Healthy New Beginnings

By Khalid McLeod, MS, NASM, ACE

KAM Life.

. http://www.kamlife.com/

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Healthy New Beginnings

Happy New Year, happy January, happy new beginnings. With the start of the new year, it will bring a rejuvenated version of yourself, that will include a renewed genre of optimism, hope, and new opportunities. So as expected, this month’s topic is – you guessed it, New Year’s Resolutions.
What is a resolution? According to Webster’s Dictionary, it is a firm decision to do or not do something, in terms of solving a problem, dispute, or a contentious matter. When thinking of your resolutions, as prior mentioned in December’s issue with holiday health tips, they should be S.M.A.R.T. goal oriented. S.M.A.R.T. stands for Specific, Measured, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-efficient.
According to a recent article published in Forbes Magazine in 2013, over 40% of people in the United States write down their yearly resolutions, and even post them in a highly visible area to remind them of these tasks. However, according to this research only 8% of people actually come close to achieving half of these initial goals.
So, let’s break down these S.M.A.R.T. goals, because success is paramount, regardless of what the statistics say. Let’s specifically look at this acronym:
Specific = Try keeping your professional, personal, financial and fitness goals separate as you brainstorm and decide how you are going to accomplish these goals in a systematic way. Be specific and concise.
Measured = Each goal should have a way to measure: stagnation, progression, and/or completion of the task, goal or resolution. Give yourself a short-term, mid-term, and long-term goal throughout the year to stay on target.
Attainable = Be honest with yourself. No one knows your strengths and limitations better than you. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t push for the highest heights, just understand prioritization, scheduling, and situational awareness, while leaving room for adversity.
Realistic = When you were organizing your ideas for this year’s resolution, did you take time visualizing it happening? What extra steps were taken that are different from previous attempts that fell short?
Time efficient = Challenge yourself to get these goals and tasks resolved. Give yourself a deadline. For example, try to get 25% of your resolutions accomplished in the first quarter.
In closing, visualize the mental and physical euphoria you will feel when these resolutions are complete. Defy and conquer, while challenging to be amongst the elite, or simply settle for the new and improved version of yourself that you will continue to love.