We’re all guilty of making new year’s resolutions and hardly sticking to them. Whether it’s aiming to improve our fitness, learn a new skill or finish a project, we sometimes start our year with high hopes, falter midway through the year, and by the end of it, we’re left wondering just what happened.

But, what if I told you the reason we sometimes struggle to fulfil our new year’s resolutions is because we are starting them at the wrong time?

Career coach and TikToker Liz (@femhomeec) has argued that New Year’s resolutions aren’t meant to be started in January during the winter, but in the spring instead, around March and April.

“New year’s resolutions are a springtime behaviour not a winter behaviour,” she says.

“When we observe mother nature [and] what we see her doing, everything is going inward [during winter]. We see less sunlight, the foliage has died off from the trees, we don’t hear or see the birds and the pollinators, everything is more silent. This is a time when we’re meant to be more reflective.”

Liz adds that this is a time where we tend to crave more nourishing foods, adding: “Nouroushing foods are things that grow in the ground like onions, garlic, potatoes. This is the time where we are actually meant to put on weight because our true nature is to be able to use that weight when we start moving our bodies more in the spring and summertime.

“When the birds start coming up and the trees start to regrow their foliage, this is also the time when we should be integrating newness in our life.

“To integrate something new in the winter is so unnatural for us.”

The clip, which gained over 16,000 views, saw people share their thoughts on Liz’s comments, with some agreeing that spring is the time for “cleanup and creation”.

“Starting new habits in the peak of winter is definitely a challenge, and there is something about starting them when nature around you is also evolving and changing that can be a source of inspiration,” wrote one.

Another commented that resting is a priority for these winter months and that they look forward to starting new things in the spring.

“Love this take. I have been feeling so uninspired to start work on my resolutions and I feel more like burrowing right now! I feel like spring is just the right time as the season changes so do we.”

“Agreed it’s hibernation time,” a third said. “Time to curl up with a comfy blanket and rest.”

It’s easy to be hard on ourselves about not fulfilling our new year’s resolutions and sometimes we convince ourselves to not have any at all.

But there is a way to get the goals on our lists ticked off – and perhaps taking the time to fully rest and start on your list a few months later could make a big difference.

Right now, hibernation is the name of the game and we can all emerge from our winter cocoons into a springtime new year’s resolution-focused butterfly in a few months time.

Image: Getty