Words by Corinne Evans | Surf Photography by Megan
The winter blues – who needs them? Why would you want to see a big chunk of the year as negative and depressing?
There are lots of reasons to be happy in winter and as much as I love the sunshine and bikini surfs, I thoroughly enjoy wrapping up on cold chilly days and riding waves head to toe in neoprene, it makes me feel alive and invigorated.
If this winter you find yourself struggling a little then it’s ok, it’s perfectly normal but don’t dwell on it too much, there are lots of things you can do to put the smile back on your wonderful face on those cold winter days.
Here are some suggestions:
Love Yourself
With the festive season behind us many can find this time of year a little hard to stomach. After packing our schedules fun of good times, heading back to work in January can often feel like a flat, unmotivated and uninspired month, however this needn’t be the case. Over indulging and spending a little too much can leave us feeling fed up and negative about ourselves.
How about we all remove the pressure to detox in the new year or to change your whole life and become a “better” person and simply love who we are?
Accept who you are and love every inch. There is no greater deed that you can do for yourself than to love who you are.
Set Realistic Goals
Resist the urge to set a whole heap of unrealistic goals in the new year. Really think about what you want to do, where you want to go and what you wish to achieve in all aspects of your life. Write them down, make your visions visible and then decided if you really want them.
For example, I would love to be able to write down that one day I will complete a double grab air BUT if I am really honest with myself, I know this will never happen. I am past that point in my surfing now and all I really want to do is enjoy riding the waves. So instead of me writing down, I want to complete a specific manoeuvre, how about I write down that I wanted to be left smiling after every surf? This is a much more achievable goal and one I can hopefully tick off.
Live for the weekends
I would say that the vast majority of us live on the weekends and this is OK! It is ok to have things to focus on and work towards because life isn’t always Instagram worthy. Sometimes life is packed with driving the kids to school or writing essays and business plans. Sometimes in life, we have no other choice but to work hard in the week and have fun on the weekends. This because more common over the winter months, especially here in Europe. With less outdoor time mid-week (if you work a conventional 9-5 job), there is a bigger importance of actually getting outside in the fresh air and living life! Embrace the cold, wrap up warm and fill those weekends with adventure.
Make plans
Making plans for me personally get me through tough days. Knowing that I have a wonderful adventure, coffee date or experience planned can keep me going for a while. Don’t sit around wishing the winter away. Enjoy the season, make some plans because amazing memories can be made in winter too.
Adventure
Carrying on from what I just touched upon, summer isn’t the only month fit for adventure. Winter can be an awesome time of year to adventure for some many reasons. New waves start to break with the winter swells, the roads tend of to quieter and your favourite after surf coffee house might actually have some free seats. Enjoy this wonderful season and don’t let those pesky winter blues stop you from enjoying yourself.
