Why I'm Saying "No" to New Year's Resolutions
We're well into 2025 now, but it got me thinking about how everyone is getting on with their New Year's resolutions. However, when I started thinking about that, I realised that I didn't make any myself, and it got be wondering about why I didn't bother making any this year. So here's why I've said "no" to New Year's resolutions:
1. They're always half-hearted
I feel like, when I make NY resolutions, I'm making them because everyone else is, and they're always the same goals and aspirations. Half the time it involves losing weight or exercising more or doing more home baking and eating out less. Do you see the theme?
They all revolve around food and losing weight, which isn't healthy, and deep down, I think I know that. That's why I've not bothered starting 2025 with a goal to lose weight, because it doesn't happen.
I've found an equilibrium with my body, and I feel content with that so far. Things may change, but going into 2025, I don't feel the need to change things, physically, about myself.
2. They can be unrealistic
I think one of the reasons why I can't keep NY resolutions, or why most people can't actually keep NY resolutions, is because they're often unrealistic. I think something I've learnt as I've got older is to expect less of yourself. It means less pressure and reduced anxiety around the whole thing.
For example, I want to try and reduce my alcohol intake from 2 glasses a week to 2 glasses every two weeks. I'm not making a pledge to completely stop drinking wine. I'm just making a reduction. I know that completely cutting out wine is unrealistic for me, as I like to drink it socially and when out for dinner etc.
I'm also not putting a label on it. It's not a goal or a resolution, it's a casual effort to reduce the amount of wine I drink on average. This way, I won't feel guilty or like I've failed if I have two glasses of wine instead of wine, for example.
3. They can make me feel worse about myself if I fail to keep them
I've touched touched on this above. If I make a resolution or a goal, and I don't manage to keep it or reach the goal, it makes me feel guilty. It makes me feel as though I've failed and let myself down. In reality, this isn't the case and it was bothering me that I was having such negative thoughts towards myself.
It made me feel more anxious and stressed about meeting those goals, rather than just taking things easy and seeing how I get on. There's no pressure to keep a resolution if I haven't made one and I feel lighter, mentally, for it.
4. Resolutions are usually things we should already be doing, without trying
I find that when you make resolutions, it's normally something that we should all be doing already, like eating everything in moderation and going for a walk every now and again. Why put pressure on yourself for doing it at this time of year, specifically?
Why not just do those things as part of your everyday lifestyle? The best part about this is, you probably already do those things and you don't realise it because you've not thought about it like that before. Why make yourself feel bad for not reaching impossible goals? Just keep doing what you're doing and you'll be fine :)
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I hope you enjoyed this blog post? Let me know in the comments below if you've made NY resolutions this year and, if you haven't, why haven't you? Are any of your reasons the same as mine or are there other reasons you have for not making any? I'll see you again very soon with a brand new blog post :)
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