12/18/2024
Setting New Year’s resolutions can be exhilarating or exhausting. Stop doing this, start doing that, exercise more, eat less. It’s enough to wear you out before you even get started.
But the key to achieving your resolutions can be as simple as believing in yourself and spreading your goals throughout the year. Take things one moment, one day, one week and one month at a time.
Do that, and you’ll have an attainable plan for achieving what you set out to do. And if you slip up, don’t consider yourself a failure. Just take a deep breath and keep moving forward. Each month could be the beginning of your next healthy change.
A healthy weight can help prevent heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and certain types of cancer. So keeping your weight in check is imperative for better health.
To help reach and maintain a healthy weight, focus on including the following in your meals and snacks: fruits and vegetables (the more colorful the better); whole grains; lean proteins, including skinless poultry, beans, tofu and fish, such as tuna and salmon; and nuts and seeds. Also, limit sweets and sugar-sweetened beverages, saturated fats, sodium, processed foods and fast foods.
Try to eat mindfully. Mindful eating, eating slowly and enjoying each bite, is one way to avoid overindulging.
The American Heart Association recommends adults get 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity physical activity or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity, or a combination of both. Using weights or body weight to do strength training at least twice a week is also recommended.
That’s about 30 minutes on five or more days a week. You can break up your time into exercise “snacks” – a brisk 10-minute walk in the morning, taking the stairs at school or work for another 10; maybe some jumping jacks, sit-ups and other exercises later in the day. For strength training, you can do pushups on the countertop or squats during TV commercials.
Immediately performing Hands-Only CPR – be it on someone you love who has had a heart attack or on a total stranger – can triple their chances of survival. That’s a good figure to remember if you’re wondering whether learning CPR can make a difference.
Hands-Only CPR is a two-step process. It’s easy to learn, and there are no rescue breaths needed. Plus, you can hum a catchy song to keep up the rhythm.
Decide that every day this month, you’ll do one kind thing for someone. Hold the door open. Tell your exercise instructor her class was great. Let the person with only two items go in front of you at the grocery store. You’ll feel better; they’ll feel better. Plus, surprise! Kindness is good for your health.
If you’ve had your yearly checkup, learn what your blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar are. If you haven’t had it, make an appointment and find out. Your numbers are crucial to staying healthy. Your health care provider can help you find ways to get and keep them in check.
Water keeps the body hydrated, which helps your heart pump blood more easily and helps muscles work more efficiently. Drinking enough water is important all year round, but especially during the summer to replace fluid lost through sweating.
How to know if you’re drinking enough water? The color of your urine will be a very pale yellow. The darker the color of your urine, the more you need to be hydrating.
Look at the growing array of fresh produce at farmers' markets and your local grocery store. This is a perfect time to add peaches, squash, corn and other colorful fruits and vegetables to your table. They’re not processed, so they are especially good for helping keep your sodium levels down (which most of us need to do).
Smoking, which you probably know, causes a multitude of health problems. It has been linked to heart disease, stroke and other chronic diseases. Smoking can also increase your risk for several types of cancer.
If you don’t smoke, don’t start. If you do smoke, remember that you start getting healthier from the moment you take that last puff. Quitting isn’t easy, but you can do it! Effective tools to help you include behavior modification programs, nicotine replacement products and medications.
We all need sleep. It restores, processes and strengthens our immune, muscular, nervous and skeletal systems. The AHA recommends that adults aim for an average of 7-9 hours of sleep a night – even those who swear they can get by on four hours or less. Sleep doesn’t come easily for everyone. If you have trouble getting to or staying asleep, start by stepping away from your phone and other electronic devices an hour before bedtime.
It’s all about moderation, of course, but this time of year, sugary foods – Halloween candy, Thanksgiving pie and December cookies – take center stage. Push most of them away and let healthier foods take their place. For instance, you can make healthy snacks for yourself, such as nuts, carrot sticks and air-popped popcorn, and keep them handy. When you’re tempted to snack on holiday sweets, enjoy these healthier options instead.
Let the name of this month’s holiday guide you: Give thanks. Start by writing down three reasons you’re grateful. They might include spending quality time with your family. A phone call from a friend. Enjoying a walk with your pet. Having a friend stop by unexpectedly. Expressing gratitude feels good. No wonder it’s good for your health, too.
Take five minutes every day – that could be three minutes here, two there – to pay attention to yourself. Focusing on your breathing can help. So can walking to the corner and back as you take in the welcoming holiday lights, the smells of fireplaces and gingerbread, the sounds of children and familiar songs.
Source: American Heart Association