I’ve never been someone to take New Years resolutions too seriously. I rarely make them and often times when I do make the effort I do so facetiously. I find them silly, at least for me, and like most people I never stick to them. I honestly cannot remember one time I followed through with a resolution. Speaking of which, did you know that only 12% of people who make these resolutions actually achieve their goal? Maybe I’m right to take it frivolously.
Looking back, mostly I’ve made some pretty ridiculous ones. I remember one year back in the late 90’s where I made a resolution to drink more. Occasionally I’ve made genuine ones like learning to play the piano or learning to speak Spanish that I didn’t follow through on and felt/feel bad about because I still haven’t accomplished those things. A few times I made a temporary commitment to losing weight or eating better. I think the feeling is when you get a few weeks into that next year you lose the drive. By the time you reach February a “New Years” commitment doesn’t mean much.
I remember a few years ago when I became a member of the Jewish Community Center or JCC for those in the neighborhood. I did it for a full year. It wasn’t one of those things where I joined on New Years either. I believe I joined towards the springtime. I joined because I wanted to get more exercise and a friend of mine was joining at the same time. I went in and mostly I played basketball 3 nights a week. Most times there were some good runs. Occasionally when there would be a low turnout or if the runs weren’t going well I’d wander into the cardio room. There was always a bunch of machines to use if I felt so inclined. Part of it was going in later in the evening than most people, and part of it was that they had more machines than were needed, which is great for the members.
By the time the New Year came those first 2-3 weeks of January were brutal. The cardio room was packed. There would be small lines to use certain machines. You couldn’t even walk around in there. Even the basketball court became a little more full. It didn’t last for very long. By February things were back to normal and I could use anything I wanted again. I mention this only to illustrate the “seriousness” of resolutions.
The fact of the matter is this year, this month, this week, this day I need to lose weight. My weight shot up after that car accident 2 years ago and I did lose some of what I gained only to gain it back this year. I feel it when I stand, when I walk and certainly when I run. I don’t feel like me. I feel injured or messed up. I feel like a gang of people whooped me. I think the gang was made up of the Burger King, Little Debbie, Dolly Madison, Ben and Jerry, Tony the Tiger, Bob Evans, Oscar Mayer, the Trix Rabbit, Betty Crocker, Count Chocula, the Gorton’s Fisherman, Mrs. T, The Pillsbury Doughboy and the Kool-Aid Man. They’ve whooped me good and they’re relentless.
In all seriousness though I don’t feel right and it affected me in all of my spring and summer sports last season. I felt a little slower. I felt a little less mobile. I ran out of gas quicker. I didn’t hit as well. I didn’t field as well. I didn’t hustle sometimes like I know I can. I didn’t make enough plays. Whether we’re talking softball, kickball, football or whatever, I felt it. I feel it now and it pisses me off. So that’s my resolution this year. I want to make plays again. I want walking, running and playing sports to feel like they used to a few years back.
At the heart of a resolution is the spirit of self-improvement. Self improvement is a grown up thing. I’m at the point where I don’t feel like it might be a good idea if I get into better shape, I feel like I NEED to do it. Do I need a term like resolution to motivate me to do something I need? Probably not, but why not throw it in there? It certainly can’t hurt. So count me in on this resolution revolution.
See that guy in the picture? That’s me a few summers back. This is where I want to get back to.
Looking back, mostly I’ve made some pretty ridiculous ones. I remember one year back in the late 90’s where I made a resolution to drink more. Occasionally I’ve made genuine ones like learning to play the piano or learning to speak Spanish that I didn’t follow through on and felt/feel bad about because I still haven’t accomplished those things. A few times I made a temporary commitment to losing weight or eating better. I think the feeling is when you get a few weeks into that next year you lose the drive. By the time you reach February a “New Years” commitment doesn’t mean much.
I remember a few years ago when I became a member of the Jewish Community Center or JCC for those in the neighborhood. I did it for a full year. It wasn’t one of those things where I joined on New Years either. I believe I joined towards the springtime. I joined because I wanted to get more exercise and a friend of mine was joining at the same time. I went in and mostly I played basketball 3 nights a week. Most times there were some good runs. Occasionally when there would be a low turnout or if the runs weren’t going well I’d wander into the cardio room. There was always a bunch of machines to use if I felt so inclined. Part of it was going in later in the evening than most people, and part of it was that they had more machines than were needed, which is great for the members.
By the time the New Year came those first 2-3 weeks of January were brutal. The cardio room was packed. There would be small lines to use certain machines. You couldn’t even walk around in there. Even the basketball court became a little more full. It didn’t last for very long. By February things were back to normal and I could use anything I wanted again. I mention this only to illustrate the “seriousness” of resolutions.
The fact of the matter is this year, this month, this week, this day I need to lose weight. My weight shot up after that car accident 2 years ago and I did lose some of what I gained only to gain it back this year. I feel it when I stand, when I walk and certainly when I run. I don’t feel like me. I feel injured or messed up. I feel like a gang of people whooped me. I think the gang was made up of the Burger King, Little Debbie, Dolly Madison, Ben and Jerry, Tony the Tiger, Bob Evans, Oscar Mayer, the Trix Rabbit, Betty Crocker, Count Chocula, the Gorton’s Fisherman, Mrs. T, The Pillsbury Doughboy and the Kool-Aid Man. They’ve whooped me good and they’re relentless.
In all seriousness though I don’t feel right and it affected me in all of my spring and summer sports last season. I felt a little slower. I felt a little less mobile. I ran out of gas quicker. I didn’t hit as well. I didn’t field as well. I didn’t hustle sometimes like I know I can. I didn’t make enough plays. Whether we’re talking softball, kickball, football or whatever, I felt it. I feel it now and it pisses me off. So that’s my resolution this year. I want to make plays again. I want walking, running and playing sports to feel like they used to a few years back.
At the heart of a resolution is the spirit of self-improvement. Self improvement is a grown up thing. I’m at the point where I don’t feel like it might be a good idea if I get into better shape, I feel like I NEED to do it. Do I need a term like resolution to motivate me to do something I need? Probably not, but why not throw it in there? It certainly can’t hurt. So count me in on this resolution revolution.
See that guy in the picture? That’s me a few summers back. This is where I want to get back to.
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