Wait not!

No change is ever easy! Regardless of the nature of your goals, there are a few rules for reaching your personal best in health, sport and life.

For example, a 2011 study on successful weight control reported in the Journal of Public Health Nutrition demonstrated the importance of incorporating several small changes to accomplish long-term goals. The researchers concluded that those trying to achieve or maintain ≥ 5% weight loss should: get weighed/measured on a regular basis, avoid skipping meals and keeping unhealthy snacks at home, limit the frequency of eating on the fly and minimize emotional eating. Making small changes is also emphasized by my colleague and friend, Keri Gans RD, author of The Small Change Diet (Gallery Books 2011). Keri emphasizes the effectiveness of making small changes over epic ones since smaller ones are easier to attain, maintain and sustain and more consistently ensures long-term success.

If your goals are weight and fat loss, rather than a drastic new year's fast, try these 3 simple strategies: Detoxification - Detox the food, fluids and lifestyle factors, i.e. poor snack and fluid choices, friends who like to hit the clubs (not the fitness kind); Diet - Get a consult and/or take a lab test to determine your best foods, drinks and timing of meals you need to include and eliminate to help you reach your dream physique; Determine - Determine your strengths and weaknesses, invest in experts to help you in areas that you can't help yourself.

 "Dancing with the Stars"

Aspiring to reach your 2012 goals is a process. It takes two to tango and your desired changes may require you to splurge for some outside help. At a minimum, you'll need to enlist the support of your family and friends if you want your goals to stick. And, since most of us eat 50% of our meals on the road, it's good to know restaurants are getting onboard too!

According to the December 2011 issue of Restaurant News, you can expect to see healthier food items in 2012 at your favorite fast food and more upscale places like Cheesecake Factory. In fact, decision-making while eating on the fly will be that much easier this year since, by law, restaurants with more than 20 locations must make their nutritional information accessible to consumers. Before any Diva race, I check out the local available restaurant options and/or hotel menu so I can plan ahead to find my personal best pre-race meals and now you can too! In the resources section, you will find websites that will help you navigate through dining out options and help you select the best food choices for losing weight, building mileage or even race day.

The time is now! Maintaining your goals with the best support team will help you to sustain your accomplishments and continue to aspire to reach new heights in your training and in life!

HAVE A HAPPY AND HEALTHY NEW YEAR! Cheers to meeting your running goals in 2012. See you at the races!

Resources:

Good Food Near You helps you find healthy fast food located close to your home or work address, over 60 menu options when I put in my home zip code, everything from IHOP to Subway, Whole Foods to Popeye's. Check it out www.goodfoodnearyou.com.

Dietfacts.com provides oodles of information on restaurant choices, both lunch vs. dinner and appetizervs. entree portions of your favorite foods. Pick the best choices to suit your training and goals at www.dietfacts.com.

Delish.com assists those of you with a passion for food, but lack the cooking skills to execute a balanced, tasty meal. With recipes and menus, blogs and reviews, Delish is your go-to lifeline for researching foodie info. Get a FREE newsletter with coupons too at www.delish.com.

The Daily Green if you're ready to take your eating, food choices, and green life up a notch for yourself and the planet at www.thedailygreen.com.

Choose My Plate SuperTracker is USDA's new and FREE tool to help you plan, analyze and track your diet and physical activity. You can look up individual foods to see or compare their nutritional value, find recommendations for what and how much you should eat, compare your food choices to these recommendations and to your nutrient needs and assess personal physical activities and identify ways to improve at www.choosemyplate.org.