When Your Best Doesn't Feel Like Enough, Setting SMART Goals May be the Key to Your Success
Do you feel like you are eating all of the right things, exercising, following all of the “rules” but are STILL not seeing any or not enough progress in your weight, blood sugar levels, or other health goals? You may be feeling frustrated and think that maybe it’s just in your genes, that it’s out of your control, and that there’s nothing left to do. I’m here to ask you to please not give up on yourself, you do have control, you have the key to your success.
As experts in health and nutrition,
our Registered Dietitian Nutritionists at
Hungry for Health are here to help guide you
set AND achieve your nutrition and lifestyle goals!
Setting SMART Goals for success. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timely. This concept can be applied to any situation, and here are some ways to apply it to your nutrition and lifestyle goals:
Is your goal SPECIFIC? Instead of saying that you will “drink less soda and drink more water,” your goal might be to “drink 4 instead of 8 cans of soda, and drink 4 glasses of water every day.” Or, maybe instead of saying that you will “exercise more,” your goal might be to “walk in 10-minute increments three times per day for five out of seven days each week.” That’s 30 minutes a day, 150 minutes per week!
It’s about progress, not perfection!
Is your goal MEASURABLE? It is important to have a system in place to measure your progress in order to hold yourself accountable and stay on track. At Hungry for Health we provide our clients with a powerful web-based tool, Healthie, designed to help you track and measure your progress and stay on track (details below). If you are not signed up for Healthie yet, keeping a written log in a dedicated notebook or even in the notes section of your phone is a good option too!
Is your goal ACHIEVABLE? Looking at your time and lifestyle, is your goal realistic? If you really, really, really don’t like water, how about unsweetened iced or hot tea, or even water flavored with lemon or fruit? Or maybe the weather is not conducive to walking outside and walking for long periods of time may be challenging for you right now. Maybe a better option would be to walk 10 minutes one time and do weight-bearing chair exercises twice per day in 10-minute increments for 5 days out of 7 days per week. You’ll still get in your 30 minutes per day and 150 minutes per week!
Where there is a will, there is a way!
Is your goal RELEVANT to you? Choosing a goal that is relevant to your specific needs is a very personal decision. It is not about what is important to others, it is about what is important to you. What is your purpose? Is moving 30 minutes per day for 5 times per week what others say you should do, or do you want to do it because you want to gain the health and energy to play with your children or grandchildren? What is the purpose of your goal? What are you working so hard for? Let that be your driving force, your mantra.
Is your goal TIME-BOUND? By when do you want to achieve your goal—is it a suitable and safe goal? If weight loss is a part of your goal, it is important to take into consideration that a weight loss goal of 1-2 pounds per week is safe and sustainable. Setting realistic timeframes ensures that you are setting yourself up for safe and long-term success, especially considering that most extreme weight loss diets fail and result in regaining all or more weight than before.
Can Hungry for Health help me set and achieve my SMART nutrition and lifestyle goals? Yes! In order to assess the best plan for you and your lifestyle, we will meet with you one-on-one. We want to get to know you, what is important to you, and why. We will review and celebrate all the wonderful changes that you have already made. Then we will analyze, see where we need to tweak things, and set SMART goals to help you start seeing the progress that you have been working so hard to achieve.
Together we will work side-by-side with you to continue reassessing, addressing challenges, celebrating your progress and victories,
and continuing to set and achieve
new milestones and victories!
How will I know that I am on track? Well, hopefully you’ll start feeling and seeing the difference! As your accountability partner, we will make sure that you stay on track. Between one-on-one progress assessments and special online tracking features available anytime to you via our web-based and in-app Healthie platform, we will set you up for success every step of the way.
How do the Healthie tracking features work? When you “get Healthie” by setting up your own personal, safe and secure client portal account with Hungry for Health, you will have access to all the wonderful tracking features:
Secure messaging between sessions with your Hungry for Health accountability partner
Virtual counseling via video chat if you are not able to make it to our office
Ability to schedule and book your appointments quickly
Sending and receiving videos and documents on topics geared towards your personal health goals
Time-saving ability to log your food via photo journaling and selfies instead of having to write everything down
Health metrics tracking
Ability to sync wearables, like your FitBit and iHealth
Personal goalsetting and progress tracking
Real-time advice and encouragement from our team
Ability to sign and access all of your intake documents
And more!
You will feel like we are there with you every day,
cheering you on!
I was referred by my doctor, how will they know how I am doing? We are very happy that you are working with a physician who understands the important role nutrition plays in your health. We want to make sure that the care that we provide to you at Hungry for Health is integrated with the care your physician is providing to you. Within 48 hours of each counseling appointment, we will provide your physician with progress notes. This will help ensure that you, your physician, and Hungry for Health are working as a team to help meet your health needs and goals.
Hopefully by now you understand how to and why it is important to set SMART goals for success; however, if you feel that working with a nutrition expert needs to be a part of those goals, our team at Hungry for Health would love to work with you! To easily schedule a consultation, click here to book your appointment with Hungry for Health.
Featured Recipe
Mediterranean Brain Bowel with Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Chickpeas, Turmeric-Infused Quinoa,
and Lemon Tahini Herb Sauce
Recipe Credit: Neurologists, Team Sherzai
Here is a delicious and nutritious recipe loaded with fresh and filling flavors that can aid brain power and is heart healthy. This recipe comes together very quickly and easily, and when doubled or tripled, it makes for a great meal-planning dish! Click here for the recipe.
Although this recipe is perfect as is, see below for a few extra delicious and simple modifications that we like to make.
MODIFICATIONS & TIPS
Quinoa
In our experience, once the quinoa comes to a boil, is covered and brought down to a simmer, it is usually done in 12-14 minutes.
Chickpeas
If you don’t have or like smoked paprika, regular paprika works perfectly as well!
Sweet Potatoes
Roasting sweet potatoes makes them taste incredibly delicious! We recommend roasting extra sweet potatoes, cubed or whole, so that you can enjoy them all week long. If you make extra, you may need to use 2 baking sheets to fit everything.
Tahini Dressing
If you love garlic like we do, add an extra clove of garlic.
The recipe calls for 1/2 a lemon, juiced. We use an entire lemon.
The recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of fresh dill. We use at least 4 tablespoons because dill adds such pizzazz!