Ditch the Diet, Start a Lifestyle Change
Another start of a new year is upon us and with it come the New Year's resolutions. Every January people vow to make positive changes in their life. One of the most common being to lose weight and get healthier.
Unfortunately, New Year’s resolutions are short lived, typically petering out by March. Combine that with the short-term nature of diets and you are setting yourself up for weight regain and frustration in the spring and summer.
Instead of making a resolution to lose weight or go to the gym, make a commitment to yourself to improve your lifestyle this year. Start small and let it grow as your lifestyle changes adapt throughout the year.
As your lifestyle changes become a part of your everyday life, the health benefits such as weight loss and increased energy will follow. Keep in mind that these are not your main focus, instead, these are benefits of positive lifestyle changes.
Keep the focus on changing your lifestyle and revisit the changes you made at the end of 2023. Use the end of the year to reflect on what changes became a part of your life and which you struggled with. This will help you decide on what changes to work on for the next year.
Getting Started on Lifestyle Changes
Lifestyle changes can be broad changes but it’s best to start off small, so you don’t become overwhelmed. Afterall, you have the whole year to make and adapt to your changes. Some lifestyle changes may be too difficult right away and that’s okay. You can revisit these changes later.
For now, start with some general lifestyle changes you think would be beneficial to you and write them down. This is just the brainstorming part so write down all the ideas that come to mind and don’t overthink them just yet.
Some examples of lifestyle changes are:
Be more active each day
Focus on meal quality
Work on stress reduction
Improve your sleep
Once you have written down a few ideas, choose which ones you think would be most beneficial to work on first. It can be just one change or several, just remember not to overdo it in the beginning.
Write down your chosen lifestyle changes somewhere you can keep safe and revisit them throughout the year. A digital file is best, but a journal or piece of paper works as well.
Next, make a plan for each lifestyle change to get you started. Keep this part simple and let it grow naturally throughout the year as it becomes part of your lifestyle.
An example of a simple plan:
Lifestyle change - Focus on meal quality
Plan:
Have at least 20-30 grams of protein at each meal
For animal proteins, choose lean options
Add plant based proteins (beans, quinoa, etc)
Have different colors on the plate (red, blue, green, orange, yellow)
Try new vegetables and ways to prepare or cook them
Fruits can make a great addition to meals as well
Have a source of healthy fats (Mono- and Poly-unsaturated fats)
Fatty fish (salmon, trout) are great sources
Use olive or avocado oil
Nuts and seeds make a great addition to meals
Use healthy cooking methods
Sauteing is an easy way to add healthy fats to your meal
Baking and grilling are easy ways to batch cook for meal prepping
Lifestyle changes lead to long-term results which have many impacts on your immediate health as well as your health 20-30 years from now. Unlike diets, which are intended to be short-term, lifestyle changes are meant to grow with you and be flexible.
Have fun exploring new ways to change your lifestyle and discovering things your old lifestyle kept you blinded to.
If you are struggling with deciding on what positive changes to make in your life or want help devising a lifestyle change plan, schedule your 30 min consultation to get started this year!
Written by: Adam Skowyra MPPD, RDN, LD
