Tips for Your New Year’s Resolve

As we count down to the arrival of another year, most of us have the desire to start fresh with some part of our lives–or all of them.

How about you? Anything you’d like to switch up this year?

I’ve said for a very long time now that resolutions (like diets) don’t work. The reason is because we make those resolutions out of context of real life.

Things can go really well for a few weeks, maybe even a couple months. Then, an aging parent needs additional help, the “senior” dog leaves messes on the carpet (we’ve been dealing with this one lately), or everyone in the family has the stomach flu at the same time.

Real life is the norm. The “perfect” life is a fantasy and we all know it. We pretend it’s REAL, and  then wonder why we lose our resolve.

Some of you may be wondering if your intentions for 2019 stand even the slightest chance of surviving through the winter.

They do if you take into consideration real life.

Here are some tips for maintaining your real-life healthy resolutions:

*Set reasonable goals that set you up for success. Planning to work out an hour a day, seven days week, is not realistic when you are getting started. Schedule two or three “appointments” to exercise in your week. Once it becomes routine, increase the time and/or frequency. Finding activities you enjoy are critical to longevity.

*Include some protein for breakfast. Getting your day off to a good start nutritionally sets you up for good energy and smart choices throughout the entire day.  

*Have about five “go-to” dinner menus that you can get on the table in 30 minutes or less. Keep the necessary ingredients on hand so you can switch into autopilot cooking mode. Save those new recipes you’d like to experiment with for weekends when you may have more time. Meal prepping is extremely helpful to do on weekends as well.

*Focus on one or two habits at a time. A confused mind says “no” and gives up when overwhelm sets in. Trying to do too much all at once is the cause of many resolution failures. Think baby steps.

*Give yourself grace to be imperfect. It’s okay to do what you can do, even if it’s not what you had hoped. Take care of yourself the best you can so you are able to help with the needs of others. You may get the protein in for breakfast, but because of real life stuff, getting to the gym isn’t happening. Let it go and start fresh tomorrow.

Last January I made the intention to meditate on a regular basis. Although I wasn’t perfect, I experienced more focus-on-breathing-in-the-moment times in one year than ever before. Taking time for stillness results in higher productivity, so I’m sticking with it.

If you could use some help finding clarity and figuring out what makes sense for you to work on in 2019, let me know. I’m here to hold you accountable and remind you that what you do on a daily basis matters. This is your life.

Cheers to your best year ever,
Coach Carol

Resolve: firm determination to do something.