Start small. Decide on one small change you would like to make and focus on that. For example, I’m going to include a fruit at breakfast in the morning during the weekdays or I’ll work out before dinner time on weekends.
Make it specific. Instead of I will eat healthier, try I will add one more vegetable to my dinner two times this week. It is often helpful to write this goal down and post it up somewhere where you can see it often – like the fridge, kitchen cabinet or the mirror in the bathroom.
Don’t look too far ahead. Focusing on eating fruit at breakfast is a lot more realistic than committing to eating 5-9 servings of fruit and vegetables every day for the rest of your life.
Choose a start date and reassess date. Keep track of your progress on paper –even if it’s a note on your calendar, a post-it-note, or a note on your phone. After 7-10 days see if you’ve achieved it. You may be ready to add another health goal or try a new strategy to achieve your goal to switch things up.
Add new goals slowly. As this new change becomes easy and routine, make a new goal. You might make your goal a bit more challenging- for example, work out before dinner on weekends and on Wednesdays. Or, you can add a new goal such as taking a family walk together each Thursday evening.
Stay positive. If the goal you set just isn’t working, try making a more realistic goal instead of giving up completely. Remember if you want different results you’ll have to change what you’re doing! Set a goal that is more manageable and realistic, then with each success, you can build new goals.
Get the whole family involved. Do your children also need to make a change towards healthier living? A family effort can help support them. Learn more about parent role modeling.
