Making Your Personal Health Contract With Tips from The Diet Diva

February 1, 2012 – You might have joined a gym – but haven’t yet set foot inside.  You may have promised to walk every morning, but your new sneakers have never seen the light of day.  You might have promised to eat healthy, but all the veggies in the fridge have gone bad before you’ve even attempted to steam them.

Studies show that by January 31, most people have fallen off the resolution wagon and have given up on all their good intentions to get healthy this year. Tara Gidus, the Diet Diva and team nutritionist for the Orlando Magic, says there are specific reasons why we’ve quit -- we’re thinking too big and don’t have an actionable plan or realistic expectations, we try to change in isolation, without support from our friends and family, or a buddy to keep us motivated.

• Commit by creating a “Personal Commitment to Health Contract” with yourself.


• Eat early, eat often: how eating throughout the day can help you keep yourself on track.


• Enlisting support: how to break the news to your family that you’re serious about staying healthy and how a buddy system can pay off.


• Get excited about your food and drink: inventive and delicious food tips that will keep you interested in eating well.