The top of the best healthy resolutions for the new year

November 26, 2022November 30, 2022 Stephen PaulHealth & Diseases

New year often rhymes with good resolutions. About eight out of ten French people follow this tradition. In 2021, and given the current health context, the most popular resolutions are often related to weight, health and physical activity. Discover the top of the best health resolutions for this new year.

Index

How do you keep your resolutions?

Above all, there is no point in making resolutions to abandon them a few days or a few weeks after January ^1st . To keep its resolutions, it is necessary to:

Admit that we can’t change completely, overnight
Opt for resolutions that are credible, achievable and beneficial to you
Make a choice of a few resolutions, rather than wanting to modify everything
Write down the resolutions black on white (or make a vision board with talking pictures) and post them where you can see them
Agree to give up a bad habit, in favor of a better one
Give yourself time to fit the new habit into your daily routine
Observe the positive effects of the new habit, over the weeks
Start with small gestures, which will trigger a positive dynamic
Reward yourself when you progress
Find allies, who will be partners or sources of encouragement

What are the most beneficial health resolutions?

1- Stop smoking

Tobacco kills 75,000 people a year in France. So many people make the resolution to quit smoking . But at the right resolution, failure and relapse often follow. The vast majority of smokers in fact make 4 to 6 attempts to quit smoking in their lifetime, while most relapses occur within eight days of quitting. Also, to stick to your resolution and avoid serious illnesses (heart failure, myocardial infarction, cancer, etc.), a few tips can be useful:

Involve support, whether from the medical profession or a loved one, or even a former smoker
Temporarily avoid situations associated with smoking (break with colleagues, night outings, morning coffee, etc.)
Surround yourself with non-smokers if possible
Make up for the lack with physical activity
Use nicotine substitutes

2- Eat better

What do the French mean by eating better? For some, it’s about going organic. For others, it means looking at where the food you eat comes from. Finally, eating better can also mean rebalancing your diet. To eat well, you must first of all:

The food is processed as little as possible – raw and quality ingredients
It includes all the nutrients in suitable proportions – notion of diversity and balance
It meets the nutritional and energy needs of the person

Also, to eat better, you have to put in place a series of good habits, which will encourage the transition:

(Re)start cooking, rather than having the reflex of consuming prepared meals
Get into the habit of buying fresh ingredients: fruit and vegetables from the market, fresh fish and meat, eggs, bread from the baker…
Pushing yourself to be more curious, i.e. consuming products that you are not used to eating
Reconnect with bodily sensations – feel hunger again , the pleasure of eating, satiety
Limit the “home delivery” reflex, because it will always be healthier to eat a dish prepared by you, even if it is very simple, than to order a fast food meal

The benefits of a better diet are undeniable: you get less sick, you strengthen your immune system, you often lose weight, you develop your sensory skills…

3- Slow down the excesses

We talked about tobacco, junk food … Rightly so, since many people resolve to slow down their excesses. Too much coffee, too much night outing, too much alcohol , too much sugar or snacking … These behaviors, if adopted excessively, can have deleterious effects on the body:

Excess coffee causes undesirable effects such as great nervousness, sleep and mood disorders, disturbance of intestinal transit, stomach cramps…
Alcohol is dangerous to health and causes addiction, as it is a psychotropic substance. In addition, it leads to weight gain, dietary disturbance and, ultimately, liver poisoning.
Sugar is essential for the proper functioning of the body, but if consumed excessively, it can cause fatigue, an increased risk of diabetes , overweight, premature aging and cardiovascular disease.
Sleep deprivation caused by (too) frequent outings can really upset the body: decreased concentration, more difficult memorization, drowsiness, metabolic slowdown , degradation of immune defences.

