Month by Month New Year’s Resolutions

By Nicole Spain, Registered Dietitian

Once the momentum of the New Year has worn off, resolutions can be hard to keep.  I find myself over committing to something like working out every day, losing a substantial amount of weight or another goal that seems unattainable.  Lack of time or simply stress of daily life seems to creep in and put an end to my goals. 

This year, my family and I are trying something new where we work together to come up with a monthly healthy resolution.  We are committing to family wellness and want you to join us!  Try these ideas out or come up with your own:

January:  Snow adventures every weekend whether we spend the time building snowmen, sledding, snowshoeing or skiing.  You will find our family actively enjoying cold white stuff this January and burning some extra calories while doing it.  No snow where your family lives? No problem! There are plenty of wintery activities to do – for example, visit an indoor skating rink or play field hockey!

February: It’s still cold out and we are planning to take our exercise indoors this month.  If you have a local gym or community center, take advantage of the pools, basketball courts, and gym equipment.  We are committing to spending Sunday afternoons together at our local Y. 

March: Running between after-school activities seems to end with our family grabbing a quick meal while on the go.  This month we are going to commit to only eating out twice.  Not only will our waistbands benefit, but our wallet will, too!   

April:  If your kids are anything like mine, then they might be picky eaters. This month, I would like everyone in our family to try a new food and hopefully, we can expand our pallets.  This might be a new recipe that we pick out together or a new fruit or veggie from the grocery store every week.    

May: Sign up for a family fun run or walk and start training!  If you live in the north like us, you’ll be happy that you can move back outdoors. We commit to take an evening family walk together three times per week (and we love bringing our dog with us, too). 

June: This month, the kids wanted to get more people involved in our monthly resolutions, so we are planning to organize a neighborhood kickball or softball game!

July:  Spend time in nature and go on a hike every weekend!  We love finding new state parks and spending the day on a trail.   

August:  It’s hot outside and we are committed to getting the extra sugar out of our beverages. This month, we won’t buy any juice, soda, or sweetened beverages and we will drink more water! The kids are excited to try out some new fruit-infused water recipes.

September:  Go to the farmers market every weekend and try new local fruits or vegetables. Try making some of your favorite entrées vegetarian during this month!

October: My elementary-aged kids seem inundated with candy and sweets this month. To conquer this, we are choosing to make healthy snacks for class parties and pass out healthy snacks for trick or treating. This could be something as simple as clementines or pretzels!

November: The holidays seem to bring on stress. So this month, we are going to start Saturday mornings doing yoga together. There are many family-friendly yoga videos on YouTube that are free and fun!

December: This feels like the busiest time of the year and it’s difficult to fit in exercise.  So this month, we are doing a sit-up challenge. We will do sit-ups every other day together before bedtime. My kids are planning to start with 20 and increase by five each night.