Do New Year’s Resolutions ever work?

Rarely and I think it’s because expectations are unrealistic or the methods people use are unsustainable.

For example they go from eating lots of processed convenience foods, doing no exercise and drinking lots of alcohol then January 1st hits and they’re trying to eliminate them all while attempting to squeeze in 5 gruelling workouts on top of an already packed week.

 

It simply doesn’t work!

Here I share with you ways you can actually achieve your goals this New Year

 

Plan to succeed

Have a plan in place. Don’t just walk into the new year and tackle your goals in the same way as previous years, it didn’t work for you then, so it probably won’t work for you now. 

 

You know what you want! But how do you plan to reach your goals?

Have you researched your options?

Have you investigated possible methods to best help you? 

Do you finally need to seek support to be able to achieve what you want? 

What’s your plan for achieving what you want?

 

Ask yourself WHY your goal is important to you?

Most when they think about health think about the number on the scales. 

Instead, I’d encourage you to focus on other elements including – feeling better, having better overall health, nourishing your body, gaining confidence, getting quality sleep, working on your well being, reducing stress and improving energy levels so you have the capacity to make changes (of course not all of these at the same time, figure out what areas you would benefit from most and start there).

Then distinguish your WHY! 

Don’t just say I want to get fit!

Elaborate- I want to be fitter so I’m able to run around with my kids / grand kids.

Your WHY should come from a place of empowerment! Not from shame or external expectation.

 

Nutrition first – always! 

Excessive diets and exercise are not the solution.

Biggest loser, Operation transformation, Slimming world, Weight watchers stay clear of them all! Whatever way they are presented, they are just another diet that puts too much emphasis on the scales and create disordered eating behaviours. 

What you weigh is not a true indication of health or a measure of your progress.

Nutrition can have the biggest impact on your health and results, so it makes sense to start here.

Focus on nourishing yourself with an abundance of quality foods. Find your flow here first, you will get results easily and it will be possible for you to be consistent. Bring exercise in later when the nutrition side of things is habitual, and you have the mental and physical energy to do so.

I don’t mean don’t do any movement, go for some walks if you can. This is more about not attempting to do 5 planned workout sessions when you haven’t done any for years.

Focus on one thing, do it well and then move on to the next.

 

Divide your big goals into smaller manageable targets.

Something I see time and time again is that people take on too much at the start. They go from zero to hundred attempting too much at once.

It’s impossible. The overwhelm will stop you from doing anything, then you quit and feel guilty. Then you self loathe and feel rubbish because you quit and a self sabotaging cycle continues. All because you attempted too much too soon.

Or worse, maybe you feel like you are at the bottom of a really big mountain and that you have a long way to go?

This can make it harder for you to feel motivated and even prevent you from trying at all.

Get clear on your big overall goal, but break it down into small manageable steps.

Our minds love simplicity and we also don’t like to take on tasks that feel daunting, we are good at just making excuses when it all feels too much.

Think about what you can achieve in January, not the whole of 2023.

This will make a huge difference.

 

Action steps. 

Talking is great and thinking about your goal is important but results come from what you actually do.

Now you know your overall goals, each week you need to create weekly action steps.

This is 2-3 action points based on what you need to do to actually see results.

Keep it simple.

Think about the areas that are problems or a struggle for you.

Want to eat more healthily? 

• Begin by adding a portion of vegetables to your meals.
• Try out a new recipe.
• Switch one of your coffees for a herbal tea
• Plan your meals
• Stock up on healthy foods

 

Consistency over perfection

We live in the real world, nothing is perfect.

I am a qualified Nutritionist, and I don’t eat perfectly everyday.

I don’t expect you to either.

Some days you will have the intention of eating healthy but you will end up having a take away or glass of wine at the end of the day. It’s normal and it’s ok!

The goal is not perfection, its consistency.

I like to apply the 80/20 rule, eating well 80% of the time. (This does not mean eating well Monday to Friday and eating poorly/ bingeing all weekend). 

It’s striking a healthy balance each day with each meal, having a pizza with a hearty salad. Or a home cooked meal with microwavable rice 80/20.

It’s what you do most of the time that will give you the best results.

That means that you have room in your life to be social and enjoy things that are a bit more indulgent.

 

Track your progress

Check in weekly with your progress. Acknowledge your achievements big and small. 

Motivation comes from a place of positivity. Focus on what you DID more than on what you have yet to do. 

Re-examine your action points for each week, did you master them or do they need more attention?

Note how you feel, are there shifts in your mindset, have your symptoms subsided?

All changes are positive steps in the right direction.

 

I hope this will help you feel more confident and at ease about how you can achieve your goals in 2023.