The First Big Hiccup

Day 76, Tuesday March 17, 9.30am: Apparently, New Year's Resolutions go all the way back to 153 B.C. and the Romans.

The Romans installed Janus, a mythical king, at the head of their calendar. With two faces, he looked back on past events as well as forward to the future and became a symbol for resolutions. In due course, the first month of the year was named after Janus, the god of beginnings and the guardian of doors and entrances.

I wonder if the Romans were as useless at keeping their resolutions as we appear to be?

Actually, I’m still hanging in there, although it’s been a rocky couple of weeks. I haven’t exactly given in, but I’ve flirted with the idea.

Kate The Tech alerted me to the fact that ‘experts’ – whoever they are – suggest that it takes 21 days to confirm a new habit. Well, I had got at least twice as far with my new virtuous habits when the trouble began.

It came in the shape of ill health. A stomach virus was followed by a cold. So I decided not to risk the gym for a couple of days. Couple of days stretched to a week. Week stretched into almost two. I felt lousy so I ate a couple of crisps. Only a couple, but still the first crisps of the year. I drank less water, and ate less fruit.

I’m still not 100% but I realised at the end of last week that I was at a crossroads. Go back to the gym, to water and to fruit or bust.

So I went back - I thought of John, one of the trainers at the gym, saying to me a few weeks ago: "How much do you really want this?" after he had spotted me going easy on my stomach crunches - and I’ve kept going back. I'm over my first big hiccup. I don't suppose it will be my last. Writing about it on the blog, I hope, will help me get back in the saddle. I wonder, Kate, if that means I'm on probation again for the next 21 days?

I’m sure most people’s resolutions fall victim to similar setbacks. It may not be due to a shortage of resolve at all. It just might be a stomach virus or a sniffle, a wonderfully alcoholic party or a relaxing holiday – anything, indeed, which helps create a new, easier sofa-bound habit than bench-pressing.