What can I do for myself this Winter that will help me thrive this Spring?
I have been really enjoying motivating myself this month with small wins, little tasks and actions that will help me to thrive in the Spring.
I feel that I have been creating a lovely balance this month between the rest and slowness that is important in deep Winter with planning and preparing for the Spring and warmer months ahead that will be full of light and plenty of activity.
Each day I have been motivating myself to do small things that I know I am going to feel so pleased about when we hit those first warm days of Spring. As we still have quite a few weeks of Winter left, I thought it would be helpful to share some of these ideas with you. I hope it inspires you to give it a go too.
Fitness - I love being fit and I really love exercise, especially the feeling afterwards and the joy of my body getting stronger week by week. However, I am currently getting back into running after many years of hardly running at all. Deciding to do this back at the end of the Autumn might have been a crazy decision and one I could have put off until the Spring. Running in the Winter is hard, not only because of the cold but it’s also harder to fit into shorter daylight hours, especially when I no longer live in a well-lit city. The roads and paths in Somerset are not very welcoming before sunrise or after sunset.
I set myself a target back in October that I haven’t reached yet but that’s okay. I’m back to running 5km once a week and then I do two shorter runs. In the past I would have thought it’s 5km or nothing but I now realise that a couple of 3kms and a 5km a week in January is going to feel amazing when I get to March and am building on that. Every day we have an extra minute of sunlight at the end of the day, so longer runs will become easier and easier, not just to do but to fit in. And I will thank myself for getting out on cold January days, however long I am running for. Every minute of running is worth it!
You don’t have to run but image if you did two minutes of squats every day of the Winter. Your legs would be stronger for some lovely Spring walks or swims or runs or even dancing in the garden!
New recipes and batch cooking - I can sometimes get so bored with cooking. I do 90% of the cooking in our family, so it can be easy to get in a rut or just feel a bit blah about it. But now is a great time for staying home and being cozy in the kitchen, and trying out some new recipes. And then batch cooking new favourites to fill the freezer for those days when it begins to get warmer and I want to be out pottering in the garden at 5pm instead of in the kitchen! I also have a lot of university assessments coming up for my Psychology Degree, so any batch cooking I can do now will help meals to stay healthy and joyful when I’m up against it with my studying.
I have treated myself to this new cookery book and a subscription to this substack for lots of new cooking inspiration.
Diary planning - I cannot recommend this January activity enough. What do you want to do this year? Who do you want to see? Where do you want to go? Start booking it all in now. I know I mentioned this in my January Cocoon post but really, just do it! You will be so grateful in the Spring when you are doing all your favourite things with the people you love.
Gardening - I am itching for that first warm day of the year when I can hopefully be out in the garden all day long and my dogs will be right there with me soaking up the warmth of the earth. But until then there are lot of small things I can do to prepare for all the garden dreams I have. I can do some planning of what I want to plant where and check my seed stock. And I can spend a few minutes outside each day tidying and preparing for Spring. All those minutes add up!
Blog and social media planning - I really, really love planning my blog and social media content and batch working. It soothes my nervous system because I feel inspired, organised and energised. It might not suit you but give it a go. Even just the planning in January and the batch working can begin in February or March. For various reasons I didn’t manage much batch working in 2023 and I really felt it, not only in my own energy and enthusiasm levels but in my connection with my community. Batch working definitely works for me, so I’m doing the ground work this month, so I can hit the ground running with it in over the next few weeks.
I am also continuing to clear the clutter in our home. It is bringing me so much joy and I can see the freedom, energy and peace on the horizon!
Enjoy your day today and make time for a little action that will make you smile later in the year. xo
Hi Emily so lovely to hear about you. I somehow lost contact and never did complete my silver clay course with you cos of the puppies being born! Still re-read your books. So lovely to find you again. Love your piece ..you are so right about things to do in the month of January. I don't to the running bit but I have four Weimaraners now so they keep me very fit and on my toes x
I'm also doing decluttering , ready for a mini renovation of my place (not going quite so well at throwing out) but my year is going to be a year of "imperfection".... odd I know but ...I'm stopping waiting till everything is perfect and just giving it a good...I'm throwing away that "easer" ...it doesn't matter if I make a mistake. Do you miss The Fens? jx
I loved reading this Emily, so inspiring. I too am returning to running and I love thinking about the extra minute of light every single day! I am trying to be kind to myself with my goal setting as I can have a tendency to set myself up to fail with over ambitious plans. Would love to know what you cook from your new book x