Goal-Setting is more than a concept. When you have met with success before, you have a blueprint for future success. That should be the objective of all health goals, and most goals in life.
Many of my health goals this year have been two-folded, by increasing and reinforcing health habits that already exist and diminishing harmful habits that have developed over time, from working in healthcare at the bedside for many years and other life-related issues.
If you want an update of where I have been and what I have been up to. Please listen to the first episode of the podcast, found here.
With that being said, many of my health goals this year are largely about restoring the healthy habits that brought me the most success! I wanted to share them, with all of you, because they are rather common issues; that I frequently hear about, especially for busy individuals and professionals (especially for health professionals).
Rose's 2021 Health Goals:
1.) 1/2 Gallon of Water a Day (4 pints= 8 cups)
When I worked in Acute Rehab/Physical Medicine I use to drink a gallon of water in 1 shift. My skin and my body loved it! It seemed the pressure of full-time work/full-time school and commuting affected my water drinking & hydration habits. I'm not expending the same energy as I once did on the hospital floor, so I cut the goal to half. I will reap all the same benefits, but still meet my needs now. Ample and proper hydration is one of the easiest and most worthwhile ways to change your health, if not the simplest. ✓
2.) Limit caffeine intake, specifically coffee, to 1 to 2 cups max This is also a leftover habit from late nights of studying, commuting, and working on the hospital floor. I think at my worst, I got up to 4 to 5 cups of coffee a day. There are no upper limits for caffeine intake, but research (research that I specifically have been studying, and hope to share soon) on the adverse effects, of over consumption of caffeine, include sleep disturbances, anxiety, irregular heartbeats, issues with fecundability, etc. I can say I have, for the most part, been successful with this goal in the last 1 1/2 months and don't foresee it being an issue anymore :) ✓
3.) Stop Late Night Eating (Strategy: Grass-fed Whey Isolate Protein Drink)
This was a two-prong issue, after working PM and Night Shift (NOC) my eating pattern never really quite re-established itself, once I left bedside care. I will love to discuss this further about strategies on how to re-establish eating patterns. My first step was not to fight the hunger, because it was valid. After all, during NOC my "lunch" was 2 AM. It has been an intuitive experience. I have slowly made sure that my other meals are at the same time every day (and generally I am hungry at that time). I added Grass-fed Beef Whey Isolate for when those hunger pangs happen at night. But I have achieved much of this goal in the last month, as long as, my other meals are adequate, which is the key!✓
4.) Mindful eating (eating slower Rest & Digest) This is an issue that I know many healthcare professionals can relate too. There is a lot of guilt associated with taking time, even when it is necessary to function, that runs rampant among healthcare ranks. As a result, we end up eating at the nursing station or shoveling food into our mouths as quickly as possible. This has probably been the longest and hardest habit to break. But it really does come down to paying attention and slowing down. Mindfulness. Eating slowly allows for better absorption. It gives the body and our digestive system time to absorb necessary nutrients and gives our body the right messages about hunger and satiety.✓
5.) Re-establish a sleep cycle
This was a two-prong issue, after working PM and Night Shift (NOC) and late nights spent, up finishing school work, my sleep cycle has become sporadic. It was made worst at the onset of this pandemic, when every day felt like an opportunity to keep working. We will discuss more about this in Sleep Hygiene. But one strategy that has helped a lot, is to stop working at a certain time. A HARD deadline/end time. Re-establishing a boundary. ✓
These are some of my health goals this year. I do have some specific fitness goals, that I will share with you soon. I will say, I have seen a lot of improvements already! I hope that by sharing them, you can also re-evaluate some of the goals, you have this year as well!
Stay tune for more on all the topics we discussed here, to be shared in other areas of the site! #goalsetting xoxo Rose✓