2017 New Year’s Resolutions

CLUTTER CONTROL: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #12

June 16, 2018March 20, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

CLUTTER CONTROL: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #12

My family is NOT inherently neat and tidy. Paper clutter engulfs our kitchen counters, home office and dining room table ten times faster than I can sort, record, and recycle. Scientific studies have well documented that visual clutter ADDS significantly to stress/anxiety, and that LACK of clutter does the reverse. I tend to be an all or nothing person, so when I start to spring clean, I obsessively … Read more

Bit O’ YOGA: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #11

June 16, 2018March 13, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

Bit O’ YOGA: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #11

YOGA…As a family physician, I have recommended yoga for many of my patients. Honestly, I’m hard-pressed to think of anyone who might NOT benefit from yoga. For myself, however, yoga falls into the flossing teeth category- I KNOW I should do it, I know that “older me” is going to be mad at current me for not doing it, but I haven’t been able to find a … Read more

NO W(h)ining! 20-1-7 Challenge Week #10

June 16, 2018March 6, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

NO W(h)ining! 20-1-7 Challenge Week #10

Do you enjoy a glass or two of wine with your dinner? Me too! Wine in small amounts is happily shown to be medically beneficial. However, many of us do not limit ourselves to the “up to one 4-oz glass of wine for women, and up to two 4-oz glasses of wine for men.” How much wine is too much? If you stop at 2 glasses every night … Read more

FLOSS: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #7

June 16, 2018February 13, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

FLOSS: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #7

This week is a straight-forward nod to both our future “older” us and our dentistry colleagues: FLOSS!!

When I think about flossing, I remember a commercial from years ago with a spunky elderly woman munching on a carrot, saying “you don’t have to floss ALL your teeth- just the ones you want to keep!” And then I think of my 94 year old mother-in-law, who kept all her teeth … Read more

EXERCISE BOOST: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #6

June 16, 2018February 6, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

EXERCISE BOOST: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #6

When my patients are frustrated with a lack of measurable results despite sticking faithfully to a new exercise routine (translation, not enough pounds lost on the scale), the temptation is to blame poor metabolism, hormones and age. And sure, those things all play a role! Ultimately, we have to agree that WHATEVER your metabolism is, and whatever food choices you are making, if the scale isn’t budging, then … Read more

WATER: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #5

June 16, 2018January 30, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

WATER: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #5

WATER. Okay, confession time – the one simple health advice that I give but do not consistently follow very well is drinking enough water. Conventional wisdom (and virtually every diet plan) says we should consume 8 glasses of water (8 oz each) daily. However, there is no evidence-based specific “recommended daily allowance” for water, partly because there are so many individual variables (from kidney function to environment to sensible … Read more

BRAIN RECHARGE: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #4

June 16, 2018January 23, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

BRAIN RECHARGE: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #4

MEDITATION. This is something I think about and INTEND to add to my daily routine every year, but have honestly never managed. This week, I will do a 12 minute meditation every day.

Last week, the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease published an interesting study, which is what is pushing me: Meditation and Music Improve Memory and Cognitive Function in Adults with Subjective Cognitive Decline: A Pilot Randomized Controlled … Read more

MEDICATION DISPENSER: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #3

June 16, 2018January 16, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

MEDICATION DISPENSER: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #3

Time to practice what I preach, and get back to using my own weekly medication box! This week’s 20-1-7 challenge is to fill and use my dispenser.

As a doctor, you would think I could manage to take my ONE prescription medication plus or minus a couple vitamins …yet I find on many days that I literally cannot remember whether or not I took them. Like everyone … Read more

NEW SHAPES: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #2

June 16, 2018January 8, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

NEW SHAPES: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #2

This week, I will put a new “twist” on my vegetables by using a new veggie spiralizer ($6 at the grocery store) and I will replace pasta and rice all week with spiraled zucchini or yellow squash.

I love my GF pasta and rice so much that I have one or the other at a minimum of one meal per day. Replacing them with a vegetable should be … Read more

COLOR: Week #1: Ready for the 20-1-7 Challenge?

June 16, 2018January 1, 2017

Dr. Grimes’ 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

COLOR: Week #1: Ready for the 20-1-7 Challenge?

Happy 2017! Are you New Year’s RESOLVING to improve your health? As a family physician, I hope the answer is YES! All of us have room for improvement, even if we are going from good to GREAT. Regardless of your starting point, I’d like to offer a new health strategy.

Simple enough, right? Obviously, feel free to KEEP that new healthy habit if it is … Read more