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How Do I Make My Resolutions Last? Start by Planting Intentions in Winter.

  • Writer: Dee Morrow
    Dee Morrow
  • Dec 30, 2025
  • 2 min read

January arrives with pressure. We tell ourselves this is the month everything will change. This is the month we will have more discipline, lose the weight, quit the habits, overhaul our life, and somehow snap into a better version of ourselves.

Winter is a season for resting. Nothing grows in the cold. Nature uses this time to conserve energy, and we are also a part of nature.

What we call “resolutions” are really intentions. They are seeds, and seeds do not bloom in January. They bloom in April, they bloom in the spring. Winter is the season to tend the soil, not demand full transformation.

Snow drifting across a window in Bay Shore, capturing the quiet pace of winter.
Winter slows everything down for a reason.

Don’t let a calendar date convince you that everything has to happen now. You cannot pound the gym for a month and undo years of stress. You cannot just snap out of burnout because it’s the New Year.

If you want something to last, you build it slowly. January is the season you map out the steps. It's how to make resolutions last.

Journal, coffee cup, and angel number cards set up for January intention-setting at West Door Yoga.
A simple setup to get clear and start slow.

What January Is Really For

January is for cultivating the seeds of the changes you would like to make. Winter is for strengthening your roots, not forcing quick results. It is the time to check in instead of pushing past your limits.

Ask yourself:

  • What intention am I planting this winter

  • What part of my life needs quiet

  • What small habit feels grounding

  • What support do I need

  • How do I want to feel by spring

This is the work that lasts. This is the work that actually blooms.

“Nature is resting follow its lead.”
A glowing winter fire symbolizing warmth, steady energy, and January intention setting.
Warmth helps intentions take shape.

Your Practice Can Be Your Soil

At West Door Yoga, we treat January like a greenhouse. We focus on practices that strengthen your foundation so you can grow when spring arrives.

We use intentional movement, calmer breathing, and classes that support the nervous system. When your body feels safe, your mind opens. When your mind opens, your intentions grow.

If you need a gentle place to begin:

  • Gentle Flow

  • Candlelight Yoga

  • Restorative

  • Slow Vinyasa

  • Reiki and Relaxation

These practices help you build warmth and stability from the inside out. This is how transformation is sustainable. This is how intentions take root.

Explore the current schedule here: https://www.westdooryoga.com/schedule

If you want more guidance on the power of gradual change, this is a resource I trust: https://www.kripalu.org/resources

Bare winter trees lining a Bay Shore street, showing stillness and clarity at the start of the year.
January gives you space to see clearly.

A January Reminder That Matters

You do not have to rush. You do not have to fix everything this month. You do not have to fight yourself into being better. You only have to plant the intention and tend to it with patience and practice.

When spring comes, you will see the growth you invested in.

January is simply the beginning.

— Dee Morrow Co-Founder of West Door Yoga 500-Hour Yoga Teacher | Reiki Master | Hypnosis Practitioner | Registered Nurse

West Door Yoga — Bay Shore, NY, A community for focused, healing movement and real-life wellness.



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