It’s January again and the start of another new year - 2024! For many of us that means a new batch (or a recycled one...) of new year’s resolutions that we fully intend to follow through on. At least until March 🤫
Why we make them…
But why do we make resolutions to do something at the start of January instead of halfway through June? If it’s a good thing to do and one that we presumably think will benefit us, wouldn’t it make sense to start it as soon as possible? Well, probably😉. But most of us like to look at the new year as a particularly special time, one where we can start anew and put the problems of last year behind us - hopefully!
And if that’s how you feel too, it really can be a good time to make some resolutions and use the ‘New Year, New You’ way of thinking to kick-start some better habits. Let’s just have a look at some of the major pitfalls to avoid, so we can all make resolutions that can actually stand the test of time and maybe even make it past Easter…
… And why they tend not to work
Probably an obvious (but still pretty important) thing to consider first, is whether you really want to make the change. What are your motivations and are they strong enough to survive whatever trade-offs are involved with making that change? Have you considered how you will implement the changes and whether it's practical - will you really make the most of that gym membership or are there exercise routines you can do from home that could work instead? Can you afford to go fully organic (and would your local grocery store support it), or perhaps the dirty dozen, clean fifteen route where you avoid the worst offenders is more achievable?
How will you measure your success (or lack of it!) and how long do you intend your resolution to last? Is your goal simply to reach a certain weight or size or do you want to be able to maintain it in the long term?
What to do instead
Try and keep as positive an attitude as you can - and that can start with the resolution itself. An attitude we try to keep to (and one that we apply all the time to the food we make) is not just to focus on cutting things out that are bad for us, but to look at what we can add that is good for us. So, while we don’t like inflammatory foods or wasted calories, we do look for ingredients that are rich in nutrients and provide our bodies with all they need to thrive - and all our food needs to taste really good and not feel like a sacrifice. As another example, just cutting down on take-out alone won’t necessarily involve a healthy diet (though it will probably help 😉). If, instead, your goal is to be eating the good, nutritious foods that your body really needs, you may find your craving for processed foods naturally wanes as your body adjusts to its new and more satisfying diet.
As for our resolutions, well this year is simple - our goal is to continue to provide the tools our local community requires in order to stay healthy and happy in 2024, and that involves delicious, nutritious food, health talks in the community, and health & wellness coaching (more details to come in a future blog post!)
Some articles that we found helpful and might be of interest 🙂
Are New Year’s resolutions powerful or pointless? https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20220103-powerful-effective-new-years-resolutions
Why most New Year’s resolutions don’t work https://www.businessinsider.com/reasons-why-most-new-years-resolutions-dont-stick?r=US&IR=T
EWG's 2023 Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce https://www.ewg.org/foodnews/
Should you try health coaching? https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/health-coaching-is-effective-should-you-try-it-2020040819444
Comments