Setting goals for a healthy New Year

Christmas is over, you’ve had some rest (hopefully), you’re full of energy and now you’re ready to tackle the year ahead. You might want this year to be healthier, more relaxing or more organised. Regardless of your New Year Resolutions, the best place to start is by setting yourself some goals and supporting them with a plan. After all, if you fail to plan, you ultimately plan to fail! And let’s be honest, who hasn’t set a New Year’s resolution in January but forgotten all about it come February?

The best place to start with a resolution that really sticks is to take time to craft a SMART goal by answering these questions:

Specific – What exactly do you want to achieve?

Measurable – How can you measure and record your progress and success?

Achievable – Do you have the skills and/or support to achieve your goal?

Realistic – Is the goal reasonable, can you reach it, or do you need to break it down into smaller goals? Tip: If your goal is weight loss, remember to aim for 0.5kg – 1kg a week and allow for setbacks.

Time specific – When do you want to achieve your goal by?

You can then go one step further and follow these tips to give your goal meaning and set yourself up for success.

Find Your ‘why’

Ask yourself why it is important to achieve your goal.

Make a plan

Now you know your goal, what specific changes do you need to make to achieve it? For weight loss goals, break it down into food, body and mind and set a plan for each.

Food – what foods do you need to eat more of? What foods do you need to eat less of?

Body – what activity will you do to move more? See our tips for easy ways to increase your activity throughout the day.

Mind – how will you reward yourself for your success and be kind to your body?

Visualise

Visualising yourself when you’ve reached your goal can help with motivation along the way. Write down how will you look? Will you look healthier, happier, younger, confident?  How will you feel? Will you be happy, proud, accomplished?

Jenny Craig Team

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Since the initial opening in 1983, Jenny Craig Australia and New Zealand has expanded to more than 90 centres across the two countries. Each component of Jenny Craig’s program has also progressed over the past 35 years to fuel the company’s growth and ensure it remains one of Australia and New Zealand’s leading weight management companies.