Three Ways for Foodies to Stick to New Year's Resolutions After the Holidays
Written by Susannah Hornback
During the last two to three months of the year, letting habits and goals slide isn't just easy – it's almost expected. Consistency fades away for any number of reasons: There’s too much to do, too many goodies that only come around once a year, and so on.
So, how are you supposed to go straight into a resolution the week after all that ends?
Here are three ways to keep your resolution on the rails this winter.
If your goals are more than you could handle back in December, slow down.
Nothing feels impossible at a New Year's Eve party with all the sparkle of a fresh start in the air. It’s exciting to make big plans when you’re toasting with your friends – but how do you feel right now while you’re in the thick of it?
Here’s a thought: Structure your resolution as if you had to keep it up during the holidays. We all know that the season from October to December is usually one protracted, sparkly blur. Thinking back, what could you have committed to?
Instead of cutting out sugar entirely, would you simply have cut sugar from non-social events? Instead of working out every day, would you plan for once or twice a week? And maybe you don’t actually need to meal plan three meals a day for the whole week.
You are still recovering from the craziness of the last few months. Give yourself grace – which brings us to the second point!
Prepare to fall off the bandwagon – and get back on anyway.
Does missing one day of your resolution typically make you throw up your hands in defeat? Like you’ve completely wasted your fresh start? You’re definitely not alone.
This is especially difficult with food, because our bodies are in a limbo state of craving more sugar than usual, and also just begging us to eat a vegetable.
To help guard against the total burn out, consider putting your resolution in a cycle. Maybe it’s daily, weekly, or monthly – anything but yearly.
That way, when you miss a goal, you get to restart sooner than, I don’t know, 2024!
Get ahead of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) by planning things to look forward to.
Why is it even legal to have so many holidays full of good food, friends, and festivities right before plunging into the bleakest months of the year?
Many of us experience Seasonal Affective Disorder (also known appropriately as SAD) during the winter. According to the Mayo Clinic, "If you're like most people with SAD, your symptoms start in the fall and continue into the winter months, sapping your energy and making you feel moody."
No wonder resolutions typically fizzle out so quickly!
Make a list of things that boost your serotonin (animated movies and hot chocolate, anyone?), and put those things on the calendar regardless of where you are with your goals. If you frame them like rewards, you’ll likely suffer the one-two punch of falling short of your goals and then losing the chance to do something you enjoy.
The bottom line? Adjust your goals to be realistic, give yourself grace, and plan to do things that make you happy. This is about getting through the cold months, friends – use all the tools at your disposal!
We hope these tips inspire you to have a healthy relationship with your goals this winter! It's high time we set ourselves up for success in the early months of the year, and we believe 2023 is going to be a great one!