Many people enter the new year with high hopes that turning the calendar will result in their lifestyles magically changing. This year, take a different approach and try not making yourself a new year’s resolution.
Don’t Set Yourself Up for Failure
I used to be a big fan of making resolutions, thinking that it’s important to keep working at bettering myself. However, I found that the great ideas I had of “working out X times per week” or “drinking less” almost always lost steam once vacation ended and life got back to normal. Does this look like how your exercise resolution usually plays out?
According to an article on Forbes,
Every year more than 50% of people make New Year’s resolutions to lose weight, quit smoking, work out, save money, get a promotion, get a raise, and more. And yet, virtually every study tells us that around 80% of New Year’s resolutions will get abandoned around this month (February).
Forbes.com
Yikes!
Make Lasting Changes NOW
Over time, I’ve found that not making a New Year’s resolution has worked out better for me than when I actually make one. Instead of waiting until the magical 1/1/yyyy date to start or stop doing something, I’ve started to shift my focus on making changes now (as in, whenever you end up reading this). These changes should come in the form of achievable and sustainable lifestyle changes.
The Mind & Body section of the site provides some thoughts on how you may be able to start designing a more positive life. Here’s a recap:
Start Small
In order to accomplish anything difficult, starting small is key. Anything is possible if you take a methodical, organized approach to working through what’s required – baby steps.
Whether you’re trying to lose 50 pounds, eat healthier or drink less, the approach is the same. It’s all about being organized and breaking things down into small, manageable chunks that will avoid you getting overwhelmed. Instead of trying to lose 50 pounds, think of it as 5 pounds…then another 5 pounds. Eventually the changes you’re making will turn into habits and help you achieve your goals.
Create Reminders
Use the posts tagged ‘reminders‘ to start thinking differently about the things you see in your everyday life. Become more aware of what’s around you and create your own reminders, or triggers, to help you think of the lessons that will reinforce the positive things in your life. Everyone is different so the lessons may change and the reminders may change, but the approach is the same.
Here are some examples we’ve written about:
| Lesson | Reminder |
| Strategic Vision | Putting your glasses or contacts in |
| Core Values | Eating healthy snacks |
| Proactive Planning & Investment | Setting the coffee maker for the morning |
| Perspective | Taking the dog for a walk |
| Empathy | Putting your shoes on |
| Big Picture Thinking | Seeing birds or planes flying above |
| Keeping it Light | Watering the lawn |
| Thinking Outside the Box | Home deliveries |
Establish a Routine
Feeling your best consistently isn’t something that just happens by chance. Feeling great today isn’t likely to happen just because you wake up and wish it would be that way. Getting a great night’s sleep isn’t likely to happen just because it’s been a long day and you’re exhausted.
I feel my best when I’m able to get in a groove and stick to a routine that works for me day over day. It doesn’t always work because life will get in the way (family, work, other responsibilities, etc) but the key is having something you’re able to come back to to keep you on track.
Try some different things to see what you enjoy and what gives you the best results (we’ve shared some ideas here to get you started). Incorporate these things on a regular basis to move you closer to your goals.
Exercise Regularly
We’ve shared some exercise ideas here but we’re no gurus and there are tons of resources out there to guide you on exercising. If you’re just starting out, I’d again recommend staring small to avoid getting discouraged. Try these on for size and see what you like:
- Walking or running
- Body weight workouts at home (pushups, sit-ups, squats, lunges, running in place, jumping jacks, planks, burpees, mountain climbers, etc)
- Lifting weights
- Riding a stationary bike
- Riding an elliptical
Eat Right
In the recipes section of this site, we’ve shared some ideas for healthy eating. This includes some healthy takes on more common recipes as well as some other recipes our family enjoys eating that doesn’t make you feel gross.
Awareness of what you’re putting into your body is half the battle. Take a look in your fridge and pantry. Do the things you see in there align with the goals you’ve set for yourself? For example, do you feel that you could lose a few pounds but consistently keep a stash of store-bought chocolate chip cookies around?
Similar to exercising, there are tons of great resources out there to help you learn about what’s good for you and what’s not (we’ll try to keep doing our part here as well). You just need to be proactive in looking for them and using them.
Think
Nothing is going to be accomplished if you don’t allow yourself some time to think. Our post about thinking outside the box is really just about finding different ways to get you thinking (going for walks and exercising, podcasts, courses, various internet resources, music, etc).
A few focused minutes a day will help you use your time more efficiently and go a very long way in helping you to achieve your goals.
Resolutions Shmesolutions
So, it’s not that we are totally hating on the idea of new year’s resolutions. They work for some people but the problem we’ve had with them is that is waiting for some point in the future and hoping for a little new-year magic to help you achieve a goal. We have seen better results when taking this on outside of the resolution perspective.
Today is just as good as 1/1 to start thinking about the changes you want to make in your life. Try using the various ideas we’ve described in this post and throughout the site to implement change in your life. Stay balanced in your approach. Give yourself time to figure out what’s important and then start in on making some small changes that are manageable and have a better chance of lasting.
Good luck and Happy New Year!