10 Tips to get fit and stay healthy! HEALTH & WELLNESS The pandemic changed the way we live; it brought unprecedented stress and anxiety to every aspect of our lives. Many of us, myself included, developed unhealthy habits during 2020. Lack of regular exercise, disrupted sleep schedules and poor food choices led to weight gain aptly named, “the COVID 20”. As life begins to return to the new normal, now is the time to get fit and healthy. By Jacqui Chaisson
1. SET REALISTIC GOALS
can sabotage our goals. Be firm and true to yourself - this is your year to get healthy. Don’t depend on someone else to keep you on track and motivated, remind yourself that it’s up to you and just do it! After a few weeks you’ll find it becomes easier.
Give yourself a full year to get in shape. It’s about lifestyle changes, not fad diets or unobtainable goals. Set goals that you know you can achieve. If you’ve got an extra 40-50 pounds to lose, don’t expect killer abs after a few months at the gym. Unrealistic goals set you up for failure, and you’ll find yourself giving up; losing one to two pounds a week is a safe goal.
5. KEEP IT SIMPLE
It’s not complicated or expensive to make lifestyle changes. You don’t need to join a gym, pay for weight loss programs and complicated menus or buy exercise equipment; it’s really about making the right choices.
2. JUST START TODAY
Stop planning and start doing. Make a plan and begin now, give up the sweets, take a walk after work every day at the same time, be more aware of the choices you make. Don’t try to do everything at once - instead start with a few healthy changes every day.
6. AVOID PROCESSED FOODS
Studies found that people who kept unhealthful food at home had more difficulty maintaining or losing weight. Eliminate unhealthy choices at the point of purchase; processed foods are high in sodium, fat, calories, and sugar. They often contain fewer nutrients than whole foods. Processed foods are much more likely than other foods to lead to addictive eating behaviours, which tend to result in people overeating.
3. WAKE - WATER - WALK
Wake earlier, drink water (I drink a gallon of ordinary tap water daily) and walk an hour every day. Set your alarm an hour earlier and use that time to go for a walk - no excuses. Set a timer on your phone for 30 minutes, when the timer goes off - turn around and head home - it’s that simple.
7. HEALTHY SNACKS
4. DO IT FOR YOU
Keep healthy snacks at home, in the office or even in your vehicle to help resist the temptation when cravings or hunger strikes.
Change can seem overwhelming, and often the people closest to us
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www.pei-living.ca SUMMER 2021
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