Do as I say, not as I do.
As a yoga teacher and founder of the studio Yo Yoga! in New York City, Rebecca Weible comes across as fit and motivated. But at one point this year, she felt quite the opposite. “I realized I felt lazy and sort of out of shape,” says Weible, who had let her hectic schedule take precedence over her own workouts. Other health pros admit to not always practicing what they preach, either. “It’s inevitable,” Weible says. What matters is how you recover. Weible, for one, now plots out at least two times each week to prioritize her fitness. Here’s how other experts slipped up — and bounced back — this year:
‘I didn’t warm up properly.’
Sayco Williams was in his second set of chest presses when he felt a sharp shoulder pain. “[It] forced me to stop my set immediately,” remembers Williams, a New York City personal trainer who had not warmed up his rotator cuffs before the workout. He had to avoid heavy lifting for two weeks. “As an athlete, one of the worst things that can happen is to be out on rest from the sport you love due to an injury,” he says. Now, he prepares for lifts more thoroughly. “Don’t allow that injury to throw you completely off your game,” he advises. “Rest up. Get back in the gym. Get back to feeling great.”
‘I got ‘better’ parking.’
Dr. Michael Grandner was moving up in the academic world: Thanks to his position directing the Behavioral Sleep Medicine Clinic at the Banner-University Medical Center in Tuscon, he landed a coveted parking spot in the garage right next to the hospital. “At first, I was excited,” Grandner says, “but soon, I realized that I was missing a nice seven- to 10-minute morning walk outside.” While he still parks in the garage, Grandner tries to park farther from the entrance and get his sunshine fix at lunch. “Sometimes,” he says he’s learned, “the small conveniences are what get in the way of the little things we do to promote health.”
‘I didn’t take enough time for myself.’
The fact that Jessica Crandall loves her job and family is a blessing — and a minor curse. “It’s sometimes challenging to take time for yourself without feeling guilty that you could have booked another appointment, done another interview, helped your staff or spent more time with your kids or family,” says Crandall, a registered dietitian in Denver. She’s found that working out first thing in the morning, having a backup plan when her fitness plans get scrapped and taking time early in the day or week to prioritize helps. “It’s good to remind myself,” she says, “that most of my to-do list will still be there tomorrow.”
‘I assumed my vitamin D levels were fine.’
Cleveland Clinic psychologist Susan Albers knew her indoor job in chilly Ohio put her at risk for lacking in vitamin D, which is important for bone health. So, the mindful-eating expert deliberately loaded her diet with spinach, eggs, mushrooms and other vitamin D-rich foods. But when her doctor convinced her to get her levels checked — which she initially thought was unnecessary — she was “shocked” they were low. Albers has since added a vitamin D supplement to her regimen and plans to check her levels more regularly. “You think you can be doing all the right things,” she’s learned, “but it can’t hurt to check it out and get the data.”
‘I didn’t get enough sleep.’
Jason Walsh, founder of the climbing-based fitness studio Rise Nation in West Hollywood, starts working at 5 a.m. and doesn’t stop until the sun goes down. “I am very regimented across the board with what I eat [and] how I work out,” he says, “however, I do not make enough time to take care of myself.” In the new year, Walsh plans to delegate more at work in order to open up more time for sleep and meditation — something that confers benefits after just 20 minutes, he says. “I cannot stress enough how important it is to take care of your mind as well as your body.”
‘I let my meditation practice slip.’
2016 got off to a mentally healthy start for Alissa Rumsey, a registered dietitian and certified strength and conditioning specialist in New York City: She meditated for 10 to 15 minutes each morning. “Morning meditation helps me to feel more centered and calm and ready to take on the day,” she says. But then summer travel hit, and her practices faded — and then stopped altogether. Now, she’s aiming to resume her practice three days a week. “Don’t let your lapses become relapses,” or full-on returns to your old ways, she suggests. “So you overate or skipped a few workouts? Forgive yourself and move on.”
No regrets
Michelle Segar hopes to introduce a more consistent meditation practice into her life next year, too. To achieve that, she’s “shrinking” her goal to just two minutes a day and moving the time slot to do so from the evenings to the mornings. “When I initiate a new behavior into my life, I try to leverage the great techniques I know about, including tossing out any ideas of perfection,” says Segar, a motivation scientist at the University of Michigan, where she directs the Sport, Health, and Activity Research Policy Center. “Having a ‘learning mindset,'” she adds, “is crucial to not getting discouraged and [to] keep moving forward.”
More from U.S. News
14 Ways Caregivers Can Care for Themselves
Trouble Sleeping? Ask Yourself Why
8 Ways to Stick to Your Meditation Routine
8 Experts Confess Their Biggest Health Regrets of the Year originally appeared on usnews.com
