Receta New Year Resolutions!
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We can't become what we need by remaining what we are. ~Max Dupree
The New Year and its resolutions are fast upon us. Some people are cynical about New Year's resolutions since many are abandoned by February. But here at MindfulEats, we love resolutions! They provide an opportunity to reconnect with your dreams (which are easy to forget when we're busy). And even if you don't "succeed" in your resolutions, there's a positive energy in acting aspirationally. If you do achieve them, you're a star. Funny thing about resolutions - we've failed the same ones year after year, but somehow just articulating them allowed them to seep into our unconsciousness, and at some point we ended up accomplishing them.
Love or hate the New Year, it's a natural opportunity to take stock, evaluate, and figure out what your goals are. There are lots of other times to do it - your birthday, the start of the school year, Chinese New Year, Yom Kippur, the birth of a child (the list is endless) - but why not tap into the energy behind New Year resolutions? People all over the world are making them!
There are no rules for them - your resolutions can be grand or mundane, but they'll definitely make you better.
What to do - Make Mindful New Year's Resolutions
Take stock, evaluate, and figure out what your goals are. Then break your goals down into tangible actions you can take. If you want to get healthier (which is a very general goal), you might want to quit smoking or only eat out three times a week. Here's a more detailed post on goal-setting.
Setting resolutions is fun, but prioritize them so you can stay focused. Try to pick five or less. You can even have only one. We think you should set a health-related resolution since you're here.
Write down your resolutions and put them where you'll remember them. Put them on a post-it and stick them to your bathroom mirror, in your organizer, or in your car. Wherever you'll see them.
Share your resolutions with your friends and family. It helps to have people remind you (and it's good karma to return the favor). But pick carefully and choose people that are supportive - you don't need to tell the world.
Have fun with it. You don't need to have your resolutions set in stone by midnight on December 31 (but if you do, we're impressed). Take some time to think about it and get it done by the end of January. And it's ok if you fall off the wagon by March - you can always pick yourself up and start again for your birthday.
Leverage the energy of others. Instead of getting pissed about how crowded the gym is in January, think about all the healthy gains people are making, and how much less road rage there will be.
What are your resolutions?
What I ate: latte, yogurt + flax seeds, 1 cup of tea, spinach salad + roasted beets + broccoli + snow peas + bulgar wheat + blue cheese, 3 clementines, 1 cracker + cheddar cheese, walnuts, cinnamon almonds, dried mangos, brown rice, bok choy + tofu, seaweed, 44 oz. water, 1 cup hot chocolate
Exercise: ran 40 min, 45 min yoga