New Year resolutions

[Class800]

I have annual goals as opposed to resolutions. These can be professional, social or experiences I would love to have. I focus it on positives - what would I love to do that I haven't had a chance to do yet

 

[dakta]

I also really need to try to be a bit less of an awkward introvert - at 34 I am now utterly fed up of being so alone in the world (one reason I find this time of year so hard) Not easy at all, especially when you don't drink and have work colleagues who work at home whenever possible, but hoping for baby steps in "safe" environments like trying to play a couple of darts tournaments.

Other than that just try to get a bit more out of life while I can like making sure to go to gigs or whatever.

Work wise don't get fired and don't worry so much about it.

These were not on my 'list' but they so sound like they could/should be.

 

[Howardh]

Not a resolution but an observation about new year. I'm sat in a pub, kilted obviously, trying to justify why one of the world's coldest and wettest countries which is infested with man eating monsters aka midges is home to men wearing skirts with no knickers.




Nope, me neither.

Enjoy ☺️

 

[Calthrop]

I feel that I should perhaps make a New Year resolution to spend less time on the constituent of "Quizzes & Games" on these Forums, titled "Settlement Association" -- which I find such splendid fun, that at times it genuinely distracts me from things which I really ought to be doing.

 

[BrandanM]

To travel the Dartmoor Line between Okehampton and Crediton.

It wasn't open when I did all the west country branches for the first time last year.

 

[Techniquest]

I feel that I should perhaps make a New Year resolution to spend less time on the constituent of "Quizzes & Games" on these Forums, titled "Settlement Association" -- which I find such splendid fun, that at times it genuinely distracts me from things which I really ought to be doing.

Not a bad shout that, I have to confess I have no idea what that thread is about as I steer clear of Quizzes and Games. The forum can be an enormous distraction for me too, I should cut down my time on it as I have a lot of things I should be doing! There must be better/more productive ways of using my time on break at work!

 

[GusB]

Having been into town today and bought some new clothes (and seen myself in a full-length mirror ), my resolution this year is to lose weight and keep it off this time around. I did not too badly over the last year (being skint does wonders for reducing the amount of rubbish food that's consumed!), but I've recently put much of it back on again.

I might even get back on the bike that has only seen the light of day twice since I bought it!

 

[Edsmith]

I'm another one who never makes new years resolutions and I find the whole concept ridiculous however I'll continue trying to lose weight as I've been for the last few months, without much success it has to be said.

 

[Techniquest]

Having been into town today and bought some new clothes (and seen myself in a full-length mirror ), my resolution this year is to lose weight and keep it off this time around. I did not too badly over the last year (being skint does wonders for reducing the amount of rubbish food that's consumed!), but I've recently put much of it back on again.

I might even get back on the bike that has only seen the light of day twice since I bought it!

Ooh, a full length mirror isn't much fun to look in, I did similar this week and it's not a nice experience. Good luck with shredding the excess weight, it's a tough thing to do but as you might have noticed it's the keeping it off that's harder to do!

I'm another one who never makes new years resolutions and I find the whole concept ridiculous however I'll continue trying to lose weight as I've been for the last few months, without much success it has to be said.

I offer you one of the best pieces of advice I ever got, and that is to not treat it as a diet but a lifestyle change. Diets are temporary, changing one's lifestyle will last much longer. It's still incredibly hard to do, but you'll get there When I launched into my own weight shredding mission at the end of 2017 (wow that was 5 years ago now, that is crazy) and into 2018 I went hardcore with it. Sometimes, no matter what you do, if you don't fully commit to something you just won't succeed. It was a brutal few months, physically and mentally, but after 6 and a bit months I finally achieved victory. My mission had been 5 stone in 5 months, which I didn't achieve but it wasn't that much longer in the end, although it felt like an eternity. It took me until the Canada trip in May 2018 (so a little over 5 months into the mission) to see the results in a mirror. I'd been getting out of the bath in my Novotel room in Toronto, then I looked in the mirror and the brain finally saw what the eyes were seeing and the relief was euphoric. When you finally see the result, the difference, you'll be glad you did it, trust me!

This is all relevant to your post as I had way too many times where successes were not too common, I remember there were a significant number of weigh-ins where I was feeling deflated at the numbers. Another piece of advice I can offer is that if it's worth doing, then it's worth overdoing. Just don't give up on it, it can take an age to get through the mission but when you get there, it's so worth it. Remember, all progress is good progress, no matter how small. Every pound of weight lost, every bit of fat converted to muscle mass, is a victory.

EDIT: Oops, I forgot the other most useful thing to bear in mind!

I found that having an excellent source of motivation, and a strong source of inspiration, is vital. You can have all the willpower in the world, you can have the most sensible targets imaginable, but if you don't have something to motivate you and something else to inspire you on the tough days, then you're doomed to failure.

 

[Edsmith]

Ooh, a full length mirror isn't much fun to look in, I did similar this week and it's not a nice experience. Good luck with shredding the excess weight, it's a tough thing to do but as you might have noticed it's the keeping it off that's harder to do!



