With a healthier lifestyle topping the list of New Year’s resolutions, making those all-important small changes to your diet and activity levels can make a big difference to your heart and health for years to come.
Now is the time to take stock and think about how you can introduce new habits and behaviours to make them an integral part of your everyday life. Are you ready to take on the challenge and cast off those unhealthy habits and risky behaviours and make 2014 your turnaround year, setting yourself up for a healthier and happier future?
Here’s how you can get set for 2014 and the rest of your life ahead with these handy tips to a new you:
• Eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables each day – remember, fresh, frozen, tinned and dried all count, as well as traditional salad items, so stock up on their delicious goodness.
• Increase your fibre intake by choosing whole-grain bread and cereals, eating fruit and vegetable with their skins on where possible and making more of beans and pulses.
• Oily fish such as salmon, sardines, mackerel and fresh tuna are great sources of heart-friendly omega-3. Include at least one portion each week together with a second portion of high protein, low fat fish.
• Cut down on harmful cholesterol-raising saturated fats by reducing your intake of red meat and cheese, and by swapping from whole milk to semi-skimmed or skimmed milk.
• Ditch the salt and help to keep healthy blood pressure – use tasty herbs and spices to cook with instead and remove the salt cellar from the table.   Limit processed foods which are also high in salt and check all your food labels for hidden salt.
• Drinking too much alcohol can put on the pounds and increase your blood pressure and cholesterol levels. If you do drink, limit alcohol intake to no more than 2-3 units a day if you’re a woman and 3-4 units a day for men.
•  Engage in some form of physical activity every day – a brisk walk at lunchtime, dancing, a game of tennis or football, a cycle ride or a run.  Exercise will help you to lift your mood and keep a healthy weight and encourage an all-round healthier lifestyle.
• If you smoke, stop.  There’s no such thing as a healthy smoker and being smoke free is the single, biggest, important factor for a healthier new you.
January 2014 could be the start of the rest of your life, and a healthy lifestyle is just what you need to help get the new you off to a winning start.
Why not inspire others to do the same by encouraging and supporting those around you? And when the going gets tough, visualise the benefits of a healthy old age for you and your family and a quality of life worth living.
For more information and advice about healthy living, contact Heart Research UK
on 0113 297 6206 or email lifestyle@heartresearch.org.uk