New Year, New Goals, and New Underwear

This week my son told me at bedtime that he noticed something. He said “Mommy, why do your underwear look smaller coming out of the dryer than they do on your butt”. And at that moment it was clear, I either had to set new goals or buy new underwear.

The new year is full excitement. The excitement of creating and setting new goals for ourselves and the our families. Social goals, financial goals, and the dreaded “get healthy” goals are some of the most common among us all. And while we all know it’s cliche because clearly goals can be set at any time during the year, New Year’s has become the magic reset mark.

So just like last year, I want to be healthy, manage my stress well, and set healthy boundaries with folks (a southern term that includes friends and family). Literally the same goals for the last ten years and if I am honest the same 15 pounds too. It’s easy to go hard in January. I am super committed at the beginning but as winter turns to spring the same barriers to my goals creep in.

It’s easy to fall victim to fatigue when you are “doing the right thing”. Peer pressure creeps in. A healthier version of yourself impacts the lives of others and therefore folks may resist the changes that you are making to reach our goals.

For example, boundaries are celebrated unless it negatively impacts someone else. If saying no becomes a pattern, friends, family members, and even partners get uncomfortable. Focusing on your health is great too unless it diverts attention from social obligations. Eat healthy and exercise on your own time but don’t let it impact the group. And finally spending less money sounds great in theory (ask my husband) but deciding not to stop at Hobby Lobby this week is much more difficult.

So here are some research driven guidelines to follow when setting goals for yourself in the new year.

1. Goals must be obtainable.

2. Goals must be measurable

3. And to be very real, they need to be simple.

This year my goals are to buy new underwear, thank you son. I plan to focus on non-scale victories and exercise to keep my body strong. I will say no to unwanted requests once a week. And finally to only stop at hobby lobby once a month, you know for necessities. Simple, obtainable, and measurable. Happy New Year!