Jan 03 2008
The Trick to Sticking to Your New Year’s Resolutions
What’s your New Year’s Resolution? Some of the most popular answers to that question include to eat better, exercise more and lose weight. But do you have a strategy for achieving those goals?
If not, better come up with one, or you’re destined for failure. Research over the years has concluded that about 80 percent of all New Year’s Resolutions are broken by January 31. If that resolution had something to do with health and fitness (working out, losing weight, quitting smoking, etc.), 90 percent will be history by January 15th!
So how is it that the other 10 percent of Americans manage to follow through? Because they have found ways to make pursuing their goals fun. It only makes sense that you’re more likely to keep up with something you enjoy than something you dread. But how do you make something so tedious as working out and eating healthy fun?
You need only turn to the younger generation for inspiration. Kids are great at finding ways to make things they have to do fun. Take exercise, for example. Kids don’t visit the gym. They get their exercise running around, riding bikes, playing on the jungle gym and hula hooping.
Of all those activities, which do you think offers the best work out? If you said hula hooping, you’re right. Ten minutes of vigorous hula hooping can burn 110 calories, which is about as much as an eight-minute mile.
The activity also promotes correct body alignment from the circular motions and proper posture in the upper body, which explains why it has become so popular in fitness clubs across the country.
Substitute that light, plastic hula hoop your kids play with for a weighted one like those offered by California’s Sports Hoop, Inc., and you can get even more health benefits. When swiveled for 10 to 15 minutes at a time, weighted sports hoops can provide cardiovascular benefits, help tone muscles, burn calories and fat, and facilitate weight loss. For more information on the weighted hoops offered by California Sports Hoop, Inc., visit www.sports-hoop.com or call toll free (866) 700-5668.
As for coming up with ways to eat healthier, you can get inspiration from the kids on that front too. Instead of going out to eat at the restaurant every day, pledge to begin packing a lunch similar to the one you send with your kids to school. Healthy options include salads, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, fruit, cheese sticks, yogurt and pretzels.
Pledging to live a healthy lifestyle is one of the best New Year’s resolutions you can make. So get out there and do it today!
Courtesy of ARAcontent
Related posts:
- Making Child’s Play Out of Staying Fit
- Fresh ideas for fitness fun with your family
- New Year, old snack habits?
- Start the New Year fresh
- Children and Running: Few Words
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Hey, we personal trainers are on hand to help you stay out of that 80% of people who give up before the end of the month! I do hope we live up to our goals and yours this year in 2008!