Do you make New Years resolutions?
How long do they last?
Perhaps your resolution is to stop making New Year resolutions to avoid the guilt of sweeping them under the carpet in March every year.
While the New Year is not the only time to make changes it is a great time to commit to some new ways of doing things. A fresh start if you will. The key is to make the changes manageable so that they are actually achievable.
For example, if you are a chocolate fiend, instead of resolving to give up ‘cold turkey’ aim to have a few chocolate free days each week or swap out the endless tablespoons of Nutella for a few squares of good quality dark chocolate once a day. You’ll feel more in control of those cravings AND you’ll enjoy the moment that much more.
If you have resolved to be more active, it doesn’t mean you have to run a marathon. If the thought of running for more time then it takes to catch up with the Mr Whippy van sends you into a cold creamy yet fat free choc dipped sweat then just aim to have a brisk walk a few times a week. The more manageable your resolution the greater chance you’ll have of sticking to it. Who knows, it may mean that next year you resolve to increase the walk to a light jog and from here ….well who knows where it might take you, New York, Boston, London perhaps?
A few years ago I resolved to start each day with a sun salutation. I’m not big into yoga (although perhaps that’s a resolution for next year) but knew I’d benefit from an all round stretch each morning. I decided that 3 rounds of salutations would be within my time frame and I was feeling pretty good about it. Of course, like most things in life, you run into all sorts of ‘experts’, one of which assured me that I should be doing at least 20 salutations each morning for them to be of benefit. WHAT??? You can imagine how deflated I felt. Until I realised that if 20 such salutes were my resolution then it would have lasted all of one day. My resolution was manageable for me and I’ve been going strong now for 2 years. Ok, if we’re being honest, some days its only a single salutation and others its none at all but the fact that my body gets an early morning stretch more mornings than not I count as a winner.
So if you feel the need for change but struggle with it start small, make it achievable, take each day as it comes and don’t beat yourself up for slipping up. Ultimately a resolution should make you feel good about yourself or how you relate to others – why make them otherwise? If they don’t perhaps it’s time to modify or, dare I say it, resolve to make more realistic, achievable resolutions next year.
