challenge: faithfully go without sugar in your tea or coffee for a couple of weeks and see if you want to go back; most people don't or they cut their intake dramatically.
challenge: spend the week listing the amount of snack foods (salted peanuts, candy, fizzy drinks, biscuits, cake) you consume as snacks. The next week cut the amount in half and if you must snack, replace with fruit or fresh juice, or just a drink of water. Then, try to remove yourself from snacking junk foods altogether.
challenge: for the first week just keep a list of all the ready meals you consume. The next week try to swap these with fresh foods and stuff you actually need to cook. Try not to fry foods and go instead for vegetables you can boil or steam, meats you can grill or roast. Most people find that once they've made the transition to healthy habits they never look back.
challenge: this is probably the biggest challenge but stopping smoking will also have the single biggest benefit. Most people do much better if they are involved with some form of support group - like About's own smoking cessation site?
challenge: two or three short weekly bursts are better than nothing but not as good as, say, regular walking. In order to exercise you may need to reconfigure the way you think. For example, instead of leaving it to the last possible minute before you leave for work, think about leaving earlier and building in a way in which you need to walk to work. Some people find the walk home is more fun. What's more, it's never too late to exercise, so everyone benefits.
challenge: take an activity holiday. It need not mean mountain climbing but could, for example, include walking, cycling, swimming, learning how to ski or sail. Far from making you more tired exercise actually boosts energy levels. When you get back from vacation you will feel far more refreshed than just lying in the sun for two weeks.
challenge:Most regular drinkers have no idea how calorific alcohol drinks can be. Challenge 1 is reduce calorific drinks and you'll lose weight; challenge 2 is monitor your drinking and don't get drunk - it just means you are drinking to excess.
If you are overweight you have increased health risks.challenge: lose weight by controlling diet and taking regular exercise. Check your Body Mass Index and the height/weight chart to see your current status.
My mother-in-law described the pre-meal alcoholic drink and peanuts or snacks as spoilers. She was right; not only are pre-meal snacks usually fatty and calorific they are often very salty. Far from promoting an appetite they can actually spoil it. challenge: I know they are tempting, but drop the spoilers.
Poor, broken or deprived sleep affects your lifestyle more than you might think. Accidents increase, moods change, concentration is affected to name just a few. challenge: although the length of sleep a person needs can vary most adults need around eight hours of unbroken sleep each night, preferably as a routine. Once the routine is established you will feel the difference.