Veteran Doctor - Episode 7 - Make Your New Year’s Resolutions Stick!

Good Morning Veterans, Family, and Friends, welcome back to the SEVENTH EPISODE of the Veteran Doctor. On this week's podcast, we will discuss How to make your New Year’s Resolutions Stick. We will also continue our fun facts of UBI (Useful Bits of Information) and Veteran News, so stick around for so great stuff to come.

As January begins, people whisper about their "resolutions." Have you ever followed through with these or even taken the time to write them down? This year is the time to make your resolutions count. Sit down and create your schedule for a New You in the New Year.

The biggest challenge to making your 2021 resolutions stick is creating practical ones, to begin with. If you're like the rest of America and eat out four times per week, then you may have a goal to save money and your waistline by kicking the fast-food restaurants to the curb. Instead of making bold statements such as, "I will not eat fast food for 2021," opt for "I will eat fast food no more than once every two weeks." As you achieve this goal, and it seems to become easier to avoid the golden arches, you can then refine your resolution to "I will eat fast food no more than once a month" And so on. When you decide to commit and write down your New You Resolutions this year, consider these helpful tips:

1. Write it Down

Avoid committing it to memory. Instead, write it out with pride and post it to remind you of the goals you have set.

2. Put a Number to it

Decide how many times a day, week, or month you can do something and shun away from saying "every day." Life happens, and you don't want "every day" to be the cause of you throwing in the towel altogether on your goals.

3. Keep it Realistic

Although the idea of losing 10 lbs in a week sounds excellent on infomercials, it's neither realistic nor healthy. Weight loss goals should be based on losing 1 - 2 lbs per week. If you want to lose it and keep it off, then choose to keep your goals real.

4. Enlist Help From Others

This is the time to call your best friend and convince him or her to make a resolution with you. Use each other for the purpose of accountability. Call up your most energetic and motivated friends and have a Resolution Party.

5. Seek out the Advice of an Expert

If it's exercise goals, seek out a certified Exercise Physiologist, nutrition - meet with a Registered Dietitian, and if it's to organize your life - hire a Personal Organizer or Maid.

6. Set Yourself up for Success

Think positively when you set your goals. People have greater success adding to their daily life than taking away. Try this, "I will eat at least one cup of berries three times each week." When you add in fruit and vegetables, you often have less room for chips and dip.

7. Don't Forget to Follow-up

When you write down your goals, take the time to write down follow-up dates in your calendar. For weekly goals, check on yourself every three months, and for monthly goals, check on yourself in six months.

8. Last, but not Least, Remember to Reward

Treat yourself to a massage, a facial, or a new outfit when your resolution has been met, and your goal has become a habit.

New Year's Resolutions are a way for us to touch base with ourselves and look for ways to make improvements. Don't stress over them. Instead, make them positive, make them real, and make them stick. Here's to You in the New Year.