This is the time of year to Get BYOB, which stands for Get Back Your Own Body. It's time to stop moaning and start transforming. This will require you to do two things: move more and eat less. Every day. It' simple. But not easy.
Exercise is a big part of it, but if you want to change your body you have to change what you eat. No amount of working out will transform your body unless you change what you do (and don't) put in it. There are countless reasons why this should be your year to Get BYOB. You've heard them all before: health, longevity, vitality, vanity.
It's time to Get BYOB. This is your year.
Good intentions count for nothing unless you make a detailed plan with S.M.A.R.T goals. Using the acronym S.M.A.R.T., Goals should be Specific, Measurable, Accountable, Realistic and Trackable. You don't have to hate your life while doing it either.
If you need a gym, find one nearby. If you need a workout partner, call one today. You don't have to be in shape to do either of these things. When you come to a fitness class, you are taking a lesson and just like you wouldn't assume you already need to know how to play the piano to take a piano lesson, you don't already need to be fit or coordinated to take an exercise class. Just show up!
You want to live better for longer. This is the day to motivate yourself because no one can motivate you better than you. Think of this challenge as filled with promise so that come next New Year's Day you will remember this week as the time that you made up your mind to Get BYOB.
As a jump start, consider this unfathomable idea: giving up alcohol. I can see you shaking your head but is it possible for you to precontemplate a brief abstinence as of Jan. 1? Be brave. At least until you get some momentum. And trust me, if you quit drinking you will get momentum and weight will come off faster as well. You'll lose a few pounds immediately. You'll look in the mirror and notice how much better your skin and eyes look. Take a few days to consider it. Go ahead and tie one on New Year's Eve. Have a few "Dirty like Mel Gibson meets BP Oil" Vodka martinis with two feta cheese olives. The worse you feel in the morning, the more motivated you will be to Get BYOB.
Official New Year's Aptitude Test
As we head into the new year, it's important to remember that the holidays provide an exceptional challenge for all of us.
At the end of this test, pick a a coping strategy that will work best for you, based on your answers.
New Year's Aptitude Test
1. When I first think of a "new year," I feel:
a. Dizzy with anticipation.
b. Annoyed with all the resolutionists, and I am willing to go out of my way to sabotage their efforts.
c. Like pretending that I don't know what day OR year it is. Hopefully it'll pass me by unnoticed.
d. Unsure of what day it is but willing to jump on the Resolution Bandwagon if I feel inspired OR if my friends are doing it.
2. At the sight of the masses of revelers jammed into Times Square, I:
a. Fight the urge to grab my vuvuzela and head into New York City to join in.
b. Consider heading into Times Square to plant a suspicious briefcase just to see how the NYC police react. For fun.
c. Turn off the TV and go to bed
d. Call my friends and see who's around for a last minute neighborhood party
3. My favorite New Year's Eve memory:
a. is Paris: a midnight toast at the top of the Eiffel Tower as fireworks explode and bells ring out along the Champs-Élyseés
b. The same thing year after year: Getting drunk but driving home anyway. Hopefully I can fake my way through the sobriety checkpoint again this year. Plus not kill anyone.
c. Renting "I Am Legend," popping some popcorn, sitting by the fireplace and dozing off at 10 p.m.
d. Being with my favorite people, eating delicious food while toasting the high moments of the previous year and our hopes for the coming year.
4. The one resolution I'd most like to accomplish this coming year is:
a. for starters, reboot my entire body from 27 percent body fat to 10 percent, up my good cholesterol, lower my bad cholesterol, bring down my BP as well as eliminate all white flour products and triglycerides. Basically change my body and therefore my life for the better
b. Finally make it through my complete stint of rehab this time.
c. What's a resolution.
d. Lose these final nine pounds by walking for 30 minutes five days a week so that I'm at my goal weight for my class reunion in May.
5. My idea of a great foundation for a solid New Year's resolution is:
a. Anything that seems impossible. The harder the better!
b. The ability to fake it.
c. Not making one. Resolutions just set you up for failure.
d. Using the acronym S.M.A.R.T. Goals should be Specific, Measurable, Accountable, Realistic and Trackable.
6. Is losing weight one of your New Year's resolutions?
a. Oh, yes! I love any excuse to deprive myself and set myself up for failure.
b. Not only am I not dieting in the new year, I'm also eating more this week AS IF I were going on a diet next week. But I'm not.
c. Yeah, like it is every year.
d. Well, sure, but I'm going to be SMART about it and set myself up for success.
7. The first thing I'm going to do when I succeed at my resolution is:
a. Go buy myself an entirely new, smaller wardrobe, as well as throw out my bigger size clothing.
b. Start eating again. why not?
c. Start all over again since I know I'll never succeed in the first place. All the women in my family are big-boned.
d. Give myself the non-food reward that I promised myself when I began on Jan. 1, like a manicure, a shopping spree, a massage or kitchen table-top sex.
Assessment and Recommendations
- Answered mostly "As":
You need to tone down your over-enthusiasm. You might not realize it but everyone finds your hyper-achieving annoying.
- Answered mostly "Bs":
If you don't have a criminal record by now it's a miracle. An encounter with a police office is in your near future. Or a conflict with your in-laws, one or the other
- Answered mostly "Cs":
Life is passing you by and you don't even care. Consider moving to Alaska.
- Answered mostly "Ds":
You are assessed as Most Likely To Achieve Your Resolutions! Go for it.