Eat better, join a gym, drink more water, get eight hours of sleep every night…many of the most popular New Year’s resolutions are focused on living a healthier, more balanced life. But what do those people who are already extremely healthy (in fact, it’s their job to be) want to improve upon? We polled 18 wellness influencers, from nutritionists to celebrity trainers to healthy start-up founders, to find out what their self-improvement goals are for the upcoming year. From being more mindful to carving out time for themselves to working out a little less (if only we all had that problem), here are their resolutions for 2017.
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Embrace mindfulness and live in the now
“Be even more mindful with the words I use, making sure they are influential in a positive, hopeful, and inspiring way; not just for the clients I train, but for everyone I interact with, including myself.”
—Tanya Becker, co-founder and Chief Creative Officer of Physique57
“Furthering my meditation practice. I find that mindfulness not only allows me to react more calmly in stressful situations, but it also helps me feel happier overall and more in the moment, whether I’m eating, being active, or spending time with my hubby and pets.”
—Cynthia Sass, MPH, RD, Health‘s contributing nutrition editor
“I resolve to listen closer, breathe deeper, and be more present. I hope to think less and risk more. And while focusing on all these things, I hope to empower others to do the same. I’m very excited for 2017!”
—Olivia Young, founder of box + flow
“My New Year’s resolution is to commit—to be more instinctual and trust my gut. To work harder, and to live in the now.”
—Derek DeGrazio, celebrity trainer and managing partner at Barry’s Bootcamp Miami
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Pay it forward
“My New Year’s resolution is to advocate on more result-oriented ways and less social ways to educate and support people’s lives. This is an important year in health and I feel a strong commitment to providing people tools that help them invest in their health and their futures. I feel that the trends in fitness will be taking a backseat to people wanting life-long solutions that pay it forward in a really meaningful way.”
—Tracy Anderson, Health contributing fitness editor, celebrity fitness trainer, and founder of the Tracy Anderson Method
“To do a random act of kindness every day. [It] forces you to think about how you can be more compassionate all day, so you can realize the perfect moment to act on it.”
—Danielle DuBoise, co-founder of SAKARA LIFE
Carve out more personal time
“I want to make sure to spend more quality time with my closest friends and call my mom and sister more often. I’m going to work on improving my cooking skills. Professionally, I’m going to hire an assistant. And physically, I’m going to take more rest days. I’m on my feet working six out of seven days a week. I’d like to change that to five days a week.”
—Lacey Stone, celebrity trainer and founder of Lacey Stone Fitness
“Put more ‘me’ time on the calendar. It can be difficult to manage the work/life balance when you own a business because you’re emotionally invested. This year, I’m going to make more of an effort to put the computer away and take time for myself.”
—Tracy Carlinsky, founder of Brooklyn Bodyburn
“I am so busy and pulled in so many directions—single parent to twin girls, business owner—I don’t take enough time to decompress. I know doing so will make me more grounded, balanced, and ultimately more productive.”
—David Kirsch, celebrity fitness and wellness expert
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Schedule in restorative workouts
“Take it down a notch! As a fitness pro, I often push myself as hard as possible in every. single. workout, choosing the most advanced poses or sequences. Movement is my ‘drug of choice’ and I’m working on sometimes allowing that movement to be peaceful or restorative rather than only the most intense.”
—Amy Jordan, founder and CEO of WundaBar Pilates
“Being an athlete—specifically a boxer and a runner—my body is always tight, and I often don’t take much time to stretch and recover, as I’m in a go-go-go mentality. I want to try out new yoga classes a few times a week and get into my own stretching routine so I can feel better doing what I love.”
—Ashley Guarrasi, founding trainer of Rumble Boxing
Stress less
“Learn to only focus on controlling the things I can control. Too often we stress about things we really can’t control, and it just makes us put unnecessary worry and pressure on ourselves.”
—Skylar Diggins, Dallas Wings guard
Fuel up the right way
“Be more mindful of how I’m fueling my body. Being 38 years old, it’s getting harder to bounce back from eating badly consecutive days in a row. My goal is to incorporate a more Paleo-based way of eating, with lots of chicken and fish!”
—Alonzo Wilson, founder of Tone House
“Most resolutions focus on things to cut out. Here’s what I plan to add more of in 2017: more colorful veggies on half of my plate, more outdoor workouts, and more books (for fun!).”
—Erika Horowitz MS, RDN
“I like to set my New Year’s resolution to be realistic and achievable, so my nutrition plan is based on the 80/20 rule: stick to the Ketogenic diet six days a week, and one day a week splurge with my cheat food of choice (rhymes with “rasta”).”
—Ross Franklin, CEO and founder of PureGreen Cold Pressed Juice
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Take a risk and try new things
“Trying new sports and workout classes. I want to break out of my comfort zone a bit more! I’ve never been rock climbing or snow skiing, so I’d like to try those. I would also like to make more of an effort to prioritize recovery. I work out hard and throw around some pretty heavy weights. Somewhere along the line I’ve started to skimp on stretching, foam rolling, and resting. Not okay!”
—Melody Scharff, instructor at the Fhitting Room
“I’m going to find a better balance between my strength training, mobility, and Jiu Jitsu. I tend to hyper focus on one type of training and my body needs the variety to perform and feel optimal. I’m committed to sitting down before the new year and re-structuring my schedule to reach my goals. If you don’t plan, it won’t happen!”
—Ashley Borden, celebrity fitness trainer
“Although I work out (and I’m lucky to LOVE working out), my exercise was all over the place in 2016 and I want to take it up a notch in 2017. This includes getting in a few races, planning a few hiking trips, and being consistent with four intense workouts a week.”
—Keri Glassman, MS, RD, CDN, and founder of Nutritious Life and the Nutrition School