Realistic Goals for the New Year

I hear it every day during the holiday season..."I am starting my diet and exercising every day starting January 1st!". Yep, and for most people that really means I will start on the 3rd or 4th and continue for 1 day to 1 month before going right back to my old ways. Why? Because very few people change their whole life all at once and never go back. My advice is simple. Stop playing the "all or nothing" game.

A realistic plan that includes using sense during the holidays is a good way to start (all holidays, not just Christmas). The holiday season should not be an excuse to eat ALL DAY, everyday. This is true for a couple of really important reasons.

1. If you are like the average American, you will gain 7-10 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Years doing that. That is OVER 40 HOURS of exercise or over 24,500 calories that need to be cut! Statistically, most people don't even stick to their resolutions long enough to undo that damage. Now, if you were to use some sense and only splurge a bit and throw in some short exercise sessions and you might limit it to two pounds. That is less than 12 hours of exercise or 7,000 calories to cut. Combine diet and exercise and two pounds comes off in a week.

2. If you are used to eating every time you see food, how hard is it going to be to suddenly eat less than "normal?" It is hard enough to cut calories from your regular diet. It is much harder to go from excessive eating and constant snacking to trying to get by on 3 small meals a day.

OK, I know it is too late to go back and use sense over the holidays, so we need a realistic plan for getting going in 2011. Here are a few tips to help get you started to better and LASTING fitness and eating habits.

1. PUT DOWN THE COOKIE! (Just kidding, unless you are actually eating a cookie!).

2. Start drinking lots of water. Most holiday food is high in sodium and many of us drink too much alcohol or caffeine during the holidays. This can lead to water retention and dehydration. Dehydration makes you HUNGRY. VERY HUNGRY! Put the water back and save yourself a lot of pain.

3. Do a bit of planning for your meals and shop accordingly. It is easier to make good food choices when those are the ONLY choices in the house! Don't buy a bag of chips and expect not to eat it. You need to plan for snacks and meals and buy ENOUGH food. Don't pretend you aren't going to eat anything. You will end up making a trip to McDonalds or somewhere else for a snack! Almonds or low calorie popcorn or rice cakes can make good snacks to satisfy cravings for chips. If you are a coffee drinker, decaf flavored coffee with or without Stevia or Splenda and some low fat milk can help with a sweet tooth craving. Buy ingredients for specific healthy meals like stir fry (no fried rice and no take out), or fajitas with LOTS of peppers and onions and fresh tomatoes. One chicken breast is plenty to feed 2 people if you use a lot of veggies. Also, try making a bowl of fajita ingredients and skip the tortilla. Add extra veggies to pasta sauce to bulk it up. If you want meat, use one or two hot Italian turkey sausage. You will get a lot of flavor for a few calories.

4. Choose a reasonable exercise starting point. If you haven't worked out in years, do not start with running and do not make your first workout so intense that you cannot move for the next three days. Start with 20-30 minutes on the treadmill or elliptical machine and build. Nothing stalls an exercise plan like excessive post-workout soreness. You want to aim for 4-6 days per week and 30-60 minutes each time. To get there, start with 4-6 days per week, but keep the intensity down and see how you feel before adding more. 20-30 minutes on a bike is a great start! Ultimately, it cannot be where you end if you really want to get healthy, but it is a very good place to begin.

5. Think HEALTH more than weight loss. Aim for 6-8 servings of fruits and vegetables a day (and not the syrupy or cheesy kind). Try to go meatless several meals a week. Allow for some treats too. It is OK to have a cookie now and then, but that CANNOT mean every day. If you are in the habit of having dessert after meals, that is something that needs to go. Meals should not be REWARDED with more food!

There is so much to say on this topic, but this is a good start. Being healthy is a choice, but it is NOT and absolute. You can have the things you crave, but not all the time. There are a lot of yummy substitutes out there.
Exercise is its own reward once you get started. You will have more energy, sleep better, feel less stressed and weigh less. What's not to like? Seriously, it's not that bad...

Have a Happy and Healthy New Year!