New Year, Same Season.
The New Year always comes with mixed emotions. On one hand it’s a great time to revaluate our goals and intentions as we move into the new calendar year and make the upcoming year the “best one yet!” H o w e v e r, post holiday season, time with family, and delicious indulgences makes jumping to a list of goals feel counter intuitive. That contrast creates a sense of friction and honestly, makes me want to drop that goal list faster than it took me to make it. The more I try to honor my body’s natural rhythms, the more I realize, we are not separate from nature - feeling our best directly correlates to how much we allow ourselves to align with the seasons (even when it’s 75 and sunny in LA at the end of December.)
So here are 4 suggestions to honor the season of Winter while balancing that “New Year, New You,” energy:
PAUSE & REFLECT - Look through your journal from the past year if you have one or even just take time to look at the pictures on your phone from the start of the 2023. Take note of the events, people, and place you’re grateful for. Feel into the hardships you’ve had, and how you overcame them or how they transformed you. Then, journal your heart out, record your reflections or review the year with a trusted loved one. Be with whatever arises when you reflect without letting it consume you and notice the way life is always evolving, shifting and taking new shapes. Relax into a feeling of trust that everything is as it should be and whatever comes your way next, you can handle.
MAKE A LIST AND EDIT THE HECK OUT OF IT - Studies prove that writing down your goals and periodically revisiting them help you accomplish those goals and helps direct your actions and reactions as you move through life. BUT, write that list in pencil. Keep it small, and evaluate why you’ve added it. If the motivation for a goal is not driven by your true desire, it doesn’t deserve your attention. If any list item can start with “ I should do ____,” then that’s a good indicator of it not being connected to your true self, so toss it out. Build up your trust muscle by listing small attainable goals and overtime increase the importance as you prove to yourself that you’re capable of completing what you set out to do.
EAT FOR THE SEASON - You might be temped to start that New Year diet, but before you do, consider what it is your body actually craves this time of year. Warm foods, hot tea, CARBS - we’re looking at you sweet potatoes! Maybe we put the desserts down after the holidays, but it’s not time for that juice cleanse quite yet. Be cozy, move your body when you feel like it, get in the sun whenever you can, and give your body what it craves.
REST - Rest is productive. Let’s say it all together…. REST IS PRODUCTIVE! Not laying in your bed scrolling on your phone rest , but undistracted, nourishing, nervous system loving rest. If you need to schedule it in during your day, do it. But make time to recharge, you are worthy of it.
All in all, be gentle with yourself. Be as kind and compassionate towards yourself, your body, and your practices as you would be with your best friend when giving them advice. May your year be filled with an abundance of love, generosity, kindness, and patience. Xx
