The Health and Fitness Truth Blog

New Year’s has come and gone and I for one am glad! It marks the end of the gluttony of the holiday season, and the beginning of a great time to “restart” and recharge. Many of us will make health and fitness resolutions this time of year, but will those resolutions really stick? Historically speaking, research tells us no: that 60% of us will forget about our exercise plans by April. Can we beat this sad statistic? I believe we can, but only if we work on our internal “mindset” BEFORE we begin to work on outside physical changes.

We all have an internal tape that plays constantly, often negative words we have heard as a child, or words created and echoed by past failures or setbacks. We must change this negative mindset into a positive one- we must “spin” things in a way to convince ourselves that we are strong, we can override a bad day, even a bad week, with healthy choices, and that exercise and eating well are a joy, not a burden.

For example:

• If your internal tape says “I’m so tired, I do not have energy to exercise” spin this to “I’m a bit fatigued from my day, but exercise will make me feel energized. I can’t wait to get on my treadmill!”
• If your internal tape says “I only have 20 minutes to exercise, It’s not worth it” change that tape to say “I’m going to use these 20 minutes to get a little exercise in- something is better than nothing! I’ll feel so much better afterward!”
• If your internal tape says “I must go on a diet, I can’t be trusted to make choices for myself” change that tape to “I am looking forward to learning to eat well and trust myself. I don’t need to deprive myself. No one is perfect. If I can make small changes every day, this will make a big difference.”
• If your internal tape says “I hate salads, what I really want is French fries!” change that mindset to “Salad is really healthy for me, and I need my vegetables. French fries won’t give me the healthy vitamins and minerals I need today.”

Exercise adherence and nutritional success is 80% mental. What separates those who succeed and those who fail, are those who do the “internal” work first. Start today- make a list of all the negative things you may usually say to yourself, and change them to positive thoughts. Keep that list near and read and repeat the mantra when needed. It makes a huge difference!

This is the time of year when most of us reflect back on the past year and set goals for ourselves for the upcoming year. Many of these goals involve getting healthier-and that also means losing weight for a vast majority- especially after the mind numbing, overeating holiday season we have just experienced. New Year’s Resolutions have become somewhat of a joke- as research has shown that within 6 weeks, most of us have forgotten and forgone any attempts at sticking to our resolutions. One reason that we dump our resolutions so quickly is that we often make resolutions that are too binding, strict or impossible to keep, all based on unrealistic expectations of ourselves.

So- how do we set realistic goals that allow us to find success and stick-to-it-ness in 2006? I believe that the goals you set for yourself right now should be based on where you have come from last year. For example- if you are a non-exerciser, promising to exercise 6 days a week is too big a leap of faith. Start by resolving to exercise 3 days a week to start. Make that an absolute committment. It is doable for EVERYONE, regardless of busy lives and hectic work schedules. This committment can be kept throughout the year- or can be increased over time once you have stuck with the initial stage. And, if you are already exercising and have consistently exercised 3 days week, make your resolution to now exercise 4-5 days week.

Nutritionally, we tend to make the same mistakes.”I’m giving up sweets for the year” is a common resolution. But, this is overly binding for many of us, and once you give in to your inevitable cravings, you may feel like you have failed completely and thus give up on trying at all. Try this instead:
-If you eat sweets every day- commit to cutting out sweets every OTHER day. Try this step first- see if it is doable. Once you have succeeded here- THEN can you update your promise to yourself as you feel necessary.
-OR- if you usually have 3 cookies a day- first cut down to 2 cookies, then to 1 cookie. Take it step-by-step. OR, substitute a lower calorie sweet for your high calorie treat and begin that way. A fudgesicle at less than 100 calories is a fantastic change over a bowl of Haagen-Daz. And, while it may not taste exactly as good- it might be just enough to keep your resolutions intact!

If you are trying to lose weight- DO NOT EXPECT to lose more than 2 pounds a week It just isn’t possible. Nutritional programs like Jenny Craig or reality shows like The Biggest Loser highlight incredible weight loss which sets us up for false hopes. While it is true that in the first week of a severe diet, many people lose weight dramatically, any weight loss of greater than 3 pounds is due to water loss and muscle tissue wasting- not true fat loss.

Finally, weight loss and good health is ONLY achieved and sustained by a committment to exercise. There is absolutely no getting around this fact!