January is often the month we try to plan for the year ahead. You would not be alone in hoping 2022 is more positive with the summer holiday, visits to friends, DIY around the house, and of course that nagging feeling that we should eat healthier, or exercise with more gusto.
Research suggests that 80% of New Year Resolutions have failed by as early as February. In the UK, a large YouGov study in 2018[i] indicated that of the 25% of people who make New Year Resolutions just 24% achieve their goal by the end of the year. It would appear that “New Year Resolutions” are often nothing more than wistful thinking. Planning to fail.
The problem is that changing human behaviour is more complex than soundbites make out. We are creatures of habit with patterns of behaviour that are deeply embedded and very hard to shake off. We stand a better chance of sticking to our plans and achieving our goals if we make them tangible and fun.
Focus is the key and to plan just one or two changes, rather than your bucket list of “100 things I must get round to doing…” Here are just four of our thoughts which could readily be achieved if you approach them in a more mindful, hopeful way without setting yourself up to fail.
Exercise
We all know how beneficial exercise can be, both for our physical and our mental wellbeing. The trouble with exercise for many of us is two-fold. First, we tend to set ourselves up to fail by choosing a too-ambitious target. Second, we choose an activity we don’t enjoy, and we give up because, frankly, it can be more exciting to watch paint dry. It need not be like this – make it something both viable and enjoyable.
It is not easy to summon up the energy or make the time for the targets we tend to set ourselves. That’s because rather than gently increasing our activity levels we set ourselves big, grand targets such as briefly toying with running a Marathon or getting up an hour earlier each morning to complete a 10km cycling challenge or investing in a wearable device and setting our target at 20,000 steps a day.
Aim for 8,000 steps a day, perhaps 4 or 5 days a week. It is not at all necessary to do them all in one go, so simply think of three or four shorter but brisker walks. Aim to be slightly breathless, but still able to catch your breath. Better still, go for a brisk “walk, talk and laugh” with a friend – make it a fun trip, not a grim determination to get your steps in.
You will not be pushing yourself too hard, but you will be working your heart more, toning up muscles, building up bone strength and, most of all, achieving realistic targets which you positively want to hit.
Remember too, that it must be rewarding, both in the short-term “I really enjoyed my walk today…” and in the longer-term, “It’s making me feel loads better…”
Look at the latest figures, updated in November 2021, on levels of activity in the UK and published on the Public Health England website[ii]. Here are just a few salutary facts to spur you on to have fun and get active:
- Physical inactivity is the 4th leading risk factor for global mortality accounting for 6% of deaths globally.
- People who have a physically active lifestyle have a 20% – 35% lower risk of cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease, and stroke compared to those who have a sedentary lifestyle.
The UK Health Security Agency (formerly Public Health England) have provided a very handy tool to measure your current level of activity together with advice on how to become more active. Visit their website https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/profile/physical-activity for details.
Making food fun
As soon as the words “Healthy Eating” appear on the page, or on the lips of health professionals up and down the country we tend to twitch a little. Guilt takes over as we prod uneasily at our waistlines. It turns out that around 40% of adults in England have gained weight during the pandemic, with the average gain being half a stone (just over 3kg). Snacking and comfort eating were given as the main contributor.
Campaigns such as the “Better Health Campaigns” 12-week plan can help, so can “Dry January” initiatives. So, again, let’s focus a little better and make food fun and healthy eating more sustainable as a result.
- Get together with a friend or two and find ten crazy new recipes to try with meals of less than 500 Cals. Prepare them together or have a mini-competition – and eat them sociably together, giggling through the news tastes and giving each a mark out of ten
- Turn your five fruits a day into an artistic creation on a plate. Try as many different types of fruit and vegetables as you can and even better for the pocket, use those in season as they are often cheaper
- Aim for 80% healthy eating each week so that there is room for a treat, and without the guilt
Make bedtime the best part of the day
Sleep problems affect 1 in 3 people so it is ubiquitous and an important topic to focus on as we plan and consider what habits we will change for the better in 2022. But shift the focus a little. Simply getting to bed earlier and lying there willing yourself to “get more sleep” will not work. Instead, make the whole wind down for sleep far more fun and far more self-indulgent.
- Take a long leisured bath, rather than a quick shower, with indulgent bubbles, candles, your favourite soundtrack. After the bath, wrap yourself in a warm towel or robe, and retire to a cool bedroom for a restful night of sleep
- Go to bed earlier, not to lie in bed sleeping but to have time for yourself. Make it your space, your time. We all need ‘me’ time, to switch off and relax – consider it a necessity rather than a luxury
Find three positives each day
It’s not always easy to think positively when surrounded by so much negative news and social media doom and gloom. Switch if off if you can, or at least limit your exposure to negative news. Perhaps a news embargo one evening?
On the constructive side of things end each day by finding three positive things that have happened in your life, or in the world around you. Sometimes you will be hard-pressed initially to think of one, but really forage around and soon you will remember a funny thing someone said, or the antics of a pet, or even a new item that lifted the mood. Bring them back to mind and try to make them the last thoughts you have each evening. Maybe even write a gratitude list – things to be thankful and grateful for.
It is life-affirming and says loudly and clearly that you can have fun and enjoy being you.
Above all, if you can, start the year with focus, a positive mindset, some new plans or approaches you will try out so that your New Year’s resolutions are achieved and are something to celebrate along the way as you knock them out of the park. New year. New You.
[ii] https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/profile/physical-activity
