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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Nottingham chapter.

What are you waiting for? Whether you are a ‘self-care girlie’, regular ‘gym-bro’, or just wanting to try something new, this is the perfect challenge for you.

So what actually is this ‘Winter Arc’ business I keep seeing all over my TikTok? Well, in short, it’s the opportunity for you to start setting goals and making progress before New Year’s rolls around. Individuals are being encouraged to use these cold winter months to get ahead of the #NewYearNewMe crowd and lock-in to become the best version of yourself. It’s a time to set some goals, implement some habits, and gain a bit of momentum moving into January 2025. Why wait for New Year’s when you can get started on improving yourself now?

If you look to TikTok, it’s not long before you see lots of fitness influencers waking up at the crack of dawn, downing pints of green juice and hitting the gym five times a week. Whilst this is what a ‘Winter Arc’ may look like for some people, it is not what it needs to look like for you. A ‘Winter Arc’ is personal and will look different for everybody.

So lets get into it.

How do I start? First, let’s set some goals. Think about what that you want to achieve by the end of the year or the things that you would like to bring into 2025; these could be self-care related, new habits, breaking bad habits, or maybe just starting that new thing you have always wanted to try. Here’s some ideas below:

  1. Getting daily movement – whether this is hitting the gym, trying out a fitness class, or just going for a cute autumnal walk, committing to exercising in some form daily is great for your physical and mental health.
  2. Limit social media time – easier said than done, I know! But reducing the time you spend on socials can have a great impact on your mental health. It also allows you some more time to spend on other things, such as trying something new, reading a book, or maybe even reading some of our other amazing ‘Her Campus’ articles (wink, wink).
  3. Self-Care habits – this could range from tracking your hydration levels throughout the week to implementing a face mask evening every Sunday.
  4. Try something new – allocate some time to improving yourself with learning a new skill or maybe even joining a new society. This is a great time to do that thing that you always put off.

And finally, set some rules. This is how you are going to keep yourself accountable through these months. This could be a simple checklist that you have at the end of each day or week, or it could be time limits with certain apps on your phone. It could even be a sweet treat reward when you know you have hit a goal that you wanted to. Just remember to keep your goals realistic and this will make it easier to stick to.

So as I said at the start
 what are you waiting for? Now is the time to hop on to this trend and start working towards your best self. You would be surprised at the major impact that 2 months of hard, committed work can have. Don’t wait for January 1st, START NOW!

Amelia Clow

Nottingham '27

Amelia Clow is an England Karate Athlete and sports ambassador for the University of Nottingham. She writes about sport and wellness, as well as new opportunities and events in and around Nottingham. She is currently studying Business Management in her second year at the University of Nottingham. In her spare time Amelia enjoys keeping active with any sport she can try, including surfing and running, as well as trying anything new and travelling to as many places as she can.