self awareness.
Welp, now that we’re past January 1st, where are we at on our resolutions? I’ve never really been big on making a New Year’s Resolution, per se. Planning, goal setting, making changes — sure! But a specific “resolution”, not really.
There’s been a common buzz amongst a few women that I follow — each of whom I admire and respect. They pose the thought,
what if this year, we don’t make a resolution that has to do with diet or
weight-loss?
The way I interpret their message is basically, don’t give in to diet-culture and feel like you need to change yourself. Sister, I’m 1000% here for that! But as I prepare myself to “get back to eating healthy” and begin my sister’s 6-week jump start fitness program, I started to wonder, “Am I not promoting self-love if I do this? Am I buying into diet-culture by starting another health journey right now? And am I inadvertently making other women feel like they should want to change, as well?” Goodness, I hope not! After all, my reason for doing this is health. I know I feel better when I eat well. My “growing pains” (haha) are better when I’m consistently exercising. With that said, I know my “reason” has not always been a healthy one.
Since high school, I’ve done Weight Watchers (3x), Les Mills OnDemand, Atkins, Curves, Borne Fitness, YMCA, a custom program with Max Muscle, Gold’s Gym, trained for a half marathon, Beachbody OnDemand, Advocare, Billy Blanks Tae Bo, My Fitness Pal, and most recently a program with Sharny & Julius. (phew!)
All of this made me think, how common is this resolution? So, I googled “most common New Year’s Resolutions in the U.S.” and every single article, blog post, and data collection stated similar information. Of the top five most common resolutions, two or three of them had to do with either weight-loss, physical fitness, or eating healthier/dieting. And you want to know which resolution is the hardest to keep (per the articles I found)? Diet changes & weight-loss.
So why do we keep getting back on the merry-go-round? What is the REAL problem? Have I, and millions of other Americans, simply not found the right fitness program/eating lifestyle?
After years of trial and error and various experiences, there are three imperative questions I either haven’t been aware of, or honest about:
1| what stage of life I’m in right now?
2| are my goals in line with my stage of life?
3| when do I need to push myself outside of my comfort zone and when do I need to provide myself with grace?
These break down into three points: self-awareness + expectations + acceptance.
self-awareness.
Ask yourself questions like, is our family routine stable and consistent, OR is it unpredictable and new? WHY am I wanting a change in my health/wellness? Is it for a healthy reason? Am I trying to make big changes in other areas of my life in addition to this health change?
expectations.
A few years ago, I tried to copy a program I had had success with previously. I expected it to be a relatively easy change since I had done it before and therefore expected similar results. Simply put, it didn’t happen and I was discouraged. Now looking back on that, my stage of life and expectations were on two completely different planets! The wellness plan I loved and succeeded with when I was in my mid-20s + had a 9-5 job + no kids wasn’t the right fit for my life with a 1 year old + part-time child care + starting a business. All it takes is a toddler sleep regression to kick my 5am gym class plans to the curb.
So ask yourself, are my expectations in line with this moment in life?
acceptance.
Lastly, there’s acceptance. When that unexpected sleep-regression hits or your kids are now full-time mobile learning or your job hits a busy season, give yourself some grace. Accept that maybe now isn’t the best time for change. Love your beautiful self just as you are and know you can always pick your wellness goals back up.
Ultimately, it’s about building a better body image all 365 days of the year. I’m learning that I need to be okay with the fluctuations of life. There will be times when striving for better health just isn’t in the cards at the moment. When my life is in a fairly steady routine, maybe that’s a better time to take on a health and wellness change. Will that be on January 1st? Maybe it is for you. But if you take an honest look at what’s going on in your life at the moment and you realize the answer is “no”, that’s just as excellent. Cause momma, we're not defined by January firsts and Mondays.
But if you did make a wellness New Year’s Resolution and are starting a new plan like me, make sure it’s for a healthy reason. Honestly assess your goals and where you are in life. Give yourself the best chance at success. And then if life throws a curve ball, give yourself some love and grace.
love & laughter.
jackie
p.s. for a quick list of things you can do today to build a better body image, check out 6 Things For A Better Body Image on my Instagram reel @jackie.gasaway
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