Have you lost inspiration for reaching your new year goals? The winter months can work against our plans to eat well and exercise regularly. It begs the question: is January the best time to make New Year resolutions? Spring, after all, is a time to align ourselves, ready for the summer.
It’s a season that can bring a natural boost to our energy levels: the mornings are lighter, daylight hours get longer, the trees are greening, the flowers blossoming, and we feel a natural uplift. Hence, with a second wind of motivation, it’s a great time to pick up where you might have left off with new year’s resolutions.
Simply having awareness of the seasonal effects on our mood and motivation is a great place to start in gaining more momentum. Putting pen to paper and writing down ideas of what you would like to achieve, create, or accomplish is a big step in manifesting. Having clarity about what you want will put you in good stead to move in the right direction.Â
It might be that you’ve given up on your resolutions – the goal just seems too hard to reach, unattainable – yet if we can shift our perspective, and see spring as a ‘second chance’, we might just get further than we had expected in making the changes we desire.Â
Here are a few tips for getting back into the swing (or spring) of things here in Wales:
- Regular exercise is a common wishlist behaviour that people strive to achieve each year. Yoga, already a popular form of exercise, is fast becoming centre stage, as more people are learning of its qualities beyond the mat. Yoga is a fantastic tool to connect with your inner being, exercise the body and move stagnant energy.
Cardiff offers a varied studio space for your style: Stretchy Suzie’s yoga studio, located on Woodville Road in Cathays, offers a host of classes from a range of teachers, mainly focusing on Vinyasa Flow Yoga. They even have a male teacher: a perfect role model and safe space, for men wanting to explore yoga for the first time.
- PhysioSpace on Blenheim Road offers yoga and pilates classes, with early morning gentle flows to bring some mindfulness to your day, while for more intense, calorie-burning workouts, you could try Hot Pod Yoga, on Ocean Way. A heated dome with low lighting helps to loosen up the muscles and detoxify the body with a sweat-inducing workout – just remember to bring your water bottle.Â
- One of the benefits of living in the Welsh capital is the diverse environment. Although there are plenty of recreational activities, Cardiffians are spoilt for green spaces to explore and ground ourselves. With the beautiful Bute Park in the centre of the city, we can enjoy a brief walk or an intense leg-stretcher, were you to follow the trail all the way up to Castell Coch (also a popular cycling route).
A lively destination in the summer months, but why not wrap up and head out one spring morning? Witnessing the transition between seasons can be grounding and instil a sense of peace. The morning hours are thought to be the most sacred, with clarity of birdsong, less noise pollution, and a generally slower pace to life.Â
- If it sounds like you need more of this in your life, there’s a Beginners Foraging Workshop taking place at Bute Park (tomorrow) Sun 13 Mar at 12.30 pm, where you can learn about specific edibles and their medicinal – and poisonous – qualities. Tickets can be purchased on Eventbrite.
- For more adventurous outings, you could cycle along the River Taff, through Tongwynlais and heading towards the Garth Mountain. A definite challenge, but a hybrid of cycling and walking compliments this trek. Or why not catch sunrise or sunset on the mountain?Â
Not to suggest these activities can’t be enjoyed any time of the year, even if the winter months pose more of a challenge – spring, though, is a special time to rejuvenate and get into the swing of things.
words YASMIN GRANT
Buzz Culture
Discover how our brand new learning experience is giving young people in Wales the skills they need to get ahead