New Year, New Resolutions
This is sometimes quite a depressing time of year. Christmas is over, the weather is cold and the worst months of winter stretch seemingly interminably ahead. I think it is also a positive time of year though and I always find it so. The year is almost over and the New Year is just around the corner full of potential and possibilities and the opportunity for a new start. Most people make resolutions of some kind at this point and many people fail to keep them. I am certainly guilty of this and each year I make various resolutions that either don’t make it past January or gradually peter out during the year.
The ones that I do manage to keep are the simple ones and I think this is the key to resolutions. It’s easy to treat them as big grand gestures, decisions that will magically improve our lives. The reality is that it is only we ourselves that can do that. A resolution is really just the verbalisation of what we want to change or achieve. It’s important to have goals, but it’s important to make them achievable or we will fail and feel disheartened and maybe even regress.
Here are a few of my tips for achievable resolutions:
Keep them simple. Don’t try to become Michel Roux in the kitchen if you’re trying to improve your cooking or Usain Bolt if you just need to get out for a run more often. It really is ok just to aim for a run twice a week or meals from scratch at the weekend.
Don’t make too many. 10 might seem like a nice round number but giving ourselves so much to remember and also so much to change, we are likely to be overwhelmed and give up. It’s also important to remember that you don’t need to change everything! Learn to be satisfied with yourself your life and focus on all the things that are great about it.
Make them diverse. Don’t just focus on huge changes to our diet which are likely to become depressing. Diversity is also important for success and the key is to make a small change in a few aspects of your life; diet, exercise and lifestyle are all key. Cutting down on the processed food, adding in a bit more exercise and making time for relaxation are three great resolutions that could make a big, positive change in your life.
So, get thinking about your resolutions and look forward to an exciting year ahead. Here’s wishing you all a healthy, happy and fun filled 2015!
