Every person on the interweb is currently commenting on New Year resolutions. How they don’t work, why they are vital for success, how to make this year different.
The thing is, today isn’t really any different from yesterday. Increased levels of of acid reflux yes, but it’s just another day. As is tomorrow.
Okay, so we need a means of marking time through our chronological year and lifespan, but this magical day of January 1st might not the the perfect time for sending out your deepest hopes and dreams to the cosmos.
Most of us have spent a fair few days of over-indulgence, whether this be sex, drugs and rock’n’roll, or cakes, sofas and sausage rolls, we let go a little. And why the hell not? Don’t we deserve it?
Salad is cast aside in favour of munching on the sixth pork pie with gay abandon. We lose track of just how many wafer-thin after dinner mints we have eaten (before dinner). We actually lose the ability to make a meal that does not consist of cheese.
Fast forward to New Year’s Day.
We awaken with a tongue covered in velvet, hair dreadlocked with party streamers and Doritos, moderate to severe anxiety, and a desperate need for some sort of return to routine.
‘Right! This year is going to be different.’
Many of our resolutions come from a place of guilt, or even self loathing. Neither is a particularly fertile ground for success. Remember, the festive season is a funny little moment out of the norm. Don’t let your actions at this time define your whole previous year.
So before you start berating yourself and declaring how you are going to change, just stop for a minute. Rather than start this year with with a declaration of how you will alter the negatives in your life (perfectly valid and empowering), let’s take a moment to cast our minds back over the previous year.
Forget the things that went wrong, they have already happened, we cant change them, but we can learn from them. Remember failure is not a bad thing.
Instead let’s think about what we have achieved, what victories we have had (big or small), who we have helped, who we have loved. Let’s celebrate how fucking awesome we all are.
Surely this is a better way to start the year, building on what is already great rather that what needs to change?
When we feel gratitude for what we have it gives us drive be the type of person we want to be.
Remember, health/life/love/fitness, is like a mountain, we need to stop climbing sometimes and turn around. When we admire the view and see how far we have come, we recharge our reserve and can continue onward with new vigour.
When we know where we have come from it is easier to decide which direction to follow.
So let the fog of New Year’s Eve clear a little.
I still have a party pack of primal pork pies left. When I have finished them and the remaining truckle of cheese I will give you some top tips for making some positive changes for 2018.
Thanks, I needed that, love the bit about the mountain. Instead of craving routine I’m in panic before returning to the crazy routine of school and work. I wish I was climbing a real mountain or rolling my way into a new adventure. 🙂 x