(FREE) New Year, Slightly (New) Improved Me

Story by Kelly Northcutt / Community Health Foundation

➡️ This article is one of the FREE preview articles included with our free membership option, we hope you enjoy this free content!

➡️ Do you love reading stories from Ponca City Monthly? Don’t miss a single article, sign up for our email newsletter and get them delivered directly to your inbox. You can subscribe here.

---

Is it too early to celebrate “Ditch New Year’s Resolutions Day”? Normally, I’d wait until the national celebration on January 17th, but maybe we could get a jumpstart. According to a study by the University of Scranton, 80% of people who make resolutions don’t stick to them. Implementing small changes and maintaining those changes over time is much more effective. 

As the Director of the Community Health Foundation and more than 20 years as a Registered Nurse, my goal is to improve the health of individuals and of my community. The state of our community’s health, though, is distressing. Health is not just the absence of disease, says the World Health Organization, it’s a state of physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and even financial well-being. In overall health, Oklahoma is listed in the annual America’s Health Rankings Report as 45^th out of 50. Oklahoma’s high prevalence of non-medical drug use, high percentage of household food insecurity, and high uninsured rate are cited as some of Oklahoma’s biggest challenges contributing to our poor ranking. These conditions, along with lack of nutrition (Oklahoma is 49^th in fruit and vegetable consumption), lack of physical activity (Oklahoma ranks 42^nd in states that get enough), and the frequency of mental distress (again Oklahoma is 42^nd), contribute to our poor health. While these rankings are disappointing, I’m not willing to do nothing, and neither should you. Each of us can adopt small, healthy changes that over time can improve our own health and the overall health of our community.  

A healthy community is one in which all residents have access to a quality education, safe and healthy homes, adequate employment, transportation, physical activity, and nutrition, in addition to quality health care. Unhealthy communities lead to chronic diseases, such as cancers, diabetes, and heart disease.

The United Way of North Central Oklahoma and the Community Health Foundation of Kay County both have a mission to improve health and have partnered to bring you a health calendar for 2024. Each month provides tips for good health and unique monthly challenges that focus on everything from scheduling your preventive health screenings to getting adequate sleep and drinking enough water. We invite you to download a copy from United Way’s website at uwnco.org or you can request a free printed copy at https://www.uwnco.org/health-wellness-calendar.  

January’s calendar focus is on writing small, realistic, achievable health goals. If you currently spend every waking moment at your desk or on your sofa and rarely engage in any physical activity, working out for an hour each day at 5 in the morning, might not be the most realistic and achievable goal for you. Setting a goal to move your body for 10 minutes, three times per week, just might. 

In choosing health goals for 2024, select one goal or several. The key is to make a plan and stay positive. A study from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) explains that changing behavior might be best achieved by partnering an already-established habit with a new healthy habit. You likely already have some of these partnered habits – automatically washing your hands after flushing the toilet, for example, or immediately buckling your seatbelt after shutting your car door. In making new health habits, try drinking a full glass of water each time you sit down for a meal, or following each lunch with a small serving of fruit. In this study by NIH, participants kept the new habits better overall when paired with another automatic habit. Missing an occasional new habit did not impair the overall adoption of that habit and the new habit became much more automatic for the participants over two months of its continued use. 

After getting your own copy of the Health Calendar, consider initiating a challenge with coworkers, friends, or family. Let’s ditch the New Year’s Resolutions, but declare 2024 as a year to move, even if ever so slightly, in a healthier direction. 

➡️ Opt in or out of different newsletters on your “My Account” page.

➡️ Learn more about Ponca City Monthly+

Ponca City Monthly is a locally owned media company that delivers hyperlocal news through in print and online.

Like what we are doing? Feel free to forward this along and tell a friend.

Sponsorship information/customer service: email editor@poncacitymonthly.com