The brand-new start of a new year is the perfect time to set goals for adopting healthier habits. Most people have their own personal resolutions to tackle at the beginning of the new year. However, setting goals together as a family can be good as well.

New year’s resolutions easily fall by the wayside. While you may start out with a strong resolve to stick to your goals, time and lack of support often lead to neglecting what was vowed important on January first. Setting goals as a family adds accountability for everyone involved.

The new year can mean taking steps to be healthier as a family, and this is always a positive change. From being more active to reducing screen time, here’s a list of healthy habits for your family to embrace this new year.

1. Create a Reasonable Limit on Screen Time

From social media and games to email and videos, screens fill a lot of time in the average family’s day-to-day life. Technology can be difficult to get away from. However, lowering dependency on phones and screens can be a healthy move for every member of the family. Less screen time means being more active and connecting more as a family.

Distracting kids from screen time can be especially challenging. However, opting for a kids phone that has limited functions, such as calls, texts, and camera-use only can help. This allows children to still have a phone for communication, but additional screen time will be easier to monitor.

2. Strive for Family Connections

As you move away from technological connections, you may find more time to reconnect with those you love. Keeping familial connections strong is exceptionally good for emotional well-being. So, for the new year, make a commitment as a family to spend more time with the most important people in life. Schedule time for things like family game night, visiting relatives, and even spending more time with friends.

3. Plan Meals Ahead

Advance meal planning makes it less likely that you and your family will be eating on the fly and possibly not as healthy as you should be. When you make a meal plan, get everyone on board. Discuss which meals each family member would like to see on the menu. Talk about ways to keep those meals as healthy as possible. The end result can be better-planned, healthier meals that everyone is pleased to sit down and eat.

4. Resolve to Give Sleep Priority Status

Lack of quality sleep can be detrimental to good health. Therefore, a resolution as simple as making sleep a priority is a huge step as a family. One way to do so is to follow a good bedtime routine. For example, make sure the last meal of the day is a few hours before bedtime. Likewise, put away all screens about an hour before bed so there is no risk of difficulty sleeping due to blue light exposure.

5. Spend More Time Outdoors

Spending time outdoors offers a host of advantages. Fresh air intake, time away from technology, and vitamin D from sunlight are just a few examples. As a family, decide what outdoor activities you could enjoy together. Then, make it a point to add these activities to the family schedule at least once a week or more if time permits.

6. Get Proactive About Preventative Health Care

Preventative healthcare is one of the best things you can do for your overall health. Forgoing or delaying appointments for things like annual checkups, dental hygiene visits, and pertinent diagnostic procedures is easy if you have no one holding you accountable. However, if you are looking out for one another to be attentive to preventative health, appointments are much less likely to be put off.

Hang a monthly calendar in a central location in the house. Schedule appointments in advance and make note of them on the calendar. As those days draw closer, each family member can encourage others to hold their commitments.

7. Work On Building Strength

Strength comes along with being more active and using your muscles more often. You don’t necessarily have to take up yoga or start weightlifting for the entire family to work on building up their muscles. Building strength may involve doing something as simple as using hand weights when watching TV or doing friendly jumping jack challenges.

Integrate a few micro workouts into your daily routine. Micro workouts are simply very short exercise stints that take only a minute or two to complete. The added activity does the body good. Plus, if the entire family sticks to the plan for the year, each person will come out a bit stronger and healthier.

Final Takeaways to Remember

New year’s resolutions may typically be a personal agenda, but family resolutions often prove more effective. With just a few changes, like limiting screen time, getting better sleep, or being more active, everyone may experience positive changes.

As you and your family enter into the new year, consider what small changes you can make as a group. Perhaps you may need to invest in phones for kids that help reduce screen time, rearrange your schedule, and make a few new plans. Yet, these small changes can make a huge difference for everyone involved.