Sticking to Those 2022 Goals

Mind the Gaps: the Physical, Social and Emotional Ones!

The start of a new year often feels full of opportunities and the possibility of a clean slate, which is why people usually take this time to set goals or intentions for themselves for the year ahead. While the thought of setting intentions may feel exhausting to some, creating some goals for yourself can feel like a way to stabilise your personal growth and centre your happiness at a time when everything else feels like it’s been flipped on its head. The key point when setting intentions is to be realistic about what you can follow through on throughout the year otherwise it may feel completely overwhelming and you can end up putting too much pressure on yourself.

When setting your goals, it can be helpful to figure out why you want to do it in the first place, as this will be your drive to achieve it. Some questions to help you discover your why include:

• Why is this goal so important to me?
• What will my life look like if I achieve this goal?
• How will this benefit me?

People often choose to make positive changes such as ditching bad habits and adopting healthier ones, which is always a good idea. Often, when this happens, people tend to rip off the Band-Aid in one shot and end up setting goals that are not sustainable. For example, someone who drinks soft drinks on a daily basis may decide to give it all up in one go and will often end up lasting a few weeks before they inevitably resort back to their old ways. This is not a fault of their own. This is because behaviour change takes time and is achieved in small mindset shifts. Rather than going for an ‘all or nothing’ approach, this goal can be achieved by a gradual cut down of soft drinks and increase in water over the course of six months. As the saying goes, slow and steady wins the race.

Another key point in setting new year goals is instead of setting multiple goals, zero in on one and see how you can make it achievable. This can be done by making it a SMART goal. SMART stands for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely. It can be a great tactic to increase your chances of sticking to it because it lays out a plan of action. For example, a general goal might be, “I want to save money this year.” A SMART goal could be, “I’m going to save $100 a week by eating out one less meal.”

If creating a New Year’s goal feels like too much pressure at the moment, another way of looking at it can be to think of a theme that you would like to implement into your life. What would you like to be intentional about within this year?

Personally, with this pandemic making its way into its third year, I’ve felt like it’s robbed me of my time — therefore an overarching theme for me this year is to be intentional with my time.

Being intentional with your time may allow you to find a little more time for yourself and less time running around like a headless chicken. For me, this means defining what’s important, not multi-tasking, and creating a plan for myself on a weekly basis.

For a lot of people, health may be at the forefront of their minds as this pandemic has put health largely into focus. If your theme for this year is to be intentional about your health, it’s good to remember that health is more than the physical side but also the emotional, social, and spiritual aspects.

The different aspects of health have been outlined below. It may be helpful to choose one action from each aspect and work towards achieving that for this upcoming year.

Physical

• Finding joy in being physically active. At this point, we know that being physically active is great for our muscle strength as well as our mental health, however, finding movement that brings you joy can make a huge difference and will keep you motivated to continue doing it.
• Including more fruits and vegetables into your diet. For people who avoid fruits and vegetables like the plague this may feel more easily achievable by trying out a simple fruit smoothie, adding carrots to well-loved dishes like stew chicken or Bolognese, or opting to add cheese onto some roasted vegetables.
• Increase water consumption. Staying hydrated can be key to a healthier lifestyle. If you find yourself forgetting to drink water throughout the day you can add alarms on your phone as reminders to drink water. If plain water doesn’t appeal to you can try opting for sparkling water/ Club Soda or adding a squeeze of fruit juice into your water such as orange, lime, grapefruit, or whatever appeals to you.

Emotional

• Be aware of your emotions. Pay attention to what in your life makes you happy, excited, sad, frustrated, or angry. It can help to keep a journal and write down how you are feeling as a way to reflect on these emotions.
• Confide in someone you trust. Concealing feels of sadness or anger can add to your overall stress levels and make you feel like there’s a weight on your chest. Share your feelings with people you can trust.

Social

• Connect with others. Look for groups (online and in person) that you share an interest in. It can be a great way to meet people who share an interest with you. This can include something sporty like a hiking group, creative such as ceramics, or a book club.

Spiritual

• Practice meditation. Meditating has many benefits such as lowering stress levels as it can allow us to connect better with ourselves. If this is new to you, start by taking a quiet place to sit and set a timer for 2 minutes. Close your eyes and breathe in for four seconds, and out for four seconds. Stay present and focus on the sensation of your breath. You attention may wander to other places and that’s okay, just try to return to focus on your breathing.
• If you are religious, take the time to study and practice it. This may be achieved by joining your place of worship for study groups to further your learning and understanding.

All of the content presented by Tru Valu Supermarkets on our Medium channel, including written text, photographs, videos, and graphics, as well as other resources we might include is meant to educate and it should not be perceived as a substitution for professional medical advice, as well as diagnosis or treatment. Always consult your doctor or nutrition advisor before making major lifestyle and diet changes.

Tru Valu Supermarkets is one of Trinidad and Tobago’s leading supermarket brands. As a responsible supermarket chain we believe in educating and informing our customers to make responsible decisions each day to improve their wellness and wellbeing.

Tru Valu Health and Wellness Program, Article 46

Information supplied by Kirstyn Church, Associate Nutritionist, Nutrition Consulting Services. TruWellness managed by Huckleberry Media Co.