By Katryna Starks

Every January, people resolve to lose weight. They go to the gym, start eating better, and everything seems fine. Three months later, they’ve dropped all of these good habits. By the end of the year, they are back where they started – or worse. What happened? They started out the wrong way. Resolving to lose weight puts your focus on the scale, and the numbers on it. Those numbers may go up when exercise starts because unfit people build muscle before they burn fat. The numbers may stay the same for a while. This is particularly frustrating because it seems as though nothing is happening despite all of the effort put into it. Finally, the numbers may go down. This should be a good thing, but if your attitude is “now I can eat anything I want!” then the weight loss will be short-lived. Instead, resolve to live more healthfully and take care of your body. This is a lifetime goal and the steps never change. Vitamin-rich whole foods are always good for you. Vegetables, fruits and whole-grains are always healthy choices. Exercise does good things for your body both while you’re exercising and well after you stop. This doesn’t change. When you resolve to live healthfully, that’s a resolution for life.

But that’s easier said than done, right?  Not for long!  We at YourBestSelf are working on a new plan that will help you make small steps toward big victories.  But, before we release it to you – we’re making sure it works by trying it out ourselves.  We’re not giving you a hypothetical plan that should work – we’re giving you a plan that DOES work!  So, make the changes you can and, if you’re still having trouble, watch this space for our plan!