Ring in the New Year with a Lasting Resolution

Need inspiration for a New Years resolution that actually sticks?  Ask yourself the following questions:  

What can I do to improve my health (physical, mental, spiritual, environmental)?

How can I be a better partner, parent, or friend?  

How can I be more successful at work?

How can I increase my happiness at work and home?  

Now make a list! Physically writing it down helps to make these ideas become concrete.  Prioritize your responses and just pick one or two to focus on for the beginning of 2014.  No go big or go home mentality here--this is unrealistic and sets you up for self-sabotage!  

The hardest step is breaking down these goals into bite size pieces so that they feel more manageable. What changes can you make that will put you closer to your goal? Let’s take weight loss as a popular, and easy example…let’s say you want to lose 20 pounds in 2014.  There’s no way this is happening in the next month or two, so rather than burning out and feeling disappointed when the scale doesn’t go down in the next couple weeks (and emotionally eating it all back), break it down into more achievable goals/steps:

I will eat a healthy breakfast every morning

I will go to the gym 3 days per week

I will walk for 10 minutes on my lunch break

I will keep a food journal each day 

I will eat brown rice instead of white rice

I will only eat dessert on the weekends

Keep your goal somewhere visible for motivation (a post-it on your mirror, on the fridge, in your wallet, a document on your desktop).  Most people forget all about their resolutions by February! Don’t let this happen to you—track your goal by picking a date in your calendar to evaluate your progress. Or write your smaller goals/steps on a to-do list and check them off as the week goes on.  

It’s ok, and helpful to ask for social support! Share with your partner or best friend your resolution, then help each other out by checking in and celebrating progress.  Keep yourself motivated with small rewards every time you achieve a small step towards your goal. And no beating yourself up--this just leads to negativity, loss of motivation, and depression.  Give yourself encouragement, just as you would a friend!

Samantha's Suggested New Years Resolutions:

Increase mindfulness:  Build time into your daily schedule for deep breathing, meditation, mindful eating…use these skills when you are stressed, before a big work presentation, or to relax before bed

Increase physical activity: Walking counts! Take a stroll during your lunch hour, join a new gym or fitness class, refuse to let cold weather keep you inactive by going to an indoor golf simulator, indoor trampoline park, swimming, MMA, basketball, etc…make it fun! No one likes to exercise when they feel like it’s a chore.

Increase social connectedness: Call your parents or friends just to say hi, or send a friendly "thinking of you" text or e-mail, or better yet, drop a real card in the mail!  But watch out for time consuming social media sites, like Facebook and Instagram.  Sometimes social media can feel overwhelming—don’t put pressure on yourself to keep up with everyone, just those you truly care about.  And sometimes seeing pictures and posts from “friends” (consider pruning, or defriending people you don’t actually know or care about) can make you feel crummy about yourself—stop comparing! If social media brings you down, maybe it’s time to set some limits.

Increase healthy sleep habits:  Refuse to snooze! Get to bed at a reasonable hour. Try not to sleep in on the weekends, which throws off your sleep cycle.

Decrease drinking/drug use: Sure, having a cocktail with a friend to catch up is relaxing and fun, but often times people end up self-medicating to deal with underlying stress, depression, or anxiety.  Try a fun, substance-free activity with a friend, like going to the movies, out to lunch, shopping, or a work out class instead.  If you hang out with the type of people who you only feel comfortable with when you’re boozing, perhaps you need to reconsider your friendship?

HAPPY 2014! MAKE THIS YEAR COUNT