It’s a New Year and time for a new you. Get started this January by celebrating Healthy Weight Week which focuses on making wellness a lifestyle by eating nutritious foods, staying active and thinking positively about yourself and others. Join the cause to get healthy with these tips:
- Set goals. Writing down your weight loss or management goals will help you take ownership over your health. Be as specific as possible with a deadline that is both challenging and attainable.
- Get moving. Go for a brisk walk, start dancing or find another aerobic exercise you enjoy. On average, you should get at least two hours and 30 minutes of exercise per week.
- Stay hydrated. Drinking water not only quenches your thirst, but helps you energize, focus, maintain a normal temperature and gets rid of waste.
- Get your sleep on. Getting enough sleep reduces stress levels and makes you feel more rejuvenated. Try to get six to eight hours per night.
- Step up. Taking the stairs burns extra calories and helps you form healthier habits.
- Switch up your diet. Focus on filling your plate with fruits and vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy products and protein-enriched foods such as beans, nuts and poultry.
- Get support. Confiding in loved ones who encourage healthy habits is a very important tool in your success with weight management and can make you feel comfort and stability.
- Focus on what you can change. You don’t always have control over what’s going on around you. Life will always have its ups and downs but making choices like packing a healthy lunch, choosing water over soda, or exercising before work are all things you can control.