New Year… New You

New Year is fast approaching and with it the tradition of setting New Year’s Resolutions. Losing weight, getting fitter, being more active, giving up smoking – the list goes on…

For the first few weeks it’s easy to stick to the resolutions with positive changes being made before gradually slipping back into old habits again.

Why do we find it so hard to keep to these changes? For many it is because it’s felt that setting a New Year’s resolution is essential, almost a traditional requirement – but how many of us are committed to those goals?

So what can you do to help with your commitment – to getting fitter, healthier and ultimately happier? The first step is to determine your BIG WHY for setting that resolution. If you don’t have a strong enough reason for wanting to change then within a few weeks you will have forgotten about your resolution.

One great way to find motivation to make change is to start by understanding the risk you face by not changing. It is well known how being overweight can increase the risk of heart disease, diabetes and other diseases, and weight is something that can be easily monitored. But when was the last time you had your blood pressure, cholesterol or blood sugar level checked? When was the last time you sat down with a health professional and actually looked at your diet and exercise regime to see if there are changes you can make? Looking at each item in isolation has little impact, but maybe finding out that your blood pressure is a little high, your cholesterol is raised, your blood sugars are too high, could be the motivation you need; it could be the answer to your BIG WHY.

Employees complaining of those niggling symptoms of feeling tired all the time or having difficulty waking in the morning could really be helped with having dietary advice. For instance, sugar is one of the biggest causes of inflammation in the human body and 400mls of semi skimmed milk (2 lattes a day) contains almost 20g of sugar, which is 70% of your recommended daily intake¹. It is so easy for sugar to creep into the diet without people realising it but the detrimental effect is staggering. Not only can it contribute to obesity and diabetes, but too much sugar can impact on arthritis, coughs and colds, irritable bowel syndrome – basically any disease that is caused by inflammation.

Having a Health MOT is a great way to kick start motivation, to help your employees understand the risks and make those essential health changes. Not only does it have an impact on employee health and motivation but it can have an impact on absence levels too.

Health MOTs can be tailored to suit your organisation’s requirements and also include:

• blood pressure
• height and weight/BMI/body fat percentage
• glucose/blood sugar (diabetes)
• cholesterol
• dietary advice

1 NHS Choices – How much sugar is good for me?

Contact Details

For more information about how Lincoln Occupational Health can help you and your employees find the motivation to set life changing New Year’s resolutions, please contact us on enquiries@lincolnoccupationalhealth.co.uk or
0844 481 0093 where our team will be happy to help.