Make resolutions and experience the positive health benefits. Here's a few of our favourites . . . , writes John Cradden
THE MOST popular and regularly repeated items in new year resolutions tend to have a strong health theme, particularly where they are concerned with the wellbeing of the grey matter between your ears.
For instance, as well as the usual things like eating your five-a-day, quitting smoking and losing weight, you could also resolve to spend more time with your family and friends, take up a new hobby, and learn to be more organised.
Even tackling issues to do with your personal finances will have a positive mental health implication, as healthier finances means less worry and strain.
In no particular order, here is our top 10 new year health resolutions for 2009.
1 Cycle to work
More and more commuters are opting to beat the traffic, save money and get fitter by cycling to work. In an effort to encourage this even more, the Government has introduced a new cycle-to-work tax incentive scheme starting next month.
Through this scheme employees can buy a new bicycle and equipment worth €1,000 tax free by buying it through their employers as a benefit-in-kind. Some cycle campaigners are sceptical as to whether this scheme will boost the numbers of commuting cyclists here, but a similar scheme that has been running in Britain for some time has proved very popular.
2 Learn a musical instrument
One of the most compelling reality shows to hit our screens this past year was TG4's Faoi Lán Cheoil, where eight celebrities, including footballer Andy Reid, actor Jeremy Irons and playwright Marie Jones volunteered to learn and master a traditional musical instrument well enough to the point where they could share a stage with professional musicians.
There is lots of evidence to show that learning a musical instrument as an adult can improve your cognitive abilities and quality of life. The Arts Council's Music Network (www.musicnetwork.ie) has a searchable online database of music teachers available in your area.
3 BYOL
As revealed in this newspaper recently, bringing your own lunch (BYOL) to work is the latest trend. It's not just a sure way to save on daily expenditure, it can also help you reduce your salt intake.
This is particularly true if you tend to buy pre-packed sandwiches during your lunch hour, as such products can contain more than 50 per cent of our recommended daily allowance of salt.
According to the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, there is also evidence that relatively modest reductions in salt intake could potentially lead to a significant fall in average blood pressure.
4 Help others
If you have more time on your hands next year, make the most of it by re-connecting with your local community through volunteering. "A study conducted last year by the University of Wales, Lampeter confirmed what many of us have intuitively known for a long time," says Elaine Bradley, chief executive of Volunteering Ireland. "The study found that volunteering has a positive effect on self-esteem, leads to a reduction in hospital visits and even has a role in combating depression, stress and pain."
St Vincent de Paul has been inundated with requests for help this year. It has 9,500 volunteers throughout Ireland but can always use more. "Volunteers are always needed and the society provides training where that is appropriate and required," says spokesman Stuart Kenny.
5 Quit smoking
If you are a smoker, this remains the one thing you could do that will reap the biggest dividends for your long-term health, as well as your pocket.
According to anti-smoking group Ash Ireland, there's plenty of help available, such as from your doctor, pharmacist or the National Smokers' Quitline on 1850 201203.
"Make a list of the reasons why you want to stop smoking and keep this somewhere you will see it every day," says Valerie Coghlan of Ash. "Plan what you will do with the money you save. A 20-a-day smoker spends about €3,000 a year - maybe a nice holiday or some new furniture for your home."
6 Be positive
There's a lot of doom and gloom about, which can make us forget about the positive things in life. A UK government science and technology research agency called Foresight recently published a two-year study about mental wellbeing.
Part of its brief was to come up with the mental wellbeing equivalent of "five portions of fruit and veg" a day. One of them was simply to "take notice".
"Be curious. Catch sight of the beautiful. Remark on the unusual. Notice the changing seasons. Savour the moment, whether you are walking to work, eating lunch or talking to friends.
"Be aware of the world around you and what you are feeling. Reflecting on your experiences will help you appreciate what matters to you."
7 Grow your own veg
Growing fruit and vegetables at home or in an allotment is an activity that's grown in popularity this year as food prices have risen and some fresh produce has become harder to get.
As well as saving money, your veg is guaranteed to be fresher and tastier than the ones in the supermarket, some of which may already have been sitting there for weeks.
For more information, Carol Klein's BBC series Grow Your Own Veg has spawned a similarly named handbook. Or if you're based in Dublin try reading the Dublin Food Growing Network's blog on dublinfoodgrowing.org.
8 Think twice about the gym membership
If money is going to be tight next year, you may well have already decided to forgo the gym membership, or else not bother joining up now if it was previously your intention to do so.
It's almost a tradition now for punters to join up with good intentions only to let attendance lapse quickly to the point where there are almost shelling out for nothing. As Conor Pope of Pricewatch has reported recently, many gyms sign you up for a full 12 months and make getting out of the contract next to impossible, if not completely impossible.
9 Try a new sport
If watching the Olympics this summer wasn't quite enough to get you off your sofa and having a go at a new sport, the new year is a good time to sign up.
Try your local VEC, leisure centre or community school for information on sporting activities that you can try for the first time. Popular and widely available options include hockey, soccer, table tennis, badminton, volleyball or even kickboxing.
10 Take a break
Travel agents here are hopeful that taking a holiday abroad next year will simply be non-negotiable for the bulk of stressed-out Irish workers. But even if you have resolved in 2009 to pare back your discretionary spending to the bare minimum because of the recession, you should still try to get away somewhere for a week or two, and maybe the odd weekend, even if it has to involve camping.
Everyone needs to recharge their batteries once in a while.