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New Year, New You

Okay, so we don’t keep our New Year’s resolutions, either. But that doesn’t mean we aren’t forever contemplating going on a roadtrip, losing ten pounds, being financially smarter and, yes, helping poor people in Africa.

Photography by Nat Rea Illustration by Nick Dewar

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We talked to experts in all these subjects, plus many more, and it turns out that none of it is actually that hard. Well, getting to Africa takes some commitment, but it’s nothing people right here in Rhode Island haven’t done. So here are stories and advice about getting fit, dressing better, starting your own business and finding inner peace.

Go ahead, feel free to improve your life. Just don’t call it a resolution. 
 

Be Fitter

Big fitness results can come from small changes to your daily routine. This sequence, supplied by Michaela Fowlkes, is simple enough to do while you’re still in your PJs, with no special equipment or pricey gym membership required. Fowlkes, also known as the Kettlebella, is a licensed massage therapist and owns Kettlebella studio in Cranston, which specializes in traditional but newly hip kettlebell workouts. —Jamie Samons

Perform three rounds of the following exercises, spending thirty seconds on each, with fifteen seconds (or more, if needed) to transition and rest between each movement

Jumping jacks (touch hands together overhead)

Push-ups (on toes or knees)

Squats (sit no lower than knee level)

Forearm plank (toes and forearms on the floor, abs and glutes squeezed; hold)

Compass lunges (don’t let knees go past the toes)
• step right foot in front, back to standing;
• step right foot at a diagonal, back to standing;
• step foot to side into a wide squat, back to standing;
• step right foot behind, back to standing;
• switch feet and repeat

High plank (push-up position, arms straight) 

Abdominal crunches (knees bent, feet on floor, hands clasped lightly behind the head) pull the navel toward the spine, gently lift head and chest diagonally toward the ceiling.
 

Do A Cleanse

A food-loving reporter embarks on a DIY detox — eating only fresh fruit and vegetable juice for three days.

Ignoring strange looks (and the smell of rotisserie chickens) at the market, I pile $75 of produce into my cart. At home, I throw kale, green pepper, carrots, apples and a cucumber  into the juicer and fill a large glass. Surprisingly, it makes me full. Keri Layton, the naturopathic physician I consulted pre-fast, said it’s important not to let yourself get hungry. So I crank the machine every time my stomach rumbles. All day I wait for headaches and lethargy, but instead feel remarkably awake and alert.

I’m late to work because it takes an extra half hour to make “breakfast,” but I compensate by being super productive once I get there.

Yesterday’s adrenaline rush has carried over (power walk at lunch!), but I’m worried I’m going to crash. As Layton advised, I keep the liquids — juice, vegetable broth, water, tea — flowing. At yoga, my teacher tells me I look positively radiant in my pink tee. I know it’s the detox, not the top. After class, I speed home, stomach grumbling, and — cue the self pity — watch my boyfriend inhale pizza while I chug an extra-tall glass of greens.

Woohoo! This morning I’m three pounds lighter (an unexpected bonus!). At lunchtime, as coworkers chow on turkey sandwiches and spaghetti, I desperately miss chewing. Happy to escape, I drive home to get juiced. On deadline and famished, I hit a wall at 4 p.m. I break down and bite into a bruised plum. I feel like a failure, but it tastes damn good. At night, I eat whole fruits and vegetables. Nothing else. 

Takeaway: 1) I have a new awareness of what I consume and have curbed autopilot eating. 2) Detox-ing is better suited to non-work days. 3) I loved the energy boost, and am investigating whether I have a fatigue-inducing food allergy. 4) Fresh juice makes me feel good, and I plan to drink more — I just need a few days off first. —Jenna Pelletier
Editor’s Note: We do not recommend starting a fast or cleanse without consulting a physician.