New Year's Resolutions!

When January 1^st rolls around, one of the first things anyone thinks of is resolutions. Everyone makes resolutions even if they don’t realize they are making any. Some of the most common ones are joining a gym, losing weight, eating healthier and saving money. Think back to your past New Year’s. How many resolutions did you make? How many did you keep? That is what this post is about – making those resolutions and keeping them.

I know firsthand that keeping resolutions isn’t easy. I can’t count how many I have thought of and subsequently not kept because of one thing or another. We come up with these promises around the end of the year or even New Year’s Day that we know if we do these few little things our lives will be better, more fulfilled. We think that these promises will make for a happier life than the year before.  We have every intention of keeping these promises to ourselves and doing them throughout the year. But then, work gets crazy, the kids need to be driven everywhere, dinner needs to be made and more excuses make it harder and harder to keep these promises we have made ourselves. They die a fast and horrible death. I am guilty of not keeping my resolutions as much as the next person. My favorite excuse was I am too tired.

That was the old me. The one who didn’t start a blog and begin to show people that she can write. The one who had nothing and no one to keep the resolutions for besides myself. Well, this is the new me and I challenge anyone to keep them with me.

For Christmas this year, I got Wii Fit and the Biggest Loser Challenge. I have already played with them and they kick your butt and other areas of your body that I never knew existed. Even though this isn’t the best way to get cardio, these games will help me workout and stay on the workout track because they are games – I don’t even realize I am working out because I am playing. That is the reason why I love hockey so much. I never feel like I am working out.  My girlfriend and I are already on a competitive streak with Wii Fit because every time I get a great score, she has to beat me and I have to beat her and so on and so forth. It keeps us staying competitive and therefore makes us want to work out and keep on working out so we can beat each other. It’s one of the best kick in the butt’s I have gotten in a long time. Of course working out and losing weight is one of my resolutions this year. But instead of just making resolutions that have to do with getting healthy physically, I have also added ones that will make me healthy mentally. My 8 New Year’s resolutions are below:

1.   Try and eat at home 5 days a week

2.   Cardio at least 3 times a week for 30 minutes or more

3.   20/40/60 at least 5 days a week before work

4.   Eat some type of salad at least 3 days a week (can be a salad for lunch, dinner or side salad with dinner)

5.   Limit alcoholic beverages during the week to just wine

6.   Read at least 26 books

7.   Blog at least once a week

8.   Keep writing my stories.

With motivation from myself, my girlfriend and my friends I know that I can make these resolutions last throughout the year – I just need to be aware of them. That is yet another reason why many people don’t keep their resolutions. After the first few weeks or a month or two, people stop remembering what they decided to do for resolutions.  To try and counter act this, instead of keeping these resolutions in my head, I am writing them down and keeping them with me (or around me) so that I remember to keep on the track of my resolutions. I don’t think that these resolutions are in any way unattainable. They are things I have been doing pretty much the fast few months anyway, I just want to make sure that I keep going with them and don’t stop. 

So, now that I have my resolutions set in stone I challenge you to make your own resolutions, write them down and keep them where you will look at them every day so you won’t lose sight of your goals. What are your resolutions? Are they different than mine? I want to know! I might add some that I didn’t even think of!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!