Written by Kelly Kelley & Molly Reid
This time of year we are bombarded with ads and incentives around beauty, fitness, wellness, self-care, overall health, and personal growth essentials to try in 2023. Has Diet Culture convinced you to put “weight loss” on the top of your Wellness Plan?
If constantly attempting to manipulate your body by working against your genetic makeup and body structure does not seem like a happy task to add to your hunt for health, we would like to offer you some wonderful options. We invite you to consider adding the below suggestions to your New Year’s Resolution, all of which are sure to boost your mind, body and soul.
- Spend time in nature. It is guaranteed that the world you live in within the walls of your work and home is NOT the beautiful world that is out there to see, smell, feel, hear, and touch. The sun, the air, all the colors of the rainbow, get outside and take it all in. Be mindful that the world is beautiful, if you only take the time to notice.
- Reconnect with friends. If the pandemic taught us one thing, it is that humans are meant to be social. We are wired to connect, share, touch, support, gather; together is where we are meant to be. Mental health wellness does not occur without support and community. Find your people. If you had people and you lost them, take the uncomfortable steps to reconnect. People need people, and there is a HUGE chance that your lost friends are lost without you, and looking to be found.
- SLEEP. Your body and brain need to rest. Check out Ashley Brauer’s blog on the importance of resting your body and brain for optimum sports performance, which can also be applied to non-athletes and the sleep benefits for a successful day.
- Move your mind. We often hear that the elderly need to exercise their brains…use or lose it, right? If it’s good enough for the ones we hold near and dear, it is good enough for us! Use your noggin. Take the time to think. Stop scrolling and find something to strengthen your brain muscle. Pull out a pencil and take a crack at the weekly crossword, play along with the evening’s Jeopardy, put a puzzle together, read a book, look through an old picture album and reminisce.
- Pet your Pet. Pet therapy is great therapy. Match the rhythm of their breath, pick the pace of their energy. They are GREAT listeners, so unleash all your worries and fears. Look at the unconditional love in their eyes and give way to their need for you, and your need for them. Check out McCallum’s Animal Therapists for quick spike of comfort.
- Clean your space. A cluttered environment often leads to a cluttered mind. When your eyes take in chaos, there is a huge probability that you are mentally affected by the disorganization. Clean off your desk, donate your unwanted clothes, and dump out the junk drawer. If your environment is crammed and busting out of the seams, how can your mind be cool, calm, and collected? Our business development and marketing team read the book, Essentialism by Greg McKeown. Check it out for some motivational tips and incentive to design your life to achieve your highest point of contribution. It truly helps the reader develop a systematic discipline for discerning what is absolutely essential.
- Move your body. You don’t have to strive for a personal record…not even close. You just have to joyfully move your body in a manner that brings a smile to your face. Walk the long way home, take the stairs, dance around the house, see if you still remember how to do a hand stand or cartwheel. Check out our 100 ideas for joyful movement to find a fun physical activity that fits YOU.
- Hop back into your hobbies. Remember when you loved to play a certain sport or where known for a certain skill? What was your passion before you got so wrapped up in life? If pulling out your old gear brings you joy…do it, share the experience with someone, show someone how it was once done. That sports equipment in the garage, that craft supply bin collecting dust…pull it out and use it. Bring it back to life, make it became a part of your life…again.
- Try new things, Discover a new hobby. Ever wanted to try something new…if not now, When? Research it, buy it, book it, plan it, try it with a friend…or give it a go solo. Try a free pickleball lesson, buy a calligraphy pen, pick up a fun paint by numbers set. Old dogs can indeed learn new tricks! Don’t let anxiety win, let curiosity be your guide.
- Be still (yes the total opposite of #4 and #7). Get quiet and listen to the silence. There might be answers in the stillness, when you push away the noise of the people, places, and things that often accidentally decide your worth. Your mind, body, and soul knows what is best for you….if you nourish it with the nutrients, hydration, family, friends, movement, and experiences it is needs.
We encourage you to challenge yourself to try something different in this New Year. Challenge yourself to think outside the box. Don’t get seduced by your own negativity and the ads you’re bombarded with that leave you feeling like you are not enough. YOU ARE ENOUGH.
Which of these will you try today? Which one will you try next week? Which ones do you want to become a pattern in your wellness routine by next month, or next year?
Please consider the truly WELL things that will bring life and light into your life instantaneously. Please note, these wellness ideas do not come with a fine print or 94% failure rate. They ARE truly mood boosters. The invitation is there – won’t you try something different this New Year and see what unfolds?
