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Health & Fitness

Happy New Year - Happy New You!

American comedian Joey Adams once quipped, “May all your troubles last as long as your New Year’s resolutions!”  Humor aside, many of us hope our New Year’s resolutions, especially those which affect our health, will last all year long.

     According to the Journal of Clinical Psychology at the University of Scranton, over 50% of us will probably make New Year’s resolutions this year, but only 8% of us will succeed with them.  Most resolve to live a healthier lifestyle.  The top ten resolutions for 2014 are:

1.     Stop smoking

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2.     Start treating your body better

3.     Lose weight

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4.     Enjoy life more

5.     Quit drinking

6.     Organize yourself

7.     Learn something new

8.     Get out of debt

9.     Spend more time with family

10.    Help people     (www.squidoocom)

     Colin Czarnecki in the Naperville Patch posted some great tips to help resolvers make more successful resolutions.  They are:

1. Make it attainable. Be sure that your resolution is attainable. Sticking to your monthly budget is attainable—making a million dollars may not be.

2. Tell everyone. If you tell everyone about your resolution, you are more likely to keep it. If you want to quit smoking, you can even go as far as telling your friends that you'll give them $50 if they catch you lighting up.

3. Be specific. If you want to get fit in the new year, set a specific goal. For example, instead of saying you want to get fit, say you want to lose 10 pounds and tone your arms and legs.

4. Start small. Create small goals for yourself. If you want to organize your house, assign one room to each month. In January, organize your kitchen. In February, organize your bedroom, and so on.

5. Write it down. It's important to motivate yourself throughout the year. Write your resolution down on every month in your calendar. Don't let yourself forget about your resolution as the year goes on. 

     Resolutions to live a healthier lifestyle are probably on the list for many of us.  To think healthier is also important.  According to Healthy Living, “Life is like the ocean.  Sometimes rough, sometimes calm.  Full of ups and downs.  The fact is that whether you think positively or negatively, you shape your life accordingly.  Thinking positively can change your entire life.  It is a key to success in every aspect of life.”

     For many people, a positive outlook has more meaning when based in a supreme power and His/Her unconditional love and sound guidance for man.  This gives them a connection to something more powerful than themselves.  Christian healer, Mary Baker Eddy, found this to be true, especially when it comes to health decisions.  She found that focusing our thought on God resulted in healthier lifestyles. 

     In her book on Christian healing, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures she wrote, “Hold thought steadfastly to the enduring, the good, and the true and you will bring these into your experience proportionably to their occupancy of your thought” (p. 261).

     I have found this turning to God very helpful in keeping resolutions.  It gives me humility to make resolutions attainable; strength to keep my resolve; and compassion for myself if I temporarily break a resolution.  As our resolve is divinely strengthened, we can find not just a new year, but even a new, healthier us!   

     Have a Happy 2014 – filled with healthy thinking and its health benefits!

 

Thomas (Tim) Mitchinson is a self-syndicated columnist writing on the relationship between thought, spirituality and health, and trends in that field.  He is also the media spokesman for Christian Science in Illinois.  You can contact him at illinois@compub.org.

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