22, Jan 2025
The start of the year is a time of endless possibilities – a chance to reflect, reset and look forward to new accomplishments, make some new year's resolutions, or commit yourself to doing things differently in 2025.
The most common new year resolution is to improve your health. People often resolve to eat healthier, exercise more, lose weight or drink less.
Unfortunately, most of us make vague resolutions and end up abandoning them. We acquire our new fitness routine for a few months to eat healthier. Then, we get busy, lose focus, and return to where we were last year.
To avoid getting off focus, you need a good plan of action. Here's my guide to help you succeed at your healthy resolutions for the new year.
Setting measurable, meaningful, specific goals is essential to making New Year's resolutions attainable and realistic. Moderation is more likely to lead to long-term success than deprivation.
If you've got a sweet tooth, limit yourself to one or two sweet treats a week. Eat home-cooked meals at least five nights a week and limit eating out in a restaurant to two nights a week. Instead of red meat, eat chicken or fish at least four times a week. Eat five to six servings of fruit and vegetables each day.
Have no more than one or two drinks on any day. Do not drink at all on weekdays.
If you haven't been physically active in a while, approach your fitness goals methodically, with incremental increases in the amount and difficulty level of exercise.
Exercise 30 minutes daily, at least five days a week. Walk three miles each day and do strength-training exercises twice a week. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. 1-2 lbs. per week is an attainable goal for weight loss.
If you commit yourself to these specific benchmarks, your overall resolution of living healthier will be achieved. You can always change the specifics of these resolutions and choose the ones that make the most sense for you.
While a healthy diet, daily exercise, and limiting alcohol are essential, additional healthy habits help form a foundation for our goals, which are not hard to do. For example, many don't drink enough water throughout the day. Set a resolution to drink at least 64 ounces of water daily. You'll be better hydrated, have better control of your appetite, and be healthier overall.
All adults should get at least seven to eight hours of sleep daily. Sleep helps protect the heart and vascular system and keeps the mind sharp. It also helps regulate appetite; the more tired we are, the more likely we are to overeat.
Set yourself up to get a good night's sleep each night, which will aid your overall health and help accomplish your diet and exercise goals. A suitable resolution would be to go to bed, wake up at the same time each day and refrain from looking at a phone or other device in bed.
Effectively managing stress is one of the most important things we can do for our mental and physical health. Make time to relax, unwind, and recharge.
Limiting social media platforms can improve your physical and mental well-being. As much as we use social media to stay connected with loved ones and friends, restricting social media usage to 30 minutes daily can significantly improve your health by reducing anxiety, depression and feelings of loneliness and improving sleep quality. Excessive social media use often leads to unfavorable comparisons with others, exposure to stressful content, and disrupted sleep patterns due to screen time before bed.
While working towards a better you in 2025 is commendable, health and well-being are lifelong journeys. If you'd like advice on your goals and how to achieve them, speak with your healthcare provider.
Dr. Sue Mitra and her staff strive to offer their patients the best care, advice and services available in the medical field with the goal to keep patient healthy & happy.
Dr. Sue Mitra is board certified in international medicine. She is seen here with a Cologuard, which is a noninvasive colon cancer screening test. (Photo by: Tim Shortt/Florida Today)