5 Tips to Be Your Best Self in 2018

• January 08, 2018
• Amber Specialty Pharmacy
• Health Tips

You may have pictured it in your head numerous times – the best version of you. The best could mean the healthiest version, the happiest version, the smoke-free version or the less-stressed version. Whatever your best version means, the following five tips may help you reach your maximum potential in 2018.

1. Balance your diet. Take a good hard look at your daily food intake. Does it include at least a couple of servings of fruits and vegetables per day? Is it made up of sugary processed foods? Are you skipping meals? Only 8 percent of Americans achieve their New Year’s resolutions, according to Forbes. Working with a registered dietitian can help you meet your nutrition goals. He or she will make you accountable and ensure your diet is balanced and fulfilling. Working with a dietitian is also helpful if you are modifying your diet for any health conditions.

2. Drink more water! Take this message to heart and focus on making the majority of your daily beverage intake water. There are numerous benefits to drinking more water unless your doctor is limiting how much you can have. Water helps with weight loss, keeps you feeling energized and keeps your skin healthy, to name a few benefits. To help increase your water intake, take a clear water bottle and draw hash marks evenly spaced along the side of the bottle. Starting at the top, label each hash mark with a time of the day (for example, 9 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m., etc.) and use that as your hour-by-hour water intake goal. Aim for at least 80 ounces of water per day.

3. Relax, renew and refocus. We could all use some stress reduction in our hectic lives. Take the time each day to give yourself a mental break. This could be a few minutes reading, listening to music, meditating or doing an activity you enjoy. This mental break can help you refocus your time and perhaps make you more productive. If you’re looking for some relaxation tips, try these relaxation techniques from the Mayo Clinic.

4. Make movement a habit. It takes 21 days to develop a new habit, according to The Huffington Post. Try making movement part of your daily routine. Start slowly by doing something you enjoy each day, like taking the dog for a walk or doing some stretching. After about three weeks, this extra movement will hopefully be a healthy habit.

5. Reflect on what makes you happy. In 2018, make it a point to write down the things that make you happy. Keep this list handy and add to it throughout the year. Staying positive is key to feeling happy and healthy. You could also try making a happiness jar. To create a happiness jar, you write down something that makes you happy each day on a scrap of paper and put it in your happiness jar. This short practice will come in handy when you’re feeling down. When reading through what’s in your happiness jar, you may notice that it’s the little things in each day that bring you joy!

Whether you work on all five of these strategies at once or just one at a time, it’s a step in the right direction toward being your best self. In the words of Zig Ziglar, “you don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.”

Meet the Author

Megan Hall is a Registered Dietitian and Licensed Medical Nutrition Therapist. She attended the University of Nebraska Lincoln and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Nutrition and Health Science and Nutrition Science and Dietetics with a minor in Psychology. She completed a Dietetic Internship in Augusta, Georgia, through the Augusta Area Dietetic Internship program. Megan loves being a dietitian because she enjoys helping people create long-lasting improvements to their health. In her spare time, Megan enjoys spending time with her family and running. She has run 9 marathons, 11 half marathons and several other races.

This information is intended for educational purposes only. The material is not a substitute for professional help or medical diagnosis. It is important that you consult a medical professional if this information leads you to believe there is a concern for you or your patient(s). The diagnosis and treatment of all physical and/or psychological disorders requires a trained professional.