10 Health Goals You Should Aim for in 2019

When the New Year comes around, it’s a time for us to think about the things we want to achieve over the coming year. It’s a time to think about how you can improve yourself and start living your best life.

The most popular resolutions in the U.S. are to get in shape and save money, with 53% of Americans making them each year. Getting healthy is something that many people resolve to do, but it isn’t always easy.

Making healthy New Year’s resolutions is all about making attainable health goals. Read on for 10 of the best health goals you can make for yourself in 2019. 

1. Adjust Your Posture

You may not pay much attention to the way you sit, but your posture can have serious effects on your health. Most people sit in an almost C shape, meaning there’s a lot of pressure on the spine.

This can lead to a lot of lower back, shoulder and neck pain in later life. Instead, try to sit a little straighter and pretend like you have a tail. This will make you bend your hips a little and align your spine better.

Regular practice will make it easier to do an before long you won’t even think about it, it’ll start to feel natural.

2. Start Getting Up Earlier

Sleep is super important and we’re supposed to get at least eight hours per night for a healthy amount. But many of us don’t get the right amount and it can be difficult to fall asleep at night.

Try to set a sleep schedule and stick to it as best you can. Not only should you try to wake up earlier, but you should try to go to bed earlier too. Make a point to be in bed by 10 pm each night and leave any distractions in another room.

When you get enough sleep each night and get up early, there are a lot of benefits. You become more productive, it improves memory, reduces stress and boosts metabolism. 

3. Take Time to Breathe

Breathing is something we all do and don’t need to think about, but you should consider breathwork. Take some time each day to focus on your breathing.

It’s especially useful if you suffer from anxiety or feel overwhelmed. Breathing exercises help to ground you and it has a huge impact on your emotional and physical state.

There are lots of apps to help you with your breathing and you’ll find them to be very calming. 

4. Eat More Greens

One of the most common resolutions is to eat healthier. Sometimes, this leads people to go on crazy strict diets that aren’t sustainable long term. But all you need to do is include more greens in each meal.

With each meal, try to include more vegetables and less meat or carbs. You don’t need to go vegan or adopt a strict regime, all it takes is eating more good stuff.

They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but we don’t often eat veggies at breakfast. Try to include more in your morning meal in any way you can; smoothies are great for this!

5. Make Exercising a Priority

Another common resolution is to start exercising more. We start off well: we join a gym, we go running for a few days, but soon we lose our resolve. 

We’re meant to get at least 150 minutes of exercise a week and this can sound intimidating. But you can get there without having to hit the gym every single day. 

Exercise for a few minutes each day. Try some simple weight training or go for a short 10-minute jog each day. It doesn’t take too much time and using apps and smartwatches makes it easy and fun to track!

6. Check Yourself While Eating

If your resolution is to lose some weight in 2019, the thought of dieting can feel daunting. Restricting your diet and cutting out whole food groups isn’t sustainable. It sets you up for failure. 

Instead, make yourself smaller meals with more veggies. Check in with yourself while you’re eating too.

Take some time to enjoy the food you’re having, and also think about how hungry you are. Don’t finish a meal for the sake of it, stop when you’re no longer hungry.

Also, try to drink more water. We often think we are hungry and eat more when in fact we’re actually thirsty. Check in with yourself and it can help with food cravings.

7. Get Offline More

We spend a lot of time online now with all our devices connected on the internet. Our daily lives use the internet for a lot of things. Whether it’s buying a coffee with your phone or checking the weather, we’re always online.

We spend a lot of time on our phones and sometimes we forget to be in the moment. It can have a bad effect on our mental health too, so try to put your phone away more and forget about being online.

It doesn’t have to be extreme — set an hour a day where you aren’t online. Make sure no phones are at the dinner table and use it as a chance to chat with your loved ones. 

8. Get Sober

If you’ve been struggling with substance abuse, it can be a very hard thing to recover from. You may not have wanted to get better in the past but 2019 is your year to reclaim your life.

You may not be able to stop altogether and need some help, there’s no shame in that. A place like Coastal Detox could be the exact thing you need to beat your addiction and take your life back.

You don’t need to suffer from addiction any longer, and your journey to recovery will be the best thing you ever do.

9. Practice Self-Care 

Mental health awareness is becoming more accepted and the stigma is finally breaking. Lots of people suffer from anxiety and depression and it can be easy to forget to take care of yourself.

This year, spend some time practicing self-care. Be kinder to yourself and shut down negative thoughts of self-criticism. Treat yourself to a new book or spend more time with good friends. There are a lot of great self-care practices you can do that will make you feel great about yourself.

Don’t let toxicity and negative people make you feel bad. Let go anything that doesn’t make you happier and you won’t regret it.

10. Start Meditating

There are so many amazing benefits of meditation that can help you in all different aspects of life. We live in such a fast-paced world and finding a moment to slow down can do wonders.

Taking only a few minutes each day to meditate can help reduce stress, help you sleep and improve your focus. There are a lot of different ways to meditate so spend some time figuring out which is best for you.

There are lots of studies which prove the benefits of meditation and it will change your life. Don’t knock it till you try it!

These Health Goals Will Make 2019 Your Best Year Yet

Your health is the most important thing in life which is why it’s so important to take care of yourself. These health goals will help you improve your physical and mental health in so many great ways. Set these goals for yourself and make 2019 your healthiest year yet.

Need more health tips for this year? Check out our blog posts for some great inspiration!