The simple step to nailing your New Year’s Resolution in 2018.

It’s getting towards that time of year. We start to reflect on the past 12 months and how we would like to improve ourselves and our lives in 2018. Often these resolutions will have a theme of becoming “healthier”, whether it’s to eat less junk food, start a new diet, drink less alcohol or be more active.

But it seems to happen every year, you get to January 5th and the following scenario plays out:It’s a scorching 38 degree day so it’s too hot to get up and go walking which you said you would do every morning in 2018. To help overcome the heat, you head down to the servo and grab an ice-cream, something you also said you wouldn’t touch in 2018. By the time evening comes around you’re about ready to sit back with a glass of wine or can of beer and relax in the warm summer evening. Sound familiar?

The next day you wake up and realize that you’ve broken all of your New Year’s resolutions, and instead of trying to get yourself back on track, it’s easier to just pretend like you didn’t even attempt to change your lifestyle. Back into the same old routine you go until December rolls around again.

What if there was a strategy that you could put in place to dramatically increase your chances of sticking to a New Year’s resolution…

You may have heard of the term “try before you buy”, this strategy is based around the idea that you don’t really know what you’re getting yourself into unless you’ve given it a go previously. For example, how can you realistically expect yourself to exercise every single day in 2018 if you haven’t been to the gym since September?!

So my strategy is:Start your New Year’s resolution in December!

Get a headstart on the New Year by using the last month of 2017 as a “trial period” as such. Experiment with different types of exercise and find something that works for YOU, try slight adjustments to your diet here and there and instead of cutting out alcohol completely, try to have a few less than you usually would during the silly season. As December goes on, you’ll learn what you are capable of achieving and what are going to be realistic expectations for your lifestyle change.

By the time January comes around, you’ve found sustainable solutions that you can stick to rather than the crazy expectations you set yourself every other year that are thrown out the window before February is even in view. Below are some further tips to help you as you begin your resolution this December.

Tips:

• Make the most of “Introductory offers” at local gyms or exercise studios. These places will be more than happy to give you a tour of their facilities, a discounted assessment or even a “come-and-try” session to see if their type of exercise suits you.

• Book an appointment to see an Accredited Exercise Physiologist. AEP’s are experts in exercise and will guide you through the process of finding you the right exercise. They might even have suggestions of exercise that you’ve never heard of or never thought you would see yourself doing.

• Try some different low-carb or low-alcohol wines and beers during the Christmas season to find the ones that you like, or try to gradually reduce your consumption over the course of the month so that when January comes around, it doesn’t come as a big shock to your body.

• Similarly with food, use end of year festivities to experiment with some new recipes that may be healthier alternatives, build yourself up a collection of recipes that you enjoyed and take them into 2018 with you.

As ridiculous as it might sound, starting your New Year’s Resolution in December might just be the way to ensure that you are happier and healthier in 2018.

Tim Manning Accredited Exercise Physiologist

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