I offer you one of the best pieces of advice I ever got, and that is to not treat it as a diet but a lifestyle change. Diets are temporary, changing one's lifestyle will last much longer. It's still incredibly hard to do, but you'll get there When I launched into my own weight shredding mission at the end of 2017 (wow that was 5 years ago now, that is crazy) and into 2018 I went hardcore with it. Sometimes, no matter what you do, if you don't fully commit to something you just won't succeed. It was a brutal few months, physically and mentally, but after 6 and a bit months I finally achieved victory. My mission had been 5 stone in 5 months, which I didn't achieve but it wasn't that much longer in the end, although it felt like an eternity. It took me until the Canada trip in May 2018 (so a little over 5 months into the mission) to see the results in a mirror. I'd been getting out of the bath in my Novotel room in Toronto, then I looked in the mirror and the brain finally saw what the eyes were seeing and the relief was euphoric. When you finally see the result, the difference, you'll be glad you did it, trust me!

This is all relevant to your post as I had way too many times where successes were not too common, I remember there were a significant number of weigh-ins where I was feeling deflated at the numbers. Another piece of advice I can offer is that if it's worth doing, then it's worth overdoing. Just don't give up on it, it can take an age to get through the mission but when you get there, it's so worth it. Remember, all progress is good progress, no matter how small. Every pound of weight lost, every bit of fat converted to muscle mass, is a victory.

EDIT: Oops, I forgot the other most useful thing to bear in mind!

I found that having an excellent source of motivation, and a strong source of inspiration, is vital. You can have all the willpower in the world, you can have the most sensible targets imaginable, but if you don't have something to motivate you and something else to inspire you on the tough days, then you're doomed to failure.

Yes definitely a lifestyle change, I've had some success with dieting in the past but inevitably I slip back into old habits and before I know it I've put it all back on again and I'm back at square one.

 

[Lloyds siding]

Not a resolution but an observation about new year. I'm sat in a pub, kilted obviously, trying to justify why one of the world's coldest and wettest countries which is infested with man eating monsters aka midges is home to men wearing skirts with no knickers.




Nope, me neither.

Enjoy ☺️

I think it was this extreme masochism, verging on self-flagellation, that enabled so many of them to embrace the most extreme forms of Protestantism. I speak as someone descended from members of these sects...the other side of the family is Irish Catholic, including a distant relation who is a Saint (or at least became one)!

I can also vouch for the voracious appetites of the midges having worked outdoors in Scotland!

 

[johnnychips]

To the above to posts: just walk more. I met a few people recently whom I hadn’t seen before Covid, and all of them said ‘you’ve lost weight’. This was no conscious effort on my part, but probably due to a lot of walking in lockdown, when there was nothing else to do; but mainly due to scrapping the car.

 

[johntea]

Just another day for me to be honest!

It was weird walking through town earlier and it being completely and utterly dead though, a complete contrast to a week earlier with Christmas Eve

 

[Edsmith]

Just another day for me to be honest!

It was weird walking through town earlier and it being completely and utterly dead though, a complete contrast to a week earlier with Christmas Eve

Just another day for me as well, I just don't see what all the fuss is about new years eve.

 

[Citybreak1]

Mines is a social media detox and put my phone down. Avoided all the new year waffle of liking every post and put my phone down.

 

[lxfe_mxtterz]

2) Learn to drive and get driving ASAP

I share the same goal here.

It's a shame as I really do enjoy train and bus travel, but unfortunately the current state of these industries (in particular the railways) makes everyday travel incredibly frustrating and incredibly stressful - even impossible in some locations, i.e. where South Western Railway (fail to) operate.

I missed the last connecting Underground service from work last night, so my workplace ended up paying for a taxi for me, and it was a real wake-up call as to how quick and convenient my commute could be using a car, instead of the current almost three hour coach-then-Underground journey each way.*

* Now usually, I would be able to commute door-to-door in under an hour using the train into London, but as I've stated above, the definition of South Western Railway is now "runs a less-than-even-remotely-useful service" now so I'm left to spend five to six hours a day travelling.

And even when (if) things return to "normal", I'm reluctant to pay out my hard-earned money to travel with them again because quite frankly they've lost my trust completely.

---

On a slightly more positive note, another "resolution" of mine is to try and find something worthwhile to do with (what little of) my free time I have left outside of work. Perhaps starting up a small business of some sort, or helping the community in some way - something more rewarding than sitting at home scrolling through this forum for hours on end. (I can do that during my ridiculously long commute!)

 

[306024]

The Prime Minister‘s New Year Resolution was reported this morning as getting more sleep. We can only dream…..

 

[D821]

Getting out a bit more and focusing on my health more, rather than taking it for granted.
By cutting down on takeaways and beer last year, as well as going for lunchtime walks and cycling, I was able to lose weight without really trying to.
I also need to stop finding excuses to get out on my bike and just go. I spend too long pondering about it or deciding it's too wet or too windy rather than getting out and getting on with it.

