My Health And Wellness Goals For The New Year

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Last Updated on January 3, 2021 by Lori Geurin

Gosh, time flies. Another year has come and gone! For those of you who have been here since last year, I really appreciate your support! It’s the time of the year again for some much-needed reflection and introspection to set the right tone for the new year! I’ve been busy coming up with my personal health and wellness goals for the new year, and I wanted to share the biggest ones with you.

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My Personal Health And Wellness Goals For 2021

1. Eat more real food.

(And, on the flip side of that, eat less processed food.)

I have this goal because I always feel better when I eat healthy, whole foods. When I eat processed food my body simply doesn’t like it and protests, causing me body pain, swollen joints, and fatigue.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t do well with food restrictions so I like to focus on enjoying all of the healthy real foods I can.

2. Continue improving my intermittent fasting.

If you’ve been around here for a while you’ve probably heard me talk about my passion for fasting, how it cured my hypoglycemia and all of the awesome health benefits it offers.

So my goal with IF for 2021 is to keep going with this awesome practice and challenge myself a little harder.

At this point, I continue doing weekly fasts. I’ve done 24 and occasional 36-hour fasts also.

But over Christmas break, I slipped back into some old habits (like using creamer in my coffee) that have taken me away from the 100% clean fasting that’s the most beneficial for your health.

Accomplishing this goal will mean improved health, increased focus, better energy, and a leaner physique (goodbye holiday weight gain that so happily shows up each year, along with the sugar cookies and homemade fudge).

a pilates reformer machine and personal health and wellness goals — a Pilates reformer

3. Move more.

The reasons behind setting this goal are similar to the first 2…to feel better physically and to be healthy. Ever since I contracted Lyme disease in 2012 I’ve been on a wellness journey to regain my health and so much of the focus has been turned to these 2 simple factors…feeling better and regaining my health.

Maybe you can relate?

Honestly, some days my body hurts so much I don’t feel like moving at all. But I’ve learned that these are the days that I need it the most. Even if it’s just some slow, gentle stretching, doing something, anything to loosen up those muscles and joints can help a great deal!

Over the break, my husband helped me find a used Pilates reformer and I’m loving working out on it! I just have to be careful not to overdo it because, well, I tend to do that.

When you find an exercise you love it makes fitness so much more enjoyable!

By the end of 2021, I would love to increase my overall strength and endurance.

4. Make sleep a priority.

Like other goals here, this one is ongoing, (but definitely bears repeating).

If you’re dealing with a chronic illness you know just how important a good night’s sleep is. Without it, everything hurts more and it’s harder to concentrate and accomplish the things you want to do.

But, when you make quality sleep a priority, you start to notice the benefits:

improved mood
stronger immunity
better concentration
less inflammation

just to name a few.

5. Continue improving my self-talk.

Self-talk is your inner voice. It’s a combination of both conscious ideas and unconscious beliefs. And it can be positive or overwhelmingly negative.

Over the past couple of years, I’ve been working on improving my self-talk and it’s been super helpful! And eye-opening.

The best book I’ve found on the subject is this quick read by Shad Helmstetter, What To Say When You Talk To Yourself.

Working on your self-talk is not just for you. It’s also for those you love. Try it and you’ll see what I mean.

6. Manage stress effectively.

This is such a great life skill, isn’t it? We all have stress. It’s unavoidable in this fast-paced life we live. But learning to manage the stress we encounter is key.

There are several ways I work to manage the stress in my life, including:

spending time in nature
exercise
eating healthy foods
deep breathing exercises
EFT tapping
setting healthy boundaries
avoiding energy vampires

7. Detox

We’re surrounded by environmental toxins every day. They’re in our food and water and in the air we breathe.

But even social media we consume can be toxic to our health. Some people seem to be more sensitive to toxins than others for a variety of reasons and I fall into this category.

Knowing this about myself and others, I need to take frequent social media vacations. How about you?

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8. Practice gratitude.

The benefits of gratitude are impressive and that’s why I’ve made this practice a part of my life.

My goal for this year is to be more intentional about practicing gratitude daily in a variety of ways including writing in a gratitude journal and verbally sharing things I’m thankful for.

Here are 20 Simple Ways To Express Gratitude This Year, 20 Easy Ways To Express Gratitude, and 25 Best Thanksgiving Quotes To Inspire Gratitude.

9. Embrace simplicity.

The more I learn about living simply the more simply I want to live.

Embracing simplicity in life has brought greater peace and clarity, more freedom, less clutter, and improved health.

And I want more of that in my life.

I have so much more to learn about simplicity but plan to continue on this free and easy path towards a simpler existence in the coming year.

10. Expand my recipe collection.

This year I’m challenging myself to make at least one new healthy recipe a month. It’s easy to stick with the tried and true favorites, especially if your family isn’t super adventurous about trying new flavors. (Some of mine are and some aren’t.)

Either way, I love trying new foods and want to expand my recipe repertoire. I’m always saving delicious healthy recipes to my Pinterest but this year I want to try more of them.

Here are a few of my favorite recipe collections, roundups, and reviews from recent weeks in case you’d like to try some new ones too:

PIN ME, PLEASE!

personal health and wellness goals and notebook with pen and blue flowers

There’s nothing like sharing your personal health and wellness goals with your virtual friends to make sure you stay accountable and actually work towards completing your goals! Here’s to a healthy new year!

What about you? What are your personal health and wellness goals for 2021? Comment below!

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Lisa

· Reply

January 1, 2021 at 9:14 PM

A great list, Lori! Lots of good stuff. My goal is CONSISTENCY and ROUTINE. I haven’t worked in over two years due to health issues (I also have chronic condition) and I’m finally feeling like I’m just starting to get a grasp on managing symptoms.
I want to go to bed/get up at same time every day and create a daily routine that includes clean intermittent fasting, exercise, and staying in touch with my body so I can make the most of the energy I have (or don’t have) every day.

Lori Geurin
· Reply

Author

January 2, 2021 at 10:21 AM

Thanks so much, Lisa! Wow, these are great goals to have! Consistency is definitely a big one for me too. Living with chronic illness can be so challenging. I love how, despite everything you’re dealing with, it sounds like you’re striving to be as healthy as possible. I’m inspired by all of your goals (especially the “clean” intermittent fasting 🙂 ).

It’s great that you’re listening to your body too…so important! Thanks so much for sharing and I hope your year is full of blessings!