FORGET RESOLUTIONS, FOSTER SUSTAINABLE LIFESTYLE CHANGES

With a New Year comes retrospection and reevaluation of life choices (for me, anyway!) New Year’s Resolutions are a perfect way of committing to lifestyle changes, but I often found I would set goals that weren’t tangible and I ended up not following through with them come February 1.

Resolutions can vary from person to person, but mine often revolve around health and skincare. This year in particular, I want to introduce more of a body exfoliating routine (hi, Cellular Water Gentle Body Scrub). I’m ALL about the face skincare routine and I’m the woman with a 15-step face routine, so I definitely owe some TLC to my body as well.

I’m here to share five tips on how you can achieve a positive lifestyle and actually stick to your New Year’s Resolutions!

Step 1: Be realistic in how you set goals

The “best” way to fall short of your resolution is to set an unattainable goal. Consider your lifestyle and what’s TRULY doable for you.

Step 2: Make a plan and leave room for growth

I love the idea of setting mini-milestones. As an example, when I moved to Toronto, I wanted to find a gym and commit to doing a mix of boxing, HIIT, yoga and pilates. I had to set mini milestones of doing one type of workout a week for a month, then adding new workouts to the mix.

Had I tried to commit to doing all four workouts every week, I would’ve found it too overwhelming and taxing on my body and probably would’ve failed. Five years later, I’m happy to say I go to the gym five days a week and include a mix of HIIT, boxing, yoga and pilates – because I want to, not because I feel like I have to. Which brings me to my next step…

Step 3: Listen to your body

Sometimes, I don’t feel like working out. And that’s totally ok. Learn to listen to your body and allow yourself to take a break! Do the best you can on a daily basis and don’t beat yourself up over small slips.

Step 4: Stick to it

Persistence is important when you’re introducing something new into your life. Experts say that it takes twenty-one days for something to become routine and six months to become part of your personality, so a Resolution might feel more like a chore until it really becomes a part of your lifestyle. Stick to it, you got this!

Step 5: Practice gratefulness

I’ve incorporated this into my life as part of my 2019 resolution and it’s completely changed my perspective on life. I’m so grateful for my body’s ability to move and grateful for all the people I meet through work or life. There’s so much good to focus on, so try and move your attention to the things that are WONDERFUL instead of focusing on the bad. It’s so interesting what an optimistic outlook on life can do for someone!