It’s January once again, which for 40% of Americans means New Year’s resolutions that typically are fitness and health related. A new year signifies a new beginning; a fresh start, however, 80% of people who create a New Year’s resolution fail by the second week of February. Here are five tips to keep in mind so you can be one of the few who keep their fitness resolutions and are successful this year.
1. Be realistic.
No matter what goals you set in life, it’s important to make sure your expectations are realistic ones. With that being said, I’m not insinuating to sell yourself short. I’m a huge advocate of dreaming big, but also making sure your dreams can become a reality. It’s not realistic to lose 100 pounds in 3 months, nor would it be healthy to try to do so. 8-10 pounds per month is generally an achievable weight loss goal for someone who is looking to lose a significant amount of fat. Whatever your health and fitness resolution may look like, just ensure that it’s something you are capable of accomplishing in a safe and healthy way.
2. Set attainable short term goals.
Setting one or two realistic, long term goals is a great thing to do, but often times it can be intimidating and feel out of reach. This is why creating attainable, short term goals that ultimately get you closer to accomplishing a long term goal is essential to your success. Setting short term goals help keep you focused and motivated with the task at hand. It gives you the opportunity to cross things off your list and celebrate small victories as you get closer and closer to achieving the long term goal you originally set out to accomplish.
3. Realize you aren’t perfect and mistakes are inevitable.
You aren’t perfect in any area of your life, so don’t expect to suddenly become perfect when it comes to your health and fitness resolutions. You are going to make mistakes and give into temptations sometimes, and guess what? That’s okay! No one expects you to be without fault except you. The secret to success despite your flaws is learning from your mistakes and not allowing them to consume you. Just because you ate a cookie on your lunch break doesn’t mean the rest of your day is ruined, and it definitely doesn’t justify eating an entire pizza for dinner that night just because you feel you failed earlier that day. Give yourself a break and don’t let one bad meal or missed training session dictate the rest of your week.
4. Track your progress and celebrate non-weight victories.
Tracking your progress is one of the foundational steps to getting results. You cannot be successful if you first don’t know where you currently are in your journey and then where you want to be. There’s a multitude of ways to monitor progress, a select few being, weight loss, inches lost, body fat percentages, and before and after photos. Pick a couple that correlate best with your fitness goals. Once you select two or more ways to track your progress, learn to celebrate non-weight victories. The number on the scale isn’t always the best indicator of success, and it certainly does not define you. Ask yourself questions like, “How do I feel?” “Do I like the way my clothes fit?” “Am I stronger now than I was when I started?” If you answer positively to some of these questions, then congratulations! What you are doing is working, and you should be proud of yourself. Celebrate these victories because they matter and are getting you one step closer to reaching your main goal.
5. Acknowledge there is no finish line.
True health and wellness isn’t a 90 day challenge or even a year long goal. It’s a lifestyle, which means there is no finish line. If you are truly chasing optimal health and fitness, you’ll always create greater standards for yourself and set new goals to accomplish once past ones have been met. At the very least, you’ll be in a constant state of maintaining your current health status. Get out of the mindset that fitness has an end point; it doesn’t. But you also have your entire lifetime to achieve it, and what better time than now? Far too many people miss out on obtaining the results they want and the success they crave because they give up too soon.
Getting started and next steps
This January, make it your New Year’s resolution to not quit on yourself. If you aren’t able to follow through with these five steps on your own, consider hiring a personal trainer. Having a professional in your corner takes the guesswork out of accomplishing your fitness goals and can help provide real results that last. At Never Settle Fitness, we take pride in helping you become successful in leading a healthier life. Schedule your complimentary consultation with us today and make giving up on your New Year’s resolution a thing of the past.