The problem with New Year Resolutions is that most people are striving for something way outside any realistic expectations of what is possible, and they are setting themselves up for inevitable failure.
This isn’t a competition; you should not compare yourself to others. This is about being honest with your current health status and creating a healthier future, each day better than the day before.
- Begin where you are, not where you think you are. Set attainable goals and achievable milestones. This will keep you motivated to continue.
- Increase your hydration, drink more water, infuse with lemon, cucumber, mint. This will improve your skin and bowel health to excrete toxic waste.
- Take a break from alcohol, sugar, and processed foods. Clean out the pantry and fridge and donate or ditch the Frankenstein foods from your kitchen.
- Increase quality proteins, healthy fats, and complex carbohydrates. Learn about foods that fuel your metabolism instead of slowing it down.
- Buy a healthy cookbook, join online cooking tutorials, and keep it simple. Find an eating style that suits your life ie. paleo, keto, mediterranean, pescatarian, vegetarian or flexitarian.
- Find an exercise you will do every day – walking, dancing, swimming, cycling, yoga, and find a buddy or group where you feel welcome and comfortable to participate regularly.
- Commit yourself to new habits by diarising your health priorities like appointments. Excuses are easy to find, but when you schedule time for your health, you are more likely to stick to it.
Everything we do is a habit. Habits can change and we can create new ones any time we please. The question you need to ask is ‘how much am I willing to change in order to get what I want?’.
When it comes to your health, every day is a great day to begin again and do something positive to improve your health outcomes. If you started one new habit every week, that’s four new habits a month. Imagine how much you could improve your health if you began today?
And you don’t have to wait for the new year to roll around. If you have fallen off the wagon, reset a new start date like the first of the month and leave regrets behind.
The upside of creating new habits is endless. The most common improvements will be more energy and a better sense of vitality, clearer skin, deeper sleep, better mental health, less aches and pains, better bowel habits, and ultimately feeling more comfortable in your clothes that always felt a little too tight.
One last tip: don’t let negative self-talk stop you from starting. Use those nagging voices in your head to motivate you, to achieve even more than you have before and reach a level of health that will have those around you saying, ‘I want what she’s having’! It is possible and you can do it!
Your future is determined by what you eat, drink, ingest, consume, absorb, and excrete. Your longevity and quality of life is reflected by the habits you create along the way. Healthy ageing is not just a privilege afforded the few, it is a right of passage for everyone that defines a life well lived and loved.
Love yourself enough to commit to living a healthier life today and every day, and you too will slide in at the end screaming, ‘what a ride’!
Written by Mona Hecke
Mona Hecke is a degree qualified Naturopath, nutrition specialist and health and wellness writer.
With over 20 years in the health industry, beginning with a focus on children and families, and a bestselling book ‘The Lunchbox Revolution’, Mona is now empowering women through education and conversation to take action and embrace change. Gut health, mindfulness, nutrition, hormones, and menopause are the topics that women want and need to know to create their healthy future.
Mona holds certifications in Lifestyle Coaching, Kinesiology, holistic herbal medicine, and nutrition.
A recognised leader in the health industry, Mona’s strong social media presence and passion for influencing change will continue to be a catalyst for health reform for the benefit of every Australian.
