If you watched my video last week about why New Year’s resolutions so often fail, this is the longer, slower version — the one that invites us to pause, breathe, and look a little more honestly at how change actually happens.
Because by now, a week into January, many people are already feeling it:
the wobble, the resistance, the quiet sense of “I’ve messed this up already.”
If that’s you, I want you to know this first:
nothing has gone wrong.
The problem isn’t you — it’s the way we approach change
Most New Year’s resolutions are built on pressure.
They ask us to leap from where we are straight into an ideal version of ourselves, often fuelled by self-criticism rather than care.
Resolutions tend to sound like:
- “I’ll do this every day.”
- “I’ll never miss.”
- “I’ll finally get it right.”
Yoga teaches us something far more sustainable:
change happens through awareness, repetition, and compassion.
Not through force.
Why resolutions struggle to last
1. They’re all-or-nothing
Life is rarely consistent. When we miss a day or fall out of rhythm, we assume we’ve failed — and stop altogether.
2. They ignore our humanity
Energy shifts. Motivation comes and goes. Some days are heavy, some light. Resolutions rarely allow for this natural ebb and flow.
3. They focus on outcomes, not practice
“I want to be calmer” or “stronger” or “more focused” — without attention to the daily, imperfect process that gets us there.
Yoga isn’t about holding the pose forever.
It’s about noticing when we’ve lost balance — and returning.
A yogic alternative: begin, begin again
Instead of asking “Can I stick to this perfectly?”
what if the question becomes:
“Can I keep coming back?”
Back to the breath.
Back to the mat.
Back to a moment of stillness.
This is the heart of yoga philosophy.
Each breath is a beginning.
Each moment is an opportunity to start again — without judgement.
If your New Year already feels messy…
Good. You’re doing it right.
Real practice isn’t linear.
It’s made up of pauses, returns, and gentle recommitments.
And this is why consistency doesn’t come from discipline alone —
it comes from having places where you are welcomed back, not shamed for drifting away.
A gentle invitation
This January, the theme across my morning Zoom yoga and morning meditation is Begin, Begin Again.
It’s not a challenge and it’s not about starting the year “strong.”
It’s about returning — to your breath, your body, and your practice — without judgement.
The Begin, Begin Again version of my morning Zoom yoga is designed to support real life:
miss a day, come back the next;
feel rusty, arrive as you are;
need softness, take it.
If you’d like a steady, compassionate space to practise beginning again, you’re very welcome to join us.
Wherever you are in the year already, you’re not behind.
You’re exactly where practice begins.
Yoga Pathways 
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