Losing weight, eating healthier and exercising more: research by EenVandaag shows that many Dutch people intend to live a healthier life next year. But what’s the best way to start? And what are the health benefits of exercise anyway?
According to professor of social psychology Frenk van Harreveld at the University of Amsterdam, it is best to start by looking at the formulation of your goal. Instead of setting an abstract goal such as ‘exercise more’, it is better to be very specific, he explains.
From now on, eat really healthy food
For example: ‘I’m going to the gym on Monday at 11am for 45 minutes’. Or: ‘From now on I will only eat one piece of chocolate a week, every Wednesday’. Where things often go wrong is that people set their goals at an inappropriate time, Van Harreveld sees.
“Once people have eaten their fill of oliebollen or a Christmas dinner, they come to the conclusion that they want to eat healthier that year. At such times it is easy to talk: you are not hungry. As soon as you are hungry, you realize much better how difficult it is to go on a diet.”
A full stomach is misleading
Van Harreveld knows this because he has conducted research into people who participate in Weight Watchers, a company that helps people lose weight. “We asked those people how hungry they were at that moment and how much weight they wanted to lose.”
“We saw that people who are not hungry at all set much more ambitious goals. People who are a little more hungry are more modest when setting goals.”
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Short term goals
The professor of social psychology also advises against setting very high goals. “The chance becomes smaller that you will not be able to achieve it and that leads to disappointment. You will therefore be more likely to think that you cannot do it, which will make you give up more quickly.”
Van Harreveld thinks it is good to think about resolutions that can be rewarding in the short term. “So don’t just focus on the long-term goal ‘in a year I will be 10 kilos lighter’, but ‘in a month I will have lost one kilo’. This way you will be rewarded more quickly, and that has a motivating effect. It delivers immediately what up.”
If-then plan
According to exercise behavior specialist Yannick de Korte of the Sports & Exercise Knowledge Center, concretizing small achievable goals is also an important starting point. “An if-then plan can help with this. For example: ‘When I get home from work, I first go for a walk around the block before I start cooking’. It helps if you try to make goals concrete in your daily life.”
What also helps is expressing your intentions to friends and family, says De Korte. “If you keep a goal in front of you, does that goal actually exist? That changes if those around you know about it. We want to appear reliable and consistent to others. When we have stated that we intend to do something, the therefore, you are more likely to stick to that goal.”
Sports buddy
A sports buddy can also be an extra motivation to achieve your goal, De Korte knows. “Such a person can serve as a stick behind the door. It is also good to think in advance about how you will deal with difficult moments. For example, if you are extra busy with work. Thinking of solutions in advance helps you to deal with those difficult moments to deal with.”
What also helps is rewarding yourself if you have succeeded in achieving your short-term goal, says De Korte. “For example, if you have managed to take a walk after finishing work three weeks in a row, reward yourself with an evening at the movies or something else fun. That reward will help you persevere.”
Health effects of more exercise
And if you manage to achieve your goal, what will be the gain? Exercise puts your whole body to work, De Korte explains: “It affects everything: your lungs, heart, muscles, you name it.” We know from scientific research that exercise has many benefits, he continues. “Not only do you become fitter and feel better about yourself, but there is also a reduced risk of chronic conditions, such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and various forms of cancer.”
It is not without reason that The World Health Organization (WHO) states that exercise is one of the most important things you can do for your physical and mental health, he says. “If you could put it in a pill, it would by far are the best medicine.”
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Mental benefits of exercise
According to the Brain Foundation, exercise also has a number of benefits: it improves your memory, reduces stress and has a positive influence on your night’s sleep. In addition, exercise reduces the risk of brain disorders such as dementia, depression and Parkinson’s disease.
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2024-01-03 18:45:01
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