Happy 2013 to all : make it a healthy start to the new year

by Anne Myers-Wright RD/APD

Posted on Jan 1, 11:49 AM in and . No comments.

Happy 2013 to you all! I’ve always loved New Years Day. I’m not sure why, but it just seems to have an exciting feel to it- like you can start afresh and all things are possible for the year ahead. I guess for a lot of people, this means resolutions. Quite often, resolutions include those around health and diet and making positive changes to lifestyles.

So far, I’ve heard a good range of resolutions from a few friends/family and clients. These include:

  • lose weight
  • eat more vegetables
  • reduce food waste
  • make sure the family all eat together at the table
  • have breakfast every day
  • cut down on the junk
  • eat real food

Any time is a great time to make a promise to yourself to change unhealthy habits but I like New Year especially for this as most people are planning changed a safe and sensible way by looking ahead to a whole year.
So how do you make sure your “healthy diet” New Years resolutions are ones you can stick to this year?

Put the past in the past.

Ok, you may have overindulged over the Christmas period but don’t beat yourself up over it. It was fun but now let it go and move on to your healthy changes. Oh, and don’t let the Christmas season linger. The best way to address Christmas weight gain is to keep the seasonal eating to a fixed period. Maybe you can re-gift those chocolates or share any food gifts you may have received.

Make small and realistic goals.

Take some time to analyse where your real problems are. Write down what your day’s eating pattern is like and try to identify the most effective and achievable adjustments you can make to your eating plan. Make sure you are in it for the long haul and have a few small goals to celebrate successes with, on the way to long term changes. Take your time.

Get some support.

Whether it is changes for you or for the whole family that you are after, you will need some support to make your resolutions stick. Support makes a massive difference to whether or not your resolutions will be keepers. If you are serious about your resolutions, chat with your family or friend and make a plan together.

Don’t give up if you have a set back.

Hey, don’t worry about it. These changes aren’t for the short term, they are for life . If you lapse one day, just move on and put it behind you.
When I was a teenager, I used to listen to a diet guru on tapes and on a TV show he had back in the 80’s. My favourite line of his was for those who had “broken their diets”. It was along the lines of : “Ok, so you have made a mistake. Don’t say “I’ll start again monday”. Start again NOW”.

Good luck with whatever resolutions you have made for 2013. I’m hoping these tips will help you stick to them.
Please let me know what your diet resolutions will be for this year :)

Tags: 2013, New Year, Resolutions

About the author

Anne Myers-Wright

Anne Myers-Wright RD/APD

Anne is a Health Professions Council (HPC) registered dietitian (RD), an Accredited Practicing Dietitian (APD- Australia), a fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA), a member of the British Dietetic Association, The Nutrition Society and of The Dietetics Association of Australia.

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