As a fitness advocate and personal trainer, I love the new year. It’s the most popular time of the year when I get bombarded with questions and get to experience the rush of new gym members.
People ask me how they can succeed in their goals throughout the entire year. New years isn’t any different, but I think there’s some genuine ambition and concern when a new year comes, and people still haven’t reached their fitness goals.
When I receive messages or concerns around the new year, I take it very seriously, because people are usually much more determined to make a change and take some action.
This is great because the effort and mentality is there. People genuinely want to change.
The problem is, every year, people take action around the start of the new year. When their ‘diet’ or exercise routine fails them, or when they don’t get the results they expect, they quit.
Pretty simple, right? No results, no time to stick to something that isn’t working.. And the buzz of the new year's goal and resolution fades away as each month passes in the year.
This post may be the difference between those of you who will conquer your resolutions and own your lives, and those of you who will not. If you’re tired of quitting on yourself, and having people say “there s/he goes again with the resolution talk”, I’m going to share with you the 5 ways to conquer your fitness new years resolution.
The 5 Ways
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Take small, sustainable steps over time
People like to treat everything in short bursts and sprints. “New year, new me, let's go!” - and after January, their 5 days a week of going to the gym slowly trickles down to 0.
Sure, you want to start fast out of the gates, but what you really need is small, sustainable steps towards progress. You don’t want to run out of gas in the first month of the year and give up because you failed to see the results you ‘expected’.
Instead, start by working out 1-2x a week consistently. Build a strong foundation, and then add to it. Start meal prepping every Sunday. Once you have that down, join the local gym, and commit to going twice a week. Small, sustainable actions and changes will compound into great results.
It’s not the person who acts the fastest who wins. It’s the person who makes the small but consistent steps over time that ends up achieving their goals. I highlight this in my fitness knowledge base, where the number one thing to determine success would be finding a plan that you enjoy and that works for you so that you'll adhere to it and stay consistent.
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Stop counting the days
People create rules and habits for themselves that help them to.. fail at the goals they’ve set up.
If you’re the type of person who creates a ‘start date’ and counts the days that you’ve successfully held to your new years resolution, you’ve already failed.
If you’re counting the days, you aren’t being consistent to your goals. You need to make your resolution a lifestyle, not a nagging count for how long you can sustain the record until it breaks. Don't count the days - make the days count.
Like a smoker who still counts the number of days since they quit, it just keeps their focus on a number, rather than the lifestyle.
Stop counting down or counting up the days and just go live your life as someone who is going to take care of their health, regardless of circumstance, FOREVER. Not for a “1 year resolution”. Not for 3 months. FOREVER.
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Be patient
I myself work on this one every day, but I can't express it enough. If you have set some sort of new years resolution to get fit and start exercising, you have to be patient. Results won't come overnight.
There’s just no substitute for it. It takes tons and tons of effort that can’t be sped up.
Life is simply a marathon, not a sprint, and your health is no different.
You didn’t get out of shape overnight. You won’t get back in shape overnight either. At the time of editing this article, I've been working out for THIRTEEN YEARS. If there's one thing I could look back on and say to myself, it would be to remain patient and trust in the process.
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Compare yourself to the person in the mirror, not anybody else.
Many people fail at this step with their resolution. They look around and see what everybody else is doing.
The media does a great job at destroying most people’s resolutions, because we’re constantly bombarded with figures and images of “what we should look like”. Magazines, videos, advertisements.
We’re always looking on the outside at other people’s appearances, instead of looking internally at ourselves.
If you want to make serious progress on yourself, in fitness and beyond, you need to look within, not outside.
If you only compare yourself to other people, it’s easy to get discouraged. There’s always going to be someone more fit in the gym, or in that celebrity magazine.
The only way you will truly conquer your goals is by comparing yourself today to the person you were yesterday. That’s the only progress you should ever be comparing.
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Get a coach / accountability partner
Simply put, change is HARD. It’s EXTREMELY hard, and doing it alone can be increasingly difficult.
People are constantly labeled by others and we are constantly told by others who we are, or who we have led others to believe we are.
The problem is, we want change, and we don’t want others to see us as the person we were before. That can be incredibly hard, because maybe you were always known as “overweight Oliver” throughout college, and now you want to change.
The easiest way to start moving towards the new you is by getting a coach or accountability partner (if you're interested in a personal training coach, you can contact me here and I may be able to work with you)
Having someone who can either show you the way, or help motivate you, will make or break your fitness goals.
It’s an incredibly difficult journey to change who you are, or to change your appearance. That’s why you shouldn’t have to do it alone. You should have a support group or a coach to help guide you in the right direction and keep you on track to make the changes you’ve sought. They can help motivate you, educate you, and push you towards your goal.
Why do it alone when you can have someone else with you along the way?
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