Ready for a fresh start? 10 incredibly helpful ways to kick-start your health goals for the new year

It was early March 2020 and I was just returning from a quick impromptu trip to the beach. As would be expected from any beach excursion, I was feeling calm, refreshed and rejuvenated. Of course I had the usual everyday stressors to return home to but nothing major. Everything suddenly changed when the world came to a grinding halt…
 
All things considered, I personally have little to complain about and I have to remain grateful. I’m fully aware of the devastating losses caused by COVID-19. It hit many people harder than it hit me. People lost loved ones, they lost jobs and they lost hope. Added to this, it was an election year and the country appeared to be as divided as ever. 2020 is a year that will surely go down in the history books. It was a year of unprecedented happenings. It was a year filled with strife, anxiety and uncertainty.
 
We now find ourselves on the precipice of a new year. As with any new year, this one brings with it the prospect of fresh hope. At the very least, we are beginning this year with a vaccine for COVID-19. We don’t have a crystal ball. We cannot know if next year will be better or worse (although it’s hard to imagine it could be any worse!). But there are some things we can do to grab the bull by its horns and make life start happening for us rather than to us.
 
New year, new hope
It’s quite normal to feel a period of letdown after exciting events. Holidays are hyped up for months. Expectations are high and are often times left unfulfilled. Then it all ends abruptly. Life returns back to “normal” (or whatever semblance of normal can be had these days!). It’s kind of hard to think about making healthy changes when you’re experiencing the post holiday blues. It’s even harder when you’re coming off the roller coaster of emotions endured in 2020. But sometimes planning for change is just the thing you need to do in order to bring yourself back up again.
 
So it’s time to get back in the saddle and ride towards the possibilities of a new year ahead!

10 ways to plan for a healthier year ahead
 
1.) Reflect on last year’s achievements
This builds confidence, or “self-efficacy” as it’s called in the health-coaching world. What actually went well this past year? It doesn’t matter how seemingly small your achievements were. Reflect on them and just build from there. You are capable of making a change and sticking with it if you really get your head in the game this time. And don’t beat yourself up too badly. You certainly weren’t the only one whose health goals may have been totally derailed this past year!
 
2.) Treat each morning as if it’s a new year
If only we could greet each day with the same enthusiasm as we do a new year, right? Well the good news is, we can! What’s stopping you? Forget all those twinkies you devoured the night before. Each day is a new beginning. There’s no rule that dictates when exactly you can decide to be a better version of yourself. Let the past be the past. Eliminate the black or white, all-or-nothing thinking. Regardless of what may have happened yesterday, (or last year), each and every day is a fresh start.
 
3.) Get a planner for health goals
I rely heavily on my Clever Fox planner to meet my goals. It allows me to make a plan for each day, week, month and year. It encourages me to zoom out on my life. One of the reasons I love it is because it makes me work backwards. It forces me to ask myself where I want to be and who I want to be one year from now. And then it helps me get organized. It breaks the year into manageable chunks.  It’s laid out neatly and it helps hold me accountable. I mean, what more can you ask for from a planner, right?
 
4.) Set a start date
3…2…1…GO! There’s something about delineating the present with the future. A start date does this. It clearly marks the end of one thing and the beginning of another. While we may seem naturally inclined to choose a new year to initiate change, it doesn’t necessarily have to be this way. Set a date, any arbitrary date, announce it to your family and loved ones, get excited about, prepare for it and then just begin!
 
5.) Have a contingency plan
Chances are if you’re reading this, you’re human like the rest of us. This means you’ll probably fall off track sometimes. It’s only natural! You wouldn’t be human if you didn’t sometimes fall flat on your face. But the difference between success and failure is if you manage to get back on your feet again. So have a plan in place ahead of time for those inevitable relapses and setbacks. This will help you get back on track again that much faster!

6.) Don’t change everything all at once
Your brain hates big scary changes. Keep your brain feeling comfortable and safe. Start with teeny tiny, easy changes. Biting off more than you can chew is a surefire way to fall back into your old habits. Don’t commit to running 10 miles per week right off the bat while at the same time overhauling your entire diet, quitting smoking and getting 8 hours of sleep every night. While all of these goals are great, they may be a bit too lofty to start with. Be realistic. Work up slowly, build some momentum, gain some confidence and be patient with yourself. Life is not a race.
 
7.) Rewrite your grocery list
Healthy eating is often at the top of everyone’s New Year’s Resolutions lists. Rather than changing up your entire diet all in one day, focus instead on adding an abundance of healthy foods. Don’t start off by plotting ways to deprive yourself of every possible gustatory pleasure. Instead, ease into your new change, particularly if you’ve failed before with too much too soon. Give your pantry a makeover, remove the temptations as best you can and find ways to enjoy healthier versions of your favorite foods. But again, take it slow. Give your taste buds a chance to catch up and regenerate.
 
8.) Have a workout plan
Set some SMART goals. Make the goals specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound. The more detailed your blueprint is the more likely you’ll be able to stick with the master plan.  You wouldn’t just say that you’re going to become a walker. Instead, you can commit to walking 5 days per week for at least 15 minutes at a time for the next month. Progress will be easy to measure and your goal can continue to be modified as you build consistency.
 
9.) Discover one new physical activity
Make sure it’s one that you will truly enjoy. I have a friend who’s getting back in shape by rediscovering the joy of rock climbing. Exercising does not have to entail a painful endless slog on a treadmill. Reflect back on your childhood and consider some of the physical activities you used to love. Revisit them if possible. Nowhere is it written that adults can’t also enjoy playful endeavors. There are countless meetup groups for people with shared interests. Explore all the possibilities that this beautiful world has to offer.
 
10.) Find an accountability partner
I can’t emphasize this one enough. Having a partner in crime to push you when your motivation levels are dipping can be so incredibly helpful. It’ll work both ways. There will also be days when you have to encourage them to keep pushing. It’s all too easy to break promises to ourselves. But it’s so much harder to break them with our friends and loved ones. At the start of every new year, my best friend and I sit down and write out our goals. We make plans and throughout the year we revisit them together, to ensure we are both on track. This works wonders for our motivation.
 
Planning with a holistic approach
If you’ve been following AndiamoFit, you’ve heard me say repeatedly that being healthy is about so much more than just eating well and exercising. Be sure to keep this in mind when setting health goals for a new year.
 
Get enough sleep. Reconnect with nature. Practice regular stress relief and self-care. Plan a trip that pushes you outside of your comfort zone. Pursue activities that put you in the zone. Pursue your passions, those things that require your full energy and focus in the moment. Let this be the year that you discover what makes your heart truly sing.
 
Takeaway
Okay. It’s time to hype yourself up...it’s a new year!! Life is too short to go through life aimlessly. Don’t let the days pass you by. It’s time to become mindful of your current trajectory. If you keep doing the same things each day, don’t expect to end up where you want to be. Small changes need to be made in order for you to reach your desired destination. And there’s no time like now to get started!
 
“Insanity: Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results” –Albert Einstein