Resolutions should wait until the spring
JENNIFER SANASIE
By the beginning of February, some people are relieved they didn’t make a New Year’s resolution. Others are kicking themselves for not following through with their resolution and a few are actually on their way to conquering their goal.
According to the Laborer’s Health and Safety Fund of North America, 68 per cent of North Americans break their New Year’s resolution by spring and, after one year, only 15 per cent of North Americans claim success.
A study conducted by Mind, a leading mental health charity in England, urges people to be wary of New Year’s resolutions as they can be bad for mental health.
“We chastise ourselves for our perceived shortcomings and set unrealistic goals to change our behaviour,” said Mind chief executive, Paul Farmer, in a press release. “So it’s not surprising that when we fail to keep our resolutions, we end up feeling worse than we started.”
The fact that New Year’s Day falls right in the middle of winter may be one reason as to why it is so hard to keep a resolution. “We are all affected by the light,” Humber College counselor Liz Sokol said. “In the winter we crave more carbs, sleep more and don’t want to exercise.”
In an article written by Dr. Tom Valeo on MedicineNet.com, Dr. Robert Butterworth, a clinical psychologist, said, “The worst time to make New Year’s resolutions is on New Year’s Eve. We’re exhausted after the holidays. We’re stressed out. The weather is bad.”
Common New Year’s resolutions are to lose weight, quit smoking, or spend more time with loved ones. Goals such as these may be better served if they are activated in the spring, Butterworth explains on MedecineNet.com.
Although Butterworth offers spring as a healthier alternative to make life changing goals, Sokol said one can only make a resolution when ready to do so. “These goals have to flow from within you, otherwise they are artificial. The goals you set for yourself should be reasonable and achievable, and you have to really be ready and want it,” Sokol explained.
Mike Rodrigues, a personal trainer at LA Fitness gym, said, “The busiest time for people signing up for gym memberships and personal training sessions is around New Year’s.” Rodrigues has been a personal trainer at various different gyms and added, “Usually you will see a lot of new faces around the beginning of January, then by February they disappear.”
This can be a problem for your pocket book said Rodrigues, “A lot of people get gym memberships and then just don’t come. It’s such a waste of money.”
Mind offers some steps that can be taken throughout the year to boost mental health, are not as strenuous on the pocketbook and not as hard as resolutions.
First, be active; a study conducted by Mind found that 71 per cent of people felt less depressed after a light stroll in the countryside.
Second, go green. Mind also found that “connecting with nature boosts your mood and lifts depression.”
Third, try something new as this will keep your mind stimulated and give you confidence.
And fourth, give back to your community; Mind says this can be just as rewarding for yourself as it is for the community.
Sokol acknowledges that most people are not all that serious about New Year’s resolutions. “People don’t plan it out, and they may or may not be motivated.” If it doesn’t work out she said, “Don’t beat yourself up about it. That’s a problem.”
Photo by Taryn Black
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