February is right around the corner and for many, it means one month closer to spring, Super Bowl parties, Valentine’s Day and unfortunately, total abandonment of those New Year's resolutions you made not long ago.
That’s right, by February, most of you will be back to bad habits. That’s because New Year’s promises often involve dieting, deprivation, hunger and rigidness. None of these things have been found to be effective in the battle of the bulge.
JOIN THE START TODAY FACEBOOK GROUP
It's time to recommit! The Start TODAY four-week Facebook challenge is here for your ANTI-resolution plan.
Led by bestselling author and dietitian Kristin Kirkpatrick, the challenge is meant to keep you motivated and accountable every single day of the month, with thousands of other TODAY show viewers. Each week will follow a specific theme. In addition to the weekly themes, Kristin will be interacting with you by answering questions, providing her favorite meal ideas, daily nutrition tips and tricks, and live Facebook chats! She will be your weight-loss guru, watching your progress and keeping you on track!
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Week one: Detox
Time to get rid of the pills, potions and powders that you may have bought instead of real food, and time to focus on all the foods you can feed your detox organ (the liver) to work as best as it can. This week will be about knowing the right foods to keep in your kitchen and the right tactics to start getting serious about weight loss.
Week two: Real food
We cleaned up things like white grains, excess alcohol and sugar on week one (your liver appreciated that) and now we will take it one step further and focus on determining what is real, and what is manufactured calories. In addition to this, Kristin will reveal the sneaky non-food factors that can sabotage even the best laid plans. Kristin will also reveal the best time to eat (and not eat) and will take your questions on some of the hottest diets trending today.
Week 3: Upgrade your diet
This week, we will focus on upgrading instead of eliminating. For example, meal ideas will focus on substitutions like using bean-based pasta over 100 percent whole grain whole wheat pasta, to get more protein and fiber, the best breakfast for weight loss, the best fruits and vegetables and even the best way to tackle eating out.
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Week 4: Creating lasting habits
We will celebrate all that you have done so far, and then focus on how you can keep forming habits that equate to lifestyle change — routines help to form lifelong habits. This last week will take all the great food tips you have learned and put them into practice. We’d also love to look back at the goals you set in week one (weight loss, less sugar, etc.) and have you share how you did.
The entire challenge, Kristin will be following you, guiding you and being your educational resource and advocate!
Join the Start TODAY Facebook group now to get in on the weight-loss and lifestyle change action! Kristin Kirkpatrick, MS, R.D., is the manager of wellness nutrition services at the Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute in Cleveland, Ohio, and the author of "Skinny Liver." Follow her on Twitter @KristinKirkpat.