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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
We're well into the second week of the new year and some resolutions have already gone by the wayside.

Quitting smoking, getting in shape and flossing more often are just a few popular New Year's resolutions, many of which are rarely kept. - NNSL photo illustration

Simone Goudreau, a life coach who works out of the Gaia Integrative Clinic, said she thinks it is becoming a trend not to participate in the tradition.

"It is almost a joke. They get broken by Jan. 1 at noon. The whole concept is flawed," she said.

"We promise to make these sweeping changes that are usually unmanageable and when we break it we usually give up entirely."

A perennially popular resolution for many people is to lose weight or get in better shape.

Kelly Robertson, owner and manager of Breakaway Fitness, said the gym does attract more people after the holidays.

"It is great to see. I think people just need help sticking it out sometimes," she said.

Robertson recommended not thinking of it so much as a resolution, which carries an associated risk of failure, but rather more as a plan to adjust daily routines.

"It is good for people to have these resolutions, to be fit and get healthy," she said. "People need to start slowly. So often after New Year's you see people go full hog the first week and then they get sore or tired of it. If they are just starting to exercise or getting back into it, they have to start slow."

Robertson said she has a personal resolution also, but declined to share it.

Yellowknifer caught up with resident Tracy Therrien on a smoke break.

"I don't make (New Year's resolutions) because I don't keep them," she laughed. "I have quit smoking in the past and failed. When I do try it again I will seek more support and gear up for it. Instead I try to stress for living more moderately instead of forcing a change by a certain date."

Goudreau offered a different perspective.

"When people set resolutions there is usually some underlying reason or emotional state. I think people should focus on that instead," she said.

Goudreau recommended choosing a word or a phrase as a guideline for the year.

"Then you can check in with yourself. What have I learned about this quality? What is helping me follow it? What is getting in the way," she said. "It is a much more gentle approach. You can't break it because it is not a resolution, it is an exploration."

Goudreau shared her word for the year, which is "nourishment."

"I think we get caught up in this whole year thing. We give so much magic to the start of a new year. I think that is part of what creates the failure, but at any point you can decide on a word or phrase and clear away what is getting in the way of it."

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