Healthy Habits for the New Year
Healthy Habits for the New Year
By Katie Bigley
The new year is quickly approaching and it’s a popular time to set new goals for the year but one of the biggest challenges is how do you get yourself to stick with those goals through the year? I reached out to Damon Gibson with Nutrition HQ, a supplement store located in Quincy, IL to share his tips on taking those goals and turning them into a sustainable lifestyle that you can carry with you for years to come!
What is a common mistake people make when establishing new healthy habits?
The biggest mistake people can make when setting new habits or goals for the New Year is trying to do too much at once. While it’s great to have a long list of things you’d like to achieve or change over the New Year, it’s very easy to become overwhelmed with everything you have tasked for yourself.
To set yourself up for success – take your big goals and break them down into smaller goals that will build upon each other and ultimately lead to the big end goal. Damon suggests thinking of it like a gradual curve – say your goal is to eat healthier come the New Year. What defines eating healthier to you? Is it less fast food and more home-cooked meals? Less junk food and more fruits and vegetables? Less sugary drinks and more water? Be specific to yourself and don’t try to drastically overhaul your diet/routine overnight. Damon suggests setting 1-2 smaller goals for yourself each week. If your goal is to “stop eating fast food” and “start working out” instead reframe it to “limit fast food to twice a week” and “go to the gym twice a week”. This breaks the ‘large’ goals of “stop eating fast food” and “start working out” into smaller, more achievable goals that are more realistic for you to stick with long term. By the end of the month, you will have new healthier habits that will become part of your new routine.
What are some ways to make healthy habits more sustainable and less likely to be abandoned after a few weeks?
Damon is a big believer in the reward system, which he refers to as the “light at the end of the tunnel.” In other words, celebrate your small victories and give yourself something to look forward to! “I’m gonna stick to my diet all week and meal plan all week, well, hey Saturday night comes around and I’m gonna go out and have a cheat meal and enjoy it with my friends,” says Damon. Damon mentions the 80/20 rule. If you have never heard of the 80/20 rule, it is described as a flexible approach to eating and living healthy 80% of the time and relaxing and indulging a little more 20% of the time. This provides sustainable balance to your lifestyle, allowing you to still reach your goals while not missing out on any good, fun stuff.
Another important aspect to sustaining healthy habits is not being too hard on yourself. Mistakes and slip-ups will happen, but it’s how you handle those setbacks that really matters. If you had a bad day where you didn’t make it to the gym or maybe you indulged a little too much throughout the day, that’s okay! It does not mean that all your progress is ruined and there’s no point now. Just tell yourself tomorrow is a new day and you will get back on track. Being patient with yourself and trusting the process while staying in a positive mindset are key to making these new habits a part of your lifestyle that you can healthily maintain.
What are some tips for incorporating healthy habits into a busy lifestyle?
“If you know you live a really busy lifestyle, maybe take one day, Sunday for example, and plan out a couple days’ worth of what you’re gonna eat or at least make something so that you have it on hand and ready to go so that way if you are busy and you don’t get a chance to stop and cook, something is already made for you,” says Damon. Planning is key to keeping yourself on track with your goals and it prevents you from making any excuses! Plan to meal prep your lunches for the week so you aren’t tempted to grab fast food on your break and take the tiresome guesswork out of “what’s for dinner?” by planning out your dinner meals a week in advance. If you find yourself not having the time or energy to cook dinner every night, there are tons of crockpot recipes online that you can throw together in the morning that will be ready for you by the time you get home from work! By taking these small, proactive steps, you are leaving no room for excuses and only setting yourself up for success!
The same applies to exercise as well. If you know your busy schedule doesn’t allow you to make it to the gym every day, that’s okay! “You can plan ahead and maybe have a couple of at-home workouts ready to go for you,” says Damon. Even if you only get 15-20 minutes to squeeze in a quick home workout, something is better than nothing! You can even break it up throughout the day, 10 minutes in the morning, 10 minutes in the evening.
If you have young kids and find it hard to get 15 consecutive minutes alone – make it a family-friendly task! Go for a walk together, run around the yard, or look up kid-friendly workouts that you can all do. You really can get creative with how you fit your physical activity in – it doesn’t always have to be a strict routine solely at the gym.
What are some ways to make healthy eating more enjoyable and less restrictive?
Have fun with it! Eating healthy doesn’t have to be the same boring, bland chicken and rice every night of the week. There are so many recipes online that are healthy AND satisfying! My favorite way to find new recipes is by scrolling through Pinterest. I typically search “healthy dinner ideas” and then I’ll pin the recipes to my boards, sorting them out by what protein they use like beef, chicken, or turkey. This makes it so easy to go back to my board and browse recipes depending on what protein I have on hand. Keep yourself interested by trying 1 or 2 new recipes every week and find a few good staple recipes to add to your rotation. Here are a few of my favorites:
- 4 Ingredient Brown Sugar Garlic Chicken
- Ground Beef Teriyaki Stir Fry
- Spicy Salmon Bowls with Rice
- Greek Chicken Bowl
Eating healthy doesn’t mean getting rid of everything “good”. Damon suggests finding sugar-free condiments, and lower carb options for tortillas and bread. Also, seasonings! Boring chicken and rice? Spice it up with some fajita seasonings and fresh bell peppers! Do you want tacos for dinner but don’t want the extra fat? Swap the ground beef for ground turkey. You can even swap out sour cream with plain Greek yogurt! If you have your favorite recipes, go through the ingredients and see if there’s anything you could swap out for a healthier alternative.
Any tips for how to stay motivated to exercise?
Give yourself something to look forward to afterwards! It can truly be anything that brings you joy and keeps you going. Tell yourself “If I make it to the gym or exercise every day this week, I’ll treat myself to something nice on Saturday.” Damon says his favorite thing to reward himself with after sticking to his goals for the week is going to get a coffee. It can really be as simple as that. It’s all about the habit/reward system. Always celebrate your small victories! Also, the longer you keep going to the gym or sticking to your exercise routine, you will begin to see the results you wanted. Guess what a good motivator is? Seeing improvement in yourself! It doesn’t always have to be a tangible reward, sometimes just knowing that you went to the gym or went for that run when you really were not motivated to, is a reward itself!
On the days I really don’t feel like working out, I tell myself “You will feel so much better afterwards.” This has proven true every time as I’ve never finished a workout and said “Dang, I regret doing that.” Instead, I think to myself “Wow, I’m really glad I made myself go.”
What advice would you give to someone who wants to start their health journey?
Damon’s best advice for someone who is just starting their health journey is to start small and ask questions! While it might be intimidating to ask questions, tell yourself that everyone was new just like you at one point. This will help you gain useful knowledge to better your health journey and set you on the right path. Another thing that Damon mentions is surrounding yourself with a good group of people. Find people who will uplift you and support you on this new journey. Surrounding yourself with like-minded people will encourage you to keep moving forward and you can help hold each other accountable.
Whatever your New Year’s goals may be, just remember, getting started is the hardest part. Think of where you want to see yourself next year and hold that image in your mind as you work towards those goals every day. There will be good days and bad days but remember to stay positive and patient with yourself and always celebrate your small victories along the way! You got this!!!
A big thank you to Nutrition HQ and Damon for helping me out with this blog!
Happy New Year!
