Why can't I keep my New Year's resolution?

New Years resolutions are designed for failure. People generally take everything they can think of that made them unhappy the previous year and resolute that all of those things are going to be different in the new year.

Instead of having goals once a year try having goals year around. This way you feel like you are always working toward something and aren't overwhelmed at the notion of big, huge goals once a year.

In setting those goals is great to have long term goals that might take you a year to reach but set short term, small, realistic goals throughout the year toward reaching your long term goals. As you reach your short term goals you build confidence and self esteem. This motivation will help you strive toward reaching your long term goal.

Remember it's ok to have long term goals but have short term goals that help you get there. Don't forget to make all your goals realistic and be flexible if you need to change them.

New Year’s resolutions are based on hopes of changing aspects of our lives that we want to improve. Then the hype runs out after a couple of months and we are back to where we started. It is important to understand it takes a lot of work to make changes in our lives. In order to be successful, break the large goal into smaller achievable chunks. This way success is achieved along the journey.

EXAMPLE

One long-term realistic goal is to improve your health. This is very general and in order to get there it will involve changing eating habits and including or increasing exercise. These two aspects can be broken down into smaller chucks.

Exercise – A smaller goal could be to exercise 3-5 times week. Once this becomes a habit, increase the intensity or try a new workout. Let’s say your goal is to run a half-mile without stopping. Once this is reached, increase the goal to running 1 mile without stopping. Before you know it you’ll be running a 5K (3.2 miles)!

Eating habits - A nutritional goal could be to find healthy substitutes for the boxed and canned food in the pantry. Read labels, and experiment with different food options. Change 1 food item at a time and soon you will be well on your way to improved health, one baby step at a time. Another small change would be to reduce the amount of red meat that is eaten each week or to add fish once a week.

Any goal can be reached if it is broken down into smaller, achievable steps. This can be very difficult at first, so find a personal trainer/fitness expert to help you get started. Improved health does not happen overnight and getting the right guidance from the start will increase the reality of staying committed to reaching your goals.

Okay you made it through the first month of your New Year’s Resolutions. How are you doing? Remember, that big step you took on January 1 was the right choice for your health and one you should be commended for. This is a life adjustment, it will not happen overnight. Meaningful change takes 3-6 months so please do not get discouraged. No matter how big or small in the end, they will all be big rewards. Not every day is going to be easy. Expect successes but be prepared for setbacks too.

“You have a choice…you could either throw in the towel or use it to wipe the sweat off of your face”-Unknown

How to handle setbacks: You have to expect setbacks. It is a reality. How you handle them will determine your success. About 71% of setbacks result in strengthened efforts in the future. The odds are in your favor so use those
setbacks to strengthen the commitment you have made to yourself. If you miss your workout today, make sure you do it tomorrow. If you go out to eat and couldn’t resist that dessert, do an extra workout the next day. Don’t give up and don’t beat yourself up with negative thoughts. Keep moving forward and reward your successes. Have a strategy in place for setbacks.

Remain positive: Hold yourself accountable for your shortcomings but continue to move forward in a positive direction. If you really can’t get the negative thoughts
out of your head throughout your day, set up a short period of time for
yourself daily to let it all out. Setting aside “negativity time” can be helpful, especially early on when some of the changes you are trying to make seem unimaginable. If you
really need to do this, set aside a short period of time in a specific location and let it all out. When you are done, move on. Continue to praise yourself for the accomplishments you have achieved. When you have negative thoughts throughout the day, stop and tell yourself to save it for later during your negativity time. This will keep your mind clear and help you become stronger and more
positive.

Rest: Your rest days are just as important as your hard, long workouts. Most adults need at least 6 hours of sleep at night. You should have at least one rest day every
week. Your muscles need time to recover and your mind needs to refresh itself.

Forgive self - Reward your successes - No one can change you but you -

Many times, people try to make resolutions that are based on the external rewards of how they look vs. those based on self-care and health. The result of this viewpoint is sabotaging weight loss with "rewarding oneself" once this magic number appears on the scale.

The true lasting changes I've witnessed in my practice are when one is taking the reins with slow baby steps and lifestyle shifts toward health and self-care. :)

These "successes" comprehensively look at blocks to success and strengths to build on in an INTEGRATED AND INDIVIDUALIZED way. This includes looking at biochemical as well as behavioral trumps.

Most people know how to monitor behaviors, great advice is found right here on this website!

Other biological clues that may trump someone I look for in a consultation are:

• Inability to modulate stress response in a healthy way
• Hormonal imbalances
• “Leaky gut” leading to malabsorption and cravings
• Suboptimal microbiota (defender bugs in our gut) preventing digestive health and feedback of "fullness"
• Continuation of chronic and underlying inflammatory reactions
• Neurotransmitter imbalances
• Unmet needs and emotional eating

Once all these are addressed with behavioral shifts and individualized the marathon goal changes occur and stick!