New Years resolutions

You have not even finished cleaning up after Christmas and your mind is already thinking about how limiting your New Year’s resolutions will be? If one of those resolutions is the thousandth attempt to eat healthy; maybe, it’s time to rethink your goals and resolve to a different tactic. 

Entering a new year can feel like a clean slate, to many people, that they wis to engrave with their dream scenario. However, when taking on new resolutions it’s easy to lose connection to reality and take on either the impossible or a very ‘general’ goal which is very difficult to process. As opposed to happily completing what you set out to do, you end up with regrets and feelings of failure as you push your resolutions on to next year again. One of the most common resolutions is ’to eat healthily’ or even ‘live healthier’. The problem with these resolutions is that it’s impossible to change your habits from day to day and when you do, the results come slowly which can make the more impatient enthusiasts give up earlier than anything has a chance of happening. 

It does not matter when but if 

If, for some reason, you prefer to start in the new year, it can work out, but you must keep in mind that if you want the changes to be truly effective, the date is not important. What is important is the resolve to keep trying and not to give up after your first mistake. Changing your habits is not something that you can do from day to day and progress is definitely not linear. This path is often winding and unpredictable, it often requires improvisation but that is what makes it a solid foundation for habits that you may have for the rest of your life. You must also keep in mind that these changes are meant to improve and enrich your life not to make you suffer. When you start to feel like a slave to your own resolutions and you are suffering more than you are benefiting, then it’s time to reassess the path that you have chosen. Do not forget that each and every one of us faces stressful situations throughout the year that can throw you off balance. Every stressful period passes eventually. It does not matter that you are thrown off your new routine for a few days or weeks. The most important thing is to bounce back and continue. 

Just eating healthy is not enough 

Write your expectations down and give yourself enough space to bring them to fruition. If your resolutions are focused on weight loss or any other parameter of a healthy lifestyle; it is not enough to just say, “I’ll start to eat healthily”. That is very abstract and difficult to measure any results. Rather than doing that, try to revise your diet and select three new changes at the start of each month that you will implement, for example. It will be significantly easier to adhere to small changes that will slowly push you towards your goal, rather than uprooting your whole life and still trying to normally function around your friends and family, at work or in your free time. In your diet, focus on exchanging things for other things, rather than limitations. At the end of each month, don’t forget to reflect on how theses new changes make you feel. 

Tips for home-brewed diet revision 

1. Include a portion of raw or cooked vegetables in every main meal. 
2. Never forget to have a side dish with your meal. Cereals, potatoes, bread or legumes… 
3. Proteins are a must in every main meal. 
4. The foundational pillar of a drinking regime is non-sweetened drinks. 
5. Non-sweetened milk products should be a daily part of your diet. 
6. The ratio of protein and fats in cheeses should be around 2:1. 
7. Fruit alone is not enough for a snack. Supplement this with those milk products for example. 
8. When you are in a rush and have to miss lunch, at least have a snack. It’s better than being hungry all day and then eating out your entire fridge in the evening. 
9. If you are craving sweets in the afternoon, check the composition of your breakfast and lunch. Were there enough proteins and a side? 
10. If you are not sure how to start. Get help from a nutritional expert. 

Food ideas 

Complete main meals can be found in basically every national cuisine. All that you have to do is follow the golden rule that food has to have a source of protein and a sufficient side dish. Even if you mostly go to eat out and don’t cook so much at home, it should not be an obstacle. And if you are a lover of dumplings or pasta, I have good news for you, you do not have to give them up. All you have to do is just add a nice lean piece of meat to them. Vegetables count even when cooked. If you are having pasta, then ideally with beef ragout. Asian cuisine has a lot of fantastic meals such as pho or bun bon am bo and so on. And if you also love salads during summer, add a pastry to it. On the other hand, try to limit fried foods. If you absolutely love fried foods then leave it as the occasional treat maybe once a week. 

To have a New Year’s resolution is not a competition. Don’t be afraid to go at your own speed. It’s better to be a long-distance marathon runner than a sprinter which runs out of steam by February.