As we begin another New Year many of us will be hoping to get a little healthier in 2023 with a fresh start and new routines underway.
Not surprisingly losing weight is a popular New Year's resolution. This can be a very challenging goal that many people struggle with and it isn't often accomplished quickly.
What works best is patience.
A lot of people make a resolution to lose weight and then go mad and deprive themselves of everything they like in the first few weeks of January which is hard, not much fun, so they give up.
With all the will in the world, ultra strict diets and limiting yourself is very hard to sustain. You can still enjoy the occasional treat and good nutritional food if the rest of the time you are being healthy.
I would suggest you approach weight loss with patience and set realistic targets. Don’t look at the scales every day for example, as you’ll only get despondent. Once a fortnight at most is better. Try and aim for weight reduction over the next 6 months, not 6 weeks. Doing something small and healthy everyday is better than a crash diet or depriving yourself.
This longer-term thinking is part of the NHS’s Better Health campaign which launches this month.
Staggeringly more than 3 in 5 adults (63% of the adult population) are at an increased risk from serious diseases and becoming seriously ill with COVID-19 as a result of being overweight.
The campaign highlights 6 benefits that could have a lasting impact on a person’s health by being a healthier weight:
- Decreased risk of common cancers (colon, liver, pancreas, kidney)
- Lowered risk of increased blood pressure
- Reduced risk of heart disease
- Less risk of developing diabetes
- Less strain from chronic back and joint pain
- Decreased risk of being hospitalised or becoming seriously ill with COVID-19
It really is shocking when you see the effect of being overweight on your health.
If you need a helping hand, there are a variety of free NHS endorsed apps, resources and online tools as part of this push to help you introduce simple changes to eat better and get active this new year.
You might have heard of Couch to 5K to but there any many more, including the NHS Weight Loss Plan and Active 10 apps.
So when you’re next out food-shopping, or faced with the stairs instead of the lift. Have a think about all the small things you can do to eat, act, and think healthier. You will find weight loss often comes as a bonus.
For more information on the NHS’s Better Health campaign - visit.
