In this case I don’t mean the Y in Central Maryland, although that’s a big help too!
Why do you want to “Eat Healthy”? Is it to improve health? lose weight? reduce pain? play with your grandkids? run a 5K? The possibilities could be endless and you may have a few reasons why. It is important to know your why and to keep it close to your heart. There will be times when the unhealthy choice is the easiest and may even seem like the tastiest. Your why is your motivation to make the most nutritious choice. If you are connected to your why, the convenient choice becomes less appealing and the nutritious choice becomes more appealing. Ask yourself what do I want right now (cookies) but what do I REALLY want (health, weight loss, to move pain free, etc)? It helps to prioritize that long term goal over the instant gratification. If new year’s resolutions were easy, you would’ve mastered them last year!
A tangible representation of your why can be helpful too. A picture of you when you felt your best? A picture of your grandkids taped to the snack cabinet? A dress you want to get into for an upcoming wedding hanging on the closet door? Your latest lab workup on the fridge with a magnet? It needs to be the thing that matters to YOU most. Find a physical representation of that and put it in an ever present place.
The first couple weeks of attempting this will be effortful and challenging. Stay the path. What is hard today will be tomorrow’s normal. You’ll be well on your way to mastering that “Eat Healthy”.