Did you know that, on average, one out of every three Americans makes healthy New Year’s resolutions each January? People set healthy goals for losing weight, exercising more, and getting better at maintaining their health. However, most of them do not reach their goals and easily give up on their resolutions. Do you know why?
It’s because they set unrealistic goals that are hard to achieve! When it comes to healthy resolutions, one must think about improving health and wellness naturally instead of going on restrictive diets and unhealthy routines.
Intense changes can lead to an early burnout, and the New Year’s resolution will not last even a few months! This makes it crucial to break the cycle and find healthy solutions!
8 Healthy New Year’s Resolutions that Are Good for You
You need to make New Year’s resolutions that are easy to maintain and enjoyable for you. What’s the point of having healthy New Year’s resolutions if you can’t enjoy them while staying healthy and fit? So, if you are ready to change this new year into a healthier one, add these resolutions to your list!
1. Limit Your Sitting Time
Too much sitting can lead to serious health risks and increase the overall mortality of a person. It’s normal to have a sitting job that requires sitting for long hours, but you need to find a way to balance the work time with your no-sitting time.
You can make it your healthy resolution for this year to sit less and move around more. It’s one of the simplest fitness goals to achieve that will positively impact your lifestyle. If you have a desk job that dictates long hours of sitting, you can take a 5-minute break per hour to walk for a bit and return to your work.
2. Make Time for Quality Sleep
People understand that having quality sleep is important, but they remain sleep-deprived for almost the entire year. There could be many reasons for not getting enough sleep. Some of them are screen time before bed, light pollution, too much caffeine, etc.
Lack of sleep can lead to major health risks like depression and heart diseases, which you need to avoid by making one of the simplest healthy New Year’s resolutions – getting quality sleep! You can try different methods to improve sleep, such as using a sound machine, a sleep mask, or sleep vitamins.
3. Prepare Home-Cooked Meals
A study has shown that people who eat more home-cooked meals per day are likely to have better health compared to those who eat on the go. They have less body fat and are comparatively less overweight. It’s a benefit enjoyed by those who cook healthy meals at home!
If you want to improve your health this year without following a strict diet plan, make this one of your New Year’s resolutions for good health and wellness.
4. Limit Alcohol Intake
Although wine consumption can be beneficial for your health, it can negatively affect your wellness and fitness goals if consumed too much. Therefore, make it a resolution this year to limit your alcohol intake and indulge in healthier options like sparkling water, kombucha, and fresh fruit juices.
You do not have to let go of alcohol entirely—you can consume it at a reasonable rate to maintain your healthy New Year’s resolutions plan. You can set your weekly consumption limit to weekend nights and have non-alcoholic beverages with your weekday meals.
5. Set a Screen Time Limit
Research suggests that more screen time leads to depression, loneliness, and anxiety, which impacts other areas of life. More people spend their free time scrolling through social media or watching TV for hours, leading to unhealthy life choices, especially with food and drinks.
If people limit their screen time and focus more on other activities like exercising or spending time with family and friends, it can improve mental and physical health.
6. Set Aside Time to Pamper Yourself
People with busy schedules or important responsibilities need a timeout from their hectic life and so taking some ‘me time’ out of the weekly schedules is necessary. Do not make it your this year’s resolution only; make it a lifetime’s resolution to practice self-care and take time away from life.
It’s imperative for your health and wellness to relax and enjoy some time on your own. You can attend a weekly yoga class, take a weekly bath, go camping every few weeks or get extra sleep—do whatever you think will relax you.
7. Find Your Physical Activity
As part of their healthy New Year’s resolutions plan, people often make impulsive decisions like purchasing expensive gym memberships and spending money on online fitness programs. While, in fact, what they need is a simple way to stay fit without spending on things they will not use after a few weeks.
Therefore, we recommend searching for the one (or more) physical activity you enjoy and sticking to it. Something that you can easily fit into your schedule and are excited about doing every day or week. This could be anything from a 30-min walk or bike ride to a swimming session at the nearest gym!
8. Give Meditation a Try
Meditation may not directly impact your fitness goals, but it’s essential for mental well-being. It can help with anxiety, depression, and negative thoughts. We all know how work and life-related stress can lead to feelings of despair, but you can make it one of your healthy New Year’s resolutions to let go of those feelings.
You can find many ways to meditate effectively. Some of them include using apps, podcasts, books, and meditation tools.
Wrapping It Up
Healthy New Year’s resolutions do not have to be impossible to maintain for the entire year. Keep them simple and enjoyable so that you can improve your health and feel energized to repeat the goals for months. Health goals that are easy to manage such as the ones listed above will improve your physical health and keep your mind relaxed and happy.
So without feeling stressed about your New Year’s goals, give some of these resolutions a whirl and see how your life changes for the better. Good luck and Happy New Year! https://www.nutritionwithwellness.com/self-care/
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