To me, this is the strangest time of the year where most people make resolutions that quite simply, astound me. Why is it that you have to wait for a particular day to change or do something? “I resolve to be a better person”, is one of my favorites. Aren’t you doing that (or trying to do that) every day? No, I guess most people want to be shit heads until January 1st, and then they will become Mary Poppins. “I resolve to lose weight”. Weight Watchers love this time of year when people flock (or is it waddle) to their meetings in January, pay their money, and then are gone before March. Most of these people are back to eating donuts instead of fruit, or fast food instead of preparing a nice healthy meal. Then there’s all the people that join the gym. They tie up all the treadmills for a couple of months, then there gone again. “I resolve to get a new job”. Yeah, good luck with that one in this economy, and let me tell you, the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. “I resolve to watch less t.v.” And do what, read? You probably haven’t read a book in years other than that Readers Digest at the doctors office. There are a ton of other resolutions that really crack me up, but the point I’m getting at is MOST people won’t change, or simply can’t change. If you’re a crank ass, you’ll always be a crank ass. If you’re a fat ass, you’ll always be a fat ass, and so on. I’m not saying that this is always the case, but it’s a fact in most of them. People can change, but it’s very hard work and they give up. The ones that do stick it out, are the lucky ones. My resolution every year is always the same. “I resolve never to make any resolutions”. Every bad habit or every change in my life has occurred when I’m prepared to make that change. Most people aren’t prepared mentally to make a change on January 1st, and they fold under pressure. Make a plan and stick to it and don’t commit to the pressure of a drop dead date to do it. When you’re ready to change, you’ll know it. Good luck, we’re all counting on you.
Hahahaha! I agree with you 100%!!!!!!! Resolutions are usually 99% just “for show” & mostly done for our egos. You know what they say about the road to hell.
New year’s resolutions are ultimately a bunch of BS.
Been saying that for years, but now that we have the larger scope of the blogging medium to rattle on about it, maybe someone will actually “get” it soon, or atleast one of these days, & stop with all of this resolution-making nonsense. Hope springs eternal.
You are so right about the way so many people have trained their minds to work. It’s quite obvious that they haven’t carefully thought through all of those resolutions, because if they did, they might change their minds when considering all the work those resolutions are going to require!
They concoct these elaborate schemes so grand that they can’t possibly succeed. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy, subconsciously rigged as a set-up for failure so that, in reality, they don’t really have to change at all. They can just claim a token gesture for having tried (maybe once or twice, & then quitting after the first sign of “failure” — a missed workout or an unwise decision — i.e., overexertion leading to injury, etc.), since there’s a rather small & unrealistic window on the time & effort dedicated to achieving those goals. People often forget that goals take time & effort to achieve!
In the end, it’s usually a lot of “sound & fury signifying nothing.” These people can talk a good game, but when it comes down to the execution part, they casually “forget” about all those lofty plans.
The attempts are often short-lived because they got easily overwhelmed by the grand schemes, instead of thinking on a smaller scale, starting slowly, & making gradual changes, in a step-by-step fashion. The second path, which unfortunately has been the one less taken in Western/American culture, is a more surefire route to success. When will people learn? Steady effort, moderation, balance, and persistence are the wiser pathways.
Deep, lasting change isn’t some superficial construction, or done for the purposes of “looking good” for others. People have to start small in order to start somewhere!
The grass isn’t greener on the other side. You plant those grass seeds right here in your own backyard.
Of course when I refer to “the second path, which unfortunately has often been the one less taken in modern Western/American culture,” I am obviously referring specifically to the usual ways in which people try to get themselves into shape.
I find it strange how the “hard work” ethic is ingrained & promoted tirelessly in American culture when it comes to one’s career, & yet is strangely not advocated as unilaterally when it comes to one’s approach to one’s health.
In addition to “green technology” being the next big thing to take international markets by storm, I’d like to see “preventative health care” on that list as well!
To quote a Chinese proverb, “The best doctor doesn’t need to treat his patients at all.”
Corey,
very well put and that Chinese proverb is right on.
Thanks, Dave! Good luck with your upcoming R&R marathon! How’s the training coming along?
Well I only got one long run in and I didn’t do too well, so I’m not sure how the marathon is going to go. At this point, I hope to finish around 4 hours and if I finish under 4, I’ll be ecstatic.
Is it because of the knee, or just because you felt “off”? When do you start tapering? (That might give your knee a temporary respite.) I hope you are successful in meeting your 4/sub-4 hr. marathon goals!
Mostly because of the knee. But at least I start tapering this week and it will give my knee a bit of rest. I sure “kneed” it.