Ways to Jumpstart Your New Years Resolutions
At the stroke of twelve on the first of January, everyone will magically have newfound will power and motivation.
Er not.
For starters, will power is a myth. As moms, we have enough guilt as it is so you can stop beating yourself up about how you just need to get it together. Major life changes don’t happen magically. They don’t happen over night and they don’t require will power. What they require is action and consistency. So how do you “just do it?”
For starters, let go of the big “IT.” Whatever your goal may be, take this time before you commit to your resolution to chunk it up into pieces. If you want to lose 20 lbs, decide what steps you’re going to take to accomplish that. Tackle learning to meal prep in January then once you have that down maybe start a workout regimen in February. All the unprepared resolutioners will be gone by then so you’ll actually find a free machine. In March you might do a weight check and decide to add more activity into your daily life, and so forth.
Once you’ve split your goal into manageable tasks and the big RESOLUTION is no longer hanging over your head, you can ditch the need to binge over the next few weeks. You now have a plan and have possibly already started. You’re not going to do a cleanse or swear off all carbs for the next 5 days (this by the way is impossible) or feel like you can never have chocolate and wine again. You don’t have to feel like you need to eat and drink everything in sight right now. Too often the holidays feel like our “last supper” and we go crazy on everything we know we “can’t have” once the diet starts. Passover is in spring mamas. Have a reasonable sized slice of cake and save some for January 3rd. Avoiding the binge will help you break the diet cycle.
Quite possibly the hardest part is learning to be consistent and learning to let go of the inconsistency guilt. This is where people talk about will like it’s a super power. The new year feels like a reset button. It’s a time for new beginnings. A fresh slate. But if you think about it, so is every single day. Each day that you get up and take a small action toward your goal adds up to overall success. Each time you fall is an opportunity to get back up. Each morning you wake up is another chance to work on yourself. I joke about the empty gym after the hype of the new year has worn off but if you skip a day or a week it’s ok! Don’t let that discourage you from going back. You’re not starting all over you’re just going that day. Send yourself regular reminders by moving your vision board to different places or writing affirmation post it’s on your bathroom mirror. Whatever helps to keep your small steps at the forefront of your mind. By focusing on the action rather than the result, time will pass quickly and you’ll be less likely to abandon ship. Before you know it, a year will have passed and you’ll have the results you set out to achieve.
Lastly, and this is a huge one for moms, commit to yourself. Don’t allow your goals to get put on the back burner because you have other responsibilities. This could be an entire post in itself. Self care is so important to not only yourself but your ability to do for others. Resolve now that whatever small tasks you set for yourself will be on your daily list of 3 most important things. These are things at the top of your list that must be done. Non-negotiable. Mama needs to care of mama. Once you prioritize yourself in your own mind, get everyone on board with the fact that out of everything you do for them, you need one tiny thing for you. You’ll have the space to move forward and and one less excuse to bail.
