It’s the start of 2022 so you’ve surely seen the millions of #NewYearNewMe posts- or maybe done some yourself (it’s ok, we won’t judge). But are new year’s resolutions actually worth it?
Studies have shown that over 2/3 people ditch their new year’s resolution by the end of January. So, we are going to give our top tips on how to make sure you carry those new year’s resolutions all the way through 2022 and make this year your best yet!!!
First things first you need to be SMART with your goals. This stands for:
Specific- The goal needs to be specific to you, your personality and lifestyle, and really ask yourself ‘why am I setting myself this goal’? If you are wanting to lose some of those extra Xmas kgs this may be a solid goal. If you genuinely believe that you are going to feel healthier and happier by losing a bit of weight, go for it. However, if your motivation is purely to look better to ‘get abs’ maybe it’s worth asking yourself ‘for what?’ or ‘for who?’. So, make sure whatever goal you set it’s for the right reasons and you REALLY want it.
Measurable- you’re never going to know how far you’ve come unless your goal is measurable. If your goal is to ‘be able run 5k within 30 minutes by the end of January’ you can clearly measure if you have (or haven’t) achieved it.
Achievable- This one seems obvious but so many people set themselves unachievable goals then become disheartened when they don’t hit them. If you have never run much before and you say you are going to run 5 times a week you are going to struggle and burn yourself out. Start off with setting yourself 1 or 2 hard runs and then 2 light steady jog’s a week. Then as that feels easy push yourself a bit more the week after and so on.
Realistic – This is a tricky one. You should always want to aim high but at the same time, if your goal is unattainable, you’re setting yourself up to fail. Try to break the goal down. If you have decided, you want to lose some of that extra festive weight and you’re aiming to lose, let’s say 5kg, that can be pretty daunting. Instead of focusing on that big goal, you should first focus all your attention on loosing 1kg, then when you have achieved that do it again, and again etc.
Timely – A goal without a time frame is like a fish with a bicycle… Completely pointless.
So set yourself a reasonable time to hit your goal, so you have something to aim for. Again, it’s useful to break the goals down to make them more attainable by having weekly, monthly, yearly goals.
Buddy Up
This one is not 100% necessary however, sticking to a new year’s resolution can be much easier if you can get your partner/ housemate/ friend to join you in it. This really helps because NO ONE is 100% motivated 100% of the time. If elite athletes can struggle with motivation, then you will too! But having someone there who is going through the same experience as you can help a lot, when their motivation is slipping you can pull them up, and vice versa.
There is also nothing like a little bit of friendly competition to keep you on track and motivation sky high. If you really wanted to spice things up, you could always set a prize for the winner or forfeit for the loser.
Make lifestyle changes
For a lot of us, achieving goals can be particularly challenging so rather than creating a new year’s resolution, just make lifestyle changes. Instead of going on a crash diet eating chicken and broccoli look to make healthier decisions. We have loads of delicious recipes on our blog so you can enjoy what you eat AND keep your diet low calorie.
By making your new year’s resolution part of your lifestyle and daily habits you can take the difficulty out of them. When you wake up every day, you brush your teeth, you have a shower and you get dressed. You don’t have to think about them they are just things you do
Experts say it takes 66 days to form a habit, so whatever you are doing, stick to it.
Approach to failure
Whatever your goal is, you won’t get there without setbacks, honestly every single successful person has experienced them, and if they say they don’t, they are lying! So, if you are having an off day or week and things aren’t going your way, DON’T THROW THE TOWEL IN! Try to take a break (even just a day or two) then pick yourself up, dust yourself off and go again. Remember that any setbacks you face are just part of the journey, so embrace them and learn from them but don’t give up!
Fresh New Outfit
If you look good, you feel good and if you feel good, you do good.
So, why not start your year off right with a fresh look? We currently have our JANUARY SALE running across the site right now, so it’s never been a better time to get yourself looking and feeling your best, to kick start your 2022 and smash those new year resolutions.
