The second Friday in January is known as “Quitters Day”, the day most people give up on their New Year’s resolutions. This year, that day was January 10th. Just 10 days in. This statistic alone can make you want to quit before you’ve even started. Thankfully, when it comes to resolutions, you don’t have to wait until a new year to make them. You can wake up tomorrow and decide to make a change. Hell, you can start right now.
Why do we give up on resolutions so quick?
The truth is, change is hard. It’s uncomfortable. And if we get right down to it, our brains are simply not wired for it. Our brains like comfort and familiarity. Anything new and different can feel scary and threatening. No wonder it’s so hard to stick to resolutions. Forming new habits means rewiring your brain. And that takes time. Far more time than 10 days.
So, how do we stick to our resolutions?
This topic has been debated ad nauseam and it seems everyone has a magic bullet solution to creating new habits. Entire self-help books have been written on the topic. I don’t have a magic solution, but I can share some things that have worked for me in my quest to improve my diet and stick to a workout plan.
Find your why
All too often what motivates change is extreme discomfort. It seems that only when we’re at our lowest, sick of our own shit, do we muster up the resolve to make a change. Whether that means finding a new job, leaving a toxic relationship or deciding to get in shape. And it makes sense. If you’re happy and content, why change? Thankfully, you can be a happy and content person and still want more for yourself. To grow, to change, to conquer. Maybe you want to be able to keep up with your kids or grandkids or fight age-related sarcopenia. No matter where you are in life, find a reason for change. That way, when things feel hard and you start questioning the point, you can remember why you started in the first place. Motivation alone won’t cut it.
Get curious
I’m a big fan of running experiments on myself. I approach change with curiosity. For example, a couple of years ago, i set out to build more muscle, specifically, glutes. In recent months, I’ve hit a plateau. I just can’t seem to get the tight, toned perky ass I’m working so hard for. I’ve studied the exercises, made sure I’m progressively overloading, training 2-3 times a week and hitting my protein goals. And yet, no progress. Instead of throwing in the towel and deciding that I am destined to live out the rest of my life with a flat ass, I got curious. I asked myself, “What might happen if I eat more?”. And so for the month of January, I’ve resolved to do just that. It’s easy to commit to because it’s just a month. Since starting, I’m paying close attention to how I feel and what changes I’m seeing or not seeing. If it doesn’t work, I’ve only lost a month. And even then, I have more data than I had before. (Spoiler alert: eating more has made me physically stronger.)
Take baby steps
I’m pretty sure there’s adequate research to support the thinking that when we try and change too much at once, we’re more likely to fail. And it makes sense if we go back to the idea that our brains are wired for comfort. If you’ve made New Year’s resolutions, great. You have an entire year to execute. Take it slow. For example, maybe like me, you want to build more muscle. Great. Good resolution. Maybe in January, you do some research on how best to approach this. Do you join a gym? Download an app? Take a class? Hire a trainer? Maybe you try them all to find the right fit for you. Next you’re going to want to implement to program to make sure you’re getting the results you’re looking for. Once you’ve got that down, you might want to explore your nutrition. Increase your protein intake, explore the right supplements to help support your goal. The moral of the story here is take your time. You have an entire year. You don’t have to come into 2025 guns blazing. Take a little time to set yourself up for success.
Put the right systems in place
The truth is, a whole lot of things have to come together to make a new habit stick. Let’s use the stated example above. You want to build more muscle this year. Here are some things you’re going to have to take into consideration to make that happen.
How much time do you have to commit to your new goal?
Many people start the new year off too hot. They commit to working out 5 days-a-week when realistically, they only have a couple hours a week to spare. So here’s a word of advice. Start slow. One or two days a week is enough to see changes. Remember, your brain is resisting the change. Too much at once and you’re likely to give up.
Where does it fit in your schedule?
Maybe the only time you have to workout is at 6am. That means you might have to up as early as 5am. That’s tough if you usually get up at 7am. Big change your brain is going to fight you on. That’s another reason to start slow. Waking up at 5am one or two days a week is a lot easier than doing it 5 days-a-week.
How will you support your efforts?
In addition to setting aside time to train, you’ll have to figure out a few more things if you’re going to build more muscle. For instance, muscle needs protein. Are you currently hitting your protein goals? Or do you have to adjust? If so, how will you get more protein into your diet? (Hint: protein powder helps.) Another thing you’re going to have to dial into is sleep. Good recovery is important. Sleep helps you do that. If you’re a crappy sleeper, you might want to adopt a bedtime routine. Do you need additional support from family and friends? Does someone need to watch your kids while you’re training or, take over dinner duties on Tuesday and Thursday evenings?
After all that, it’s easy to see why so many people quit their resolutions so quickly. When you signed up to build more muscle, you probably didn’t anticipate all the other changes you would have to make to get there. The same is true no matter what your resolutions. To be successful, you’ll likely have to create new habits and make lifestyle changes you might not have anticipated.
So are we destined to give up before we’ve even begun? That’s up to you.
Keep fighting.
Lisa
