2012- will you be fit enough to see the end of the world?!

2012 is officially upon us, and with this auspicious New Year comes the impending "doom" as predicted by the Mayans so many moons ago. There is a lot of hearsay regarding the 21st/22nd of December 2012 but I can quite happily say that I am excited to know what will happen. My Physicist friends have all poo-pooed the most common theory that a strange alignment of the planets will bring about such a gravitational pull, the force of which will be able to completely knock the Earth off it's current axis, thus causing chaos for our eco-system as we know it. In fact, the one sitting next to me is shaking his head right now, chuckling menacingly, almost willing December to hurry up and arrive so that he may be the one to state "I told you so". Apparently this "destructive" orientation of our planet and the sun with the centre of the galaxy, actually occurs every year as dictated by the laws of motion. Hurrah! The things you fail to remember from GCSE Physics are quite fascinating indeed.

If you are at all interested in hearing a real scientist discuss this "phenomenon" I recommend watching Neil Degrasse Tyson as he makes light of the the impending "Apocalypse".

One last point on this subject, the word Apocalypse is often misconstrued, as any avid reader of Dan Brown novels would know. Etymologically speaking, the term derives from the Ancient Greek and means to "uncover" or "revelation" but modern translations and usage have rendered us to understand the word to mean destruction and a cataclysmic event. I personally like to think that the apocalypse of 2012 will herald change, in whichever way that manifests itself, I'm not sure that complete world annihilation is on the cards.

I don't know about you guys, but all this talk of the end of the world has made me more determined to be fit and healthy in order to witness it! My new year's resolution was to make it to December 2012 in a capacity to be able to document the occurrences, even if all the 'conspiracy nuts' are right and the only beings who remain to see what I leave behind will be little green men.

I used to be that person, who at the stroke of midnight would make a mental list of inconceivable goals, only to fail at them all by January 2nd due to the complete overindulgence on new year's eve. This year I enjoyed a quiet(ish) evening at a good friend's house where I heard someone declare that their resolution was to uncomplicate their life. At first I thought the abstract nature of this notion was no better than reasoning you could give up crisps for an entire year, but then I realised that setting a goal which could be interpreted in many ways could actually work. Genius. So I have adopted it and declared to one and all that my only resolution for 2012 is to uncomplicate myself. This in turn means simplicity...a simple diet, a simple exercise plan, a simple way of approaching work and money and investment. (Hopefully) leading to an easy and stress free existence...?

If you're more a follower of the concrete and precise, below are a number of websites which offer sensible and reliable advice on choosing healthy new years resolutions you may actually stick to. We're not quite at the end of the first week of January yet, so don't assume you're too late to make changes. This year could be your best yet, and it it doesn't work out, there's always the possibility that you'll never have to make another resolution again.

Healthy resolutions as outlined by the Department of Health

Some startling statistics on why you should keep things simple

This link is virtually pointless, but the image reminded me of Lord Alan Sugar's "little fork diet" which I heard about on the Graham Norton show (and is also outlined in his autobiography). It's chuckle-worthy. The diet basically entails Lord Sugar eating his food with a little fork so it takes him longer to consume his food and therefore he feels fuller and eats less!

And lastly, a geek's perspective on resolution making.

Whatever your personal resolutions be, I hope 2012 brings you nothing but health wealth and happiness. Happy New Year!

PS. Be sure to check out the sports blog to read about Breathing Relief™'s Director Phillipa James and her adventures with the 30 Day Shred program in the new year.

PPS. You do know that when reading these posts you should be clicking on the words in a different colour as they are links to other sites..? yes. Good, just checking.