Movement Column: New Year's Resolutions

Do you set a New Year’s Resolution? As we get older, our likelihood to make a resolution decreases more and more! Does this mean we have given up? Or maybe we don’t need a new calendar year to make changes. Approximately 59% of younger adults still make resolutions, while those older than 55 are 3.1 times less likely to make a resolution.

For some statistics: Twenty-three percent of people give up on their resolution by the end of the first week, and 43% by the end of January. Fewer than 10% of New Year’s resolutions are kept at all! Resolutioners are most likely to quit on the second Friday of the month, which means Jan. 10 is dubbed “Quitter’s Day.” Why is this? Are our goals too unrealistic? Are we setting ourselves up for failure?

I’m sure you can guess the No. 1 resolution without reading any further. You nailed it: It’s improving your health. While some resolutions include traveling more or getting a new job, 79% of New Year’s goals involve health improvement. What a great goal! This can include physical, mental and even social health.

I think we can all agree, creating new, healthy habits is difficult. Let’s talk about steps we can take to improve success:

1) Write down your end goal. You want to remind yourself every day why you started this adventure in the first place. Write down why you chose this goal and why this resolution is important to you. Why do you feel this resolution will make a better version yourself? Dig deep!

2) You can’t climb a mountain in one big step. It takes small steps. Let’s set smaller, realistic and obtainable goals to get where you want to be. These steps must include small time frames that are achievable, yet adjustable, because life never goes as planned.

3) Put a note with your goal on it somewhere you will see it displayed every day. Remind yourself you have goals to hit today: realistic goals, obtainable goals. It’s time to execute. P.S.: Find an accountability partner. It helps.

“I’m going to exercise five days a week!” This is a great goal, but that’s a huge step when exercising has been totally absent in the current lifestyle. What has kept you from this “five days a week” lifestyle before? Is it time?

A more obtainable goal could be: Do any form of physical activity for 10 minutes, two times a week, before the start of your normal daily grind. Set the alarm 30 minutes earlier. Starting first thing in the morning will help prevent a busy schedule from getting in the way of our goals. After one month, add one more day. Obtainable.

Before, this goal may have seemed huge, but we have now broken it down into small steps in the right direction. With this resolution, we are adapting a new lifestyle and have now created a routine, one we can stick to, one we need to stick to, for our own well-being.

Applaud yourselves.

Christine Jaegers is the fitness and wellness specialist with the City of Cape Girardeau. In the fitness and wellness world for more than 13 years, her passion for helping others live a healthier life only grows more and more as she continues to spread her roots.