To keep your resolution, you must first become fully aware of the excessive nature of your consumption/behaviour and act accordingly, gradually:

Limit yourself to 3 coffees a day and if possible, drink them before 4 p.m.
Do not exceed the recommendations of the health authorities in terms of alcohol: never drink more than 2 glasses a day and have several days of the week without alcohol consumption ⁽¹⁾
Avoid consuming simple sugars every day, favor complex carbohydrates during meals and prefer occasional consumption of sweet products , to reconnect with the feeling of occasional pleasure
Gradually limit the number of weekly night outings, prefer the weekend to indulge in them, and set a reasonable “curfew” time

4- Be more zen

Stress _ of modern life makes many people wish for the New Year to slow down. But it is sometimes difficult to keep this resolution, as everyone is carried away by daily concerns (professional, family, material). Yet stress is the enemy of health: muscle tension, digestive disorders, migraines, decreased libido, high blood pressure, weight gain or even sleep and mood disorders. To better manage stress and be more zen, it is first of all about recognizing the signs of stress (both physical and psychological manifestations) and not being in denial. Then it is necessary to verbalize his stress, by a discussion with his entourage and his doctor. Finally,

Avoiding sources of unnecessary stress
The development of his daily life accordingly (reorganization and/or delegation of certain tasks, for example)
Moments for yourself, where you let go, through relaxation exercises, breathing, meditation
A reintroduction of pleasure into daily life: a good film, a book, a walk, a visit to a friend or loved one…
The practice of a sport, voluntary work, a creative activity…

5- Get (back) into sport

Here is a very common resolution, which is always positioned in the top 3 resolutions of the French, each year. However, it is clear that the population is increasingly sedentary, especially women ⁽²⁾ . The time spent in front of screens, outside professional activity, is exploding. No wonder then that the desire to get (back) into sport is an omnipresent wish. Physical and sports activity has many health benefits: maintaining muscle mass, preventing many diseases, better bone capital, positive role in mood and sleep, maintaining a healthy weight … To keep this resolution, it is :

Introduce movement into your daily life: walking or cycling, active play activities (rolling, scooter, ball game, dancing, etc.), housekeeping (DIY, gardening)
Walk daily, up to 6000 steps/day
Gradually resume a sporting activity, with pleasure and not under duress. Also, choose a sport accordingly

As a reminder, the World Health Organization recommends, for adults aged 18 to 64, 150 minutes of moderate endurance activity or 75 minutes of sustained endurance activity per week, as well as strengthening exercises. muscle (fitness, yoga, Pilates) at least twice a week ⁽³⁾ .

6- Lose weight

Another popular resolution is to lose weight . Weight loss is indeed the most popular resolution in 2021. No wonder, since 57% of French people gained weight in 2020 (2.7 kg for men and 2.3 kg for women). The fault of the confinement , which caused the drop in physical activity, the increase in the feeling of anxiety and the propensity to snack. To keep the resolution of weight loss, it is better to adopt small progressive changes in your diet, rather than wanting to undertake a restrictive diet (which will undoubtedly cause weight regain in the weeks to come):

Reintroduce fruits and vegetables as the main constituent of the diet
Gently substitute fatty proteins for lean proteins , simple carbohydrates for complex carbohydrates
Gradually reduce your consumption of sugar, saturated fats , alcohol
Reinvest your kitchen and take pleasure in preparing your meals
Eating mindfully: avoidance of screens during meals, increased time given to meals, reappropriation of feelings of hunger and satiety

Dietary measures must be added, of course, physical activity. Effective and lasting weight loss will only occur if:

We intervene on food and sport
Food rebalancing does not cause frustration
The person questions their general lifestyle

7- Sleep better

The issue of sleep is increasingly discussed in the media. The sleep debt of the French is accentuated: in 30 years they have lost an average of 1h30 of nocturnal sleep ⁽⁵⁾ . So many people wish for more and better sleep. This resolution is relatively easy to keep. First of all, it is essential to regain awareness of your feelings of fatigue , in the evening: yawning, chilliness, physical weariness, itchy eyes. So many signs of falling asleep, which should not be resisted. Then, it is essential to put in place the conditions conducive to good sleep:

Regular sunrise and sunset times
Avoidance of screens in the hour before bedtime
Evening meal away from bedtime – ideally two hours before
Cool room, total darkness, comfortable sleepwear, quiet

These habits, which are not very restrictive, contribute to more restful sleep, less fatigue and a better quality of life in general. We must not forget that lack of sleep can cause serious health problems (from weight loss to depression).

Stephen Paul

Website | + posts

Stephen Paul is the lead author and founder of My Health Sponsor. Holder of a diploma in health and well-being coaching with more than 200 articles in the field of health, he makes it a point of honor to offer advice based on reliable information, based on scientific research, and verified by health professionals.