It’s a new year! A chance to set goals, make resolutions, and a fresh start! According to the Pew Research Center, about 3 in 10 Americans make New Years Resolutions with most of the resolutions focused on health. Of the 70% of Americans who do not make resolutions, it is often because they don’t like to or it is too hard. Unfortunately, within 3 weeks, many of the resolutions that individuals make fall by the wayside for various reasons.
Rather than setting high, lofty goals for your resolutions, you can do some simple things that make a big impact on your health over time! Being successful with little things helps you achieve bigger goals more easily. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time!
Daily Goals and Healthy Habits
1. Drink water. Have a large glass of water first thing in the morning to help your body rehydrate. Add some lemon, ginger, or a splash of cayenne pepper to warm water to help with detoxification, metabolism, and hydration.
Sip on water throughout the day as your bowel, skin, liver, kidneys, joints, muscles, red blood cells, and everything need proper hydration to work. Avoid large amounts of cold beverages at meals as this impairs blood flow and dilutes digestive juices compromising digestion.
2. Chew food thoroughly. Chewing food well allows salivary enzymes and mouth microbiome to start working on digestion. It places less biochemical and mechanical work on the stomach and pancreatic functions. The result is better nutrient absorption, less burping, gas and bloating, and overall less stress on the entire digestive system, gut-brain-vagus nervous system and microbiome. Remember the last time you inhaled a burger or pizza and beverage in 5 minutes or less? How did you feel?
3. Choose whole food, 80-90% of the time. Rather than breaded, deep fried chicken strips, how about grilled chicken? Or change the French fries to sweet potatoes? Carrots, celery, and nuts, etc. provide a satisfying crunch.
4. Sit down at a table to eat. Eating while standing, driving, or other interferes with digestion and stresses your nervous system.
5. Read food and beverage labels. Strive to consume 25 grams or less of added sugar per day. Sugar sabotages health.
6. Set a regular wake-up time and bedtime. As tempting as it is sleep in on your days off, your circadian metabolic-hormonal rhythms thrive better with consistent wake and sleep times.
7. Go for a 30-minute walk at least 5 days a week or engage in 150 minutes of exercise per week. Walking after a meal helps digestion and bowel motility. Any exercise that you enjoy is the best choice.
8. Do a few minutes of stretches before you go to bed or while you are watching TV.
9. Legs Up Wall Yoga Pose. This easy, gentle stretch-pose helps lymph and vascular circulation in your legs, relaxes your back, and relieves stress. It promotes more restful sleep when done before bed.
10. Three meals per day. Regular mealtimes without snacks allow your body time to digest food and provide a framework of intermittent fasting optimizing leptin, insulin, blood sugar metabolism, and mitochondria function. Watch meal portions. Use a smaller plate to help portion control. Read or re-read The Leptin Diet book
11. Check your breathing. Are you a chest breather or belly breather? Do your shoulders raise up or does your belly go out when you breathe in? Belly breathing is a healthier, more relaxed breathing behavior allowing greater lung expansion and reduced stress on the nervous system, as well as neck and shoulders.
12. Take your supplements as directed each day. Set them out the night before or use a 7-Day pill container.
13. Give a word of encouragement or a hug and focus on gratitude each day. This helps your brain feel less stress, provides joy, and helps your immune system.
14. Spend time outdoors daily or several times a week if possible. Being outdoors, viewing or thinking about nature engages in the production of anti-inflammatory chemicals helping your neuroimmunoendocrine system de-stress.
15. Take a high quality bioactive multiple vitamin and omega-3 fish oil supplement every day. All ages can benefit from these essential nutrients. Multivitamin choices for various ages include Daily Energy Multiple Vitamin, Daily Prenatal Multiple Vitamin, or Super Mini Multi. Omega-3 superior quality no-burp fish oils thoroughly tested for impurities include Daily DHA, DHA Kids, or Leptinal.
Other great daily formulas include Daily Bone Xcel, Daily Detoxify, Daily Protector Eye & Immune and others as we have numerous supplements to choose from.
16. Turn off screens/tech devices 2 hours before you go to bed. The blue light emitted from these devices interferes with melatonin, the natural sleep hormone. Use black out curtains and lower the thermostat in your home before bed to help promote quality sleep.
17. Consider a food diary for 3 – 7 days to watch your diet and habits. It helps keep you accountable and provides great insight into strengths and weaknesses. There are many websites and apps that provide this support.
18. Engage and support your vagus nerve with humming, gargling, listening to Mozart, etc to support gut-brain health. More information may be found in the article Vagus Nerve Vitality: Calming Stress and Restoring Gut Health.
19. Subscribe to Wellness Resources weekly newsletter for the latest, cutting-edge information on nutrition to keep you and your family energized and feeling great!
20. Refer a Friend to Wellness Resources and make sure to sign up for Wellness Rewards to help them along their health journey!
Little changes and reminders of good habits can help you take positive steps to reach your health goals without a complete overhaul! You can do it!
