There are some New Year’s resolutions that are doomed to fail – or just make you feel rubbish.
The vow to work out five times a week, for example, which quickly dwindles to once a week, then a gym membership gathering dust.
But not all New Year’s resolutions are a bad idea.
We asked a bunch of the UK’s leading wellness experts for their recommendation of New Year’s resolutions that will actually make your life better in 2021.
Add more plants to your diet
If you’re ready to go all-out vegan, whether for Veganuary or more permanently, go for it.
But if not, just try to add some more vegetables to your diet.
Dr Sunni Patel, chef, gut-health influencer, and founder of dishdashdeets.com, believes adding more plants to your diet is the best thing you can do to optimise your gut health in 2021.
The gut is central to so many important functions and there is a mountain of science showing that it helps support immunity, mental state, skin health as well as digestion.
Going plant-based will help feed the gut and its trillions of good bacteria by providing the essential fuel they need, as well as micronutrients and antioxidants which are known to reduce the risk of diabetes, cancer, heart disease and obesity.
Plants will help you get the necessary 30g of fibre a day into your diet. Add nuts and seeds to your porridge and cereal, blend extra vegetables into your pasta sauce, to feel satisfied, healthy and gut happy.
Cut back the booze
Ready to take on Dry January? How about extending it for the whole year?
Kate Baily, addiction coach at lovesober.com and co-author of Love Yourself Sober says it’s definitely worth doing Dry January.
‘Ditching the booze for a month will provide some great health benefits such as better skin, better sleep, increased energy and clarity, but the benefits of long-term sobriety will be life-changing,’ she says.
‘Improved health and energy, a sense of purpose, loads more time and money, coupled with eliminating the wasted energy and regrets that come with heavy nights out or regular drinking, all help to kick-start an upward spiral of results.
‘Not only will you look and feel better, reduce your risk of diseases and boost your immune system, but your self-confidence will skyrocket in the new year as you meet daily goals of being present and making great decisions.
‘Scientists believe that by filling your time with activities that genuinely make you feel good and being more present in your life, you can boost your happiness levels by up to 20%. What’s not to love?’
Pay more attention to your pets
For Dr Margit Gabriele Muller, leading vet and author of Your Pet, Your Pill the best thing you can do to improve your life in 2021 is pay more attention to your pet.
A pet’s unconditional love offers a profound, calming, and comforting companionship and a greater understanding of feelings.
Pets help you to feel less lonely, cope with everyday life and give you purpose. Contact with your pet improves your mood, mental health and overall wellbeing as well as decreasing anxiety, stress, and pain.
Dogs have an amazing impact on your physical health too – they lower blood pressure, triglyceride, cholesterol levels and significantly reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease .
But all pets are important – even fish can help you focus your thoughts and increase your attention span.
Build self-awareness and plan for change
In 2021, try to understand what’s holding you back and what you’re most afraid of.
Natasha Harvey, careers coach and founder of Embrace Your Change says it’s a useful practice to build self-awareness, and the answer is rarely as bad as we fear.
Try to notice your self-talk and reframe negative thoughts to focus on what you can change, rather than on what you can’t. Get clear on your strengths and integrate them into what you do every day.
Make a plan for what you want to achieve with realistic goals and actions. Include new activities that you didn’t think possible and track your progress.
Create a list of what you’ve handled in your career so far – challenges you’ve overcome and achievements you’re proud of. Recalling successes helps boost feelings of competence.
Notice who among your colleagues demonstrates strong self-confidence. Consider what they believe, say and do, and how you might use some of these techniques yourself.
Watch more films
Dawud Gurevitch, life coach and author of May the Source Be with You: A Filmic Guide to Change Your Life recommends spending more time with Netflix in the New Year.
He’s a proponent of film therapy as inspiration to change your life.
He suggests: ‘For example: Tony Robbins: I Am Not Your Guru demonstrates the importance of fixing problems and planning your next decade; Eat Pray Love inspires holistic self-care; Gravity fosters emotional intelligence; I Don’t Know How She Does It exemplifies goal setting and action-planning; Untouchable (2011) promotes the importance of meaningful relationships; The Bucket List encourages thankfulness and Peaceful Warrior works to integrate your mind, body and soul.’
Enhance your self-image
Focus on loving yourself the way you are, rather than piling on the pressure to overhaul your body.
Preventative Cardiology Specialist and author of Vitality: Healthy And Happy Heart, Pranita Salunke advises that for the next 365 days – not just January – we should take five minutes in front of the mirror affirming our self-worth. By reminding ourselves daily that we are worthy and deserving enough to be loved, prosperous and happy, we give ourselves a much better chance of success in all areas of life.
Embrace physical intelligence
Patricia Peyton and Claire Dale, the authors of Physical Intelligence and directors of Companies in Motion, say we need to embrace ‘physical Intelligence’ in 2021 – our ability to detect and actively manage the balance of certain key chemicals racing through our body.
After the challenges of 2020, people are more invested than ever in prioritizing self-care in 2021. However, what many don’t realize is that investing in wellbeing will also drive better career performance, because physiology powers our performance.
Our bodies and brains are inextricably linked; yet for too many years, our bodies have been too far down on the list of priorities. Patricia and Claire say it’s time for that to change.
They reckon that embracing physical intelligence will help you achieve more, stress less and live and work more happily, and say that by embracing physical intelligence you will transform your life and generate increased resilience, happiness, motivation and productivity.
Start journaling
Carina Lawson, time Management Coach and the ounder of Ponderlily Planners & Journals says as we ring in a new year, we all too often fall into the same rut. We are excited about our goals, we brainstorm new things we want to accomplish, but then life happens.
The misconception stopping most of us from getting started is that we think that taking time to start a journaling practice may be a time-consuming activity. In practice, this simply isn’t the case.
Carina says journaling is an invaluable tool to help objectively reflect, guide your thoughts, develop creative ideas, prioritise tasks, release pressure, and see the bigger picture.
Make journaling a habit and you’ll feel great for gaining mental clarity and have in-depth insights into what drives you and the goals that align with your values.
Journaling is what you make it, and if you can only spare a few minutes once every few days, this is still considerably better than nothing.
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