New Year’s resolutions… whether you stick with them or let them fade by February, we all mean well. I personally find that my university work always sidetracks the new goals I set every January 1st. As such, I’ve tried to compile a list of ways to achieve the most common New Year’s resolutions for university students right here on campus.
Get More Exercise
Trying to get more exercise into your schedule can be hard. Either you’re too tired to get up in the morning, don’t want to be all sweaty in the middle of the day, or are once again too tired at the end of the day to go to the gym. Sometimes though, it may be the type of exercise you’re dreading rather than the exercise itself! I’ve personally found that finding more fun or diverse ways of exercising can help me actually look forward to it rather than dread it. A great way to do this at Carleton is by purchasing the CUFIT Pass. It gives you access to a wide variety of fitness classes, from kickboxing to yoga to spin classes. Most conveniently, there are multiple classes available at different times of the day so you can get a fun fitness class in between classes!
Drink More Water
This is a big and important resolution that really should be on everyone’s list! Drinking more water has many benefits, including boosting energy levels, preventing headaches, and maximizing physical performance, according to Healthline. I always find it hard to fill my water bottles, though, since not all buildings on campus have a water bottle refill station (most just have regular water fountains). So make sure to take a big water bottle and visit the following areas on campus that have water bottle refill stations:
- Steacie Building: 1st floor, near North entrance bathrooms
- Nicole Building: 1st floor, near the bathrooms down the hall from the elevators
- University Centre: 4th floor, down the hall from the Booster Juice and CUSA offices
- Loeb Building: 1st floor, in the Loeb Cafe
Complete Class Readings
If you’re like me, you despise and procrastinate your readings for class. From the weekly conversations I have with my classmates, too often we all skip or skim the readings and do guesswork during class discussions. But at the beginning of the Winter semester, we all seem to want to do better at completing those readings. A great way to get more of the readings done on campus is (1) to go to a quiet floor in the library and (2) co-read the texts with your peers. I’ve found the quiet floors (floors 3 and 5) of the library really helpful in focusing and getting my work done. When everyone’s also there silently getting things done, it makes me want to be more productive and actually complete my work rather than switching to Instagram or Netflix. I’ve also found doing co-reads helpful – where you and your classmates split up the readings and write a short summary for each other on what they’re about. It’s really helpful in getting to read some of the readings deeply while saving you time!
These are just a few resolutions that my peers have mentioned to me, and hopefully, this list will help you complete similar resolutions right here on campus!