ONELIFE FITNESS: Making Your Fitness Resolutions Stick

Beth Douglass of One Life Fitness, Gainesville

Column by Beth Douglas, General Manager of One Life Fitness, Gainesville Express

It’s back: January, and you can't go anywhere this time of year without hearing some mention New Year Resolution – weight loss, get in shape, save money – I could go on.

There is no doubt that after holiday eating and spending as well a multitude of social activities, we find ourselves in January feeling broke, overweight and out of shape.

The problem is nearly half of us are make New Year’s Resolutions, but less than 10 percent of us are actually keeping them. Whether it's lack of motivation, lack of resources or we just lose interest, it's time to make a fresh start and figure out how to finish what we’ve started.

Here are my top reasons we don't stick to their New Year's resolutions and how to keep it from happening this year.

Going it Alone

Whatever your NYR is DON’T GO IT ALONE. Outside support will give you a higher success rate, so get a buddy. A buddy will create accountability, competition and a shoulder to lean on when the going gets tough. Surround yourself with inspiring people – people who have reached the goal you are trying to achieve.

Remember your buddy should be a positive force so avoid partnering up with people who drain you mentally and/or emotionally. They will suck the success right out of you.

Unrealistic Resolutions

We have all done this, if your resolution is to run a marathon and you can’t even run a mile, I would say that’s a little lofty. Most of us create resolution that are too aggressive making us feel defeated after a short period of time. I see it every January; after a week of running you have blisters on your feet and your muscles are so sore you can’t move, and in the worst case you end up injured.

Start small and take it day by day. Instead of running a marathon, run for 20 minutes a day or even one mile a day and when that gets easy add on. Thirty minutes or 1 ½  miles and keep moving forward with small victories.

Time Management

This is a big one. Your first week in January and you are already thinking I don’t have the time to commit to my resolution. Every January people come into the club and join only to cancel their membership next January - because of time. But the reality is they stopped for the whole year because of something like a project that was due at the end of the month, and even after the project was delivered, they didn’t start back on working towards their resolution.

Don’t let obstacle stamp out your resolution. Use the time you have today, if that’s only 20 minutes then so be it. But please don’t come in the gym next January to cancel your membership because you didn’t have time to work out one week in the previous January, especially if you can tell me what happened in Season 7 of Game of Thrones.

Lack of Honesty

Do you really see yourself running a marathon, do you even like running? Are you committed to running? Be honest to yourself first. Sometime we make resolution because we think should. Don’t make a resolution that you have no intention on keeping. If your resolution last year was the same as year's, start dissecting why you failed last year.  Maybe you don’t like running. Make resolution that you actually want to achieve and make a plan.

No Plan

A resolution without a plan of action is like a car without wheels. You will get no where quick. So many people set themselves up for failure by not making a plan. Simple put if you don’t have a plan you have not fully committed to your resolution.

If you want to be successful in attaining your resolution this year, create a plan to help achieve it. Break your resolution down into smaller daily goals so you achieve something immediately, then weekly, monthly, quarterly and finally you will be there.

Giving Up to Soon

Sometimes when the going gets tough the tough give up. Whether you are discouraged or you have lost interest instead of inches, giving up is sometime much easier the marching on. If we make our resolution with a genuine belief that we can accomplish them, why does the excitement and motivation wear off in February?  PRIORITIES other priorities start kicking in.

Don’t let this happen to you! Set a check in date, maybe the 28^th of every month, and really set a 2-hour time slot on your calendar. This is a great way to reinforce your resolution and give yourself time to reflect on failure reason and accomplishment reasons before you move into the next month.  Keep the momentum going!

Not Believing in Yourself                                                                                           

Sometimes we are putting in the work and we feel like there is no reward. Congratulate yourself for each milestone- your first run without stopping within five minutes, first day of clean eating. Reward your efforts because we only have control over two things in life our effort and our attitude.

Remember, success is not found on the top of mountain, success is found in the story of the climb.

You got this!

Beth Douglas is the general manager at Onelife Fitness Gainesville Express on Limestone Drive. You can email Beth any questions about your health and fitness goals at beth@onelifefitness.com.