Transform your resolutions into self-compassion
Some people find New Year’s resolutions uncomfortable, with many resolutions centered on weight loss. Especially when we’ve worked so hard to find peace in our bodies and work on our health without worrying about a number on a scale, advertisements telling us we are not worthy in this society is rough and can be hard not to fall for. This year, let’s stop focusing on the before and after photos posted all around the gyms. Instead of restrictive resolutions, let’s focus on resolutions that tend to our relationship with our bodies as they exist currently. These five body-positive resolutions will help you find some more peace with your body now.
Body-Positive Resolutions Start with Daily Gratitude
Daily gratitude has slowly been growing a mountain of evidence of how it benefits us: boosting our mental health, reducing depression, lessening anxiety, reducing stress, improving our sleep, and even supporting our heart health. Gratitude is showing appreciation to the goodness in your life, in this case – let’s look at non-appearance-based things about your body to be grateful for, and those benefits will really shine when you keep at it as a daily habit, and that can easily be formed by slipping it in throughout your day.
Unlike restrictive resolutions that focus on changing your body, gratitude-based resolutions shift your focus to what your body already does for you. This resolution isn’t about reaching a goal weight or fitting into smaller clothes. It’s about building a sustainable practice that supports your mental health and helps you show up for yourself with compassion.
Writing it down in a journal or notes app is a great way to reflect, and to look back on the positives when you feel life has your flipped upside down. Another way to bring in gratitude into your days is through sharing it with someone else. Why not let your best friend know you are grateful for your eyes to let you see their cute face? You can also work to taking a pause throughout the day – take a moment to be grateful for your legs to take you for long walks around museums, or for your nose to smell your partner’s delicious cooking.
Stay Hydrated: The Simplest Health Resolution
In 2022, Americans spent over $2 billion on reusable water bottles. I may not be American, but I definitely was one of those people buying a new one. By this point, I’d be surprised if you told me you didn’t have a reusable water bottle not too far from reach of where you’re reading this.
We all know the importance of drinking water; besides keeping us alive and letting us do daily functions like carrying nutrients and oxygen to our organs and cells, or normalizing our body temperature, it normalizes our blood pressure, helps maximize our physical performance, keeps us alert and motivated, and may prevent and treat headaches. A lack of water can lead to impaired concentration, alertness, and even short-term memory, among other negative side effects.
So why not keep staying hydrated at the top of your resolutions list? If you’re having trouble keeping this resolution, make sure to bring your water bottle with you and keep it in sight (we all know the saying “out of sight, out of mind”). If the visual cue isn’t enough, put a reminder or alarm in your phone a few times a day as a reminder to drink a full glass of water. If you feel in tune with your body, look for the cues of having bright-colored urine, craving salty foods, fatigue, dry mouth, and oncoming headaches. You can also have that backup mental reminder that if you’re thirsty: you’re already dehydrated, so hydrate, stat!
Set Boundaries with Diet Culture This New Year
Diet culture is everywhere and can be very harmful to us, we know this. But let’s set some boundaries when it comes to it and how we take it in to keep ourselves unshakeable. Unlike typical New Year’s resolutions that ask you to restrict and deny, this resolution gives you permission to protect your peace. Forget being a people pleaser this year, and give yourself permission to end or leave conversations that center around restrictive diets or diet culture. If other people want to engage, let them – but know you do not have to.
With this time of year also come influencers and companies pushing certain diets, routines, and even supplements. Now is a great time to scroll through your following list to mute, unfollow, and unfriend influencers, companies, and even acquaintances who are promoting unhealthy body image and standards created by diet culture.
Make Education Your New Year’s Resolution
When it comes to knowledge, we can’t get enough! Educational resolutions that shift your mindset are some of the most powerful goals you can set. Spend some time looking into and learning about body neutrality, weight stigma, Fat Liberation, and fat acceptance. Understanding the origins of contemporary diet culture is an important part in developing a healthier relationship with your body and with movement. While there’s many books out there now, I recommend “Fearing the Black Body: The Racial Origins of Fat Phobia” by Sabrina Strings to see the bigger picture.
Other reads I’d recommend would be “The Body is Not an Apology: The Power of Radical Self-Love” by Sonya Renee Taylor, for when it comes to becoming aware of our implicit bias, the impact of capitalism and the media how it can lead us to radical self-love. And “Belly of the Beast: The Politics of Anti-Fatness as Anti-Blackness” by Da’Shaun L. Harrison to look at how the intersections of different aspects of people’s identities can shape how larger people are seen and present in the world.
Put Your Well-Being First in 2026
There’s a reason when you get on a flight, they remind you to put on your own oxygen mask before helping others. Putting your well-being first means refreshing, nourishing, and energizing yourself so you can go out and help others if they need it! When you show up for yourself and care for your body, even on days when you aren’t feeling up to it, that is true body neutrality. Take some time to open up your calendar, and book in time for yourself for some movement, rest, or other forms of self-care the same way you would prioritize spending time with an old friend.
Remember, progress, even small progress, can lead to big outcomes and a happier life (that is proven)! Sometimes we can be the doers and go-getters on our own, but it is always easier with a group. If you want to make a change and are ready to set some healthier resolutions for the new year, why not join a community doing the same? These resolutions aren’t about changing your body to fit someone else’s standards. They’re about caring for yourself exactly as you are. Check out The Garden, where we are looking to stay kind to ourselves, our bodies, and others.
