January 14 Valley Life column

January 14 Valley Life column in AG Weekly

Keeping my New Year resolutions

Ah, January, the month for making resolutions. If you’re like me, you’ve already broken your New Year resolutions.

In his article, “Keeping your New Years Health & Fitness Resolutions in 2006,” Daniel Remon claims only 20 percent of us actually stick to our resolutions. By February, we’re back to our old habits, abandoning our resolutions until a new year rolls around. That’s why I’m so proud of my friend, Jenna, who resolved to lose weight last year and actually did it.

After delivering her first child and weighing more than she cared to admit, Jenna resolved to lose weight. Knowing she wouldn’t have time to attend meetings or go to the gym, she decided to approach her weight loss with patience and faith. Little by little, she adapted better habits, which she refers to as Stupid Diet Tricks. In less than 10 months, she lost 55 pounds. She even lost 5 pounds over the holidays and is still losing.

Knowing from experience that diets don’t work for her, Jenna adapted small habits she could live with. She stopped drinking sugar-loaded drinks and started drinking diet sodas. Then she started sleeping more, which enabled her to cut back on foods she ate because she was tired. She stopped eating on the run. Now she only eats when she can sit down and enjoy her food, which can sometimes be tough for a new mother. She doesn’t graze; she quits eating when she’s full.

When Jenna hit a plateau, she started drinking more water and walking on the treadmill while her baby napped. Now, weighing less than she did when she got pregnant, Jenna plans to reach her goal weight.

“Maybe I’ll do stretches for five minutes, or stop eating after 8 p.m., or switch to nonfat salad dressing, or all three,” she says, already prepared for when the next plateau hits. She doesn’t deprive herself. If she wants chocolate and cookies, she eats them. She doesn’t’ punish herself anymore by setting unrealistic goals she can’t attain because of her lifestyle.

One of my resolutions for 2006 is to be more like Jenna. If I brush my teeth after every meal so I don’t crave something sweet, I can eliminate a lot of ice cream from my diet. If I chew sugar-free gun when I’d rather munch on French fries and stop snacking after dinner, maybe I can lose the weight. If I follow Jenna’s Stupid Diet Tricks, maybe this year I can keep my resolutions.
©Bonnie Dodge