Building Healthy Habits This New Year
- Niamh Fogarty
- Jan 8, 2024
- 4 min read
Goodbye 2023, hello new year new me!
2023 is behind us, and we can now move forward into what we hope is a happy and healthy new year! For many people, the new year brings a sense of relief and a spark of motivation. It is a chance to reverse the unhealthy habits that we have succumbed to, and the perfect opportunity to start fresh again following the Christmas festivities.
Unfortunately, this time of year is also the prime time for fear mongering on social media, with some influencers and health pages pushing their fad diets and extreme weight-loss programmes. Don’t be fooled by this! You can lose your ‘Christmas weight’ and have a healthier lifestyle this year, diet free. But it all starts with building healthy habits.
Food is fuel, not the enemy!
There are six basic nutrient groups; carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, mineral and water. All of these are essential and play important roles in maintaining healthy bodily functions (Figure 1), so there is no reason why you should be completely cutting one or more of these out of your diet!
Figure 1. Sourced from Nutritional Health and Wellness with Peter Walters
During my own weight loss journey, I learned that it is important to have a positive relationship with food. I started building on this by changing the attitude I had towards eating and being less restrictive with the foods I ate.
In the past, I would have only allowed myself to have a treat as a reward for doing exercise which, looking back now, was too restrictive and made me crave sugar even more! Unbeknownst to myself, I was also creating a bad relationship with exercise; as what was once an enjoyable outlet in my life, now became a chore and a punishment for eating something ‘bad’. Once I was able to recognise this, I changed my approach and slowly incorporated healthier food and exercise habits into my life.
How can I build healthy habits with food and exercise?
Tips for building healthy habits with food:
Get into a routine of eating a good breakfast. This will help set you up for the day and limit the amount of snacking you do between meals.
If you struggle to eat fruit and/or vegetables whole, then try making smoothies or soups instead. Not only are they quick and easy to make, but you can take them on the go.
Meal prepping takes time but in the long run saves time! It can be very easy to fall into the trap of ordering a takeaway when you have just finished training and can’t be bothered to go home and make food. Knowing that there is a ready-made meal waiting for you at home can eliminate this.
Satisfy your sugar cravings with substitutes. For example, instead of having a bar of chocolate or a can of coke, why not try a slice of toast/scone with jam or a glass of mi-wadi juice. Of course, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with having sweet treats from time to time, but it is important that you know your boundaries. In the wise words of Sharon Madigan – “eat the chocolate, enjoy it, and move on!”
Tips for building healthy habits with exercise:
Don’t make exercise a chore. The great thing about exercise is that it comes in many different forms, so why not do something that you enjoy?
Add variety to your daily exercise routine. This keep things fresh, allows the body to recover after sessions and can also help with motivation.
Sit less and move more. If you work in a job that requires you to sit at your desk for most of the day, make a conscious effort to get up and move. Your neck and back pain will thank you!
Smart watches are great in that they send you reminders to get up and move so that you can achieve 1000 steps per hour. Don’t have a smart watch? Try setting alarms or reminders on your phone.
Although our habitual behaviours can be difficult to break, many of you will know from experience that building new habits and sticking to them can also be difficult. Why is this?
As highlighted in one of our earlier blog posts, one of the many reasons why your new habits can keep failing is it that you are looking for too much too soon or have set unrealistic goals and expectations for yourself. At the same time, if these new habits are creating too much friction in your life and require a lot of thought and effort, it can make sticking to them even more difficult.
So, don’t make these mistakes this year! Start slow and keep it realistic. Focus on what you can do consistently for a long period of time rather than going all out from the start (Figure 2). You don’t want to over-do it too soon and then crash and burn.
Figure 2. Sourced from @thiswomanlifts on Instagram
Tips for goal setting:
Long term goals give you a sense of direction, but setting small daily and weekly goals can keep you on track.
Write down your goals and what you have achieved. It can be very easy to give up on your habits when you don’t see the results. Short-term it may be hard to see the results but keeping track of your goals and what you have achieved can help with motivation, particularly in times when you start to doubt yourself about the progress you have made.
Small reminders throughout your day can also help with motivation and remind you of your goals in times of temptation or doubt.
As always, if you need help with your training or lifestyle goals, be sure to get in touch and we will be more than happy to assist you reach your goals.
Instagram: @jamesgreenehpa
