If you think that healthy New Year’s Resolutions are all punishing diets and expensive gym memberships you’ll never use, think again. January provides a natural time and collective mindset to embrace positive change and try new things, and after an indulgent winter period can be a great time to start focusing on your personal health.
We chat with wellness experts around the world about the healthy New Year Resolutions they’ll be making this year – and how you can make 2018 your fittest year yet.
Make A Move
If you’ve been feeling lethargic in 2017, or let your fitness regime fall by the wayside, 2018 is the year to get back on track – by moving. Alex Springenschmidt, co-founder of The Chillhouse and founder of Bali Bike Park, says his New Year’s Resolution is to move more: “Move every day. I want to stay active and do something every day that gets me moving. Hit the waves and go surfing, expand your flexibility with yoga, explore the world and go biking… it’s that simple.”
Get Better Sleep
We’re all guilty of not sleeping enough, or keeping ourselves so busy that when we do get to bed we toss and turn all night – but sleep is one of the most important factors in a healthy lifestyle. Aside from obviously giving you more energy, getting a decent sleep lowers stress, improves your mood and can aid in weight loss.
So what can you do to actually sleep better? Mary Tilson, the yoga and wellness director of luxe Indonesian resort Nihi Sumba reveals how she’ll be going about her New Year’s Resolution: “I’m going to focus on improving my sleep habits. This means swapping out technology for paperback books before bed, taking the time to light incense and candles, and preparing chamomile tea, which is soothing.”
Spend Money Mindfully
Money is one of life’s great stresses and can have a detrimental effect on your health physically and emotionally when you are worried about it. Sally Halstead of COMO Shambhala Estate explains how she’ll be managing her financial health in 2018: “I believe financial health is an overlooked aspect of wellness, but finances are very important. Money is energy in its material form and as I mature I seek ways to conserve my energy for the things I really want to do. This means handling my money as astutely as I try to my personal energy resources. I intend to focus on avoiding wastage, by being more aware of how I wish to utilise the valuable energy resource of money. I want to be more discriminate and differentiate between what I need to use my money for, and what I want to use my money for. I also want to remember that all energy ultimately belongs to the universe and it is merely on loan to me as an individual. So I plan to share my money energy with others through some donations to charities with which I feel I am aligned.”
Learn Something New
When the New Year rolls around, there’s plenty of us who buy up gym memberships we never use and sign up to online courses we never get around to taking, but learning a new skill is one of the most valuable ways to spend your time and improve your mental, emotional and physical health. John Staunton, co-founder of Chosen Experiences Retreats, is going to be furthering his education this year: “Each year I try to acquire a new skill. This year it has been learning to play polo, for fun and fitness. I was fortunate enough to be taught by the experts at the world-renown Val De Vie Estate Polo Club in South Africa. This year, I aim to get my pilot license.”
Put Wellness First – First Thing In The Morning
Wellness often gets put on the back-burner when life gets busy, so make 2018 the year when you make your personal health a priority. There’s plenty of easy physical and mental activities that you can start your day with, improving your mind and body together. Mary Tilson of Nihi Sumba says that even as an energetic morning person, she often puts work and checking her phone before fitness – which she’s determined to change this year: “As a morning person, I usually wake up with a huge burst of energy, but rather than putting it right into my emails and catching up on the social media accounts I manage, I’ll be making it a priority to begin with morning yoga, meditation and journaling.”
