How To Stick To Your New Year Fitness Resolution

Happy New Year from the team at our Auckland physio clinic. We imagine you’ve done what most of the country has done and made a resolution to be fitter and healthier in 2021. As far as resolutions go, we think it’s a good one and something worth sticking to. So, to help you do just that, here are a few tips.

• Set Achievable Goals Each Month: Most resolutions fail because we have one big goal in mind and we become discouraged because the sheer magnitude of it seems so unachievable when seen in its entirety. So why not make a mini-resolution each month? For example, instead of aiming to lose 12 kilograms in one year, break it down to losing one kilo in a month. That immediately appeals as a much easier goal to aim for each and every month, and because it is something you can achieve with relative ease, you’ll keep up your motivation until your big goal is reached.
• Appreciate The Immediate Benefits Of Exercise: In many ways, this is related to the first tip. Instead of looking ahead at a big goal that seems a long way down the track, be more mindful of the “here and now” as you exercise and appreciate the immediate benefits such as reduced stress and greater mental clarity. These short term gains will see you stick with your exercise plan for the long term.
• Change Into Exercise Clothes As Soon As You Get Home From Work: An associate professor in the department of kinesiology and health at Rutgers University in New Jersey recommends you take off your work clothes and put on exercise clothes as soon as you get home. The reasoning is it can be difficult to remove your exercise clothes without feeling some guilt about not doing any activity. In other words, you’re in workout gear so you might as well do something active, be it a brisk walk around the block, or a brief weights session at home. If you leave your professional clothes on, you’re far more likely to slump in front of the TV for the evening and do nothing.
• Choose An Exercise You Like: If you have resolved to get more exercise in 2021, we recommend you pick an activity you actually like to do. While there are many experts who will tell you that a certain exercise might be the best thing since sliced bread, you won’t stick with it if you don’t like doing it. The best way to stick to an exercise programme is to base it on an activity you enjoy and will continue to enjoy down the track.
• Don’t Do It Alone: The American Society Of Training And Development says that people who have a workout buddy at the gym are 95% more likely to reach their fitness goal! We think the partner system works just as well when you’re doing any exercise, be it walking, running, cycling, swimming or more. Team up with someone who has the same fitness and health goals as you but make sure that person won’t accept your excuses for not wanting to exercise – and, of course, they’ll expect you to set a similar standard for them!

It’s been suggested that only 8% of people actually follow through with their New Year’s resolutions to the end of the year. As far as we’re concerned, that’s another way to stay motivated. By sticking with it, you’ll be one of that 8% and becoming a member of that very small and select club will be something to be extremely proud of.