Are you crazy busy? Learn why now is the perfect time to take inventory of all the things you accomplished this year, and set yourself up for success in 2017.

1: Your social calendar

Chances are, your calendar is filling up with work parties, family get togethers, new years celebrations, boxing day shopping expeditions, outings to get last minute gifts… the list is endless. So even though it may seem like you are going to have some time off coming up, you may not actually have that much FREE time.

See if you can block off a few hours of time this week for a little goal setting workshop for yourself, and hit 2017 running at full force, knowing exactly what you want and how you are going to get it.

2: Nutritionally balanced parties are not the norm

When we are attending functions where we are eating out, or there is a snack table, or Christmas baked goodies, or alcohol, it can be easy to indulge, which is totally fine by the way! What can happen if we aren’t careful however, is that we can get down on ourselves about eating things we wouldn’t normally eat, that we have “broken the diet” or “fallen off the wagon.”

When we are feeling low or disappointed in ourselves, we can have a tendency to not give ourselves credit where credit is due. Not great when you are trying to remind yourself of the things you have accomplished in 2016.

3: Exercise gets hard

There are some of us who maintain a fantastic exercise schedule all year round come hell or high water, and this is just a part of the everyday routine. If this is you, well done! You’ve made a really effective lifestyle change for the good!

If exercise just doesn’t come second nature to you, and regularly working out takes a bit of willpower to maintain, the festive season can really put a strain on this. Time commitments from places you need to be, the stresses of getting all your work finished before the end of the year, these can both make it tempting to skip the gym… just for today.

The problem with this is that exercise helps us concentrate better, remember things better, and have better energy through the day. When planning our new years resolutions the last thing we want is to be feeling tired, stressed, and short on time.

4: Decision fatigue

Research has shown that in order for us to make changes to our lives that require extra effort – like cooking instead of getting takeaway, or exercising in the afternoon instead of collapsing on the couch – we are more likely to be able to make these choices if we have had to make only a small number of other choices through the day.

Waking up and deciding- will I go to the gym this morning? What will I eat for breakfast? What will I cook for dinner tonight? Will I buy the organic or regular eggs? What will I eat for lunch?

At this time of year you can add in… what should I get my mother for Christmas? Should I RSVP yes to that Christmas party? What do I need to pack for our trip away?

Trying to automate as many of these decisions as possible can help. Have a calendar with set days and times that you exercise, so that this no longer becomes a decision you need to make. Spend an hour putting together a weekly meal plan so that you don’t need to think about what to eat three to five times a day, you just follow the plan vente cialis generique. Order your groceries online from a list (based on your meal plan) so that you aren’t confronted with that tempting tub of ice cream that is on special- should I buy it? Should I have some for dessert?

Automating these kinds of things can free you up to be in a better head space for making decisions like

“What should my New Years resolutions be?”

“What have I done well this year that I should acknowledge and celebrate?”

“How can I improve on these changes even more?”

5: Thoughtful planning

Have you ever spent your Sunday afternoon planning the week ahead? Did you find that you got straight into things Monday morning, you were way more efficient and things took less time because you had a plan to follow, and that you achieved more in that week?

Consider a goal setting session now to be just like that. Instead of waiting until New Years Eve to throw together a couple of resolutions that, lets face it, probably won’t even last a week, why not run through these guidelines for SMART goal setting and really start 2017 on the right track, ready to jump straight in and make the most of the year ahead!

If weight loss, getting fit, and feeling great are at the top of your list of priorities, why not book in for a January retreat staying 1-12 weeks? Our guests time and time again say this one thing… “I wished I had done it sooner, it changed my life.”