Help with behavior change

Work, work, work - we work at our job, at school, at church, in our homes, etc. The last thing many of us feel like doing is more work on our diet. What if we flipped the script and made behavior changes easier, even fun? Remove the word “work” because eating delicious, nourishing food isn’t work!  

What’s the most important thing that you’re looking to change about your health? Maybe it’s improving lab values, losing weight, or increasing energy and physical activity levels.

Is there a behavior that might help with one of the above like:

• Go to the gym before work or attend a Pilates class on the way home

• Let go of a comfort food that doesn’t serve your health goals

• Train for your first 5K or marathon

• Increase vegetables

• Cut down on fried food 

Maybe you’re not sure where or how to start. Or, maybe you’ve tried for years. You’re not alone. Nearly half of people who make New Year's resolutions abandon them two weeks into the New Year!

When we can’t meet our goals we tend to blame ourselves. Maybe you used to be an athlete and are frustrated about recent weight gain. Or, you’ve endured a chronic health problem your whole life and think it’s too late to change. Worst of all maybe you’ve tried and wonder, does it even matter?

Don’t give up! You’re not alone and it’s not your fault that you’ve not changed. You have within you the ability to make lifelong changes, but you may need a little help.

Help for behavior change
It’s true that we arrive in this world in a specific and unique body. But we’re much more than our imprinted DNA. Over the years, as we move about our environment, we consciously and unconsciously adapt and adopt behaviors. Habits come and go based on the people around us, where we live, and the educational, religious, and cultural settings we exist within. 

Public health offers models of behavior change that are so helpful. They act as roadmaps to help people analyze, plan and implement lasting, successful changes. 

The ADKAR is one of many models that helps us address behavior changes by breaking up the journey into five distinct steps: Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability and Reinforcement. 

Join us for our next blog as we break down the five elements in the ADKAR Model!

Author: Shannon Svikhart, RDN