To mountains and the ultimate hidden gem. Were kicking 2018 off right, right here on gma. [ cheers and applause ] if you werent awake, you will be now. Good morning, america and a very happy new year. We want to thank our very festive audience. [ cheers and applause ] and thank you yeah, exactly. We want to thank all of you for joining us on this first day of 2018. We are on tape this morning so we could be home with our families. Some of us recovering. We hope youre enjoying your holiday too, and yes, wonderful audience so youre still with us. [ cheers and applause ] they will be throughout the day. Yes. As you are waking up on this new years we have some great tips for you to help start it right both mentally and physically. Were also going to help you get financially fit which is always good. We have five things that you should do and the tools to use to set yourself up for success. We all need that. Fantastic. First lets get to the mornings top headlines from ron claiborne. Good morning to you, ron. Reporter good morning, lara, good morning, everyone. We begin with a developing story out of costa rica where 12 people, 10 american tourists, were killed in a plane crash. The single engine charter plane went down in a wooded area shortly after takeoff. Among the americans on board, a family of five from new york identified as bruce and Irene Steinberg and their three sons. Horrified vacationers saw the plane go down and rushed to the wreckage to try to help. My family and i were having lunch and we heard the plane coming overhead pretty low, so we all left the table to go see the plane pass overhead with our kids. And as it flew over the top of us, it made a right hard lefthand turn and w and the weather in southern perfect for this mornings tournament of roses parade. Some suspectepectators spending night along the parade route. This years theme is making a thank you so much, ron. Now to the year in politics. Less than 12 months ago President Trump took office, putting heal north korea and the russia Investigation Center stage, and our abc political roundtable is breaking down the years biggest moments and what is next for 2018. Hey amy, good morning. Im here in the White House Briefing room withy friends, abc political director rick klein and mary bruce. We have the nearly Impossible Task of coming up with a highlights reel for the year that was. No pressure, you first, rick. What stood out the most . It turns out the great dealmaker actually doesnt go and cut a lot of great big deals. Remember how he governed, an independent voice that was going to drain the swamp, work with democrats and republicans. Hes governed to the right. Those deals are out there but he hasnt made a lot of calls to chuck and nancy. Remember all the talk of unified government. They made big promises, everything from Health Care Reform to building that wall. They did just have a big victory on tax reform ways their own republican insighting blocked them at a lot of turns this year. And of course that me too movement with so many women around the country coming forward, accusing men of sexual misconduct. It happened right here in this town. A lot of members of Congress Lost their jobs and this president had to face his own accusations. That certainly was a highlight for me. Lets look ahead, no pressure, 2018, what do you have, mary . Im going to stay with the year of the women. Thats a trend to watch. Women on capitol hill are pushing to make he had way on the issue of sexual harassment. You see women voters driving races from alabama to virginia and youre seeing a lot more women signing up to run Going Forward. Watch the wave. We saw rumblings of an earth quake that could come in 2018. A miterm year is always bad for the power. When you look athe turnout that happened like i alabama, virginia, some smaller local races, democrats are showing they can win in the era of trump. How can we forget russia as we head into this new year. Will President Trump have to sit down with Robert Muellers team. How close will this get to the oval office. Will he pardon anyone else. We will be watching all of these things. Guys, back to you. Its going to be a big year ahead. The new year is the perfect time to regroup and reset both mentally and physically and our chief medical correspondent dr. Jen ashton is with us to help in this matter. [ applause ] thats right, dr. Jen. Lets begin with a healthy mind. What do you know about the Science Behind mindfulness and meditatio meditation. Theres legitimate Scientific Data that shows that using tests like mris or eegs or checking vital signs or blood tests that meditation and mindfulness has positive impacts on our health. It does everything from boost the brain connectivity which is our signaling in our brain, it lowers Blood Pressure, reduces court zal, lowers our respiratory rate. It makes you feel good. You know our good buddy yes. We know someone who has preaching this for quite some time, abcs own dan harris. He actually sent us a message with one of the main questions that folks have. Take a listen. Hey guys, happy new year. Im coming to you from my house. As you know, meditation has made a big difference in my life. For the last year ive been researching what stops people who want to meditate from actually doing the thing. I think there are two big reasons. One is that people incorrectly assume they need to clear their minds. This is important to note, clearing your mind is impossible unless youre enlightened or dead. So just set that aidentify ias. The other obstacle is time. On this count ive got good news and better news. Five to ten minutes a day is a good way to get started. I think one minute absolutely counts. I dont think meditation is going to solve all of your problems, nothing will but as i like to say it might make you sorry, thats my son right there. It might make you 10 happier. Thats a must read if you havent read it for 2018. So this is another broad question but we love your tips so much. Thank you. Please tell me more. What would you say your top three tips are for everybody for health in 2018 . Thats like the top three weather stories. I think you would have to start with what i call the trifecta of wellness which is everyone, all of us, has to commit to good food, good fitness and sleep. That is the foundation for everything that we feel, mind, body and spirit. Can we do that, everybody . [ applause ] have to. Thats a great resolution. The basics, and i literally tell people if you have anything thats bothering you, if those three things are not locked down in order, dont even think about taking it from there. The second part is focusing on that mind, body, spirit connection. The meditation. Yeah. I think thats really important. A lot of people are good at the body but not good at the mind and the spirit. Then this last one is important. I would aim for kind of a middle ground with most medical treatments i dont know what you mean there. I think we get into trouble in this country with extremes. Any extreme can be potentially dangerous, but certainly for people who are living with some variety of chronic kind of conditions, i think the best holistic approach is really the best of western medicine, the best