3 new year resolutions we’ve already broken

A fortnight ago we embarked on the annual ‘new year, new me’ pledge with a whole host of resolutions we were sure were going to last this time. But, alas, despite our good intentions, two weeks down the line, our promises are in tatters and good intentions have crumbled. But we’re pretty sure we’re not alone… With 36 per cent of Brits set to give up on their New Year resolutions by the end of January, we may well be in the same boat. But it’s ok! The team at WHL HQ don’t think you should be beating yourself up about it (it happens to the best of us!) and, to make you feel better, here are the new year resolutions we’ve already broken and why it’s totally OK.

To get more sleep

Top of the list for us was to get more zzzs. Fed up with relying on coffee to perk us up in the mornings, we promised to go to bed an hour earlier every night. Let’s just say we were optimistic. What we pictured: getting up at 7am feeling fresh as a daisy, energetically jumping out of bed and rocking up to work looking bright-eyed and fabulous. What actually happened: the alarm clock went off and then we pressed ‘snooze’.

But the conclusion we’ve come to is that this is totally OK. Maybe your body just prefers getting up at 8am? Sleep is essential recovery time for our bodies, so if you’re oversleeping you probably need it. And sometimes, even if we’d like to get to bed that hour earlier, it isn’t always possible with our busy schedules, work stresses and commitments. If you’re really struggling, try and get into a solid routine of waking up and going to bed at the same time. This will make it easier for your body to switch off when you do hop under the duvet, and after a while it won’t be too hard to peel yourself out of it in the mornings either. And just take it slow; if you do want to change up your sleeping routine you don’t necessarily have to make it a sudden change. Even if you manage to get to bed just 10 minutes earlier than the night before, we’d consider that an achievement!

To quit chocolate

While we love being healthy, we’re also partial to a square (or five) of choccie, so this was something we wanted to try and tackle in the New Year. Well, it lasted a few days but it wasn’t long before we’d caved (shock). But we’re not feeling bad! Why? Because chocolate is delicious and has been scientifically-proven to make us happy, so why would we want to miss out on that? As long as it’s in moderation and you’re not eating Maltesers for every meal, then a spot of chocolate in your diet is more than fine. Moreover, if you cut it out completely you’re far more likely to crack than if you just cut it down a little. And why not try raw chocolate, such as Ombar for a more nutritious treat? It’s just as yummy as the normal stuff, but is made from raw cacao nibs and coconut milk – making it dairy free and packed full of antioxidants.

To work out ‘X’ amount of times per week

Another popular resolution many of us make is resolving to work out a certain amount of times a week. While sticking to a schedule and routine is great, what we found out is that it’s also OK if you want to skip a day. Exercise is great, makes you feel amazing, and, for the most part, doesn’t feel like a chore at all, but when it’s raining and cold outside and you’re snuggled up on the sofa in your favourite jammies watching Netflix, do you really want to move and do your workout for that day? Do you? No, of course not. But don’t punish yourself for it! You’re never going to do your best workout if you’re tired and not feeling it, so the WHL team think it’s much better to take a ‘rain check’ and then smash it tomorrow instead!