Happy New Year everyone!
As much as the new year should be a time of excitement and renewal, for me, it tends to be the time of year when my energy level and happiness levels plummet.
I am the kind of person who needs things to look forward to and with the beloved holiday season behind us, having only a few months of cold and dreary days puts my mood in a bit of a tailspin. As you look to the new year, take a few minutes to resolve to make the coming year a little bit better.
It can be a struggle, to be sure, but I always try to find the silver lining and remind myself that new beginnings and a fresh start are always possibilities each new year.
Rather than come up with resolutions that you are bound to break by the end of January, why not focus on some small steps toward healthier, happier living that you can make -and stick with?
The smaller steps might set you up for success — and help build momentum for meeting some of those bigger resolutions!
Here are a few small habits to tweak this New Year’s!
• Five Minutes: Do you have five minutes to spare? I want you to promise that you will take five minutes each and every day to do something healthy for yourself.
That could be a quick five minute walk or a meditation — or maybe it is just five minutes to listen to your favorite music or podcast.
If you can find a way to turn those five minutes into 15 minutes or a half hour , go for it -and reap the benefits that the self care time will give you.
I promise you will look forward to those 5, 10, 15 minutes — and will do everything you can not to break that promise.
• Healthy Habits and Simple Swaps: Since I was an adult, losing weight has always been a January resolution that I fail miserably at each and every year.
Getting to the gym never happens because, frankly, I run out of time by the end of the day. Rather than try to make major sweeping changes that are hard to stick to, try simple swaps that make you healthy.
Go to bed 15 minutes earlier for 105 more minutes of sleep each week! That’s seven more hours of sleep a month! You can do the same with healthy habits.
Drink one more glass of water a way. If you do that, you will add 56 more ounces of water to your intake each week or 224 ounces a month!
Think of how you can cut calories by swapping something decadent for either a lighter version or a smaller amount Just cutting out 150 calories daily will save you 1,050 calories a week, 4,200 a month and almost 55,0000 a year!
That’s a 15 pound weight loss! You can also find ways to carve out healthy time in smaller increments!
My son has developed an obsession with exercise, so he uses any idle time to get some fitness in.
When he wakes up, he does 15 each of pushups, burpees, and situps — he says it wakes him up and gets his cardio off to a good start.
If taking a five-minute walk or doing 10 situps is all you can do to start — still do it! You will feel the benefits, and the time to do more will build up as your endurance does! If your healthy resolution involves a better diet, buy yourself a fun new water bottle or lunch box to make those healthy meals and extra water intake even more appealing.
So, while I still plan to make some improvements and resolutions to become a better version of myself in the new year, I am moving toward these improvements in smaller and easier to manage increments!
Set yourself up for success in the new year by committing to one of these — or one you come up with on your own!
Happy New Year!
(Editor’s Note: Kristine George is a freelance journalist who resides in Easton.)