VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Every year it’s the same.
The most popular resolutions are to exercise more, to eat healthier, and to lose weight.
According to most estimates, less than 8% of people stick to their resolutions.
News 3’s Jen Lewis spent time with someone who decided he needed to make a change and, despite the occasional setback, stuck with it. She found out what he’s learned along his journey and who’s been helping him on his path to healthy living. He’s 34-year-old Michael Rooks of Chesapeake.
Michael shared, “The doctor was telling me, in my 40s and 50s, I’ll be looking at a whole bunch of problems if I keep going the way I’m going and it was hard to hear, but it was a wake-up call, but I was on the way of slowly killing myself.”
Michael knew he needed help and couldn’t do this on his own. He tried. After six months without seeing results, Michael reached out to Jim White, a health and fitness expert in Hampton Roads for two decades.
When Michael first came to see Jim, he said he loved Michael’s passion and went on to say “, he had the potential, and he had the underlying discipline and what I needed to do is just put him in the right trajectory.”
Michael is a Director of Digital Marketing and loves technology. Jim focused on that strength by having him utilize his Apple watch, fitness apps and meal tracking apps. They wrote out an exercise program which incorporated weight training and cardiovascular training and started working on portion control.
Jim put him on a suitable calorie range, and Michael started losing weight. He hit a couple of snags, but they worked through them and now Michael is down more than 60 pounds and his life has changed.
Michael is now working to maintain his weight loss and become even more fit. He is no longer concerned about becoming pre-diabetic or taking medication for high blood pressure.
He also has more energy; he manages stress effectively and feels much better overall. There is one minor downside, however. He must go shopping. Most of Michael’s wardrobe is from when he was over 300 pounds, and his clothes are way too big for him.
Losing that much weight and making significant changes for a healthier life are hard and why most resolutions along those lines are abandoned in a little over a month.
According to Forbes, gym memberships drop precipitously from the beginning of January to mid-February.
There are though, a few proven strategies for keeping those resolutions in this new year. Jim White recommends setting micro-goals. Smaller goals for a week, two weeks or a month.
He also believes in having an accountability partner for the greater likelihood of success. Jim also advises making livable goals and staying away from fad diets. He generally encourages the Mediterranean food plan to his clients.
Also, if your physician believes exercise and nutrition counseling is medically necessary, most insurance companies will cover training sessions and appointments with a registered dietician for a period of time.
