THE NEW YEAR is upon us; a time when many of us will inevitably go about making, and then abandoning, absurdly ambitious resolutions – to do more burpees, to home-brew kombucha, to easily reach ketosis or achieve a permanent in-box of zero.
Let me instead propose an eminently doable resolution: try meditating for one minute on most days – for just one month.
Forming healthy habits is hard, and there’s a reason most of our resolutions ultimately go down in flames. We may be wired to fail. Evolution has bequeathed us a brain that optimises for survival, not long-term health planning. Natural selection primed us for detecting threats and finding food and sexual partners, not for flossing our teeth. The fact that we’re up against this evolutionary challenge is why I like this modest, month-long proposal. Two aspects make it easy to adopt:
First, aiming to meditate most days, rather than every day, is a good goal. Consistency counts – the more often you meditate, the easier it gets and the deeper and more enduring the benefits – but if you miss a day, your inner critic won’t have a chance to call you a failure. I call this approach “daily-ish”. It has elasticity, or “psychological flexibility”, a key concept from behaviour-change research, which can help lead to an abiding habit, be it a meditation practice, a new gym routine, or a commitment to learn Esperanto.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
CAN YOU REMIX YOUR MINDSET?
YOU KNOW MUSIC ALTERS MOOD. NOW A NEW APP PROMISES THE RIGHT TRACKS CAN SOOTHE STRESS, BOOST PRODUCTIVITY AND LEVEL UP YOUR GYM GAINS.
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY DIET REALLY SO ?
AND DOES IT REALLY FIGHT OFF DISEASE? WE LOOK AT THE DATA.
THE SEMI-COMPLETE USER'S GUIDE TO...YOUR LUNGS
THEY POWER A WORKOUT, FILTER OUT INVADERS AND WORK FOR US 24/7-UNLESS GERMS, POLLUTANTS, BAD LUCK OR OUR OWN NEGLECT GETS IN THE WAY. TAKE A DEEP BREATH AND DISCOVER HOW TO HELP THEM OUT.
ACTION MAN
THERE WAS NO MIRACLE FIX FOR TIMOTHY FAIRWEATHER'S HEAVIER PROBLEMS. THE SECRET: TAKING SMALL ACTIONS EVERY DAY TO BUILD UP TO MASSIVE RESULTS.
THE MUSCLE SPRINT
CRUSH ALL MAJOR MUSCLE GROUPS, BLAST CALORIES AND SUPERCHARGE YOUR CARDIO WITH THIS DUMBBELL WORKOUT, WHICH HAS AN INTENSE 55-REP LADDER SCHEME THAT MINIMISES REST AND MAXIMISES FUN.
THE ULTIMATE SUMMER BODYWEIGHT BURNER
BUILD MUSCLE AND STRENGTH AND CHALLENGE YOUR COORDINATION AND ATHLETICISM WITH THIS NO-EQUIPMENT WORKOUT.
RISE OF THE BEASTS
THIS YEAR'S MILESTONE TENTH EDITION OF OUR COVER GUY SEARCH DREW 413 GUYS WHO EMBODY SELFLESSNESS, GRIT AND PERSEVERANCE. THEIR ANIMALISTIC DEVOTION TO FITNESS AND TALES OF TRIUMPH WILL INSPIRE YOU TO GREATNESS.
...I LOSE MY COOL?
DON'T WHITE-KNUCKLE IT. LEARN TO UNDERSTAND, OWN AND ULTIMATELY TAME YOUR OUTRAGE WITH OUR EXPERT POINTERS. DEEP BREATH, NOW...
MOVING MOUNTAINS
LONG HAULS, STEEP CLIMBS, EXTREME COLD AND OTHERWORLDLY LANDSCAPES IN THE CEDERBERG-OUR WRITER TAKES ON THE ELEMENTS AND UNEARTHS A NEW PERSPECTIVE ON A FIVEDAY TREK ALONG PHANTOM PATHS CUT THROUGH BEWITCHING SCENERY.
THE NEW PLYO POWER-UP
HOW MODERN TAKES ON AN OLD FITNESS FAVOURITE CAN CALIBRATE YOUR TRAINING FOR AN INSTA-BOOST OF ATHLETICISM AND STRENGTH.