Resolutions for a Better You: 9 Tips to Help Keep Your Weight Loss Resolution

It’s finally March, and hopefully the beginning of the end of a long, cold winter. Have you been keeping up with your resolutions by incorporating the tips we provide to you at the beginning of the month? If you are, you know that donating blood made you feel great, and you’ve added steps to your day to help keep your activity level up and the weight off. This month, we have another resolution to help you on your way to a healthier you—lose or maintain your weight by making some small habit changes.

1. Don’t think of it as a “diet,” because diets with a beginning and end don’t work. Just make small, lifelong changes to your eating habits for a healthier you. 
2. Begin your day by drinking one or two glasses of water—this fills you up and begins cleansing your system first thing in the morning.      
3. The decision about what you are going to eat begins in the grocery store-fresh is best! Spend most of your food budget in the outer aisles of the store—that is where the fruits, vegetables and dairy sections are and tend to be the best choices.
4. When you eat, be sure to have lots of colors of food on your plate (as a rule of thumb, about ½ of your plate should be fruits and/or vegetables).
5. Try to limit red meat to 1-2 servings per week, and make sure your choices are lean.
6. Bring healthy snacks to work—such as fruit, yogurt or nuts—so you won’t be tempted to eat less healthy choices when you’re hungry and your self control is waning.
7. Stop and think before you “grab” a snack. Check the serving size, and make a decision before you start eating about how much you plan to have.
8. Slow down your eating and try to savor every mouthful. Don’t eat in front of the television or computer.
9. Eat only when you feel hungry, and only eat enough so that you are no longer hungry. Eating until you are full means you’ve eaten too much! 

When it comes to food, making the right choices will help you keep your resolution to achieve a healthier you in 2014!

By Ellyn Troisi, RN, MPH, FNP-C

Ellyn is the Employee Health Nurse Practitioner at the Gurwin Jewish Nursing & Rehabilitation Center. To learn more about Gurwin's family of healthcare services, visit our website at www.gurwin.org.