A new you for 2019? Start with a different kind of friendship ...

It’s that time of the year when everyone starts looking to the year ahead. It’s almost as though in contrast to the season of excess we seek to compensate for our indulgences by heading straight on into purgatory! Of course the reality is that a couple of weeks in it is all ruined and then we are left with a feeling of failure. People often come to see me at this point because they need some extra help to meet their goals. They are hoping that I have a magic wand and are often quite disappointed to find out that I haven’t got one (at least I haven’t found mine yet!). 

So in anticipation of this I thought I’d share an idea on how we all could start 2019 differently. 

Treat your body like a friend:

Your body has carried you through your life all these years. Despite many challenges it has always seen you through - kept you safe against disease and enabled you to do the things you enjoy. Whether it’s physical stuff like exercise or whether your mind helps you think and plan this body of yours is pretty awesome. There’s a saying that if we treated our neighbour like we treated ourselves they’d probably move! It’s the body that often takes the brunt. If we’re emotional we often comfort eat - overloading our stomach with the wrong fuel. Others smoke, take drugs or drink to excess. All of these things harm this incredible body, this friend, that has loyally been looking after us all these years. 

What if you treated your body like your best friend? What if you were to look after it and listen to what it needed? Our body is actually very good at telling us what it needs. Animals and children often know how to listen but as we become so lost in thought as adults we override instinct with cravings. These cravings are a trick! The urge for a moments pleasure appears to outweigh the reality that we will regret that choice only a short time later. These urges are based on cultural conditioning, limiting beliefs and a whole load of nonsense that we’ve picked up along the way. 

Get back to basics! 

Perhaps 2019 could begin with something very simple. A commitment to LISTEN. To be still, to pause, take a breath and notice what this miraculous body is trying to tell you. If you were to treat your body like your best friend how would you treat it? Have a think! Look after it and it will look after you. That’s how a loyal friendship works.  

Here’s to the beginning of a beautiful friendship for 2019 and beyond.

Kate :)