Over the last 10 years as a personal trainer, I have become clairvoyant in determining people’s wants and needs in terms of losing weight, gaining energy and obtaining optimal health! The questions vary from season to season, so in acknowledgment of the new year, I’m going to answer one of my most asked questions of the holiday season: “How can I stay motivated to accomplish the goals that I set for my New Year’s resolution?!”
The reason that most people don’t succeed with their New Year’s Resolutions is because they fail to start with the end in mind. They get excited about the possibilities of walking into a new year as a new person, but they never take into account the time that changing their lifestyle can take. There are going to be days when people are highly motivated, but there will also be days of much less motivation. These feelings are normal and to be expected, but if people develop ways to prevent them before they arise they stand a better chance of long term success. This is what I often call “starting with the end in mind.” What I mean by this is that if people will focus on becoming something new and enjoying the journey that it will take to get there — instead of placing the emphasis on where they currently are and what they currently don’t have — then they are much more likely to succeed long term.
I don’t set New Year’s resolutions, and I don’t believe that most people should either. When it comes to losing weight, most people will cause more detriment to their bodies and metabolism in the build up to starting a new diet than they may realize. During the holiday season, people typically gain between 8 to 12 pounds, but when those same people have weight loss as a goal for the new year they tend to overeat and indulge twice as much as they normally would because, well… “I’m going to lose all of this weight through my New Year’s resolution.”
The most successful people in the world are often viewed as daredevils and action takers. They aren’t people who set a certain moment in time to change the trajectory of their future, they simply GET SH*T DONE!!! It shouldn’t take Jan 1st, 2017 for a person to recognize that they aren’t where they want to be in life and decide only then to change it, when they have the power to change it right now! If someone truly wanted to make a lasting change in their life, they could start at the end of this sentence.
People who wait for a specific event or moment to change their lives often realize that after that moment is gone, their lost weight returns. For instance, the 15 lbs someone loses for the class reunion tends to find its way back shortly after they’ve impressed their friends with a “slimmer” appearance. The same thing happens when you lose weight for an anniversary or to appease someone else. The moment that the incentive passes, the weight comes back!
I also recommend developing a plan of action that you can implement now so that you don’t become reliant upon diets and bad information that will only prevent you from your true goals. If you need help developing a lasting lifestyle, get a copy of my book “Calories, Carbs, & Friends” on amazon.com! Stop counting calories and carbs; start analyzing your friends and the roles that you give them in your overall success! Stop setting New Year’s resolutions, and start setting daily goals that can accumulate to a much larger picture of success!
