It’s a new year and I hope you are looking forward to new beginnings!
If you haven’t already started thinking about some of the changes you want to make in your own life, you are in good company. I’ve made a few resolutions yes, but will be refining them as I go about the year. They are not nearly complete in thought, but I feel I am headed in the right direction with taking the extra time to reflect on what I want to do/change about myself this year.
I think that often people disregard making resolutions because they seem so silly when you consider that only 8% of the population adheres to them for longer than one month. Can you blame them for not participating in making such resolutions? I get the logic – the rational brain says stop the cycle of making resolutions one cannot keep. It’s safer to not make resolutions, and one even appears smarter for not participating in such erratic behavior.
But here’s the other side of this thinking. It’s ok to make resolutions. Making changes in our own lives and changing habits keeps us hopeful. And hopefulness keeps us young. We all want to feel younger and look younger, but ironically we rarely look at change and hopefulness as a quality in ourselves that can be the biggest contributor to appearing more youthful.
I don’t know about you, but I prefer to temper my two differing thoughts regarding new year resolutions by taking a softer approach to change. This year like the last few years, I set a few goals, then consider that I am on a journey, while aiming to make sense of when to laser focus on change and when to let it gently evolve.
I tell my 30 Days to Lean members that every change in life we make to better ourselves follows a U shape.
If you rely solely on your emotions to guide you, it’s likely you’ll give up just as you’re on the uptick again.
Instead, we must be guided by a larger vision for our health and how we want to live our life. We must keep the end goal in sight, even when it’s obscured by complication and frustration.
The process of developing ourselves takes work, but realize you will be navigating a series of U shapes.
There will be peaks upon which everything seems so clear and your eating and exercise is so on target that you want to share it with everyone and there will be valleys in which you question why you’re even trying at all.
It’s all part of the process, and it’s never ending. However, the key is to remain focused on your vision and embrace the journey.
As famed sculptor Auguste Rodin remarked, ‘Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely.’ The peaks, the valleys, and the struggles in between are all useful in pointing you toward the life that you want to live. Nothing is wasted. And importantly, you must remember that you are deserving of the lifestyle you want for yourself.
All My Best and Happy New Year!
Kim
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www.bodysmartway.com* This year is the year I encourage all of you to Bring Your Family With You In Health.” Stay tuned. It’s how we all do better.
* Mark your calendars for January 19th at Serenata Beach Club. I will be talking about why men and women both need to focus on muscle and how best to achieve physical strength without living in a gym.
* Next 30 Days to Lean begins Monday February 6th. Don’t let the program name fool you. This is a lifestyle program.
