As we are moving into December, the New Year is upon us. The new year normally brings resolutions that people do not keep and we only end up feeling worse by ourselves a couple weeks into the year and giving up completely on whatever our goals were. If however You take away the pressure of setting up a specific goal of what you want to achieve in the year, but be more vague about what you want to do. So rather than saying I’m going to exercise three times a week you could say I want to be healthier or stronger.
By not putting too much pressure on yourself, you’re more likely to achieve these things. You want to think about it more as micro-actions than huge goals you are never going to achieve. So if for example, being healthier is one of your goals of purging all the unhealthy food in your kitchen and restricting yourself simply wake up each morning and just think about what is a healthy breakfast or what would a healthy person have today and by having that mindset, you are more likely to achieve those goals in the long run then have The continue yo-yoing of extremes one way or another.
Live By The 80/20 Rule
This is a simple method on how you can be healthy, but also still indulge in your favourite things and the perhaps naughty things that you shouldn’t be having every day. It is essentially where you eat healthily throughout 80 per cent of your week and then indulge in the unhealthy things you love for 20 per cent of the week. This is normally done by being healthy in the week and indulging on the weekend. So while being healthy most of the time you can still go for pizza and wine on the weekend with the girls or order a takeaway with your partner for a cosy night in. It is a more straightforward and easier method to follow than restrictive diets which just make you want to binge more and more.
Get Outdoors
This doesn’t have to be for exercise, you can of course take up things like running or cycling but just being outside in nature is a great way to look after yourself. Being in nature is shown to help mental health issues and make people feel more and more calm and relaxed. It is also a great way to come away from technology which certainly takes over a lot of our lives now. We are consumers and spend a lot of time with ourselves in front of screens, so taking time away is great for the body and the mind.
Play Some Games
Not only is it important to do things like exercise, meditation and journaling but it is also important to let yourself just have some down days where you don’t have to do anything mentally taxing and can simply enjoy some games and socialisation with your friends. There are lots of different types of games you can play, you could try board games like Monopoly, online games like World of Warcraft, console games like Grand theft auto or gambling games like roulette.
Socialise More
Another way to look after yourself and certainly your mental health is by making sure you are socialising. This can be with friends or family but can help you feel happier. After the lockdown and now that a lot of people are working from home we can end up spending a lot of time to ourselves. Eventually, loneliness may set in so it is important to make time to see others. You could simply pop around your grandparent’s house for a cup of tea and some cake, organise a weekly game or movie night with your friends, have date nights with your loved ones and be sure you go to parties and events you are invited to. We are social creatures so it is something we need to make sure we are doing regularly. Extroverts and introverts will benefit from some much-needed socialisation. It helps us build relationships, and trust and have people we can rely on in our lives. So if you’ve been putting things off, now is the time to start following them through.
These are some great ways you can start looking after yourself in the new year without putting too much pressure on yourself. You don’t have to do them all either, you can add them in slowly so you are more likely to stick to the changes you have made in your life.
