2020 was a tough year on a lot of fronts. I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to a fresh start in 2021.

In the past year, there have been massive shifts on the personal, cultural, and societal levels. For many of us, daily life probably looks a lot different than it did around this time last year -- some of us have had changes in our work status, while others have had to contend with having kids at home 24/7. All of us have been faced with the challenge of adapting to a new way of life that we've never known before.

These are major changes. With all of this going on, we may have had to put our personal goals on the backburner for a while. Or, at the very least, we might have encountered some challenges with maintaining our lifestyle, especially when it comes to health habits.

If you've struggled with things like staying active, eating well, or sticking to your usual wellness routine, I can guarantee you you're not the only one. I've been way more sedentary this year than I've been in a long time. I've gained weight. My diet's gotten worse. Some of the ways I've stayed active in the past -- like going for morning swims at my local rec center -- haven't been an option for me in recent months. And I'm willing to bet that other folks have had similar experiences.

If this sounds like you, take heart: it's a new year, and it's never too late to get back on track with our goals. At Symmetry, we firmly believe that our health is our greatest wealth -- and it's always worth investing in that part of ourselves. We know that a strong, healthy body supports a clear, calm mind and enables us to go after our biggest hopes and dreams in life.

If a healthier lifestyle is on your radar for 2021, here are some pointers to guide you in the right direction.

1) Be kind to yourself.

First and foremost: please don’t beat yourself up if you didn’t make the progress you hoped to make in 2020 towards any of your life goals -- whether they were health-related or otherwise. This year played out in a way that none of us could have anticipated or fully prepared for. 

No matter what the past year was like for you, be kind to yourself. We all did the best we could with what we had, and in a year like 2020, that was more than enough.

2) It's never too late to begin anew.

The beauty of life is that, as long as we’re here, it’s never too late to make changes. Whatever’s happened in the past, we can move forward and start again with a new vision of what we want for ourselves and our lives.

The new year could be a perfect time to hit the reset button and start afresh. We don’t know yet what 2021 will hold for us -- but a new year brings a clean slate, and with it, the promise of new beginnings. 

For a truly fresh start, learn what you can from 2020 and then allow it to fade into the past. It’s over now. You don’t have to pick back up with the same goals you had last year. If you’re still motivated about achieving these things, then by all means, go after them -- use this fresh new-year mojo to jumpstart your motivation and kick some serious booty.

But if you’re not feeling jazzed about your old goals, give yourself permission to let go of them. It’s okay. What you wanted for yourself a year ago may be completely different from what you want now, in 2021. Set your sights on the new year and create some new goals based on who you are now.

3) Set some new goals using the SMART method.

If you’re setting some new goals for yourself, you may already have some ideas of what you want. But you can set yourself up for success by using the SMART method to define goals that are concrete and attainable. If you haven’t heard of the SMART acronym, it stands for:

• Specific

• Measurable

• Achievable

• Realistic

• Time-bound

When our goals are specific, they are well-defined and we know what we need to do to achieve them. Measurability allows us to track our progress, which can be very motivating. Having achievable and realistic goals means that we can reasonably accomplish them with the time, energy, and resources that we have available to us. And time-bound objectives give us a timeframe for achieving what we’re after.

All five of these criteria make it easier for us to achieve what we truly want in life. If you need help getting started with some SMART goals, here’s a shameless plug for our business to illustrate what this process looks like in action. 

Let’s say you’ve realized you would like to start getting massages more often. You know that massages leave you feeling fantastic and help you maintain your overall wellness, so you decide you would like to get on a regular schedule to come see us more often (excellent choice!).

In that case, you may want to take advantage of our Symmetry Resolution special -- basically, you’ll pre-book a series of massage appointments for the early months of 2021, and once you complete those sessions, you’ll be rewarded with a Symmetry gift card. Why is this SMART?

• It sets a specific goal for you to come in for either three or six massages by the end of April.

• It’s easily measurable -- each session you complete puts you closer to achieving your goal.

• The plan can be customized so it’s achievable and realistic for you and your schedule.

• You have three months to complete all of these sessions, making it a time-bound goal.

If getting massage more frequently is among your wellness goals this year, ask one of our concierges for more details about the Resolution program -- and don’t forget to sign up before the end of January!

In any case, we treasure you all and look forward to continuing our relationship with you in this new year. May 2021 bring you and your families light, love, and hope.