New year, new you? There’s something so satisfying about having a clean slate in January. If you are embracing setting healthy habits this new year, check out the tips below to learn how to make your goals work for you in 2024.

Baby steps for sustainable progress

While it can be super tempting to go all out with your New Year's resolutions, setting healthy goals means embracing baby steps for long-term success. For example, it might sound enticing to draft a meal plan and detail out exactly what you’re going to eat for the week. However, if you add too much to your plate too quickly, your new habits might be doomed before you even get them off the ground.

Instead of restrictive meal plans, consider adding some balance to your day by pairing different food groups together.

This could look like:

Breakfast: yogurt with berries and granola or a smoothie made with milk, yogurt, and fruit
Lunch: a sandwich on wheat bread with turkey, provolone cheese, lettuce, and tomato
Snack: cheese and crackers with an apple or cottage cheese and fruit
Dinner: whole wheat pasta with a veggie-packed marinara sauce and lean ground beef with a cup of milk on the side

Remember to personalize whatever plan you follow and make sure that it fits your personal nutrition needs and lifestyle.

Add, don’t subtract

We often hear people talking about what they need to stop doing: eating less sugar, cutting out soda, or eating less fried food. However, it can be frustrating to only think about what you’re taking out of your life without considering what you’re going to add back in.

By focusing on a “nutrition by addition” mindset, you can still enjoy your favorite foods while adding some healthy options to your meal or snack. For example, if you love popcorn as a snack, consider adding a cheese stick to it for some protein. If you love toast in the morning, pair it with some yogurt or a smoothie made with milk for a nutrient-rich breakfast.

Overcoming all-or-nothing

Black-and-white thinking might be holding you back when it comes to forming healthy habits. This might look like making great progress all week only to get to the weekend and “slip up“ and then call off your healthy habits completely. Expect that your plan is not going to go perfectly and anticipate those challenges before they come.

Set realistic goals, focus on what you can add instead of subtract, and keep going even when you have small setbacks along the way for healthy habits in 2024.

Caroline Thomason is a dietitian, diabetes educator, and writer based in Washington, DC. She runs a private practice for women who want to stop dieting and find confidence with food. As a media dietitian, she is the best at breaking down complex science into easy-to-digest language. Her work has been featured in Forbes, Health, SHAPE, EatingWell, and more.

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