Why New Year’s Resolutions are B.S.; a more life giving way to begin 2017!
Happy New Year! I am officially back online after being almost completely unplugged for 2 weeks.
I have learned, the hard way at times (lol), how essential it is to regularly take time to unplug, and honor the season of release.
The past few weeks leading up to 2017 included lots of movie watching (La la land is must see!), being with family, a trip to Disneyland, and time to reflect and complete 2016.
I also took some time to write out my word of the year, and daily rhythms I want to commit to in service of my nourishment in 2017.
As I sat to write my intentions, I was very present to the radical shift for me in how I was approaching setting these intentions.
If you are human and have a heart, then my sense is you have heard of the infamous New Year’s resolutions.
You know, the time of year when, societally, as soon as January first rolls around you start seeing “New Year, New You” New Year’s resolutions ads everywhere that are often birthed from the notion that you must resolve, fix, firm, and perfect yourself into a “NEW” you…
like somehow the old you of 2016, needs to morph yourself into a ‘new’ person to be loveable.
To be honest, I used to buy into New Year’s Resolutions for years of my life. While on the outside it looked like I was making “healthy” new choices, underneath my desire to jump on the resolutions train, was really another way I punished, shamed, and perfected myself.
Resolutions from a space of pushing and fixing feeds a culture of ‘the myth of perfection’ and improvement, and in the long run approaching your self-care and relationship to your body from that perspective will often not be sustainable (trust me I have tried it!).
There has to be a more nourishing approach to starting off a new year, right?!
There is…
It’s the shift from “resolving to be better”, to —>> remembering you are already loveable and enough in this moment (and taking action from that space) ….
It’s the shift from creating a list of resolutions that come from the old paradigm of there is “something wrong with this version of me”, to —>> creating daily rhythms that nourish and support your well-being…
AND It’s the shift from buying into the belief that some diet or program outside of you knows what’s best for you, to —>> re-igniting your own inner listening muscles that direct you towards self-loving choices.
As we kick off the new year together, Yoga’licious style, I want to share with you some easy to apply shifts I have made over the years to try on yourself, that have strengthened my self-love muscles instead of my self-deprecating muscles.
Here’s some new ideas to try on:
- First place a hand on your heart and belly, and remember that no matter what choices and changes you make this year, every ounce of you is loveable in this very moment.
- From that space, with a hand on your heart, genuinely ask yourself how you want to feel in 2017? (i.e. I want to feel calm, light, excited about life, juicy)
- Ask yourself, at this present moment what authentically nourishes me? (think relationships, movement, food, experiences) What nourishes you may be radically different than what nourishes me, let it be authentic for you.
- In this moment what do you feel most passionate about that you want to give your attention to?
- What excites you? (don’t overthink this one, nothing has to make sense :))
Then from whatever you answered in the questions above create daily/weekly rhythms that support and nourish what you want; this is an inside/out approach instead of the outside/in. Let it be unique to you!
What the practice of yoga teaches us is that there is nowhere to get; life is a series of cycles (endings and beginnings, death and rebirth).
Remember you can always begin again, it’s a practice; a practice of connecting, living, and taking action from your essentially delicious Self.
Enjoy, and have fun with it; life is so precious and my thought is you were put on this planet to enjoy, sparkle, and connect deeply with yourself and others… not deprive, shame, and perfect yourself into “newness.”
So, did this resonate for you? Would love to hear one daily rhythm you are choosing for yourself this year!
Xo,
Melanie
