Only 77% of RESOLUTIONS are successful after ONE week...
Only 55% are successful after ONE month...
40% after six months...
It's not so much the initial ACTION that gives folks problems (making the resolution to get healthier or lose weight, then taking the first few steps to make it happen), but more so the MAINTAINING of this action that becomes the unmanageable or old news.
There are THREE really cool things about getting started DURING the holidays:
1. Emotions are RAW during the holidays. Emotional eating is something that sabotages a lot of people's goals. Emotional eating is eating for any reason other than physical hunger. This could be for comfort, distraction, reward, escape, etc. During the holidays, our emotions are heightened and exposed. This can make it easier to identify patterns like loneliness --> pie. Even if we don't stop or change that pattern, this time of year can be helpful for gathering data on our habits to work with later.
2. If you can do it now, you can do it any time.
SOOO many people tell me "I'll start after the holidays", but then something else comes up, and it's "after that" or "after this". These are all conditions, and your health and goals should be unconditional. They should be priority #1. Or at least #3 or #4... definitely top 5 ;).
I promise you, if you can learn to take care of yourself at this time of year, you will be much more committed the rest of the year. You will have already laid down the foundation for new habits. Imagine how awesome your life would be if adding a pile of spinach or a handful of pumpkin seeds were as much of a habit as putting cream in your coffee or going to the break room for a cookie ;)
3. Not going backwards makes it a lot easier to move forwards. Picture it, it's January 2nd and all the parties are over, the cookies are eaten, and now it's just you and your health goals. Maybe you want to lose weight, eat more vegetables, eat cleaner, or workout more. Whatever it is, doing what we can from now until January 2nd will help A LOT. The goal will seem less overwhelming if we make progress in whatever little ways we can now. Maintaining the weight you are now rather than gaining, adding one more vegetable at dinner, taking out one cookie a week, doing 5 pushups a day, these are all steps in the right direction. Baby steps in the right direction mean we won't be digging ourself out of a hole later. EVERY LITTLE BIT COUNTS because it all adds up for better or for worse.
Your TO-DO List:
1. Drink a glass of water (because it's easy and 30% of the time we feel hungry, we're actually thirsty).
2. Consider the AbundeDETOX to get things started.
3. Set up a session before things get too crazy. THERE IS STILL TIME.
4. Make this DETOX SOUP (because it's yummy and good for you).