Tips for a Healthy New Year

Simple Tips for A Healthy New Year 

The start of a new year can feel like a new beginning, a clean slate, and a fresh start.  A perfect time to shed old ways that no longer serve you and start new habits that help mold you into who you want to be.  That is why this time of year is known for New Year Resolutions.  Unfortunately, big resolutions made January 1st don’t always stick.  However well-intentioned and motivated we may seem at the beginning of a New Year, research (and my own experience and probably yours too) confirms that by mid-February most resolutions have been abandoned.  Let’s try a new strategy for a healthier you this year. 

Instead of thinking about what you shouldn’t be doing or want to stop doing, or a complete life overhaul, let’s focus on bringing more into your life to improve it.  Starting smaller healthier habits that focus on adding things that are better for you might be more likely to stick, rather than trying to stop some big habits cold turkey or completely changing your routine. 

Drink More Water 

Drinking enough water is required for your body to function in general. It can also help prevent or improve some health issues. Several health problems may also respond well to increased water intake like constipation, urinary tract infections, kidney stones and dry skin. Hydration also helps our bodies regulate its temperature, prevent headaches, give us energy for daily life and our workouts, supports gut health, helps ward off disease and promotes better skin. Being adequately hydrated can even help your brain function better!   

How much water do you need? Every single body technically has a different fluid intake requirement (dependent on unique factors such as age, sex, body mass, lifestyle, climate/environment, and activity levels). But having an estimated guideline can be helpful: The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics recommends nine cups daily for women and 13 cups for men. Most health experts generally recommend drinking around two liters a day, or about eight 8-ounce glasses of water.  

Aim to increase your daily water intake and see how you feel after a few days of consistently hydrating more.  Remember if you are thirsty, you are already dehydrated!  Filling a reuseable water bottle and carrying it with you can help you remember to sip from it throughout the day.  Others find it easier to drink a glass of water before each meal.  Find what works for you to drink more water!  Start slowly and add one glass or bottle of water to your current daily intake.   

Focus on Fruits, Vegetables and Protein 

Instead of eliminating certain foods altogether or trying a trendy “diet”, it can be more effective to focus on good things for you and adding them in slowly.  Rather than being on or off a specific way of eating, strive to eat more fruits and vegetables and have protein and fiber at every meal or snack.  Focusing on adding these will help you feel fuller and naturally a little easier to limit or avoid foods with lots of added sugar or high levels of sodium. This will help to keep you feeling full while potentially eating fewer calories which can aid in weight loss and provide you with more nutrients that will keep your body healthy.  

Move More  

Every minute of moving your body counts toward feeling better and being healthier, both physically and mentally.  Studies have shown that if you spend most of your time sitting, that even an hour at the gym doesn’t completely negate the negative effects of sitting the rest of the day.  Finding ways to move throughout the day, even just for a minute at a time, will benefit your overall health and reduce your risk of cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes.  

If you have an Apple Watch, it prompts you to stand up at least 1 minute an hour for at least 12 hours a day.  Don’t ignore this reminder!  While you’re up, move around a bit. Get some water. Stretch. Visit a coworker. It may sound like a small thing, but regular movement can help keep your energy up and lead to greater productivity. 

A few ideas to get more movement in:  Play with or walk your dog (no dog?  Volunteer at an animal shelter to walk dogs), play active games with your family like charades or hide and seek, have a dance party, take a break and walk around the house each hour for 2 minutes, pace or walk around when you are on the phone, get up and move anytime a commercial comes on while watching tv.  Experiment with different ways to get more active in your day-to-day life. 

Walk More 

Walking is a low impact exercise that is easily accessible to most people and can significantly improve your overall physical and mental health.   

To be considered active, some researchers say you need to walk at least 5,000 steps, or about 2.5 miles, per day.  Studies show that if you walk 4-5 miles, or 8,000-10,000 steps, daily you will see the most health benefits and improve your lifespan. Walking at least 8,000 steps per day (about 4 miles) seems to improve heart health and lower the risk of premature death. Don’t stress if you can’t do this every day:  Hitting this goal once or twice weekly can still lead to significant health benefits.  Also, it doesn’t need to be done at once.  You don’t need to go out to walk miles at a time if you don’t have time, shorter walks throughout the day all add up. 

If you’d rather track your walking by time instead of mileage, you can.  It might be better since many people walk at different paces or on different terrains.  Experts recommend walking briskly for 150 minutes each week, or roughly 22 minutes daily.  

If you aren’t active now, ease into it by walking just a few hundred more steps each day or a few extra minutes per day and slowly increase that over time.  For example, if you have a smart watch or other step counter that you can check to see how many steps you have been taking, and you currently walk 2,000 steps a day, strive to add 500 steps each day for a total of 2,500.  Once you feel comfortable with that, aim to do 3,000 steps a day and so on.   

Make this year your healthiest yet!  If big resolutions don’t work for you, that’s okay.  Try these manageable ideas of adding more to your life.  Consistency is key, not perfection.  It’s not about intensity; it’s about adding more healthy things to your life that you can do most of the time that will improve your health for the long haul.  Don’t be afraid to experiment with different ways to move more throughout your day, drink more water, walk more and eat more fruit, vegetables and protein.  Focus on the habits that make you feel good so you can spend this year feeling happy, vibrant, and fit. 

References: 

1. Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. How much water do you need? 

1. Banach M, Lewek J, Surma S, et al. The association between daily step count and all-cause and cardiovascular mortality: A meta-analysis. Eur J Prev Cardiol. 2023;30(18):2045. doi:10.1093/eurjpc/zwad263 

1. Inoue K, Tsugawa Y, Mayeda ER, Ritz B. Association of daily step patterns with mortality in US adults. JAMA Netw Open. 2023;6(3):e235174. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.5174 

1. Dunstan DW, Howard B, Healy GN, Owen N. Too much sitting--a health hazard. Diabetes Res Clin Pract. 2012 Sep;97(3):368-76. doi: 10.1016/j.diabres.2012.05.020. Epub 2012 Jun 9. PMID: 22682948. 

1. American Heart Association.  How to Move More Anytime, Anywhere