Every year, without fail, millions of individuals make a resolution to drink less, exercise more, eat right, lose weight, etc. Among the multitude of resolutions, a significant majority of those individuals abandon those resolutions, and enter into the ubiquitous community of failures, that “say” they want to change, but, in reality, each one is just another statistic adding to the burgeoning body of individuals that make New Year’s resolutions but never achieve them.
If you’re tired of making resolutions and perennially coming up short, here are 6 tips to make your New Year’s Resolutions STICK!
Note: These tips are not for the faint of heart. If you're easily off-put by “real talk” or can’t handle bluntness, then you may want to look elsewhere. However, if you’re serious about making tangible changes to your daily life, long-term health, and well-being…Let’s GO!
#1 Be Self-Aware
One of the biggest hindrances to achieving New Year’s Resolutions is a lack of self-awareness.
For instance, many individuals quickly adopt (“declare”) a gluten-free, paleo, and/or plant-exclusive diet at New Year’s. Yet, they have NOT dabbled (or tapped their proverbial “toe in the water”) with a rather restrictive eating plan or nutritional paradigm. Others will commit to an excessive exercise routine that stipulates they spend 4-5 days in the gym for 60-90 minutes, when (at most) they have exercises 2 or 3 days per week with not-so-intense workouts.
All of this is to say that you need to really understand who you are.
Are you able to “flip the switch” and immediately go from lackadaisical to “serious” with your workouts and nutrition plan? OR, do you prefer easing into things (i.e. gradual changes to your lifestyle, exercise regimen, and eating plan)?
Answering these questions honestly makes the difference between achieving your New Year’s resolutions (and transformation goals) or becoming one of the millions each and every year who make resolutions but never achieve them.
#2 Re-Evaluate Your Goals
At the end of the previous year, you’re fired up and motivated to achieve a specific goal, but when the new year arrives, things may change. Perhaps you’re focused on a different goal than you were in November or December of the previous year.
That’s perfectly ok. Life happens, circumstances change, and your fitness goals can shift.
Every few weeks take a step back and re-evaluate your goals, motivations, and availability to make it happen.
For added motivation and encouragement to help you achieve your goals, download the 1UP Fitness App and gain access to our private Facebook group for updates and support from team 1UP and other like-minded individuals.
#3 Learn From the Past
We’ve all made mistakes, and we’ll continue to do so along this wonderfully crazy journey that is life. And while it never feels great to make a mistake, it presents a fantastic opportunity for learning more about yourself and seeing what you can do to improve.
Maybe you’ve previously set goals that were a bit too ambitious, and as a result couldn’t fully realize or achieve them. There’s nothing wrong with dreaming big, but when setting goals, a key to achieving them is to be realistic with the goals you want to fulfill. Another possibility is to take that “big goal” and break it up into several mini-goals, and as you reach each mini milestone, you’ll be overcome with feelings of accomplishment and reward that will further motivate you to stay on track to achieve the “big one!”
#4 Keep Training Fresh & Exciting
High levels of physical activity (i.e. exercise) are known to benefit body composition, health, productivity, and mood. However, if you’ve been doing the same workout program for a while, your enthusiasm for training can start to dwindle.
If you start to notice this happening, don’t be afraid to branch out and try something new. For instance, if you’re used to doing the traditional push/pull/legs split, then consider switching to an upper/lower split or total body workout a few times per week. Along the same lines, if you usually hit the treadmill for your cardio sessions, consider hiking, biking, or some bodyweight circuits.
And, if you need help figuring out the right program for your goals, open up the 1UP Fitness App which provides customized training plans and exercise recommendations based on your goals. For extra motivation click on trophy icon inside the app and join the $50,000 8 Week Transformation Challange today.
#5 Hold Yourself Accountable
Sticking to your New Year’s resolution through January and into February is considerably better than the majority of individuals who make resolutions each year. But, if your goal is to make lasting changes, then you’re going to have to create some accountability so that even when times get tough, you still show up and put in the work.
Beyond doing some self-assessments every couple of weeks, it can be helpful to have an accountability buddy or group. This could be your gym partner, spouse, friend, or a group of like-minded individuals on social media. Schedule regular check-ins with your accountability partner to discuss your progress, challenges, and what you want to accomplish next.
Takeaway
Making New Year’s Resolutions is easy. Putting in the work week after week is the hard part. Use the tips discussed above to make this year truly memorable, and for added help in reaching your goals, check out our comprehensive line of supplements to meet all of your health and fitness goals, including weight loss, muscle gain, and more!
