I hate new year, new you pressure. Do I really have to make resolutions?

Mariella says:   

By the time the new year comes, I’m just grateful that Christmas is over. Surviving the festive period is surely sufficient reason to pat ourselves on the back and feel relief that it’s another 12 months before we put ourselves through it all over again.    

 It’s a con!   

 I always think of “new year, new you” as a concept dreamed up by magazines and the advertising industry: a reason to flog us weight-loss gadgets and the like, and perpetually contributing to the idea that we’re never enough.   

 That said, the new year has been a time of reinvention since around 2000 BCE, when the Babylonians made resolutions in the form of promises to their gods. And the Romans linked January to Janus, the two-faced god of new beginnings.    

 I never make resolutions, as I see no reason to put extra pressure on myself at a time when I’m already feeling exhausted, the days are still dark and it’s freezing cold. This is no time to be hard on yourself. My only commitment is to get through January in deep hibernation and emerge, mole-like, to embrace the eagerly anticipated shoots of spring. 

 As an aside, I have friends who start their new year’s resolutions in December, so that they are already ahead by one minute past midnight on New Year’s Day.  It’s fortunate they have positive attributes in addition to their smugness!   

 So… official resolutions, no. A vague idea of being a better person, a concept rather than a resolution… yes. With this in mind, I offer you my personal and hopefully helpful guide to easing yourself into 2026.    

Eat well  

Not necessarily to lose weight, but to boost mood and provide enough energy to get you through the dark days of January and February. Eating healthy, nutritious food is a form of self-love.

January is a time to enjoy pulses and warming soups and to aim for that magical target of 30 different fruit and veg a week. Of course, I point you towards my recipe book, Menolicious. Yes, it was written with menopausal women in mind, but I gather from my inbox that fans range from 17 to 79 years old. Dive into the delicious high-fibre and high-protein recipes… eating well doesn’t mean deprivation.   

Move more  

Don’t head to the gym every day for the first week of January and then never darken its doors again. Be gentle with yourself. Yes, we ought to do a set amount of exercise each week. But even if you just go for a short walk in the bracing air or do a workout at home, it will, again, boost mood and mind.    

 If it’s truly filthy outside, there’s no shame in staying at home. I recommend the personal trainer and author Kate Rowe-Ham’s online workout app, OYM (Owning Your Menopause), which has workouts for every level and timeframe, and can be done from the comfort of your bedroom.

 I also love Caroline Girvan’s 15-minute Full Body Kettlebell Workout on YouTube and the excellent Seven-Minute Belly Fat Workout with Lucy Wyndham- Read, both of which get the blood pumping nicely. If nothing else, you’ll warm up and save on the heating bills!   

Socialise

I know January is traditionally a time of no drinking, but you can still go out, and this is a time to avoid the winter blues by making and maintaining connections. Plan lovely treats – the theatre, lunch or dog-walking with friends.  

Alternatively, adopt a new pastime that doesn’t involve drinking. This year, I’m looking for a singing teacher to try to transform my tone-deaf growl into a melodious, tuneful instrument to make carols a less embarrassing debacle next year.   

TALES FROM MIDLIFE: Puppy Love  

A goal for the new year (though not a resolution) is to train our enormous and energetic new puppy, a boxer/goldendoodle mash-up called Moby. We named him after Captain Ahab’s famous nemesis, because the only way to get him to chill is by playing him whale sounds, which aptly reflect his huge muscular bulk. 

Although he’s certainly a reason to get out in any weather, he hasn’t yet learned simple commands, so he’s giving me a thorough daily workout as I try to hang on to him during winter walks. I’ve had to keep switching hands with his lead, as I was building up biceps on my right arm that would have qualified me for a bout of boxing.   

Another passing thought (not a resolution) is to take up a punchbag routine, to get rid of all the excess rage that the world is causing me at present…