New Year New You......

As we approach the end of the first week of the new year I thought this would be a great time to check in. New year New you, what is your new years goal and how is it going so far?

A common goal for new years is focusing on becoming a better version of ourselves, whether your goal is fitness, health, inner peace, wealth etc. it doesn't really matter, the most important aspect is if your setting your self up for success.

To help bring some success to whatever goal you made I wanted to share 3 simple tips that I have found useful when helping my own clients over the years.

#1. WRITE IT DOWN- So many people start off making a statement of what they want to change or do but fail to follow through with putting pen to paper, its easy to imagine your new years resolution but writing it down makes it more real.

Whatever works best for you, write it in bold letters on a scrap piece of paper and post it on the fridge, create a bullet point list of all the goals, or create a vision board of images that reflect your goals.

And if you want to take it a step further keep a journal, I know this can be such a pain or may seem silly (I'm not a 15 year old girl in need of a diary), but if you keep a journal (maybe in the notes section of your phone), you can journal the successes and challenges you are experiencing while trying to attain your goal. This is such a great way to be able to see patterns in behavior or recognize triggers that may be throwing you off track.

#2. SMALL CHANGES ACCOMPLISH BIG GOALS- In order to accomplish your goal its important to ensure you start with small changes.

Here's an example, lets say your goal is to lose weight (this is a common new years resolution), you make a goal to lose 20 lbs. in 4 weeks (this is more challenging then you think), & you don't accomplish the goal so you give up by the end of January and go back to your old ways.

The issue here is that losing 20 lbs. in 4 weeks is actually very challenging and if you don't know all the steps to attain a 5 lb./ week weight loss goal (which I Don't recommend) you most likely wont accomplish it and then end up disappointed or upset with yourself and feel like a failure, which can then turn in to self pity or self sabotage, (GOAL SETTING- 2lbs. per week is the most I would recommend if your losing it in a healthy manner)

So instead of hitting that hamster wheel again lets approach this in a different way, think of starting off by saying " I want to Lose weight" and then focus your goal on making small changes to accomplish it.

See a couple examples below.

New Years Goal: "I want to lose weight"

Changes to make:

Week 1- Cut out highly processed foods, or snacking at night, & start walking. Take your measurements not your weight.

Week 2-Plan out your weeks meals and prep them each night before bed, increase your walking time or start body weight exercises at home 2x/ week.

Week 3- Continue the changes above and start tracking your food on a free app (ex. My fitness pal), this will help you understand the amount of Calories (energy) you are consuming.

Week 4-Continue the steps above, increase your exercise time & days and re-measure.

Consistency in the small steps above will help you accomplish your goal and each small success you have will encourage you to succeed at another small step.

New Years Goal: "I want to have a healthier lifestyle"

Changes to make:

# 1-replace ultra processed foods with more - whole foods, start cooking at home more instead of ordering out, (over time with the money you save you can apply your going out funds elsewhere to make more healthy lifestyle changes).

# 2- replace household chemical products with more natural ones (i.e. Dish Detergent, dishwashing detergent, laundry detergent, hand soap, cleaners).

# 3-replace some of your chemical Body products with natural products- checkout our products :)

#4- replace night "doom scrolling" with reading a book on your kindle app, any book would work but to encourage more successes try downloading a book that focuses on your health or how to improve it (i.e. mental, spiritual or physical).

#5- replace Teflon style cookware with stainless steel & cast Iron..... the list goes on :)

At the end of the 4 weeks you are not focused on a massive goal you are focused on small changes to create better habits which will support your end goal, this will allow you to feel successful as you accomplish each change instead of the looming BIG Goal.

What's the worst that can happen? you implement the small changes and you feel better! That is the true end goal.

#3. REPLACE YOUR POOR HABITS WITH POSITIVE ONES- When making any change it is so imperative that you replace your habits, a great example of this is someone quitting smoking or maybe cutting back on consuming alcohol. They quit but continue on as they always have, are they lining themselves up for success? Most likely not, because in order to succeed at that goal they will need to create new habits to replace the old ones. It doesn't have to be smoking this can go for any addictive substance whether its smoking, alcohol, screen time, social media, food, mindless shopping and so on.

Here's an example of what I mean below,

New years Goal: " I Quit"........smoking

Small Changes to make:

Morning Routine- what was your morning routine? have a smoke first thing, doom scrolling? change that to 5 minutes of simple meditation (tons of free apps and ideas for this, try a week free on BOHO Beautiful a great app with tons of choices for wellness like Yoga, Pilates, meditation and so on), maybe a brisk walk up the street and back or try a simple core routine on your bedroom floor.

Changing any addictive pattern or behavior needs to have a replacement so the key here is to replace it with something that is positive and will exert some type of energy from you physically, emotionally or mentally that will allow you to shift your thought pattern and take your focus off of the bad habit.

New years Goal: " I'm cutting back on alcohol"....

Weekend routine- what's your weekend routine look like? Are weekend nights out a trigger for having a drink ?

Small Changes to make- Plan out your days not your nights, make some day time plans to go out with friends, try a new activity at a local rec center or go for a hike.

Change your night time routine to self care- using some clean products to support your overall well being. Start a face regime then a foot bath..... the list goes on (Insert product endorsement here :)

Making these changes and creating healthier habits to replace the poor ones will help to solidify your success!!!

At the end of the day the true goal is to feel better and live a happier more fulfilling life, any steps you take in the right direction are good steps, don't beat yourself up and try to make it fun :)

Remember, motivation is momentary and doesn't last, it is not motivation you need it is discipline. Focus on creating discipline and continuing the small changes, with small successes your motivation will naturally increase.

Wishing everyone massive successes for 2025 <3

The Homemade Health Team