Monday, December 21, 2015

Ditch the New Years Resolutions!

Although we have all been focused on holiday parties, family traditions and festivities, another holiday tradition is looming around the corner - New Year's Resolutions.

A majority of resolutions made each year revolve, somehow, around living healthier, happier lives.  Here are ten common New Year's Resolutions:



Setting these resolutions, and actually achieving them within the year, would indeed make us happier and healthier, and we would feel a sense of accomplishment in doing so. But, how many of us have set a new years resolution, only to find that it fizzles out a month or two later?

I'd like to encourage us all to think outside the box in the new year, and bring in 2016 with a set of New Year Intentions, instead of resolutions.

Resolutions, although well intended, invoke the tried (and often failed) tradition of making quantitative goals, that more often than not, lose momentum after a month or two.  On the other hand, an intention is an on-going effort. If you stray from your intention one day, you can pick up where you left off the next day with a new commitment to your aim (and without the guilt).  Setting intentions is a more malleable approach because, let's face it, life hands you lemons.

When we set an intention for ourselves, it's like shooting an arrow into the future.  The more precise your intention, the better the chances of you hitting your target. With that said, intentions are less about the path taken to reach the end result, and focused much more on the target.

When we set resolutions, we typically attach a quantifier to a goal, like: I want to lose ten pounds, or I want to read twelve books this year, or I want to take a yoga class three days per week, etc.  Each resolution, although great, have specific guidelines that have to be met in order for the resolution to be fulfilled.  For those of us who are constantly evolving and changing, this is not always realistic.

Intentions, however, are simply more flexible, attainable versions of the same goal.  Instead of saying, "I want to lose ten pounds this year", you could say, "I want to incorporate more exercise and make healthier choices with my nutrition".   This way, you're not tying a specific number to weight loss by a certain day.  What's more, if you happen to overindulge here and there there's no need to beat yourself up, or throw in the "healthy intention" towel completely.  We can simply acknowledge that we didn't fulfill our intention completely that day, and start the next day full of intention again.

If we continually work on our intentions through the good and bad days, we will find those pounds will start to drop off without a strict timeline or an "all or nothing" approach.


In the new year, I'll be encouraging my team and accountability groups to set intentions, rather than resolutions to reach their goals, and I'll be getting started January 4th!

We'll focus on setting intentions for the new year, both long term, and daily.  We'll support and encourage each other to allow some flexibility and forgiveness into our lives as we work to fulfill our personal intentions, and we'll celebrate your journey, not just your destination.  We'll also, of course, continue to share healthy recipes, tips and tricks to hold each other accountable with our personal fitness and nutrition goals.

If you'd like to be apart of my next group, please CONTACT ME TODAY to secure your spot! there are just a couple of spots left.





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