of some nonwestern approaches, and thats really the middle ground where i think you get the best result. Any extreme makes me a little nervous. I have a followup. How do you get the eastern with the western . I mean, i think that you have to go to someone who knows a little bit about both or a lot about both and i think you always have to weigh risk versus benefit. Not everything we do in western medicine is perfect and same thing with nonwestern medicine. So i think thats where the gray zone can be really helpful. You have to have a guide. Thats why we have you. Thank you. Going into 2018 now that weve got that fresh year you want my forecast . I wantou like what i did the . So i think in the crystal ball for medicine and health and wellness, look at three basic things. Obesity, i think were going to see a big push in medicine to manage it aggressively. When we talk about cancer, its all about personalized targeted gene therapies, not one size fits all when you talk about cancer. Then longevity, this is what were going to be hearing a lot about. The fda launched its first ever trial on longevity. They picked this drug met for minute which is used to treat diabetes and its been shown to reduce the rates of some cancers, may be helpful with weight loss. So remember that name. Is th f its not ready for primetime yet but it is being called the possible aspirin of the 21st century. Guys, you heard it here. First longevity, in my chrrysta ball. Ive heard that term more an mother about that. That thats fantastic. Thank you. This morning were also going to put our finances into focus. Abcs Rebecca Jarvis has five great tips to balance your max 401 k . Reporter looking to keep your money resolutions in 2018 . We have five tips to set you off on the right financial foot in the new year. Tip number one, check that Credit Report at annualcreditreport. Com. Youre entitled to one free report a year. This is especially important after more than 145 million americans had their data exposed in the massive equifax data breach. Correct any errors and be sure there arent any fraudulent accounts open in your name. Tip number two, pay down your debt. 46 of americans have outstanding Credit Card Debt and the average household carries a credit card balance of 8,109. As Interest Rates continue to rise, so will that debt. Tip number three, get automated, give yourself one less thing to worry about, and set up auto pay on all your bills. Save time and money by avoiding any future late fees. Tip number four, max out that 401 k . Many employers offer a match, and if youre not taking full advantage, youre leaving money on the table. Unsure how to invest . Consider this simple rule of thumb. 100 minus your age equals the amount you should be putting into stocks. 30 years old, thats 70 in stocks. The rest can go in money market and bond funds. Tip number five, stick to your budget. Its easier than ever to set a budget and stick to it thanks to your smartphone. Apps like good budget and mint let you set and track your spending hassle free. You can even connect to your bank account to automatically track the categories where you spend money. For good morning america, im Rebecca Jarvis in new york. Thanks so much. Amy, well head over to you. New years day is also a big one for College Football. The top four teams set to face off in the College Football playoff semifinals. Im so excited. My georgia bulldogs are taking on the oklahoma sooners and the reigning champs, the Clemson Tigers, are facing off against the alabama crimson tide. Espns jesse palmer joins us to break it all down. Good morning, jesse. Happy new year. Good morning, amy. Happy holidays. I miss you. I miss you too. We have to talk like this now . All right, lets talk about football and lets start with top ranked clemson taking on alabama which by the way was a controversial choice for the fourth seed. This is the third time these two teams will meet in the playoffs. What are what can we see . I think were going to see another epic matchup here. Both of these teams have great defenses. Theres so much nfl talent on both of these teams. Were talking about the two best coaches in all of College Football, nick saban from alabama, dabo swinney from clemson. I think at the start of the year we thought we were going to see these two teams square off in yet another National Championship. This year were going to get it in the semifinal. But this is unbelievable. The last two times we saw these two teams play, they were epic matchups and i think were going to get another one again down in the sugar bowl january 1st. Also lets talk about georgia versus oklahoma in the rose bowl. This is the first time these hour hou powerhouses who started playing in the 1890s are going to be meeting. What are we going to see and be careful what you say here, jesse. Its amazing to think of all the history these two teams have and the heisman championships and trophy winners. Theres no better situation and setting than the rose bowl. Talk about oklahoma first off, you have to talk about baker mayfield, the quarterback. He ran away with the Heisman Trophy this year. Hes the best player in College Football. Hes accurate. Hes got great arm strength. They have the best offense in the country because of him and he seemingly wills them to victory. I like your bulldogs too, amy. I think theyve got the best group of running backs in the entire country, when you talk about nick chubb and sony michelle. I also love jake fromm. He was the backup. All of a sudden they had an injury and the rest is history. I just got chills when you were saying all of that, jesse. Im so excited. My skin is crawling right now. I cant wait. Bottom line, what are your predictions . Starting off in the sugar bowl, im picking clemson over alabama because of their defense, especially their defensive line. Amy, im taking oklahoma over georgia because of the you have to because youre a gator. The National Championship game weve got clemson against oklahoma. You know what we always say, defense wins championships and thats why im picking the Clemson Tigers to repeat as national champs. Im going to tell you anything can happen. My bulldogs are going to take it. Thats my prediction. Jesse, love you. Lets talk facetoface next time, all right . Absolutely. Miss you guys. You can see both College Football semifinal games on espn. Oklahoma takes on georgia at 5 00 p. M. Eastern followed by clemson versus alabama. Lara. Coming up, digital detox. Scared those gadgets are taking over your life . Yes, i am. And your kids . Yes. The tools to help you finally put the phone down and just live a little. Really . Okay. And the new year means a new chance to travel. The hottest spots to visit in 2018 without breaking the bank. Guess which cities are celebrated a birthday. Give extra. Get extra. When heartburn hits. Fight back fast with tums smoothies. It starts dissolving the instant it touches your tongue. And neutralizes stomach acid at the source. Tum tum tum tum. Smoothies. Only from tums discover card. I justis this for real . Match, yep. We match all the cash back new cardmembers earn at the end of their first year, automatically. 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