Nutrition/wellness: setting meaningful goals for the New Year (and some of mine)
I was in Buffalo over the holiday, in which there was a significant and tragic blizzard (a story for another day). Since we were confined to the house for most of our time there, much TV was watched, and I was astounded by the amount of diet and weight loss commercials. From random weight loss supplements, Slimfast (which oh my gosh, serious 90’s flashback), diets like Jenny Craig, Noom, etc. They were non-stop, and I constantly wanted to scream “none of these work!!” I think I did scream at one point, “how is this legal??” but you get my point. The New Year is prime time for diet culture to prey on post-holiday vulnerability, and I feel it’s my duty to guide you in another more health-promoting direction.
One thing that’s really easy to lose sight from when it comes to various weight loss diets is that none have actually been shown to promote health. Drinking meal replacement shakes, strictly limiting calories, following a rigid plan, avoiding several foods or food groups? Not helpful for blood sugar, maintenance of muscle mass, heart health, cognitive function, reducing inflammation, etc. (one may argue weight loss from these diets does benefit health, but not when that weight loss isn’t sustainable, negatively impacts metabolism and long-term cardiovascular health, to name a few).
What does promote health?
In my practice, I work with clients on nutrition and wellness-related goals that focus on behavior change. It is our regular, daily behaviors that have the biggest impact on long-term health and that we benefit the most from tweaking in a sustainable and enjoyable way. The New Year is a great time to set new goals focused on healthy behavior change that is meaningful to you. These can and should be super individual (and a great reason to work with a dietitian who takes you as a human into account); for example:
Eating breakfast with an adequate protein source every day (within an hour of waking up!)
Trying a fear or “off limits” food and processing how you felt in doing so
Avoiding caffeine after 12PM
Cooking two meals at home each week
Developing a relaxing evening routine to improve sleep
Mixing things up and getting out of your (possibly too rigid) routine by ordering takeout
Having a dedicated post-run or post-workout snack
Getting outside at least once per day
Drinking at least 2 liters of water every day
Trying a new cooking method for a vegetable you haven’t been super into in the past
Not going any longer than 3-4 hours without a meal or snack
The list goes on and on, but goals like this can be further broken down into a plan to make them happen and sustain them. Any and all of the above will benefit you much more than any trendy (or super antiquated) New Year’s diet.
My goals
I do love this time of year as sort of a reason to focus on self improvement and refocus on behaviors that may have fallen by the wayside. A couple of the goals I have this year related to health and wellness are:
Go to an in-person yoga class once per week - I’ve been doing Peloton yoga classes at home for the last few years, but pre-pandemic I LOVED going to in-person yoga classes. I went to one this morning and it was so refreshing and enjoyable.
Try one new recipe each week - this is a tough one because I have my old standby favorites, but also know I need to mix things up more. One of my lovely clients gifted me this cookbook and I can’t wait to dig in.
Drink 2-3 liters of water daily (depending on the season and my level of activity) - it has been a lot harder to keep up on hydration since I started working from home full time, but I’ve developed a better system lately that includes drinking at least 12-16 ounces first thing in the morning (very helpful for the all-important pre-run poop. No such thing as TMI here).
Eat more/enough fats - not sure of my running goals yet this year, but my mileage is consistently and comfortably in the 40s each week and for me, that comes with high energy needs that can be a challenge to meet (lots of my clients fall into the same category!). Fats have more calories per gram than protein or carbs and are SO helpful in meeting higher energy demand, and certain fats like olive oil, fish, avocado, nuts, seeds, nut butters can also help reduce inflammation. I am no stranger to cheese, whole milk yogurt or a delicious burger either.
Happy New Year, friends!
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