Make a commitment to be kinder to yourself and others in 2022.
If you get sideways on your diet, forgive yourself and move on. There’s another meal coming shortly thereafter where you can right the course again. The words you use to berate yourself for a less than ideal choice of food or portion of food can send you down a path that could take days to recover from. This is a simple kindness to make.
If you don’t make it to the gym all three days that you told yourself you would, remind yourself that it’s fine. Two days is better than zero and you can try again next week or you can try different days than what you previously had planned. Do the best you can with what you have time for and practice that kindness frequently.
Don’t argue with strangers on the internet. You’ll never get that time back. If that person you’re going back and forth with doesn’t pay your bills or help you raise your family, you’re letting them take up too much space in your mind. Chances are that stranger needs a dose of kindness, too.
Be punctual. If you don’t respect your time, you’re probably not respecting the time of others either. That kindness goes both ways.
The Coronavirus isn’t the only thing to be concerned over. I just lost two people I’ve known for most of my life just before Christmas. One to a drug overdose and one to suicide. If that doesn’t scare you, it should. Be kind to others. The unkind word you say to someone (on the internet or otherwise) could be the last words they hear.
Remember that perfection only sounds good on paper. In real life, progress (even miniscule progress) is everything. Progress is a kindness.
You are allowed, (let me write that again), you are allowed to make mistakes. Be kind to yourself.
Find joy in simple pleasures. Find joy in others. Create kindness where you don’t see it.
Social media is not your therapist. Your therapist is your therapist. Erase that post you were about to blow out into the world and save it for your therapist (which is why you hired them). That’s kindness to yourself and others.
Make commitments to yourself that you have a greater likelihood of keeping. Look at your current life commitments: obligations to work and family as well as your current goals. Look at where you have gaps to create successful moves. When are you less busy? Are those days/times fixed each week or do they change from week to week? Find the gaps, plug in your steps towards goals there (the days or times you’ll prep a meal, the days or times when you’ll train, how you’ll streamline your sleep schedule). Be kind to yourself when it doesn’t go as planned. Pivot and modify on the fly.
Get better at saying “No”. Your first commitment is to yourself, a healthier version of yourself. If you can’t take care of you, you can’t take care of others. This is a kindness.
Keep your sleep schedule as consistent as possible. If you want to improve dietary adherence, reduce cravings, and recover better from your workouts, your sleep is one of the biggest factors to get in control of. If need be, get ear plugs and black out curtains. I can’t possibly overstate the importance of your sleep. A well-rested you is a kinder you. You deserve that…
Watch.The.Way.You.Talk.About.Your.Body. How you feel about yourself informs how you eat and how you train. Pick your verbiage wisely. This is a kindness.
If you want 2022 to be different from any year prior to it, you need to be different.
Choose your kindness, then act on it, enforce it and set boundaries around it.
