The key to achieving your New Year resolutions is setting realistic goals and having a specific action plan. We’ve shortlisted the most popular New Year resolutions, with tips on how you can make them a reality!

1. Fitness goal: get ripped for free and at your own convenience

When it comes to kick-starting your fitness journey, convenience is crucial. Your ‘gym’ should ideally be a place you can access easily, at a timing that works for you.

Victoria working out at HDB fitness corners

Fitness corners in HDB estates, for example, are so useful yet so underrated. You will find equipment such as elliptical cross trainers and pull-up bars that help you build strength, flexibility, balance, and endurance. Granted you won’t have fancy perks, but it’s free! The rubber flooring is also perfect for bodyweight exercises like jumping lunges or high-knees, because it can absorb the impact and keep your joints safe.

Here are some resources you can refer to if you are completely new to the #fitspo life.

Nike Training Club

This free app by Nike offers workout video tutorials, and allows you to track your progress over time. You can even find your friends on the app, and motivate each other to exercise regularly! This is really one of the best (free) apps out there, because it offers a diverse range of workouts that cater to varying fitness levels.

YouTube Videos

YouTube is going to be your new best friend in your fitness journey. There are many different workout accounts that you can follow. Popular pages include ‘Fitness Blender’, ‘Blogilates’, and ‘POPSUGAR Fitness’. Some of them also offer nutrition plans to accompany your exercise routine and help you shed the pounds.

There is even a video on how to use the equipment at HDB fitness corners… check it out!

How to use equipment commonly found at fitness corners

You can also read our article on simple circuit workouts!

2. KonMari Your Home: Keeping things neat and tidy

Establish a routine

Having an organised home is simpler than you think… it’s all about establishing routines!

Start by listing down the tasks you need to complete every morning and evening. Consider having a schedule that details the things that need cleaning every week, month, and year. That way, you can remember everything that needs to be done, and stay on top of your game!

‘Cozi Family Organizer’ is one app that allows you to do so. Most phones have calendar and to-do apps pre-installed, but Cozi consolidates all these different functionalities into one. You can create shopping lists, schedule chores, and even plan meals. If you enable notifications, you will also get reminders to complete tasks that are due. As its name suggests, you can share access with your family members, and assign tasks to different people.

Photo Credit: Cozi

It also helps if you intentionally dedicate time each week to clean, and organise your home. You will eventually get used to it!

Set Up Organising Sytems

Keeping things in place seems like an impossible task. The strategy is to mark the messiest spots in your home, and figure out what habitual behaviour leads to the mess. Then think of more effective ways to keep things organised.

If like me, you have a tendency to let your mail pile up on the coffee table, consider adding a mail organiser with labels within reach. Even if you don’t clear the mail right away, at least you can sort it instantly and keep things neatly tucked away. Maybe even add a bin nearby so that you can easily throw away the opened envelopes, and trash your junk mail.

Photo Credit: Small stuff counts

It’s way easier to make changes to our physical environment than to our lifestyle because old habits really do die hard! So, devise solutions that are easy to execute and adapt it to your current way of doing things.

Label Everything!

Don’t just stop at labelling your mail organiser, label everything! Marie Kondo, the queen of decluttering, says that everything should have a ‘home’ to return to, and you should store things in a way that you can see everything. For example, use clear boxes so that you can see what’s inside, and avoid buying duplicates. If you don’t have clear boxes, just label the storage containers that you already have!

Photo Credit: Organise it all

3. Be More Environmentally-Friendly

Out of the 3Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle) of the eco movement, recycling is arguably the one that requires the most effort. Here are some tips to help you along the way!

Inculcating a recycling habit

Consider placing recycling bins around your house, at different spots where you usually find yourself discarding items. For example, place bins near your kitchen or bathroom sink. I personally prefer this arrangement because I can rinse the items, dry them, and then toss them with ease.

Photo Credit: The good stuff

In Singapore, you don’t have to sort your recyclables. So once your bins are full, deposit them in the large blue bins that you see near the void decks. Meanwhile in newer BTO projects, a separate recycling chute is conveniently located on every floor!

Photo Credit: Towards zero waste

Know what can be recycled, and what can’t

Do a quick check to see if there is a triangle-shaped arrow on the product packaging, because wrongly recycled items can cause more damage than good. Disposable food packaging and tissue paper for example, should not be recycled.

Photo Credit: NEA

For a comprehensive list of items that can and cannot be recycled, visit NEA’s website. If you are interested to go full on eco-warrior, check out our article on how to lead a zero-waste lifestyle.

Disclaimer: Information in this article pertaining to exercise should not be taken as medical advice. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any health conditions. Always consult a qualified health professional or doctor on any matters regarding your health. By performing any exercises listed in the article, you assume the risk of and responsibility of injury, personal property loss or damage.