Keeping your promises....to yourself.

By the time the frantic holiday of Christmas is over, we’ve overspent, overeaten and certainly overworked. With January looming like a shiny fresh start, it’s no wonder we all make our New Year’s Resolutions with well intended promises to ourselves. Come February, those promises might be getting a little tougher to keep, so here are some ideas to keep some of the most common resolutions steadfast through till summer.

1. Lose Weight. After all that rich Christmas food, it’s no wonder this resolution will appear on most people’s list this year. Start with small manageable steps, increase you daily activity level by walking more during the day or cycling to work if you can, reduce your portions by 10% and set yourself a curfew of 7pm after which you don’t have anything else to eat. These small changes will soon add up to a healthy and regular weight loss per week and you won’t suffer the yo-yoing weight loss and gain of fad diets and expensive gym memberships.

2. Give up smoking. Figures show that 67 per cent of smokers want to stop and that 75 per cent have tried to quit unsuccessfully. Nicotine replacement gums and patches have been successful in aiding people who want to quit however, for those who find these methods unsatisfactory, you may want to consider the electronic cigarette. Containing nicotine, but none of the carcinogenic tobacco, electronic cigarettes have been designed to still give you the sensation of smoking without the nasty smells, smoke or negative health implications. You can even buy flavoured e-liquids at ecig wizard to fill your e-cigarette and switching to this method may be the intermediary change you need to successfully ditch the tobacco once and for all.

3. Be more organised. The biggest benefit of being well organised is time. More time to spend with people you love or doing something fulfilling for yourself, so it’s well worth the effort to make this one stick. Identify your procrastination areas! The biggest time thief in my life is my laptop. Sometimes invaluably helpful, at other times a wonderful distraction from the list of ‘things I really should be doing’. Teach yourself to get chores done in a timely fashion and reward yourself when they are done.

4. Take up a hobby. Having a pastime that is a relaxing, fulfilling and a little escape from the stresses of everyday life is one of the best therapies you can have. You may think you have no spare time for a hobby but I’ll be willing to bet that you find the time to sit and watch the TV. Spend the time more productively on your hobby. It could be crafting, sewing, or something more social like joining a choir or book club; you will get a far greater sense of achievement from it than the television gives you.

5. Spend less. Being out of control with our finances can lead to terrible stress and even arguments with our spouse as the financial pressure takes its toll. Now that Christmas is over, cut up those credit cards and concentrate on paying them off before you accrue any more debt. The New Year is a good time to take a look at your incomings and outgoings and see if there are any easy areas to make swift cuts. Then work on other areas, such as the food bill and try to reduce this by planning ahead the meals you will make. Contact your utility suppliers to see if there is a lower tariff you can go on or whether your monthly payments could be reduced.