journey, this tool will be valuable in educating someone on exactly how many calories they consume and in which category they are in. For example, are they mostly protein or carbs? Once you understand the composition of your diet, you can and will make better choices.
It took me a while to appreciate this concept. Today, when I look at a menu and see, for example, that the chicken cutlet parmigiana at the pizzeria is 622 calories, I know that’s way over my caloric limit for one meal. That’s why I rarely eat out. Instead, I spend part of one day during the week meal-prepping.
Another tool I use is my watch, which doubles as a heart rate monitor. I have worn a heart rate monitor for several years. I couldn’t imagine living without one. My Fitbit enables me to monitor my heart rate at all times. This is particularly important when I am exercising. It also allows me to monitor and track my step count. I am obsessed with walking as a form of exercise. My daily step counts range from 25,000 to 30,000. The heart rate monitor also tracks how many calories I burn daily.
Another valuable feature when worn to bed is monitoring my sleep pattern. The heart monitor can be synced to your phone, enabling you to view all your statistics at a glance by day, week, month, and the entire year. A heart rate monitor is an excellent investment to aid and support you on your fitness journey. They are not expensive and can be tailored to you. Select a band that suits your personal taste. I have worn mine to formal events by simply changing the band to one that has bling. No one can tell it’s my personal tracker.
In summary, we all desire to look and feel our best. Living a healthy lifestyle is the key to longevity and vitality. Making your health a top priority is the most important thing you can do for yourself and those who care about you. Let’s make 2025 the year you give yourself the gift of good health. Remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day. Your journey to a healthy you won’t happen overnight. Be patient and kind to yourself. Start by believing that you can and will achieve your desired goal. Next, make minor adjustments to your eating and get your body moving. Develop your own SMART goals and then follow through. Your objective is to change your daily practices so that you are functioning almost on auto-pilot concerning eating healthy and getting enough exercise. I believe you can do it. Now, you must tell yourself, ‘Yes, I can do this!’
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