So, how are you making out with those New Year’s resolutions, champ? If you’ve already dropped the ball on your plans to lose weight, drink less, read more, quit smoking, etc., you’re not alone. According to studies, you are among the nearly 90 percent of Americans who give up on their resolutions within the first two weeks of January.
The problem isn’t you; it’s the resolutions. While the turn of the calendar is a natural time to take stock, committing to making significant life changes overnight — especially if that night was New Year’s Eve — is absurd. Real change takes time, discipline and, most of all, compassion for yourself. You’re probably gonna slip up. And we’re here to say: It’s OK.
The key is not to let setbacks get you down. Equally important is finding what works for you. Because the best diet, workout, whatever is the one you’ll actually do.
Take exercise, for example. Zumba and CrossFit ain’t for everyone. Sometimes you’ve just gotta fight someone with a sword to really feel the burn, as Hannah Feuer discovered when she sampled a range of offbeat fitness classes.
Cartoonist Kristen Shull has been confronted with new, impossible-to-meet body standards since becoming a mother. In a comic, she shares insights on how she lost more than six pounds in a single day — spoiler: She had a fucking baby.
Food writer Suzanne Podhaizer always thought she ate well. But when she was diagnosed with tongue cancer, it forced her to reevaluate her relationship to food. In an essay, she explains how she changed her approach to healthy eating.
One undeniable path to better health is giving up alcohol. More and more young Vermonters, especially, are turning away from drinking and instead embracing sober culture.
Meanwhile, many folks use cannabis for medicinal purposes, but dedicated medical dispensaries are sparse since recreational weed was legalized. So the state will allow recreational dispensaries to sell medical-grade weed.
Between wildfires, a divisive new president and humanitarian disasters overseas, maintaining a healthy emotional outlook is top of mind for many folks. The Brattleboro Retreat’s “Unravelling” podcast aims to foster more honest conversations around mental health. And author and neuroscientist Lisa Genova visits Woodstock this week to talk about her latest novel, More or Less Maddy, about a woman with bipolar disorder.
In Montpelier, a doctor with autism founded All Brains Belong, a medical services provider for neurodivergent people. The nonprofit provides more than just specialized clinicians: It offers education and community, as well.
Speaking of community, the Vermont Department of Health works to keep ours safe and healthy through its educational and entertaining social media feeds. If you need a break from doomscrolling (see: natural disasters, politics and war, above), you could do worse than to follow those folks on Insta.
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This article appears in The Wellness Issue 2025.
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