ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:
Here's a question you're likely to hear this time of year. Do you have your New Year's resolution yet? Look. No pressure - it's winter. Holidays are exhausting. And you have our permission to do nothing whenever that's possible.
JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
Indeed. But if you want to set a goal for 2024, NPR's Life Kit has published a list of 50 ideas from past episodes. Kavitha George didn't really have a choice when it came to hers. As host of Alaska Morning News in Anchorage, she started her workday at 5 a.m., so she needed to become a morning person.
KAVITHA GEORGE, BYLINE: It's tough to wake up in the dark and head to work in the cold, knowing that daytime is still several hours away.
This is kind of the worst part of my day. I'm worried that no matter how long I do this, it's always going to feel a little jarring when I wake up this early anyways, time to get going.
(SOUNDBITE OF FAUCET RUNNING)
GEORGE: I pared my morning routine down to the bare bones to conserve every ounce of sleep I have. I brush my teeth and put on several warm layers. I eat a single pancake.
(SOUNDBITE OF PLASTIC CLICKING)
GEORGE: I keep a batch ready to go in my freezer at all times. And then I'm out the door.
(SOUNDBITE OF KEYS RATTLING)
GEORGE: I try to sing something punchy in the car to wake up my vocal chords. Occasionally, I met with some of Alaska's urban wildlife on the drive. A moose ran alongside my car as I pulled into the station last week. And by the time I get to the studio, I'm usually feeling awake.
This is state - this is statewide news from Alaska Public Media. I'm Kavitha George.
SHAPIRO: Another popular resolution is to cut back on alcohol. Here's NPR's Allison Aubrey with some tips.
ALLISON AUBREY, BYLINE: Aaron White of the National Institutes of Health says it may be tough to follow through if you haven't thought about what you're going to replace your alcohol habit with. Say you're in the habit of having a glass of wine every night at 6 o'clock.
AARON WHITE: Instead, at exactly 6, do some yoga. Go for a walk. Watch something funny. Replace the behavior with something that is healthier and more sustainable.
AUBREY: A dry month may lead you to rearrange your social calendar or to pick people to hang out with who will be supportive. Elizabeth Greener says that's what she did.
ELIZABETH GREENER: I made it a point to find social events that had other options so that, you know, we weren't going exclusively to, you know, places that were alcohol. Only - it would be a place that had food or - kind of changing the setting a little bit so I didn't really feel like the odd man out if I wasn't, you know, taking shots with people.
SUMMERS: Feeling inspired? Life Kit's got 50 ways to improve your life in the show's resolution planner. Just visit npr.org/lifekit. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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