Sporty New Year Resolutions? This is how you will get there

The year 2020 was a strange affair. The Corona pandemic, the irritating word lockdown and an often completely new everyday life have motivated some people to become more athletic this year, while others have gained a lot of weight.

What do you want to change, how do you want to do better in 2021? A very popular resolution often relates to exercise. More exercise, eating healthier, living more relaxed, less stress: these resolutions are very popular. If you can identify with them, here are some ideas to inspire and motivate you.

Actually, that's not a concrete resolution per se. Thinking more positively, a healthy attitude; these are the kind of phrases that you like to make, but then immediately throw over the pile again in the next stressed or bad-tempered moment. But at this point you should know that this plays a pretty big role. For all your other resolutions, this point 1 is actually the most important. Only with the right attitude, with the right mindset, you will achieve your other (sporting and other) goals. In addition, the attitude is also crucial for whether you actually keep your resolutions and really follow through. There are a few guidelines that you can use to achieve a positive attitude. These are:

- Worry less! Happy is he who forgets what cannot be changed (anymore). At least that is what a proverb says. But there is a lot of truth in it. Because we simply have no influence on some things in life. If you stop worrying about these things that you can't influence, it will take a lot of pressure off your everyday life.

- Take more "me" time! In addition to the stress of everyday life, create some personal space for yourself. Time that you spend exclusively doing something for yourself. Then you are not available. In addition, you do not postpone this "me time". If you allow yourself more quiet time for yourself, you will automatically have more time for what is good for you and therefore also for your sporty plans for the new year.

- Smile! Smiling more sounds so simple, but it can really make everyday life easier in the long term. If you are friendly and like yourself, smile more and radiate this positivity, it will be easier for you in your environment. Your fellow men will also react optimistically and in a good mood, just try it out!

Do you want to become more athletic and active? Some people believe that a brief burst of motivation and a new subscription to the gym is enough. Then, in the new year, they go three or four times, true to their intentions, and the fifth time they consistently find excuses. After three months, the subscription expires and in April they are still just as unathletic as before. Intention failed.

But you don't always have to make things so difficult for yourself. If you want to become more athletic, you should start in an uncomplicated way that is suitable for everyday life. For example, you could resolve to walk on your first day at work in the new year instead of getting into the car as usual? If it's too far, that's no problem either: once you've arrived at the office, don't take the elevator, but dutifully take the stairs, regardless of which floor your workplace is on.

In the future, i.e. in the warmer season, you could also use your bike to get to the office or for other everyday journeys. In the office or in other sedentary jobs you can also move more: How about an exercise ball instead of the stoic office chair, for example? You can also incorporate more movement into your usual leisure activities without much effort: Instead of meeting friends at the café around the corner and eating cake, why not go for a big walk in the fresh air? Or make a tourist day in your own city! See all the sights, stroll through the city's most beautiful parks: A full-day outdoor program where you're constantly on your feet.

A real pain when it comes to (New Year's) resolutions is time. Not that you don't have enough of it (if you're honest), but: planning is everything. If you miscalculate and don't plan enough time for a life change, you will fail because you are stuck in old structures.

A few things should be clear to you in advance: If you integrate more movement into your everyday life and walk or cycle more distances, this will naturally take up more time than the daily commute by car. If you want to lose weight and get fitter, you usually also plan to eat healthier.

To do this, however, you have to cook fresh food, which naturally takes longer than taking a snack from the snack bar in the evening. Get clear about your personal time! What is important is that the new routine should be/remain exciting. Make sure you have a clear daily schedule, if in doubt, you can also create a real weekly schedule where exercise is on the agenda two days a week in the evening or in the morning (as you prefer).

You want to become more athletic, be fit in everyday life, become more mobile and feel healthy and attractive? That's where exercise is essential. But not all exercise is the same. You need to find the type of exercise and activity that meets your needs, helps you achieve your personal goals, and is simply good for you.

Some people are motivated by strength training, others can really relax with yoga, the next love CrossFit classes. But it's not just the type of sport that can determine whether you keep your resolutions. Are you more of a team sports person who really gets going in a volleyball or soccer match? Or do you prefer to be on your own, with your favorite music in your ears, running your route? Whether you're more of an indoor or outdoor type is also important here.

Climbing on a rough rock outdoors is something completely different than sweating your way through a HITT workout in the gym. Find the right one for you and your needs, then it will be much easier for you to incorporate this new activity into your everyday life.

If you want to achieve great results with exercise in the long term, you almost inevitably have to adjust your diet as well. Eating healthier is a very popular New Year's resolution anyway. But easier said than done when temptations lurk around every corner. Most of the time, one is not satisfied with their own body or the weight that the body fat scale shows unadorned when they decide to change the way they eat.

However, this resolution requires that all previous resolutions have already been successfully implemented. Healthy eating takes time (to cook and prepare) and a positive attitude. The best thing to do here would be to take time on a Sunday, for example, to prepare several healthy dishes, which you then put either pre-portioned in the refrigerator or the freezer.

But the results can be seen very quickly if you consume vitamin- and protein-rich dishes to support your training instead of the cafeteria food or the obligatory microwave dish. Instead of a few tempting sweets or greasy chips, you should snack on nuts or fruit, for example, when you get hungry in between meals.