Kick Start Your Journey in Health & Wellness by Justin Metcalf

The new year is upon on us, and many of us have decided to renew our resolutions from years past.   I want to lose ten pounds. I am going to run a half-marathon. I am really going to watch what I eat.  These refrains probably sound very familiar, but where do you start?  Below is a list of ten starting points to help you begin your journey in health and wellness.  The first step is the toughest, but just tell yourself that it isn't hard, it’s just challenging! Meet the challenge.

- Set a goal and tell everyone about it (i.e. I am going to do the Ride For Roswell this year!)

Voicing your goal to others will make you more accountable to its completion.

- Keep a food journal

            This will start to show you which foods make you feel great and which foods make you feel sluggish.

- Take up a lifetime activity and do it regularly

Choose something you enjoy - golf, bowling, snowshoeing, cycling!

- Eat your dinner on a salad plate instead of a dinner plate.

If we have a large plate we feel the need to fill it.  The smaller plate will decrease the amount of excess you consume during meals.

- Hire a personal trainer and embrace the new learning experience

            Employing a guide to help steer your course to health and wellness may ease any nervousness or anxiety that you might feel

- Stay to the outside perimeter of the grocery store.

Processed foods (mostly located at the center aisles of your local grocery store) offer limited nutritional value.  Stick to vegetables, lean meats, nuts, seeds, and some fruits.

- Take a yoga class.

Yoga will help develop strength, flexibility, balance, and body awareness.

- Make fitness a family affair.

Go for a walk, run, or ride with your significant other, kids, pets, or friends.  Being active is always more fun with a workout buddy.  

- Already active? Try some cross-training.

You may already ride your bicycle, so try swimming (Carly's Crossing will be here before you know it!).  Cross-training will help keep workouts interesting and fresh.

- Start small.

If you’re not sure you can sustain big sweeping changes, try a small commitment.  For example, take a multi-vitamin and fish oil (for joint health) every day.  Accomplish that for one month (it take 30 days to establish a habit!) and you're heading in the right direction.

There are countless ways to kick start your health, pick one and ride, (Ride For Rowsell) run, (Tops 5K) or swim with it! (Carly's Crossing).

By Justin Metcalf

Personal Trainer