Wellness Wednesday - "Healthy Tips for the New Year"

Here are some easy and fun ways to live a healthier lifestyle this year.

Fitness

1. Try a new fitness pursuit like cross country skiing, snow shoeing, or ice skating
2. Exercise with a partner, two or three times per week, walk, jog, skate, ski, etc.
3. Sign up for some personal training sessions to start the new year
4. Visit sporting goods stores for after-Christmas bargains
5. Use the stairs instead of elevators or park at the far end of the parking lot if possible
6. Breathe. Take full abdominal breaths several times during the day
   

Nutrition

1. Make your diet/nutrition resolutions simple and easy to fit into your lifestyle
2. Plan a healthy lineup of snacks for watching bowl games
3. Make a strategy for limiting your food and alcohol intake at holiday parties
4. Leave newspapers, books, and cell phones aside and EAT WHILE YOU EAT
5. Try not to eat late at night, leaving a minimum of two hours before sleeping
6. Enjoy many types of foods, but in moderation

Stress Management

1. Block out an hour each week to relax
2. Keep your life simple by organizing a messy room, garage, or basement
3. Buy or check out a book on progressive relaxation
4. Play with a pet
5. Get a massage
6. Turn off the TV and listen to music
7. Control your schedule and make time for reflection and relaxation

Social Health

1. Volunteer at a shelter
2. Invite friends over to watch bowl games
3. Start a New Year's day family tradition
4. Invite a neighbor that lives alone to dinner
5. Remember to play — play games, play with words, play with your children
6. Plan comedy nights with family, friends, or coworkers
7. Join or establish a group that reviews books or goes for trips together, or form a group based on your own theme