Mid Year Resolutions

Okay - NOW I remember what I wanted to write about! Being in the health promotion/behavior change business I've had strong opinions on New Year Resolutions, saying one could make the decision to change at any time. So, on that note I'm choosing now to make some changes! I guess I've moved from that contemplative phase to the action phase and am ready to implement some changes. I also know that one is more apt to keep those changes is there is an actual goal that is made public, so here's my public declaration of my smart goals -- mainly around nutrition.

1. Starting today I am going to be strictly gluten free! Strictly gluten free means for all eating -- meals, snacks, beverages, everything. I've been gluten free for years -- long before my Lyme and CFS diagnosis, but lately I've been a little lax here and there. So I am officially buckling down. Part of my laziness is around effort expenditure. It takes a long of energy to be gluten free ... energy that frankly I don't have right now. Making all meals from scratch is more than I can do on many days. So, my solution is to buy some ready-made gluten free foods available at Whole Foods. It's a trek to get to my closests Whole Foods (30+ minutes), but if it makes daily life easier and better, then it's worth the drive. There is a WF close to my husband's work so long term I'll keep a list and let him run by after work.
2. Starting today I am going to decrease my sugar intake. This means I will limit sugary foods (limit is a vague word ... not fitting with a smart goal, which is specific, but if I say to eat nothing I'm sure to fail. For those sweet treats that I do indulge in I'll eat ones with no white sugar, but are rather made with agave nectar. The exception to this is dark chocolate, which I will indulge in one small square per day :) I've always been a low sugar eater, but as above, recently I've gone for easy rather than nutritious and sometimes make some bad choices .... so in addition to the shopping above, I'm going to create some lists of easy healthy foods. A list for breakfast, a list for lunch and a list for snacks. That way when my brain is not working, I can just look at the list and pick something!
3. I'm going to wash my face everyday! This may seem a little crazy and I'm a bit embarrassed to even admit that I don't ... however sometimes I'm so tired at the end of the day that I just fall in to bed with not enough energy to wash my face. Some mornings it's all I can do to get littleA with his diaper bag packed and out the door, much less my face washed. Well - I'm now making it a priority! I've always looked younger than my age and for the first time two folks guessed my age accurately in one week! That's some motivation, I tell you :)

I know I have some more I can't think of right now, but I also know that too many goals sets one up for failure so I'll stick with this list for now ... when they're solidly in process I'll look at adding some others (like a small amount of exercise). It takes about 6 weeks for a new behavior to become a habit so this will be a process, but one that I think is for the best -- mainly my best health!

Cheers