Most New Year’s resolutions start with good intentions, but they tend to fade once life picks up again. Studies show only about 9% of people who set New Year’s resolutions stick with them through the year. January is usually calm. By February, work, schedules, and everyday responsibilities start to fill the space. That is often where things slip, not because the goal was wrong, but because it felt too rigid to maintain.
One way I have more success is by choosing a simple word or theme to guide the year. Something like balance, consistency, or letting go of habits that get in the way of feeling your best. A single word leaves room for flexibility. It can apply to how you move, how you rest, how you eat, and how you show up day to day.
In Rancho Santa Fe, many of the tools that support those goals already exist. This guide highlights local places, practices, and community resources that make it easier to stay aligned with your intentions in a way that feels natural, not forced.
1. Daily Calm Starts With Time Outside
This is one of the easiest habits to keep because it is already built into daily life here. You do not need a plan, you just need to step outside.
Morning and Evening Walk Rituals. Walking your neighborhood, a nearby park, or local trails like Osuna Ranch and The Arroyo Preserve creates a consistent pause in the day. Morning walks help you ease into the day without jumping straight into screens. Evening walks give your nervous system a signal that it is time to slow down.
Sunlight as a Reset Tool. Early morning light and late afternoon light play a major role in current wellness research. Morning sunlight between sunrise and 10 AM signals the brain to stop melatonin production and release cortisol, which supports alertness and energy. It also helps regulate neurotransmitters linked to mood and focus, reducing anxiety and depression symptoms. Exposure later in the day helps regulate sleep cycles and supports vitamin D production.
Time With Horses. Horse riding is one of the few activities that forces full mental presence. You cannot multitask. You cannot rush. Your attention and body have to slow down. Time spent riding or caring for horses naturally resets the pace of the day and requires focus in a way few activities do. That is what makes it one of the most grounding outdoor practices available locally (and it is genuinely fun!).
2. Practices That Support Rest and Recovery
Photo credit The Inn at Rancho Santa Fe
Rest and recovery here tend to look quiet and intentional. Less about pushing through and more about giving the body space to reset and heal the nervous system.
Meditation and Sound
Wellness Wednesday. Jeny of Zen Soul Balance partners with Mila Moursi Spa for Wellness Wednesday sessions hosted at The Inn at Rancho Santa Fe. These are 60 minute sound based sessions designed to slow the nervous system using layered tones and rhythmic sound. The focus stays on relaxation and mental reset rather than performance or outcome. You leave calmer than you arrived and that is the point.
The Fieldswell Wellness Sanctuary. Lauren Fields offers a more customized approach to restoration. Services include red light therapy, sound bowl sessions, guided meditation, and one on one coaching. What stands out is the flexibility. You can come in for a single reset or build something ongoing that fits your schedule. From personal experience, it feels grounded and practical rather than overly structured.
Hotel Wellness and Spa Services
RSF Inn. The Mila Moursi Spa focuses on restorative treatments that support long term wellness rather than quick fixes. Offerings include massage, advanced skin care, European facials, and access to wellness amenities like cold plunge, sauna, and relaxation spaces. The Inn also hosts weekly wellness programming including sound healing, yoga, guided hikes, and IV vitamin therapy through its in house medical team.
Rancho Valencia. Rancho Valencia blends spa recovery with structured movement. Spa services cover massage, facials, body treatments, sauna, cold plunge, and a dedicated spa pool. Daily wellness classes such as yoga and Pilates run alongside private training options, making it a good fit for those who want both recovery and physical activity in one place.
Skin in The Ranch. Skin in The Ranch is focused on customized skin health, not preset facials. Treatments are tailored after skin analysis and include advanced facials, Hydra-facial, micro-needling, chemical peels, lymphatic work, and sculpting techniques. The approach is results driven and individualized.
Everyday Wellness Guidance
Spark Health. Spark Health in Solana Beach takes a diagnostic first approach. Testing is used to identify root causes before a treatment plan is created with a primary care doctor. Focus areas include hormone health, digestive issues, weight management, regenerative medicine, and IV therapy. The structure feels clinical but approachable which is a solid first step toward long term health.
3. Staying Active Through Our Local Club
One of the easiest ways to stay active in Rancho Santa Fe is through a club you already enjoy being part of. Movement happens naturally when it is built into your routine and your social life.
Del Mar Country Club. Del Mar Country Club offers a well rounded mix of activity. Tennis programs include clinics, league play, socials, and private instruction for all levels and ages. Add pickleball courts, a Junior Olympic swimming pool, state of the art fitness facilities, and golf, and you have plenty of ways to stay active without forcing a routine.
