It's Not Too Late!

It’s almost mid-January and many New Year’s resolutions have fallen by the wayside.  It’s not too late to make positive health changes!  Maybe you need to simplify your resolutions so you can maintain them for the long haul!

An unhealthy diet and physical inactivity are the primary causes of an unhealthy body.  “Obesity-related conditions include heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer” (Center for Disease Control, 2014, para. 2).  Weighing a healthy weight will help you look and feel better and help reduce the risk of developing these conditions.    

If you’re overweight you can begin making healthier diet choices and increase your physical activity today!  You can start by walking 30 minutes every day (it can even be in 10 or 15 minute increments).  Encourage a friend or family member to join you.  You can also make simple, better food choices!  Are most of the foods you eat out of a box or bag?  Try to decrease the amount of processed foods you eat by reading the ingredients list - do you recognize what’s listed?  In most cases the fewer listed ingredients the better.  You particularly want to avoid artificial preservatives, colors, and sweeteners.  As an example, buy old-fashioned oats for your morning oatmeal - they only take an extra couple of minutes to prepare, are less expensive, and taste better!  By consciously making healthier choices not only will you lose weight, but you may notice you sleep better, have more energy, have lower blood pressure, lower LDL cholesterol (the lousy cholesterol), improve blood glucose, and reduce your risk of heart disease.     

 Healthy choices determine tomorrow –

Choose a healthy lifestyle today!

References:

Center for Disease Control. (2014). Adult obesity facts. Retrieved from:

     http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html