New Years Resolutions are a common conversation point at this time of year. Habits just don’t dissipate when a New Year arrives. In particular, one’s healthy habits are amongst the hardest ones to take up when the clock strikes 12 on 31 December.
New Year’s Resolutions: too many of us have them and too few of us hold onto promises they make. Statistics have shown that a mere 9% remain committed to their resolutions until the next 31 December arrives. This means that more than 90% fall back to the same habits after 12 months, and affirms he/she will change when we again welcome a new year.
Of all New Year’s Resolutions, more than 80% are connected to any specific form of health upgrade. The list of health goals is extensive; from losing weight, stopping smoking, or being more active, there are ample examples that came out of our surveys.
This vast number of people are looking for a personal trainer, support on habits and enrolling in gym memberships to inspire their health goals. Unfortunately, the majority of personal trainers and gyms do not provide the coaching support to create lasting change and transformation. The industry is therefore broken.
There are so many options available, one can take to redeem optimal health. Personal training programmes, online fitness training, nutrition coaching, group class workouts, CrossFit, you name it, Aspire Coaching has it stored in its exercise directory.
The options are immense.
The solutions are less so.
The key to results, long lasting change and transformation is based on coaching of habits. Workouts are easy. Joining a gym or health club is easy. Being told to do 20 reps of squats, push-ups, burpees against a clock is easy.
The transformation takes place in the coaching of habits outside of these workouts and exercise sessions.
Building sustainable habits around nutrition, energy, sleep, and stress are all essential to the end game of results and living in optimal health and fitness. It is all about habit changes and taking responsibility and becoming accountable for the actions we do want to take.
Here are recommendations to consider when truly wanting to make a healthy change;
Ask yourself WHY you want to do it
We often jump into the deep without knowing why we want to take a healthier road. There is a certain magic to committing to make that change – the turn of the annual calendar – however, we never ask ourselves why we want to do it.
Make sure you write the reason why you want to take these steps, look at them every single day, and take action.
Don’t go all out as fast as possible
Many of the failures in not upholding one’s New Year’s Resolutions is that we go all out too quickly. The chances to fall back into old habits rise exponentially as soon as you want to ditch unhealthy habits within the first month. Success in pursuing health goals lies in improving just one per cent every single day once you determine your benchmark – where are you in terms of your fitness level?
Hiring a personal fitness trainer or a nutrition coach can be a great start, as these professionals know how important it is not to push the pedal to the metal from day one.
Don’t wait for motivation – take action.
While the motivation can be fairly high when you’re in the first week of January, once normal working life starts again, too many bails. Balancing between working towards your goal and being confronted with the reality of real life is a tough nut to crack for many.
Motivation comes and goes, just like ebb and flow. It is never a constant. It is all about action and doing something, even if it is only for 2 minutes. Again, hiring a personal fitness trainer may just well be the trigger you need to take action.
Make conscious choices and block these off in your calendar
From meal preparation to blocking off your fitness sessions, the key to success is to lock in those times you know you need to do something to achieve that goal. It can be as simple as cooking more at home, going to bed 30 minutes earlier, avoiding mindless scrolling through your social media channels, and going for a morning walk.
It all may sound obvious, however, we have noticed too often that the lack of successfully continuing with New Year’s Resolutions is that people do not set up a system they can adhere to.
Throughout all the years in operation, our personal fitness trainers have regularly advised people about what they can do to kick unhealthy habits out of their lives and live like their future selves. Our consultations regularly include tips and advise, peer-reviewed from reputable health institutions which have been shown to be delivering scientific proof – be it on moving pain-free, losing weight, eating healthier, and overall, feeling better.
On behalf of the whole team, have a smashing New Year, filled with lots of good health and good fortune!
