Opinion: Focus on progress, not perfection when it comes to New Year resolutions

Although, given the cost-of-living crisis, I imagine there were a lot more people who eased back on over-indulging this year. (Or should that be last year?)

And commiserations to anyone who did enjoy a tipple or 10 and, like me, now suffers two-day hangovers worse than ever before. I am definitely not as young as I used to be.

But for many people, the new year can mean only one thing. Resolutions.

Resolutions are a choice millions of us make every year in a bid to get the New Year off on the right foot (why our dad always made us lift our left foot in the air at 11.59pm every New Year’s Eve...)

It could be giving up alcohol – social media feeds will be full of Dry January statuses over the coming weeks – or cigarettes, or attempting to lose weight after scoffing a mountain of food (those Cadbury’s Heroes tubs aren’t going to eat themselves) over the festive period. January is, of course, an incredibly busy time in fitness centres, much to the chagrin of the year-round gym bunnies.

To be fair, there is probably something most of us would like to change, and a resolution is a great way to start the challenge you have set yourself.

However, sometimes we set the bar too high, which more often than not leads to failure.

And remember, giving things up comes from a negative place and is focused on depriving yourself and will almost certainly end in failure, whereas adding good habits is more positive.

Give up cheese and that day in the not-too-distant future where you devour a chunk of cheddar means it’s all over.

However, by resolving to do something realistic – e.g. run more, eat more healthily – and even if you miss a day, you can pick it up the next day. A little can go a long way.

Focus on progress, not perfection

By setting more realistic targets, you can rack up the wins, which, believe me, is far more satisfying than failure.

Whatever you resolve, good luck! Cheers.