How many times have you made a New Year’s resolution focusing on, say, losing a ton of weight, promising never-ever to let a cookie pass your lips, or doing a marathon in March despite being a lifelong couch surfer who struggles to walk a half mile? How many times have those pie-in-the-sky resolutions come to pass?
Yes, I say “pie-in-the-sky” because we somehow expect to — like Lynda Carter’s Wonder Woman TV show from the 1980s — spin in place and suddenly transform into a super-being possessing those perfect traits and self-discipline needed to immediately accomplish our expectations. It’s precisely that desire of instant gratification that sabotages every single resolution we make!
But what if we all took a completely different approach to New Year’s resolutions, especially after a crappy 2020?
Your New New Year’s Resolution: Live More Healthfully
Choosing a New Year’s resolution such as “I will live more healthfully” creates a mindset, and one of empowerment. This allows you to make the choice between having that cookie or skipping it for another day. You’re not depriving yourself of that cookie. You’re simply making a choice to have it another time.
This is the resolution I repeat each year. To help me stay on track, I can take smaller actions that support my goal of living more healthfully. For instance for New Year’s in 2018 I decided to cut back on my Starbucks soy mochas habit. Yes, initially my inner three-year-old self threw tantrums when I opted for a black brewed coffee or skipping Starbucks all together (this also helped me reduce spending, another resolution I had made). Fast forward to today: I continue to order black coffee much more often than those mochas. I’m saving on calories and money while feeling very satisfied.
So, yes, definitely go for it if you want to lose that weight, run or power walk a marathon, go on a cross-country bicycle tour, or to get stronger and have more endurance to keep up with your rambunctious, energetic kids! But make those desires the components of a larger New Year’s resolution to enjoy a more healthy lifestyle. You’ll experience a fulfilling journey of successes, setback, surprises, flow, frustration, satisfaction, disappointments, and achievements.
That’s why Slowpoke Divas is here to help you discover, share and celebrate this awesome lifestyle, and I so appreciate that we can share our journeys together. Let’s forge ahead in the new year with renewed hope and refreshed energy as we all move ahead to fulfill our fitness goals.
Wishing you good health, happiness, and prosperity in 2021 and beyond!
