Four Steps to Re-ignite Your Resolutions

Has resolve for your New Year's Resolutions drifted?

Remember just a few weeks back when the clock struck midnight and the promise of all a new year holds was sparkling and new? You were all fired up to meet your new goals…and now, if you’re like a majority of people, your New Year’s resolutions have…drifted. Statistically speaking, most people keep their resolutions for about three weeks into January then drift back into old habits. Surfing the web....watching TV.....when you promised yourself you'd get up and get going just a bit more often....

If you want this year to be the year you finally make solid gains, try these four relatively easy steps to get back on track.

1. Review your resolutions. First, did you make too many? Or was it just too big of a change? Focusing on more than one or two key changes will more than likely lead to lack of focus which almost always leads to stalling out or drifting. Dial back your expectations and lock in on one change that you most want to make. Think about it and why you want it. Why is it important to you? Write it down so you can remember it later. Revisiting your source of motivation can be helpful in keeping on track.

2. Review your obstacles. If you had good intentions and were unable to keep your resolve, what happened? Don’t berate yourself, but look honestly at the roadblocks that arose. Did you think getting up at 5am every day to workout would be feasible? Did you think a 60 minute workout five times a week would be able to fit into y our already busy schedule? Think like a scientist and try to look at the situation through that lens. Figure out what went wrong. The answer is NOT “I don’t have enough willpower.” If you have not stuck to your goals, there’s a reason and it’s usually related to #3.

3. Revise your goal into smaller segments. If your goal is to lose 20 pounds of fat, how about start with losing 1 pound and keeping that off for two weeks? Then focus on the next pound? Studies show that we manage to maintain change best when we try to make very small changes. A behavioral coach I once knew used this phrase “ridiculously small change” is what you should shoot for. When asked for examples, she said “If you want to start drinking more water during the work day, the first change you make is having a cup or container you really like that is always with you at your desk.” I laughed, she said – good, if you laugh at how small the change is, then it’s ridiculously small, and that will lead to success. She continued the example – “After you master that, then your commitment is to fill the container with water every single day, whether or not you drink it.” The next change would be that you drink at least one container’s worth of water per day and so on. Break your goal into tiny segments and master the smallest possible change.

4. Persist and reset regularly. We all have good and bad days. We get in the habit of throwing in the towel the minute we hit a bump. If you can master this one tiny step, you’ll find serious success follows. When you eat too much, don’t exercise, blow off meditation, whatever your goals – just stop. Think “Yup, that will happen sometimes, it happens to everyone.” Take a few deep breaths, think of the reset on a timer that zeros out and release this. Reset and say “OK, let’s restart now.” You don’t have to ‘make up’ for whatever. If you overindulged, you don’t starve yourself to get back to your calories. Just start from where you are. Reminding yourself that it’s a journey and just starting over from where you are is a powerful tool that helps you make progress on any goal because success is never a straight line.

Finally, if you are so inclined, find a buddy or a coach. Having someone else who is in the same boat, who can encourage you when you’ve lost steam (and who you can also encourage when needed) is another proven method for achieving results. For me, it was realizing that without a trainer, I was not going to be able to meet my goals. In the past, I was fine on my own, but I realized the demands on my life from work and family took so much of my energy that when it came to pushing myself to meet my goals, I was out of steam. So, I began working with Maggie. I’ve been working out twice a week with Maggie for about six months now and it’s the best investment in myself I could make. I’ve lost weight, gained strength and feel that I have a support system that will help me achieve my goals for the long term.

So, reset today and get back on track. You CAN do this.

Note from Maggie: Want some assistance? Contact me, I'd love to help you achieve your fitness and health goals, no matter what level you're starting from!

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