Kick-start Your New Year

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The New Year is fast approaching.

It's the time of year that people start thinking about what they want to change in their lives and set New Year's resolutions. Most people will fail to stick to their New Years resolutions, with some articles claiming that up to 80% of resolutions fail by February! This is why I think the time to start working towards your goals is right now, not January 1st. Even in this last day of 2017, it's definitely not too late! By making some progress now, however small, you will kick start your new year with the knowledge that you have already committed to, and made progress towards, your goals.

The most common New Years resolutions have to do with health, fitness, finances, time management and decluttering. Here are some quick, easy ways you can start improving on these areas.


Eat more healthily:

    The mistake that people make here is trying to run before they can walk. I speak from experience because I also made this error. I went from crazy calorie cutting to bingeing. It was only in the last few months that I felt in control and content with my diet. With the exception of Christmas of course, I now eat healthier than ever. I will write a full post about this soon, including more detailed advice, but for now some small, quick-to-implement tips:

  • Download a food tracker app - Use a calorie tracker like MyFitnessPal so that you know where you are starting from and so you can get your portion sizes under control. But don't keep it for more than a few weeks. Constant calorie tracking can lead to an unhealthy obsession with food. Instead, replace it with an app like See How You Eat, or just take pictures of all the food you eat. It will make you more mindful of what you are putting in your body.
  • Make some simple food swaps - There are so many examples of great food swaps available on the internet. But what I personally like to do is exchange desert with a bowl of Cornflakes. Admittedly, Cornflakes aren't the best for you, but they are much better than chocolate or candy. Depending on what brand you buy, there can be as little as 2g of added sugar per serving! That's less than you will find in a protein bar for instance, which lots of internet fitness gurus recommend! Perhaps it's not that surprising, given that Cornflakes was initially intended to be a health food.

Exercise more: 

   Fitness has been a major passion of mine for the last year and a half. Here are some small steps you can take towards achieving this goal:

  • Download a Couch to 5k app - I used C25K, which set challenging but realistic targets for me in my running. I remember when I first started out I could barely run a minute without feeling like death. Now I go on 10km runs on the regular. This app got me there.
  • Find an easy form of exercise to start - It can be difficult for a beginner to get started. You get exhausted really quickly, and so you lose heart. I would recommend starting easy and working your way up. For an easy, fun workout I personally like The Fitness Marshall. His Youtube dance workouts are enjoyable and short, and his positive attitude is infectious! Alternatively you could try some beginners yoga, like Yoga with Adrienne.  

Get your finances in order:

This is a big task that can seem quite daunting. It's also very personal - it would be useless for someone living in NYC to take budgeting advice from someone from a small town, and vice versa. My favourite YouTube channel that will start you off on this journey is The Financial Diet. I always appreciate budgeting advice that is helpful without being too radical or shaming. Chelsea and Lauren of TFD admit that they've made financial stumbles, and give constructive suggestions on how to avoid them.



Improve your time management:

This is such a large topic, and I don't have time to dive into it fully right now. That being said, I will give you two tips that helped me enormously in terms of time management:
  • Make a 'Done' list rather than just a 'To Do' list - Of course, it's important to note down appointments and deadlines somewhere so that you don't forget them. But I would recommend doing this on an electronic calendar app and having a 'Done' list, written on paper, with you at all times. It is far more motivating to write down what you have achieved rather than staring at a long list of things you still have to do. Also, you are much more likely to take a unearned break after ticking a task off 'To Do' list than when you write down something you have done.
  • Follow the Pomodoro method - This is especially useful for students with a long day of studying for an exam ahead of them. It breaks down your working time into manageable, 25 minute slots and schedules your breaks. Establishing a work routine is extremely important, and this method helps with that. You can find a free online Pomodoro timer at tomato-timer.com.

Declutter your life:

This is something that I definitely need to do next year. I have a tendency to hold onto things (old clothes, papers, etc.) for longer than I should. My advice would be to take 10 minutes to tidy up as much as you can. Like, right now. Don't do anything else in those 10 minutes - not even listen to music. It will slow you down and you'll get less organising done.


Hope you found these quick little tips helpful! Have a great Sunday and see you in 2018! 💖 

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