Kick Off the Year with Health-Minded Resolutions
Many of us do it year after year: come up with lofty New Year’s resolutions that end up being discarded before the end of February. This year, why not set yourself up for success with highly achievable resolutions that are also good for your health? Check out three uncommon but attainable resolutions that you’ve probably never thought of making that will have a positive impact on your life.
1. Use your benefits
If you are relatively free from health problems, you may not visit a doctor regularly. Whether you’ve avoided going to the dentist or skipped an annual checkup or two, you may have settled into a “if it’s not broken, don’t fix it” mentality.
However, if you work full time and receive benefits from your employer, you’re wasting the money you pay toward those benefits by not using them. This is also the case if you’ve opted for and committed money to a flexible spending account. Give yourself a refresher on the details of your medical, dental and vision insurance, and make a resolution to start scheduling those appointments you’ve been putting off.
If you have an FSA, look into the details surrounding it to determine by which date you need to use the funds you’ve contributed. Then, use as much of that money as you can toward any health-related items your plan allows.
2. Get rid of old medications
It’s easy to forget about the prescriptions and over-the-counter medications you have lingering in your medicine cabinet. Resolve to dust off all those bottles, check the expiration dates and toss the ones that are no longer good.
Whether it’s a three-year-old antibiotic you didn’t finish or some cold medicinethat expired years ago, these medicines aren’t doing you any good sitting around, and they certainly shouldn’t be in your body.
This is also a good time to get rid of any boxes of contact lenses with outdated prescriptions, or even sunscreen that’s past its prime. Taking an inventory of these items and cleaning house will not only get your cabinets organized, but it will also help you avoid accidentally using anything old or expired.
3. Make small changes
Sometimes it’s the littlest things that make the biggest impact. Rather than setting a major health or fitness goal that takes you far out of your comfort zone, commit to small changes here and there. Things like switching from creamer to skim milk in your coffee, taking the stairs instead of the elevator at work, or slightly cutting down your portion sizes can make a big difference over time. Before you know it, you may drop some pounds or reduce your cholesterol by a few points. These are minor changes you’ll probably barely notice, but they add up to make a healthier you!
The start of a new year is the opportunity to begin with a clean slate and make positive changes in your life. Things as simple as going to the optometrist or cleaning out your medicine cabinet may make a bigger impact than you’d think. Start small and pat yourself on the back for each item you check off your list. You’ll be well on your way to a healthy year!
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