How You Can Achieve Your New Year’s Resolutions

How You Can Achieve Your New Year’s Resolutions

By Movieguide® Contributor

Every New Year, people make resolutions to eat healthier, work out more or cut out bad habits, but is it possible to actually follow through with those goals?

Come January 1, gyms will be packed with people hoping to make those resolutions a reality. In fact, 48% of respondents to a survey said improving fitness is their priority for 2024.

But, in a few months, how many will actually be sticking to their resolutions? Forbes found that the average resolution lasts 3.74 months.

So, how can you set achievable New Year’s resolutions and stick with them?

According to Yahoo! Life and Nicole Siegfried, a clinical psychologist and chief clinical officer at Lightfully Behavior Health, there are four ways that will help someone achieve their goals:

1. Set S.M.A.R.T. Goals: This acronym stands for goals that should be “Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound,” Siegfried wrote. For example, someone who says, “I want to get stronger” does not have specific ways in which they can become stronger. Instead, they should have a goal that says, “I am going to improve my squat weight by 50 pounds by April.”
2. Do not focus on the outcome but the habits it takes to achieve the outcome: “I recommend focusing on behavior change rather than outcome,” Siegfried said. For example, instead of only doing squats until April, try creating a workout plan that improves the overall strength of your legs and your entire body. A goal would be “I am going to workout four days a week and focus on two muscle groups each workout.”
3. Find specific milestones to hit and celebrate meeting them: Gina Moffa, licensed clinical social worker, said, “Most people forget that goals have to have milestones that we reach along the way. This comes from making a plan and going step by step in the direction of the goal.” She added, “When you have a good day or feel really positive about reaching one of the steps, reward yourself and also ask yourself what you did or what things helped to make that successful,” she says. “Keep doing those things that have worked along the way.”
4. Find an accountability partner: The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 4: 9-12, “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” In the same way, there are days where we won’t feel like going to the gym or running towards our goal. But if we have a partner to help us stay on track, it makes the goal easier to achieve. “People might be more apt to stick with it, as there is more motivation to continue on with the goal,” Moffa expressed. “When we set goals alone, it can be harder.”

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