So 2016 is already upon us. I’m not quite sure where the last year went, but it’s behind us now, and as a wise person once said, the only reason to look back is to see how far you’ve come. I do like a new year, although January and February aren’t my favourite months (cold, wet, ages until something exciting happens etc), the thought of a whole new year of opportunity is quite appealing!

I don’t do new year’s resolutions any more. Trying to make massive changes in one go at one of the hardest/most depressing times of the year seems a bit daft to me. No wonder everyone gives up after a couple of weeks! What I do like to do though, is plan my goals for the year and think about what I’d like to have achieved by the time I’m typing up my welcome to 2017 post!

For the last couple of years, I’ve used a Shining Life Workbook which I’ve bought on line. It’s a bit hippy-ish in places, but for the most part it gets you to think about the different aspects of your life and what you’d like to achieve in each of those areas over the course of the year. The idea is that you check in month, although I wasn’t that disciplined about doing that in 2015 if I’m honest. This year, I’ve also got the Shining Year Diary, where at the start of each month you think about what you want to achieve and jot down your progress along the way. I’ll schedule my review into my weekly planner to make sure that I’m disciplined at doing it – that way I can chart my progress.

Last year I decided to do my 12 healthy habit challenge, and I’ve started this year with 12 great new habits that are for the most part are completely ingrained. I’m intending to go back to those after a year and see what difference they’ve made to my life.

I don’t want to take on more habits this year (or at least not in as structured a way – there might be some incidental ones along the way). What I do want to do is have a focus area for each month where I take an aspect of my life and really try and make some positive changes. I’m a voracious reader, so I’m going to try and read a related book each month too.

I’ve got quite a lot on in January – an assignment for college, revision (I have an exam at the start of Feb) and a couple of big projects at work, so I didn’t want to do anything too time consuming this month. Although I got through Christmas relatively unscathed, and for the most part stuck to my healthy eating template, I did eat and drink more than usual, and my exercise routine has become a bit disrupted over the last couple of weeks. I’ve had more late nights that usual too and I’m feeling quite tired and really bloated, plus I’ve been verging on a cold for the past couple of weeks. So, I’m going to focus on getting back to peak health this month.

For me, that’s not a hard core detox or mad diet, it’s about getting back to clean eating, regular exercise and getting in some early nights. I’ve got a lot on, so finding some windows to relax are also going to be key.

The book I’m going to be reading is Gut by Giulia Enders. I’ve actually already started reading it as it’s quite relevant to my course, but it’s a very easy reading and funny account of one our most vital organs – I shall post a fuller review when I’ve finished it.

So, here’s to a happy new year, may yours be healthy, happy and fulfilling!