Rancho Santa Fe Tennis Club. The Rancho Santa Fe Tennis Club is built for consistency. Tennis and pickleball are part of daily life here, not something that needs planning. You show up, you move, and it fits naturally into your routine. Haven't tried pickleball yet? Check out their fun and interactive pickleball clinics offered throughout the week.
The Bridges. The Bridges offers an all in one approach to staying active. Amenities include golf, tennis, bocce, pickleball, a heated year round pool, indoor spa, and a full health club. Fitness classes are designed by personal trainers, making it easy to stay consistent without overthinking your workouts.
Fairbanks Ranch Country Club (A Bay Club Property). Fairbanks Ranch Country Club focuses on variety. Tennis and pickleball courts, a resort style outdoor pool, golf, basketball, racquetball, squash, and a fitness center give members options depending on the day. Fitness classes, personal and group training, Pilates, and yoga round out the experience.
4. Personal Enjoyments
Photo credit Rowan
Not every wellness habit involves movement. Sometimes it is as simple as creating moments in your day that lift your mood without asking anything from you.
Retail Therapy. Rowan remains known locally as a clothing store, staying close to its roots in everyday wear. As part of its growth, the shop has expanded into hand selected home pieces that are not mass produced. Both clothing and home finds play into the same idea of daily wellness. Wearing something you feel good in and living with pieces you enjoy can subtly shift your mood and reinforce routines that feel intentional.
Brighten Your Day. A monthly flower subscription from Lollia Blooms is a simple way to build in something to look forward to. Sending it to yourself once a month creates a recurring moment of joy and adds brightness to your home (no occasion needed!).
5. Giving Back to Our Community
Giving back adds structure and meaning in a way that feels grounding rather than demanding. It improves your own well being while helping someone else at the same time.
Volunteering
Rancho Santa Fe Senior Center. Volunteering here supports programs and services that keep elderly residents socially connected, informed, and engaged in daily life. The work helps sustain educational offerings, community gatherings, and access to resources that allow people to stay active participants in their community.
Helen Woodward Animal Center. Volunteer opportunities focus on animal care, adoption support, and education. Time spent here tends to feel grounding and rewarding in a very immediate way, especially for those drawn to hands on service.
Local Philanthropic Organizations
Rancho Santa Fe Women's Fund. This organization supports the community by identifying needs and directing funding where it has the most impact. Involvement centers on collective giving and informed philanthropy rather than direct programming.
Country Friends. Funds are raised through events and membership, then distributed to selected charities. The focus stays on strengthening existing organizations and extending their reach.
Helen Woodward Animal Center. Operates as both a service organization and charitable nonprofit. Donations support animal care, adoption programs, and education, so giving directly fuels the services people associate with the organization.
6. Nutrition and Food Coaching
Food coaching is not about restriction. It is about understanding how nourishment affects long term wellness, with guidance that helps you figure out where to start instead of guessing.
Grace Pascale, MS, RDN. Grace Pascale is a registered dietitian based in Rancho Santa Fe who works one-on-one with clients to rebuild their relationship with food. Her approach moves away from diet culture and focuses on practical, whole-food nutrition that supports healing and vitality. Areas of focus include anti-inflammatory nutrition, plant-based eating, prenatal support, cancer prevention, heart health, and eating disorder recovery. Sessions are personalized and designed to meet people where they are.
Peggy Korody RD, CLT. Peggy Korody is a registered dietitian with a private practice in Rancho Santa Fe and a regular contributor to Fairbanks Living Magazine. Her work blends nutrition coaching with deeper insight into how genetics can influence food response, metabolism, and overall health. Offerings include personalized coaching, structured short-term programs, nutrigenomic testing, and meal planning, all tailored to individual habits, health goals, and lifestyle. Virtual sessions are also available.
Progress does not come from doing everything at once. It comes from small choices that add up over time. Rancho Santa Fe offers a rare advantage in that many of the things that support balance, wellness, and connection are already part of daily life here. Walking outside, taking a class, slowing down at a familiar place, giving back, or simply enjoying something that lifts your mood all count.
The goal is not perfection. It is staying aligned with what matters to you, even as the year fills up. When your surroundings support that alignment, it becomes easier to carry your intentions forward long after January has passed.
Use what is around you. Let it evolve with you. And allow your goals to live in a way that feels realistic, steady, and sustainable.
Your friend and neighbor,
Raquel Benguiat
To learn more about dining, travel, local events, and trends in luxury lifestyles, visit my blog. And don't forget to subscribe to my newsletter for updates on luxury real estate and San Diego's best-kept secrets! Talk soon.
