The year of 2017 is wrapping up and, just like millions of Americans, you may be making a New Year’s resolution. Maybe you got caught up in all the New Year’s excitement last year, decided you wanted to lose weight, and bought a gym membership. You were pretty good about going the first few weeks, but by mid-February, you were back on the couch, watching Netflix and eating chips in your workout clothes because, hey, they’re comfy. It’s always positive to create goals to better yourself, but many peoples’ resolutions are broad and they don’t go in with a plan. It’s one thing to say that you will eat healthier, but it’s another to actually make a plan to eat healthier. Many resolutions have to do more with quality of life than a numerical, quantifiable aspect that can be measured, so it’s important to set goals and create a plan so you can stick with your resolution. Here are some tips to achieving the three most common New Year’s resolutions.
1. Get fit/lose weight/eat healthier
“Get healthy” is a pretty broad term, so the first step to achieving this goal is to figure out what “healthy” means to you. For some, it means gaining or losing weight. It could mean building muscle, being more active, eating healthy, maintaining your current healthy habits, or a combination of things. Once you decide on which aspect(s) of health you’d like to focus on, start a plan on how to achieve it.
- Set realistic goals and do things the old fashioned way. Crash diets, juice cleanses, and weight loss pills may produce results quickly, but these results will most likely go away just as quickly. What is going to keep the weight off is good old healthy eating and regular exercise. Those who lose weight steadily at about one to two pounds per week were found to be more successful at keeping it off. While one to two pounds may not seem like much, it definitely adds up over time, and it’s better to go slow than to lose weight fast and gain it back fast.
- Schedule your workouts into your weekly schedule and make a commitment to do it. You’ll be more likely to hit up the gym if you’ve been planning to go ahead of time, rather than simply going when you feel like it.
- Reward yourself for achieving both large and small goals. You could give yourself a small reward for going exercising and eating healthy, like getting ice cream at the end of the week, and a larger reward for hitting major goals, like a shopping trip.
- Find a fitness partner. Whether this is your gym buddy, a friend who likes working out, or someone to cook healthy dinners with, having a friend with similar goals will help you stay accountable.
2. Get organized
As collegiates, we all know how important it is to stay organized, because there’s nothing worse than getting ready to write an essay, only to be tearing your room apart for the one page of notes you lost. From academic life to your dorm room or bedroom, kitchen, living room, office, backpack, purse, etc., there’s a lot to keep track of and organizing all of it can seem overwhelming.
- Focus on one area of your life you want to organize each month. If your backpack is constantly a mess, try focusing on keeping your backpack and purse organized for the month of January by throwing out garbage and old receipts, regularly emptying out change, and having a designated compartment for everything. Once February arrives, you’ll be in the habit of keeping this area organized, so you can add on an additional area, such as your room.
- Set aside important documents that you don’t use often, such as personal records, receipts, and manuals or instructions. These are documents that you probably don’t use every day and just throw in some random place, but when you need them, you need them. Purchase a small filing folder and designate a compartment for each type of document. It’ll come in handy when you’re digging for a receipt for that overpriced sweater you never wore after a month.
- Take five minutes at the end of each day to go around and pick up your living space. It can be tempting to throw your shoes and clothes on the floor after a long day, but if you do this day after day, you’ll slowly start to accumulate a mountain of clothes in the middle of your room. Start your night routine a little early and take a few minutes to pick up anything you left laying around, clean your dishes, and re-organize anything that is out of place. You (and probably your roommates) will be thankful that everything is orderly and clean.
- Purchase or make your own organization systems for everything from lipstick to cleaning supplies to silverware.
- Donate, sell or throw out anything you don’t use. Organizing is much easier if you have less to actually organize.
- Invest in a cute planner you’ll want to use. It’ll help keep your entire life in order and you’ll never forget about an assignment or event again.
3. Live life to the fullest
“Living life to the fullest” is another resolution that can mean different things to different people. College can get insanely busy and sometimes “living life to the fullest” isn’t easy when you’re drowning under piles of homework. It doesn’t mean that you have to go on crazy vacations all the time and go skydiving every weekend; you can make small changes to your everyday life to make it more exciting.
- Pick up a new hobby. Odds are, your university has a ton of student orgs and clubs, so go out and try some of them. You might find one that you really enjoy and stick with it. You could even learn a new hobby on your own. The internet is your best friend when it comes to learning anything, such as cooking, playing guitar, learning a new language, or painting.
- Change up your routine sometimes. Getting into a schedule and having some sort of structure in your life is important, but it can get boring quickly. Pick a new study spot, eat at a new restaurant, or order something other than your usual at the coffee shop you frequent.
- Plan a fun activity to do every few months, like a 5k or a concert with friends. It’ll give you something to look forward to and you’ll make a ton of memories.
- Start saying “yes” to new experiences. This doesn’t mean partying all the time or doing things you’re not comfortable with. If you’re someone who finds themselves holding back in social situations or not doing an activity simply because you’re scared, think about if you’ll regret not doing it in the morning.
New Year’s resolutions tend to be broad and encompass many different aspects. It can be hard to maintain a resolution, but if you go into 2018 with a plan on how to achieve your goals, stick with them, and make small changes throughout the year, you’ll still be rocking your resolution through 2019.