It’s that time of year again when people vow to turn over a new leaf and shed old bad habits — and sometimes some pounds.
We call these pseudo-promises New Year’s resolutions, and many focus on embracing new routines to improve their health and well-being.
The good news is that resources abound in the Penn State community to help faculty, staff and students stick with their New Year’s resolutions. Fitness facilities, healthy eating options, programs to help shed bad habits and even in-house experts on diets are available.
“Be realistic about diets, try to think about what you can sustain because continuing to disappoint yourself is not good at all,” says Barbara J. Rolls, professor of nutritional sciences in Penn State’s College of Health and Human Development. “If you do decide you want to lose weight, choose something you can do consistently, because research shows that doing something regularly — not giving yourself weekends off — is what tends to work best. So opt for an approach that’s sustainable, consistent and perhaps not too ambitious, because you really want to succeed.”
Rolls has written three books based on her decades of research on diet and nutrition, which shows that lowering the calorie density of food can help people feel full while eating fewer calories. Her latest book, “The Ultimate Volumetrics Diet,” offers tips for incorporating fruits and vegetables into recipes without sacrificing taste. The book continues to be among the best diet books according to U.S. News & World Report’s rankings — only Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers and government-sponsored type diets rank higher.
The healthy eating that Rolls advocates is easy to find on campus.
“There are plenty of choices around here, now,” says Rolls. “Gosh, so many more each year that it’s doable and it’s affordable. A lot of healthy choices don’t have to be expensive, so look around you and figure out how this will fit into your Penn State environment.”
The other resolution that goes hand-in-hand with eating healthier and losing weight is getting fit. Penn State is at the forefront in that category as well with four fitness centers and almost 60,000 square feet of workout space. These facilities lead to 1 million visits per year, with 23,000 yearly fitness memberships, 210 weekly fitness classes, 800 pieces of equipment and more than 18,000 pounds of weights.
The university was recently listed among the healthiest colleges in a number of different rankings, including Greatist’s ranking.
Despite good intentions, one annual event oftentimes derails the best-laid plans.
“We see a huge increase in fitness participants beginning just after the new year when everyone has a lot of time and enthusiasm,” says Jill Garrigan, fitness coordinator at Penn State. “Conversely, as a general rule, our first major drop off in fitness participation comes just after Super Bowl Sunday, when there is less free time and life tends to get in the way of good intentions.”
Garrigan, echoing Rolls’ sentiment to be realistic with your goals, offers another strategy for keeping resolutions.
“Sign up for a challenge, such as a fun run, walk or other contest to help keep yourself engaged,” she says. “This also will help hold you accountable for a long-term goal. Pick an event that is several months away and work toward it.”
For information on Penn State’s fitness opportunities or to sign up for a membership, go to www.athletics.psu.edu/fitness.
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