Christine Sciberras, Founder and Head Coach at Melita Fitness.

Here we go again. It’s the season for New Year resolutions and love them or hate them, many will be looking for ways to improve health or lose additional weight gained over the holidays. Often the starting point for many is to join a gym and resolve to go there 2, 3, 4 times a week. Or to go on a diet and cut out carbs, alcohol, sugar, whatever.

But why we do it, year after year?
Because inevitably, we are failing.

As a population, most of us are not getting enough exercise and nearly 40% of us are at an unhealthy weight.

And yet come January 1, we will make the same set of resolutions and expect a different result.

It’s perfectly natural to use January as a time for reflection and goal setting. But if you’re looking to improve your health and fitness, I’d urge you to start from a place of acceptance and self-love. Losing weight doesn’t require drastic diets or excessive restrictions. Getting fitter doesn’t require extreme or unsustainable workout routines.

So instead of doing what you’ve always done, how about an alternative approach:

• Find a way to move your body that works for you! It might be dance or swimming. If you enjoy it, you’re more likely to stick to it.
• Carve out a time for yourself. We spend so much time running after our kids, family or bosses. But how much actual time do you spend doing ‘you’? Small pockets of self-care are so important for our overall wellness.
• Instead of focusing on all the things that you need to strip out of your diet, focus on adding good things in. Like plenty of vegetables, good sources of protein and a range of tasty flavours.
• Practice gratitude for yourself and your body. Instead of focusing on what you perceive to be ‘wrong’, focus on appreciating your body. Have fun with it, take care of it and feel appreciation for all the wonderful things it enables you to do.
• Find a supportive community. It’s so much easier to work out when you’ve got a great group of people around you. We run a fantastic women’s group training that makes exercise fun! Plus, knowing you’ll have support and motivation around you will help you through the rest of the winter. You can get started with a free trial week: www.melitafitness.co.uk/freetrial