KEEPING RESOLUTIONS
Be SMART when setting healthy lifestyle goals this year
It’s almost the end of January and some people may be coming to the realization that New Year’s resolutions are easier to make than keep. Health experts often explain the objective should be a lifestyle change, which takes time to create.
Lifestyle changes, such as adding more vegetables to your diet or exercising 60 minutes every day, are created by forming new habits. According to research published in a 2009 edition of the European Journal of Social Psychology, it takes an average of 66 days for an activity to become a habit.
Well-thought-out goals with solutions for challenges will help people achieve those fitness and nutrition resolutions made this New Year.
“Because there are many ways in which one’s health can be improved, identifying specific and actionable goals is important for facilitating health behavior change,” stated a 2017 edition of the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine.
The Center for Healthy Eating and Activity Research of the University of California San Diego School of Medicine, recommends using the SMART goal method to develop healthy goals that will lead to lifestyle changes. SMART is a goalsetting tool often used in business and professional settings but can be used in other life areas as well. The acronym stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-Bound.
For more information about the SMART method and tips on how to stay focused, visit www.health. harvard.edu/mens-health/ an-easier-way-to-set-andachieve-health-goals.
S SPECIFIC
Wellness goals should be clearly defined and not vague. Making a goal to eat healthier isn’t very detailed and doesn’t create an objective to truly strive toward. Instead, set a specific goal such as eating six servings of vegetables per day, removing soda and other sugary beverages from your diet, or eating red meat options only once a month. Examples of specific physical activity goals include walking 30minutes a day, going to the gym four times a week, or going for a 20-minute bike ride two times per week. The more specific you can be then the better.
M MEASURABLE
A fitness, nutrition, or wellness goal should be one that can be measured so that you can keep track of progress. Just saying that you will lose weight doesn’t create a goal that can be measured or lead to the success you can track. Instead, the goal should be something such as will lose 1 to 2 pounds per week for the next three months. Another example is jogging 10miles every week until the end of the year. Goals that can be measured allow for accountability. Use a journal or a phone app to keep track of your progress.
A ATTAINABLE
For a wellness goal to become a lifestyle habit, then it must be attainable. The goal should be something reasonable and not something that isn’t likely to happen. A great way to make goals attainable is by breaking down long-term goals into smaller short-term goals. Instead of making a goal to lose 50 pounds in 2 months, break that down to say lose 2 pounds per week over 6 or 7 months. The goal shouldn’t be too hard or too easy. The right kind of goal will be a challenge, but one that can be achieved with some effort.
R REALISTIC
Goals should be realistic and not something that will be impossible to accomplish. Creating a goal to run five miles every day isn’t very realistic for someone who has no running experience. Making unrealistic health goals will result in setbacks and failures, which could lead to giving up the goal altogether. A more realistic goal for someone who has never run before would be to do a couch to 5K program. This type of program increases someone’s running ability in small intervals by switching from walking to running for short periods.
T TIME-BOUND
For a goal to be successful, it needs to have a start time and an anticipated end time. Giving a goal a deadline makes it easier to track progress. A goal without a timeframe is basically just a wish. To see that wish become a reality then it’s important to have a date of when the goal will be accomplished and create checkpoints to monitor success. An example can be a goal to start eating plantbased meals three days a week beginning on Monday and continuing for the next five months.