Improving your Health in 1 Step

There are many steps you can take to improve your health and well-being! However, it is a gradual approach. People tend to make unrealistic goals when trying to form new habits that impact their health, such as never drink pop again, exercise 5 days/week for an hour (considering the person hasn't exercised over 10 minutes in the past 5 months) or suddenly decide to become vegetarian. These unrealistic goals may lead to several unsuccessful attempts in leading a healthier life.

In deciding which new habits to form,
 identify those behaviors that adversely impacts your health (e.g. smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, over indulgence of food, etc.). Focus on the behavior that is most important to change first. Ask yourself what factors lead to this behavior and how you will combat them. For example, Jane Doe drinks 5 cans of regular pop per day and has gained 24 pounds within 6 months. The factors leading to Jane Doe's excessive consumption of pop are increased thirst and feeling fatigue from not eating for long periods of time. In order to combat this behavior, Jane Doe will need to consider other beverages to substitute for pop as well as having them on hand.


When making behavioral changes, it is important to track your progress. This will allow you to monitor and evaluate your efforts in forming a new habit while getting rid of the old one. "Self-monitoring" is important in successfully making behavioral changes.

Here are some general tips to begin leading a healthier life

1. Drink Water Often-more than pop, juice and sports drinks

2. "Move More!" get more steps throughout your day by walking more. For every 30 minutes that you are sitting, get up and walk around for 5-10 minutes (or longer)

3. Mental Relaxation-take 30 minutes each day to relax in silence

4. Laugh-find activities, events, friends/family, movies and/or books that make you laugh

5. Eat More Fruit/Veggies-add a fruit/veggie to your meals and have it as a snack often

6. Cook More, Dine Less-increase the nutrients you receive daily by preparing foods at home rather than dining out often. You will be able to manipulate the amount and type of ingredients and cooking methods used to prepare each meal and snack.

7. Balance Your Plate-Imagine a plate. Draw a line down the center. Devote one half of the plate to colorful vegetables. Divide the remaining half of the plate into two portions. One portion can be devoted to a grain (preferably whole) and a lean protein source (meat/meat alternative).

8. Practice Yoga-practice deep breathing techniques, proper posture and various stretching techniques to calm the body and reduce stress

9. Exercise Your Heart-engage in cardio workout at least most days of the week (5). Stimulate the heart muscles to begin moving blood more efficiently throughout the body without significantly raising your blood pressure.

10. Eat for Heart Health-less consumption of saturated & trans fat (baked goods and foods from animal origin), cholesterol (seafood, dairy, meat & eggs) and sodium. Include more healthier fats in your diet such as Omega 3 fatty acids (EPA, DHA, & ALA), which can be found in flaxseeds/flaxmeal, tuna, salmon, mackerel, herring and walnuts. Other preferable fats include monounsaturated fat (olive and canola oil, avocado, nuts and seeds) and polyunsaturated fat (soybean oil, safflower oil, sunflower oil, etc). Consume more Omega 3 fatty acids in your meals more often than polyunsaturated fats.

Take the first step in improving your health!

Goals are achieved in increments!

Start today!