7 New Year’s resolutions health experts wish you’d really make

Ditch those pie-in-the-sky New Year’s resolutions you make annually. With these doctor  — and nutritionist-approved goals, you can be healthier and happier in the new year minus the impractical factor.

As compiled by Huffington Post, Reader’s Digest and Health magazine, adopt these pledges for a fitter 2015.

1. Eat more

Eat more of the right foods! “We’re big fans of goals that start with ‘eating more’,” says Lauren Slayton, director of Food Trainers, New York. For instance, resolve to fit in more probiotic foods, like low-fat yogurt, apple cider vinegar and tofu to improve your mood and slash cravings. If you do want to cut out guilty pleasures like decadent desserts and fatty meats, don’t abandon them completely. “Instead of having red meat every week, say, ‘I’ll have red meat once a month’,” says Keri Peterson, MD, an internal medicine physician at Lenox Hill Hospital. Enjoying your cravings once in a while will make staying on track the rest of the time less punishing.

2. Sleep a bit earlier

If vowing to get eight hours of sleep every night is totally unworkable, tell yourself you’ll go to bed 15 minutes earlier than your usual bedtime. “Keep shifting that number earlier and earlier, rather than unrealistically vowing, ‘I usually go to bed at midnight, now I’m going to bed at 10,” says Roshini Raj, MD, an assistant professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Centre and co-founder of the skin care company TULA. “Everyone has time to go to bed 15 minutes earlier. If you keep doing it, eventually you will be going to sleep an hour and a half earlier.”

3. Clean your mind daily

Mind-clutterbugs, this one’s for you. Instead of telling yourself you’ll be more organised this year (as you’ve vowed last year and many years before that), try meditating once a day. “When people are stressed, hurried, anxious, or depressed, they don’t want to keep their place clean,” says Sherry Blair, PhD, a positive psychology expert and University of Southern California adjunct instructor. “Mindfulness will help centre you.” In a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine, researchers found 30 minutes of meditation every day improved symptoms of depression and anxiety in participants after eight weeks. “When people start cleaning up, you can tell they’re feeling better,” says Blair.

4. Take steps to lose weight

Literally, take more steps. “Instead of just worrying about working out during the week, I want my clients to turn their focus to accumulating more steps during their day-to-day activities,” says Shannon Fable, director of exercise programming at Anytime Fitness. “Even 500 extra steps for five days will lead to significant changes.” Schedule breaks during the day to stroll around the block or walk to your coworkers’ desks instead of emailing. This way, you’re focusing on overall wellness and healthier arteries rather than just shedding pounds. “The goal should be achieving a healthier lifestyle, not just losing weight,” says nutritionist Rania Batayneh, author of The One One One Diet. “With wellness, weight loss can happen naturally.”

5. Define every day

Pick a new word to live by each month (say, “friendly” or “wholesome”) and apply it to your daily routine, introduce yourself to that new neighbour, or swap your favourite fast food joint for some home-cooked daal once a week. “That’s a really great roadmap,” says wellness expert Sadie Nardini, author of 21-Day Yoga Body. “So many people move through the year without a clear purpose. If I had a word, it would probably be integrity — to me, that means I’m taking actions that feel aligned with my health and happiness.” This will help you channel positivity throughout your day.

6. For cigarette quitters, splurge on something nice

The catch being you can only use money you save from not smoking. “Smoking increases your risk for every disease out there, from heart disease to cancer,” says Leana Wen, MD, an emergency physician at George Washington University and author of When Doctors Don’t Listen: How to Avoid Misdiagnoses and Unnecessary Tests. “If I could advise anyone to make any New Year’s resolution, it is to stop smoking.” If you’re one of the nearly 70 per cent of adult smokers who want to quit, it’ll likely be hard to stop all of a sudden. For extra motivation, pick a “splurge” item once a month that you can only purchase with money not spent on cigarettes.

7. Journal your favourite things

Instead of resolving to simply “be happier” this year, write down what you’re thankful for each morning. “No matter how challenging life is at that moment, take time, even if it’s in bed, to remember everything you do have,” says Nardini. “This will help you have more joy in your life.” A UCLA research has shown that those who regularly journal what they’re grateful for sleep better, work out more, and visit the doctor less. If keeping a journal isn’t your thing, take a minute every night to ponder on the things you’re grateful for.

Compiled By: Umnia Shahid

Published in The Express Tribune, December 27^th, 2014.

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