WITH half of the month behind us, it would be a fair bet that a few of the new year resolutions in Bathurst are starting to look a bit shaky.
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Perhaps a skipped gym session has become two. Or the daily walk has morphed into once every two days and is in danger of stretching out into once every three.
Dessert might be back on the menu, the phone back at the dinner table (or in the bedroom), the pristine copy of War And Peace back in the cupboard.
Perhaps special circumstances have been pleaded – and accepted – in overturning the alcohol ban that was meant to last for the entirety of the month.
There’ll be guilt, perhaps, and disappointment, but there’ll also be a shrug as many of us allow ourselves to slide back to our pre-new year selves.
And the rationale in most cases will be simple: I couldn’t keep it going, so I might as well just go back to the way I was.
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But for those whose resolutions involve a genuine attempt to improve their health, here’s another option: dust yourself off and start again. Bank the gains you’ve made, have a rest and have another go.
New year is a good time to make a change, but it’s not the only time. It is, after all, an arbitrary line we set as a starting point to examine our life.
We’re free to improve our health and our lives any time we choose – on the first day of the year or the 61st; in January or in December.
For those whose alcohol ban didn’t get past the 10th day, 10 days is still good.
For those who walked every morning for half the month before giving it away, 15 walks is better than no walks. And a 16th walk will be even better – no matter when you embark on it.
For those who only read 50 pages of War And Peace, you’re 50 pages further along than most people.
And for those who had a brief but pleasurable conscious uncoupling with their phone (before resuming the dysfunctional relationship), there’s no reason you can’t give it another try.
All of us are free to start again. All of us are free to fail again, shake our head and make plans for a third attempt if that’s what we want.
A resolution that begins at the start of February or March or April will feel just as good.
It might feel even better, in fact. After all, the pressure will be off.