New Year’s resolutions 2022: 10 ideas to try in the new year - and how you can achieve them

With a new year comes the turning of a new leaf, a time where we’re at our most motivated to make all of those changes we’ve been talking about all year long.

According to research from YouGov, 16% of Brits say that they will be making a New Year’s resolution this year, compared to the 11% from last year. However, despite our good intentions, it’s a cliché that everyone ends up ditching them at some point in the new year.

YouGov says that three in 10 of those who made New Year’s resolutions for 2021 claimed to have kept them all, with 44% of people saying that they at least kept some of them. Nearly one in five owned up and admitted to not keeping any that they made.

These are the top 10 most common New Year’s resolutions in the UK - and some tips and tricks to help you stick to them.

Doing more exercise/improving my fitness

If you’re wanting to exercise more, you might think that means you have to hit the gym, however there are lots of different ways you can get more exercise in your life that doesn’t require a gym membership if you’ve found that you personally don’t enjoy the gym.

To keep motivated to exercise regularly, you need to find something that you actually enjoy doing, such as going for walks or hikes.

If you have a console like a Nintendo Switch, there are loads of exercise based games you can play at home if you’d prefer, such as Just Dance and Ring Fit.

Smaller steps you can take as well to sneak in a little extra exercise are things like taking the stairs instead of the lift, or walking somewhere instead of driving or taking public transport if you can.

Improving my diet

Much like losing weight, the key to eating healthier is making changes that are sustainable for the long term.

In terms of the basics to get you started, the Eatwell Guide from the NHS recommends that you:

• Eat at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables every day
• Base meals on higher fibre starchy foods like potatoes, bread, rice or pasta
• Have some dairy or dairy alternatives (such as soya drinks)
• Eat some beans, pulses, fish, eggs, meat and other protein
• Choose unsaturated oils and spreads, and eat them in small amounts
• Drink plenty of fluids 

Losing weight

The thing about losing weight is that you’re not going to see results overnight, so it’s important that you don’t get discouraged if it feels like it’s taking a while for you to see any changes.

Set yourself a weight loss goal that’s actually achievable and sustainable. It also might take some trial and error to figure out what’s best for you - there is no “one size fits all” approach to losing weight, so try out different methods and see which one works for you.

British Heart Foundation Senior Dietitian Victoria Taylor says: “Think about what is going to work for you. This means being realistic about your lifestyle – how much you have to spend on food, your cooking skills, and food preferences.

“To see a lasting impact on your weight, you need to make changes for good, so it is important these are realistic. Small tweaks can feel insignificant, but they gradually add up if you stick to them.”

Saving more money

Whether you’re saving money for something specific like putting a deposit down on a home or just to have a little extra in the emergency fund, it can be daunting to sit down and tackle your finances.

Make sure you’re getting the best deal for whatever you’re paying for, be it your gas and electric bill, phone plan, broadband or insurance - use comparison sites like Compare the Market, Go Compare, Confused, USwitch and more to your advantage.

Make sure and keep an eye on any subscriptions and memberships that you’re paying for as well to ensure you’re only paying for what you’re using. It can be easy to forget to cancel a direct debit and they can end up costing a lot of money.

Pursuing a career ambition

Whether you’re looking to grow in your current role or to get a new job altogether, there are a variety of ways you can follow through on your career aspirations in the new year.

Top Resume suggests:

• Learn a new skill: “No matter what field you are in, there are hundreds of new skills you can learn that could benefit your career.”
• Read a career related or motivational book: “No matter your job, there is a book out there that can improve your performance, your outlook, or your personal habits.”
• Keep your CV up to date: “Make it a work goal for the year to review and edit your resume, even if you don’t plan on applying anywhere.”
• Review and improve your LinkedIn account: “In the professional world, LinkedIn is crucial to your overall personal brand.”
• Attend a professional networking event: “It is a good idea to put yourself out there at least once per year so you can reap the benefits of these professional gatherings.”

Spending less time on social media

It’s easy to whittle away the hours on social media, like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.

You can try and count down the time spent on social media by sticking to certain rules and boundaries - for example, only going on social media on your computer or laptop and uninstalling the apps from your phone, as our mobile devices are where we spent the most time mindlessly scrolling.

If you’re not quite ready to get rid of the apps on your phone, the good news is that most devices come with a built in app timer which allows you to set how much time you want to allow yourself on each app, for example, 10 minutes on Instagram a day. Once those 10 minutes are up, you cannot open the app for the rest of the day.

Taking up a new hobby

Another impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in many of us having a lot more spare time on our hands, now that we’re no longer commuting to work or doing quite the same level of socialising.

This means that now is the time to pick up a new hobby that maybe you’ve been thinking about for a while, but haven’t had the time to commit to it.

If you’re really wanting to stick to something new you’ve picked up, like cross stitch for example, it’s important not to get discouraged if you’re not immediately the best at it. The point of a hobby is for it to be enjoyable - not necessarily for you to become the greatest in the world at it.

It can take a little trial and error to find the right hobby that fits into your lifestyle, so don’t be afraid to try your hand at a few different things.

Cutting down on drinking

If you’re looking at cutting back on your drinking, consider taking part in Dry January for the first month of the new year. Dry January is an annual challenge that see’s participants raise money for Alcohol Change UK by going sober for the whole month of January.

You can set up your fundraising page on the Alcohol Change website. 

For the rest of the year, here are some steps you can take to cut back on drinking:

• Set a budget for how much you’re going to spend on alcohol, whether that’s for a night, the week or a month. Once you’ve hit the budget, no more alcohol
• Let your friends and family know that you’re trying to cut back - it’s important to have a support system, and it will stop them from potentially pressuring you into drinking
• Check out some low or no alcohol alternatives - there are loads of low or no alcohol ciders, beers and even spirits available in supermarkets and pubs 
• Go smaller - opt for a bottle of beer rather than a pint, or a small glass of wine rather than a large  

Decorating or renovating part of my home

If it’s some DIY aspirations on your mind, it can feel a bit intimidating thinking about all the things you want to do.

Break your home down by room and by project - turn “decorating or renovating part of my home” into “painting the bedroom”, “getting new kitchen appliances”, “planting flowers in the garden” etc.

Once you have a plan, it’ll be easier to figure out what to prioritise and how to tackle each thing individually.

Spending more time with family

If you’ve been struggling with your work life balance, it might be in your resolutions to spend more time with your family.

You can try maximising the time spent with your family by:

• Having a family meal together, whether it’s breakfast, lunch or dinner - whatever works best for your family 
• Set a routine that allows you to spend time together, like a movie night on Fridays or board games on Sundays
• Find something that the whole family enjoys, like watching football for example, and make plans around that activity
• When you’ve finished work, completely switch off your work brain - this means no work phone calls or checking work emails 

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