A Resolution Sustained!

All my life I’ve heard people making New Year’s resolutions … and the jokes about how long those resolutions hold up. I’ve made and abandoned New Year’s resolutions enough that I was reluctant to make them any more. And I was not alone. I’ve read that only 8% of people keep the resolutions they make at this time of year.

So why is it so difficult to keep the resolutions that we make? Is it because they are often made as brash statements without a plan to carry them out? Or because they are unsustainable?

Rather than trying to eat the elephant in one taxing bite, why not select one bite to chew and swallow at a time … it would be much more reasonable, much more attainable. Consider which of these “bites” you will take and absorb into your life.

Don’t Set Weight Loss Goals
Focus less on your weight and more on improving your health. Trade unhealthful practices for healthful ones – replace the soda that you have been drinking with sparkling water or kombucha, or replace the artificial sweetener in your coffee with stevia extract or coconut palm sugar. Make better choices and you won’t have to deprive yourself.

Don’t Give Up Carbs
Woohoo, you say! But let me clarify. You need carbohydrates for quick energy and going without them is unsustainable. Rather than giving them up altogether, choose better carbs. Try quinoa or brown rice instead of white rice and steel-cut oats instead of processed, boxed cereals. Visit my Clean Eating Classes to learn more about better ingredient choices.

Instead of a Crash Diet or Liquid Diet …
add one green drink each day. Add chlorophyll-rich greens like spinach, kale and collards to almond milk, or juice them, for a burst of nutrition that can alleviate cravings. Often your body expresses its need for nutrients through cravings – but we generally answer those cravings with further non-nutritive foods. Choosing a green drink each day will boost your energy and get you off to a good start.

Change One Meal a Day
Instead of jumping into an extreme diet overhaul that will overwhelm you and be unsustainable, simply focus on changing one meal every day. Rather than eating your usual egg-and-cheese sandwich or bagel for breakfast, try oatmeal, eggs cooked with veggies, or a green smoothie (combine this tool with the last one) and observe how it changes the way you feel through the morning.

Changing just one part of your day will influence other choices you make about eating. One manageable step at a time will produce more lasting results than a few days trying to fulfill a drastic New Year’s resolution.

Last thing … what is your WHY? The best motivation for making changes is having a reason and a vision for the change. That’s your WHY. When you keep your WHY in mind, you will find staying the course much easier. Share your WHY with someone close to you so that they can encourage you in the process.

Have a blessed 2015!