When the first of the year rolls around, making resolutions tend to come easily—especially the ones targeting health and fitness.
But two or three months later, how many resolution-makers are still finding exercising regularly and avoiding fast food and cocktails easy?
While you may not have kept every single New Year objective, there are steps to help ensure that you stay on the healthy track year-round. Amid all the exercise trends, fasting strategies, and latest and greatest from medical science, it’s important to adopt a routine that is tailored to your lifestyle and health, explains C.B. Daniel, M.D., partner at Cenegenics Phoenix.
“Some of these work for some people but is it going to work for you?” Daniel says, suggesting that a full medical history, bloodwork, and physical will establish a baseline for this.
Sure, there are pricey gadgets, equipment, and personal trainers, but investing in your health doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg.
Daniel advises starting an exercise program. Doing something you enjoy—walking, yoga, or playing golf, for example—goes a long way in helping you stick to it. Even “exercise snacks” consisting of climbing stairs or standing and sitting down at your desk during the workday counts.
“It doesn’t matter how much time you have. Don’t have an hour? What about 10 minutes?” Daniel says.
Maintaining a good diet while eating and drinking in moderation are other inexpensive ways to stay in shape. Perhaps the most impactful is getting a good night’s sleep, yet the lack of quality shut-eye is often cited as a problem area for most, often because of stress.
“Sleep is important because it affects the production of key hormones, estrogen, testosterone, and the thyroid,” Daniel says.
If you are getting up several times or checking your phone during the night, your REM sleep is being interrupted. Daniel recommends speaking with a physician to determine the cause and natural solutions to address the issue rather than prescription medicines.
The key is incorporating an overall health routine that keeps you in it for the long haul.
“Look at what habits you can establish that can be permanent,” Daniel says. “It’s simple and comes down to nutrition, sleep, stress management, and consistency in an exercise program.”