The holiday rush is over, but winter is only just beginning in Wisconsin. At the start of January, setting resolutions for the new year seems to be the norm. Resolutions to live healthier in one form or another are the most common year after year. Gyms are fullest in January, often trickling back to their usual numbers by about mid-February as people slowly lose motivation and interest. This might have less to do with a lack of willpower or commitment and more to do with where New Years falls in nature’s cycle.
All around us, life is slowing down, preparing for the winter ahead. The trees have lost their leaves, the squirrels have begun to dig up the nuts they spent the summer hiding, and bears have almost all retreated to their dens to begin hibernating. Humans are unique in our desire to jump-start our lives during the coldest months of the year.
If you’ve already forgotten about the resolution you set at the beginning of the week, instead of scolding yourself or giving up completely, consider changing your approach to it, or letting it sit on the back burner to readdress in spring, when the life cycle begins again. If you, like the majority of people who set resolutions, wanted to eat healthier or get in better shape this year, consider starting with baby steps, like trying a new healthy recipe or activity once a week. Whatever goals you set, give yourself permission to fall off the wagon a few times before the new habits stick. In all likelihood, you’ll miss a day of working out or crave a soda once a week after cutting it out of your diet; when you plan for these things to happen, you can create a backup plan and jump back onto the proverbial wagon as soon as you’re ready, instead of feeling guilty for a perceived failure.
If you want to make a change in the new year, consider picking up a new hobby or skill that you’ve always wanted to try. Maybe you try knitting yourself a scarf to keep warm, or grab a friend and go snow-shoeing in the park, or bake a new recipe. Let learning be your guide; focus on the joy of trying something new, without the pressure of becoming an instant expert. Your new hobby doesn’t have to turn into a new side hustle by June, so take your time developing your skills. PS – Interested in finding a new hobby, but don’t know where to start? The Workbench is hosting a Mini Workshop Market in February as the perfect place to explore new skills in a low-pressure environment!
Whether you set resolutions in January or not, remember to be compassionate with yourself this winter. Humans are more a part of nature than we tend to remember, susceptible to its ebbs and flows no matter how badly we want to act in opposition to it at times. The trees and the bears don’t know that humans have flipped their calendars to arbitrarily start anew, and neither do our bodies. Perhaps one of the best resolutions you can set is to be kind to yourself and honor this period of rest.
Mini Workshop Market
