It’s that time of year again. New year, new me. As the end of 2020 approaches, it’s natural to think of the 2021 as a fresh start. Unfortunately, only a few of us ever successfully see their new year’s resolutions to completion. Why is that?
A huge component of why we fail to stick with our resolutions is that there is no real commitment. Oftentimes, we end up picking a vague resolution or we just pick a resolution that we hear about or read about – “get you summer bod! Read to find out how!” Get my summer bod? That sounds good to me! I’ll definitely do that as my new year’s resolution!
Be specific. Using the example from above, what does getting my summer bod even mean and how do I go about doing that? Without having a specific goal in mind or even a plan, it can be an extremely daunting task to get there. Instead of, “get a summer bod,” try “go down one dress size by *insert a specific date*.” If you’re not really sure how to go about doing that, ask for help (and I don’t mean Google) from someone who does know. Setting a plan down on paper (or your tablet if you’re more of a techie) with a specific timeline creates more “buy-in.” The plan is your step-by-step visual aid that will help you get to your future self just like following a cooking recipe will help you get to your next meal.
Start small. Again, referencing the above example, “getting a summer bod” seems a bit grand, doesn’t it? The go big or go home attitude can be super overwhelming, especially if your start position is nowhere near where you eventually see yourself. Think about the steps required to get to that grandiose end goal. How do you get to a summer bod? By working out consistently and a clean diet, of course! But even those concepts are too high level to start with. Instead, break it down even further. Try “I am going to strength train three times each week” and/or “I am going to replace my morning bagel with cream cheese with a homemade smoothie.” Both are specific actions that can be monitored. You either did or didn’t do it. This will better help you stay accountable. Once you’ve got a pretty good handle on your original goal(s), you can start to add on. Always perform a task consistently well first before progressing on to the next step, otherwise you’ll fall risk to becoming overwhelmed.
Relevance. Choose a goal that means something to you. If you don’t care about achieving the goal set, you won’t care if you fail. If you don’t care about failing, you’ve got nothing vested and you’re more likely to give up before you ever get started.
Timing. For starters, if you really want to do or change something, isn’t it a bit silly to wait until the end of the year to begin? Why not start immediately? When New Year’s Eve starts to roll around, we’re already at the tail end of back to back holidays and most likely suffering from back to back binge eating (and possibly drinking) fests. We’re probably not feeling physically too great, may not feeling all that confident because of the downward spiral we’ve been on, and we may be carrying around a few extra pounds that we normally don’t have. Plus, with summer being six months away, worrying about your future swimsuit-clad self is not a high priority for our current self, who is in the midst of a trip to Pleasure Island. If starting an exercise routine has been on your mind, just do it. Create your plan and execute it. Don’t wait for January 1st.
Do you like to set resolutions for yourself each year? Why or why not? If you’ve tried any of times tips, comment below as to how it went for you! If you’ve got other tips you’d like to share with our community, please comment as well!
The Yogi Jedi 