 

[dakta]

Quite good to see so many people walking more. I'm not on my own then!

It's a funny one because I did a bit of research on whether there was much tangible benefit to a quick walk or a 3-4 mile walk a few times a week, some places said over time the impact could be quite dramatic but was a little dishearted that some places were a bit more hardcore/pessimistic (if you dont want to waste your time and see any meaningful change cut out everything you like and nibble rabbitfood for tea - most importantly make it your new life).

There are some things I ain't going to give up, living a bit now and then is one but I don't mind reducing the gluttony a bit and offsetting whats left with mild increased activity.

 

[43172]

Learning to drive as others already have it as there's. I've also decided to have as a new years resolution of taking lessons to be able to swim, though i have no intentions of joining those who start the new year going into the sea next year, given where i reside and the amount of coastline it's a surprise when i have to shoot down any surfing questions.

 

[WizCastro197]

- Language: I've been trying to learn French over the last few years, I'd like to continue studying, and try and take more trips into France to improve my conversational French.

I find this is very important as if you don't speak with others who can also speak French, you lose the capability and knowledge of what you've learned. I wish you good luck on your learning journey, I hope you aren't finding it too hard!

 

[GusB]

Learning to drive as others already have it as there's. I've also decided to have as a new years resolution of taking lessons to be able to swim, though i have no intentions of joining those who start the new year going into the sea next year, given where i reside and the amount of coastline it's a surprise when i have to shoot down any surfing questions.

They have a Boxing Day swim at the harbour in the village along the road from me. I resolve to never join these people in their venture!

Apart from the fact that it happens in winter in the north of Scotland, it's very much still a working harbour with all the oily stuff that fishing boats emit. No thanks!

 

[Drogba11CFC]

Double down whenever possible and don't take any small sphericals or bovine excretion.

Keep a little black book.

 

[GW4117]

Certainly getting out cycling earlier and more frequently in the year than previous ones.
I'm happy to concentrate on getting a little fitter now, as opposed to trying to plan days out during these strike days.

 

[Ivor]

There are some things I ain't going to give up, living a bit now and then is one but I don't mind reducing the gluttony a bit and offsetting whats left with mild increased activity.

That sounds a good idea to me.

 

[DynamicSpirit]

Until they fail lol. It’s just something that’s never interested me.

That reminds me of this meme that hit my inbox a few days ago...




(Image reads: My goal in 1023 is to accomplish the goals I set in 2022, which I should have done in 2021 because I made a promise in 2020 which I planned in 2019.)

More seriously, I do think New Year's resolutions are a great idea if you approach them correctly - as an achievable goal to set yourself to work on. (Emphasis on achievable - I usually make the mistake of setting goals that in reality are going to take me something like 5 years, then half way through the year start beating myself up because I've only made 10% progress on them )

 

[Jamiescott1]

I am a regular runner and on a standard weekend or Bank Holiday run I see about 3 other runners. Yesterday I passed about 15 other runners.
The first parkrun in January is typically one of the busiest of the year too

 

[D821]

I suspect gyms seem a spike in attendance for the next few weeks but it soon drops back.

 

[DynamicSpirit]

Having been into town today and bought some new clothes (and seen myself in a full-length mirror ), my resolution this year is to lose weight and keep it off this time around. I did not too badly over the last year (being skint does wonders for reducing the amount of rubbish food that's consumed!), but I've recently put much of it back on again.

I might even get back on the bike that has only seen the light of day twice since I bought it!

Cycling is great for fitness and if you want to lose weight. I'd highly recommend it. In 2020 I did lots of cycling during the lockdown, in part in order to sort out my weight (I'd previously been overweight for a long time) - it worked brilliantly.

As an aside, from my own experience, I feel cycling is particularly effective partly because being outside and having constant changes of scenery mean you can go longer than if you were in the gym, and partly because by it's very nature, it's very difficult to cut it short: If you resolve to go to the gym for an hour, it's very easy after, say, half an hour, to decide you're fed up/bored/tired/whatever and just stop. But if you've spent half an hour cycling and you're now 6 miles from home, then you have no choice but to spend the next half hour cycling back

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 3 Jan 2023 ==

I suspect gyms seem a spike in attendance for the next few weeks but it soon drops back.

My understanding is that January tends to be the busiest time of year for gyms. I would imagine that's partly because of new year resolutions, partly because of people feeling guilty after stuffing themselves over Xmas, and partly because the cold weather means people are more likely to want to exercise indoors. (Not sure that last one will apply so much this year with our unusually warm January so far, though)

 

[Techniquest]

Where did you get unusually warm from so far in 2023? Don't get me wrong it's not super cold right now but it's still not great! Last night when I left work it was incredibly cold, better tonight thankfully. I do want to hit-up the gym, have done for ages, as it would be good for those days when it's a bit too wet to be outdoors for long.