How About A Non-New Year's Resolution?

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I'm not the best New Year's Resolution fan in the in the world. I mean, I really love the idea of taking the opportunity of a wonderfully clean slate and declaring that THIS YEAR I resolve to be "perfect." It's a really great in theory. I've tried it many times. Back in my heavier days, I'd always declare that I'd lose weight. That would last as long as it took for me to scoop a chip into the chip dip at 12:30 a.m. at the New Year's Eve party. Then my resolution for the year was ruined.  I'd have to wait another 365 days for a change at another start to a perfect year...

I've been thinking about resolutions for a few days.  Marcia, one of our MM Groupies shared with our group last week that she uses the new year as a time of gentle cleansing, so to speak. One year she worked on gradually reducing the amount of diet soda she drank, gradually working her way down to none. She simply chooses something her body would probably do better without. I really am drawn to this idea. It would be a great approach for smoking, sugar, refined carbohydrates, coffee creamers, and perhaps even too many trips to the vending machine at work.

Another perspective came from one of the pharmacy techs that I really enjoy chatting with (I've got to have the best pharmacy team in the area---my Target team!) Ron was telling me that people seem to make resolutions that are impossible to achieve; they need to set their goal bar lower.  He humorously suggested that I should make a resolution to donate to some type of porpoise fund (great idea---I do love those animals!) But, his point was right on. We should be setting our goal bar lower, to a more achievable level, since no one seems to be able to achieve the ones they set each year...

My husband and I celebrated New Year's Day by taking an afternoon walk in one of our favorite local county parks. We even bought our yearly pass that afternoon. I guess we really have the potential to get our money's worth if we buy it on the first day of the year! It wasn't an easy walk. That 1 1/2 mile path brought hard blowing snow angling at us as we turned into the wind. As we walked, we reflected on the past year's health accomplishments and possible resolutions for the coming year.  We decided that the exercise is going well on most days: swimming, walking, and weights. And we do quite well with nutritional basics on most days: water, whole grains, fruits, veggies, healthy fat, etc.  In the end, my husband suggested that adding another fish meal each week would be good. That, I like. Simple. Easy. Achievable. And tasty, too!

Resolutions don't have to be BIG, MAJOR, things. In fact, they are probably better simply being one little step along the path of "bettering" who you are. And, working on a little step to help you on your personal wellness quest to become healthier is a great idea for the New Year!

And, now, about that idea I had to get organized in 2012...