Real Fitness Blog

According to USA.gov, the most popular New Year’s resolution of all is to lose weight. Despite the wide popularity of this goal, I would be willing to bet that by February few people have actually stuck to their resolution and have succeeded in losing weight and keeping it off. But in spite of these seemingly overwhelming odds against your success, here are some tips to help you stick to your resolutions and actually lose weight (and keep it off) if that is your goal.

Keeping a New Year’s resolution is a powerful way to take control of your life. In order to keep any resolution, there are a few basic tips you can follow. These little pieces of advice can really help you stay committed to weight loss or any other goal.

1. Have a Plan

Without a plan, it can be extremely difficult to achieve any goal. Just because you say you are going to lose weight doesn’t mean it will happen. Decide on a diet and exercise regimen beforehand and stick to it. This also can apply to any other resolution; if you want to stop smoking, have an idea of the steps you will need to take to fight addiction before you start trying to quit.

2. Be Realistic

No matter how great your diet is, you will not be able to lose 10 pounds in a week without seriously jeopardizing your health. Instead, you should aim to lose a consistant 1-3 pounds per week over the course of several months to a year (or more if necessary). If your goal is to be able to bench x amount of weight, realize that you cannot go from benching 150 to benching 250 in a month. Instead, aim to increase the amount of weight you are lifting every other time you workout (or every time if you can), therefore gradually increasing your strength until you reach your goals.

3. Make it Public

To help give you an extra bit of motivation, tell some friends about your weight loss goals. That way, your friends can keep you honest and help you persevere through temptation. This advice can also apply to virtually every other resolution. For example, if you want to start exercising daily, tell your friends and perhaps one of them will join you, which will help to keep you on track.

4. Reward Yourself

For all but the most dedicated of people, sticking to a diet for an extended period of time can be extremely difficult. To help make it easier, occasionally give yourself small rewards for your success following your diet. Now, I don’t mean that you can help yourself to a bowl of ice cream every night, but you can either allow yourself a SMALL piece of candy per night (like a peanut butter cup) or have one day of the week where you can pig out a bit (but not too much).

5. Keep a Journal

With dieting especially, keeping a journal can really help you lose weight. You could, for example, keep track of your weight as you progess through your diet, which can serve as motivation to keep going. This can really apply to practically any resolution, like recording how much you can lift to track your progress as you gain strength.

6. Set a Series of Small Goals

Instead of having your resolution be to lose 50 pounds in the year, you could instead break that weight loss up into much smaller mini-goals, making the task ahead seem less daunting. While there really is no practically effect with this, it can really make your resolution seem easier to follow.

7. Plan for Obstacles

Assuming that your resolution is actually difficult to see through (like weight loss), there are inevitably are going to be challenges along the way. Try to foresee any possible moments of temptation and plan out how you will react in accordance to your resolution. Then when a problematic situation arises, hopefully you can stick to your plan.

8. Commit

Don’t try to half-ass your way to serious weight loss; dieting and exercise take serious commitment, so you better have a strong initial commitment. Confidence that you can stay commited also can help, so just keep reminding yourself that you have pledged to see your resolution through.

So there you have it, 8 effective ways to help stick to your New Year’s resolutions. Good luck!