Happy New Year everyone!

GOALS

Another year goes by and multiple resolutions come and will most certainly go as soon as the New Year celebrations are a memory. I want to focus our efforts this year on feasible long-term approaches to your lifestyle, that add true value and impact your physical and mental wellbeing.

You’ve most likely heard people go on about a holistic approach and it is an important factor in achieving a peaceful state and equilibrium between our mind, body and soul. However, in everything we do we need to be fully committed to changing our lives for the better and to understand that the road we embark on is transformative and positively disruptive. Any process begins with our desire to better our lives for ourselves and for our loved ones. People closest to us need to play a part in our plan, encouraging where required and understanding that our social patterns will change as we incorporate more exercise, yoga into our routine and change our food and beverage consumption.

A critical part of beginning our change is for us to admit to ourselves that we are making mistakes and understanding the remedial pathways. Our strength is in our knowledge of our weaknesses and how we will go about addressing them. The process requires multiple approaches that focus on each part of our lives. Our nutritional intake is the important starting point and requires a thorough analysis of our existing behaviours. Once we understand that what has been the norm for so long is not beneficial, then we can take the steps that will incorporate fresher, healthier and more nutritious daily calorie consumption. An integral part of this process is to allow ourselves to source fresher ingredients and learn how to cook them and prepare for our weekly meal requirements. Avoid the convenience trap of choosing processed packaged products or ordering on your app a meal from the multiple outlets now in the UAE.

A key partner to any nutrition approach is exercise. We now live far more sedentary lives than we ever have historically, thanks in a large part to technology. It is incumbent on us to make the effort to rearrange our lifestyles to incorporate more physical movement. This doesn’t have to automatically mean we head to the gym and lift silly weights. Every bit of activity we undertake matters, from using the stairs at home and work to simply taking a stroll every day. However, we need to ensure that we step up our daily routines and challenge ourselves to greater levels of exercise. The gym is a very good place to aim for and if you are new to it then spend some money and take sessions with a good trainer.

As technology progresses, we find ourselves disengaging more from people and spending most of our day on a device. This is happening in our homes, public places, restaurants, malls and every possible location where humans dwell. We are rapidly losing the moments we spend with our friends and loved ones as we become more insular. Technology can be a real positive in our lives, used in the application of enhancing our wellbeing and bringing us together with others. We are social animals that cohabit by being around each other and using this to focus on positive ideals that help us in the transformation of our lifestyles.

We need to take control of our pathways to life and gear them around what benefits us as individuals so we can truly fulfill our potential as humans on this earth. Let’s take the initiative this year to think about our lives, put down our devices and spend quality time with our loved one and friends.

My wishes to you for a very good New Year.

Moni, xx
January 2019