Find Your Resolve

Find Your Resolve

Kristen Brosamer  /  January 30, 2016

Many view January as the month to rev up new habits and routines, particularly those that are health and fitness related. But if you’re like me, after the holidays you are stressed out, depleted, battered and fried.

January should be a time to rest and recover: to turn everything off and back on again, restore all previous settings. Resting is perhaps the most neglected aspect of health and wellness. Resting is your time to assess and be honest about the true status of your life—not just how you want it to look for social media. Try to appreciate the path of the previous year, including joys and hardships. Writing a list of accomplishments or keeping a gratitude journal can be very uplifting, and can actually improve your physical health. It’s increasingly important, in our culture of distraction, to just be quiet and think.

But recovery does not have to be static. Putting away technology, or getting away from an environment that stresses or distracts you, can free you to listen to yourself. Exercise self-control, and slow your life down. Taking a short walk at a local park, enjoying a restorative yoga class, engaging in an art form or hobby or spiritual practice—these are meditative ways to observe that connection between your mind and body. Are you more connected to yourself, or to your phone?

Take some time to strengthen your thoughts, so other influences don’t drown you out. Find your resolve. Choose a path that’s right for you, one that nourishes your well-being. When you take thoughtful steps toward living a balanced life, you can grow stronger, calmer. You can find more purpose and more energy to give back to the people you love.

Menlo Swim and Sport is here when you’re ready to get started! We have year-round programs and top-notch coaches to support any goals and any levels. In the month of February, you can join the All-Terrain Runners for the Taji 100 Challenge, a fundraiser for veterans, with a goal of reaching 100 running/walking/elliptical miles by the end of the month. You can join the Menlo Swim Can-Do Challenge, which supports local charities and offers swimmers awards for reaching 50,000 yards, 100,000 yards or 100 miles. You can commit to your community and make new friends by joining our Boot Camp… Explore your options at menloswim.com and let the New Year truly begin.