The idea of New Year’s resolutions and “fresh years, new starts” activities like Veganuary (becoming vegan for the first month of the year) and Dry January illustrate that a new year always inspires new hope for the future (cutting out alcohol for the month).
Every new year also welcomes its fair share of health trends, however, not all of them are in fact beneficial to our well-being. Despite all of its beneficial effects on society, social media is a haven for unhealthy trends that can be scary and dangerous or harmless at best (like protein coffee, or “proffer”).
We contacted medical professionals to find out which wellness activities they believed should become popular in 2023. Here are 10 healthy habits that we think will be quite popular in the upcoming year, ranging from food and exercise to skincare and self-care.
Enjoy ‘exercise snacks’
Making time for exercise can be challenging, particularly if you have a busy schedule and are not a regular exerciser. It could seem challenging to get the necessary 150 minutes of exercise per week if you still need to get a program in place.
Dr. Avadhanula defines an “exercise snack” as 15 minutes of exercise twice a day during the week. “Let’s take the scenario where you work a desk job and get an hour for lunch. You can exercise moderately for the final 15 minutes of your lunch break, then repeat the process at the end of the workday.
Numerous advantages of consistent and regular exercise include reduced risk of heart disease, stroke, Type 2 diabetes, and other illnesses.
Maintain healthy boundaries with your partners
Make 2023 the year you establish healthy boundaries in your relationships if you’re experiencing feelings of extortion, rejection, or indifference, advises psychologist Chivonna Childs, Ph.D.
We must establish boundaries in order to safeguard our mental health, she said. “By establishing boundaries, we show others how to treat us.” Relationships with your partner, family, or friends may require you to achieve this.
Don’t be scared to share your preferences for behavior and how you want to be treated in any relationship. Dr. Childs counsels, “Be honest with each other about your values.” Discuss what each of you needs from the other, what is working, and what is not.
Setting limits can be difficult, both for you and the other person in the relationship, the author further cautions. Some individuals won’t like it when we create limits since they can no longer abuse us, she claims. And that is the key.
Organize your social media feeds
“Enquire yourself: What does this content add to my experience?” Is it just for your entertainment? Are you learning new skills from it? Does it improve your mental health? Dr. Manos offers advice. “It might be wiser to move on from it if it’s not adding anything to your everyday life or you’re having trouble positively contributing to the online conversation.”
Social media is so embedded in our culture that quitting it can be challenging since it can be addictive. Even if you’re not quite ready to give up completely, choosing who you follow and enhancing your newsfeed can help you get more out of social media.
Your unfavorable ideas will become more annoying the more often you participate in those chats. Try engaging in activities that help you realize your own impact on the world around you instead of engaging in negative self-perceptions.
The more you can restrict your usage of social media, the better. Set aside sometime before going to bed or at the dinner table to put your phone away and concentrate on what is in front of you.
Health is more important than rules and scales, so focus on lifestyle and health
Adopting a new diet or looking for strategies to improve your health might be stressful. You can become disheartened if your eating habits aren’t flawless, or you might become so committed to a certain eating approach—such as adopting plant-based or keto—that any departures from it make you feel like a failure.
Focusing on overall health rather than achieving a certain weight is another aspect of this more flexible strategy, which is useful. According to Peart, “I think that’s occurring to some level with the body positivity movement and having more self-acceptance.”
Try to be as realistic as you can as you make goals for the new year. Instead of setting a target weight on the scale, make a commitment to increase your intake of veggies, cut back on sweets, or start exercising for 10 minutes each day.
Make sure your objectives are doable and manageable, and above all, be nice to yourself if you make mistakes. “Progress above perfection,” says Peart.
