Forget New Year's resolutions. Build systems that make adventures inevitable, not aspirational. Pick your theme, remove the friction, and just step out the door.
You know that resolution's going to fail by Valentine's Day, right?
"I'll get outside every weekend." "I'll complete the Wainwrights." "I'll finally do that multi-day route I've been thinking about for three years." "I will clean my bike."
Big ambitions. Great intentions. Dead by February when the weather's grim, work's mental, and you've somehow not been outdoors since New Year's Day.
The problem isn't the ambition. It's the approach.
Just Step Out the Door
Alastair Humphreys has it sorted: "Those small things that are so good, so valuable, only happen if you lace up your shoes and step out the front door."
Not if you plan perfectly. Not if you wait for ideal conditions. Not if you finally buy that last bit of kit. It only happens if you step out.
There is an entire productivity industry out there with gurus preaching how to best to get things done and flogging merch that will make it all easy. Al has been showing us the way for years: outcome goals are fragile. Simple systems are what actually work.
You can't control whether you summit 50 peaks this year (weather, injury, life getting in the way). But you can control whether you're someone who gets out midweek. Whether Wednesday mornings are sacred. Whether your bag lives packed in the car ready for action.
Systems over summits. Direction over destination.
The Year of...
Instead of a resolution, pick a theme. A direction. Something that guides decisions without demanding specific outcomes.
Not "I will wild camp 20 times" but "Year of Sleeping Outside" - suddenly every decent forecast becomes an opportunity, not an obligation.
Not "I will cycle 5,000 miles" but "Year of Going Further" - now that bikepacking route you've been putting off feels like it fits the plan.
Not "I will get fitter" but "Year of Dawn Starts" - because everything's better at sunrise and you have to get up early to see it.
The theme doesn't care if you miss a weekend. It doesn't judge you for adjusting plans. It just quietly guides you toward more of what you actually want: good days outside, going nice places and doing good things.
What This Looks Like in Practice
Here are some themes that might resonate for you:
Year of Midweek Adventures - Escape the weekend crowds. Discover your local hills on a Tuesday. Realise Wednesday is the best day of the week.
Year of Saying Yes - When your mate suggests something that sounds a bit ridiculous, you're in. No excuses, no "maybe next time."
Year of New Ground - Different hills. Different activities. Different seasons. Stop walking the same three routes.
Year of Slowing Down - Wild camping instead of racing to the car. Actually stopping to look around. Bothying. Making the journey matter as much as the destination.
Year of Wild Water - Rivers, lakes, seas, falls. If there's water, you're finding it. Bonus points if it involves getting in.
Year of Taking Others - Get your mates into it. Take your kids. Convince your partner that yes, a bivvy under the stars absolutely counts as a date.
Year of Competence - Learn navigation properly. Practice wild camping. Get comfortable in winter conditions. Build skills that open doors.
The theme guides you. The systems make it inevitable.
Building Systems That Actually Work
Right, enough mumbo jumbo. Here's how you make adventures happen consistently instead of occasionally.
1. Remove the Friction
Most resolutions fail because saying yes requires too many decisions. Make it stupid easy.
The Wednesday Morning System Block it in the calendar. Non-negotiable. Tell work you start late on Wednesdays. Now you've got dawn till 10am every week. That's 52 sunrise opportunities you didn't have before.
The Packed Bag System Your rucksack lives packed with the essentials. Spare clothes, headtorch, basic kit. When Friday afternoon forecast looks decent, you're not scrambling to find stuff - you're just adding food and going.
The Car Boot System Sleeping bag, mat, bivvy bag, spare layers - they live in the car. Weather changes? Plans change. You're already equipped for the opportunity. We call it the Go Box.
The Partner System Pick one person who's up for it. Make a pact: when either of you suggests something, the answer is yes unless there's a genuinely good reason. No "maybe," no "let me check my schedule." Yes or no.
2. Make It Smaller Than You Think
Big plans sound impressive. Small systems actually happen.
Not "I'll wild camp every month" but "I'll sleep outside once before the end of January." Not "I'll hike every weekend" but "I'll do one midweek walk in the next fortnight." Not "I'll cycle-tour Scotland" but "I'll do an overnight bikepacking trip within 20 miles of home."
Nail the small version. Build the habit. Expand when it feels easy, not when it feels impressive.
3. Stack the Deck
You know what makes adventures more likely? Having mates who are also up for it. Kit that actually works. Routes you're excited about. Plans that require minimal faff.
Join things - Clubs, groups, online communities. Suddenly there are people suggesting things you'd never have thought of.
Have the kit sorted - Not perfect, not expensive, just functional. A jacket that keeps you dry. Boots that don't hurt. A sleeping bag that works. When kit's not an obstacle, going becomes easier.
Scout the routes - Keep a running list of "things that look good." When you've got three hours free on a Wednesday, you're not googling frantically - you're picking from the list and going.
4. Protect the Habit
The first few times are awkward. You're slower than you want to be. Things go wrong. You forget stuff. That's normal.
Protect the habit in those early weeks:
- Pick easy objectives. Success builds momentum.
- Go with people who make it fun, not people who make you feel slow.
- Don't post everything online. Some adventures are just for you.
- Accept that January weather is grim. That's the point.
By March, it won't feel like effort. It'll just be what you do.
Start Anytime, Not January 1st
Here's the thing about New Year's resolutions: they give you permission to delay. "I'll start properly in January."
Start now, even if you missed the New Year. To be honest starting in the middle of winter isn't the ideal time to start anyway - here are Jenny and Al with some more tips in this winter webinar from the archive.
Just step out the door.
When It Goes Wrong (And It Will)
Bad weather. Injury. Work exploding. Life happening. You'll miss weeks. Maybe months.
The resolution dies here. The theme doesn't.
Year of Midweek Adventures doesn't care that you missed three Wednesdays. It cares that you've still got 49 left. The system doesn't judge you for pausing - it just waits there, ready when you are.
This is why themes and systems beat resolutions: they're forgiving. They adapt. They understand that outdoor plans are always provisional.
Missed January because of flu? Right, let's make February count. Weather's been awful for weeks? Alright, but next decent day, we're out. Lost momentum? That's fine. Start again tomorrow.
The summit doesn't move because you're late. Your theme doesn't expire because you took a break.
Your Year of...
So. What's your theme?
Not what sounds impressive. Not what you think you should do. What actually excites you?
What would make 2026 feel like a year well-spent? What direction, if you followed it, would lead to more stories worth telling? What kind of person do you want to be by December?
Pick something. Write it down. Tell someone who'll hold you to it.
Then build the system that makes it inevitable.
Block the time. Pack the bag. Remove the friction. Make it easy to say yes.
And when Wednesday morning rolls around, or the forecast looks decent, or your mate texts suggesting something that sounds a bit ridiculous:
Lace up your shoes. Step out the front door.
The rest will follow.
Go nice places. Do good things.
What's your Year of? We'd love to hear what direction you're heading - drop us a comment below or tag us in your adventures.